Is a gas check necessary for lead .45 acp?

[B yond]

Thinking about reloading with lead bullets for my ruger p345 in 45 acp. If the dia. of the bullet is .451, the same as a fmj bullet, do I really need a gas check? I apologize if this is a dumb question, I'm new to reloading.

 

[loadedround]

I have never seen anyone shoot gas checked 45ACP bullets in my 45 years of reloading. You simply can't shoot lead bullets fast enough out of a .45 fast enough to cause leading. Most lead loads exit between 750 to 850 fps and if you need something faster switch to a jacket bullet. An extremly rough bore will cause leading, but a gas check won't prevent that...only a jacket bullet will.

 

[lee n. field]

Is a gas check necessary for lead .45 acp?

No.

 

[Walkalong]

Nope, not even close.

 

[davinci]

you could shoot them, I can't see it causing an issue...but it's definitely not going to help anything.

 

[B yond]

Great. Thanks for the timely responses guys.

 

[Sharps Shooter]

Exactly what everyone else said PLUS if the lead bullets you're intending to use are not designed to accept gas checks, you can't put gas checks on them. A gas check type bullet has a "heeled" base - a little step where the gas check fits. Personally, I don't shoot bullets designed to accept gas checks without the gas checks installed, but some people do and from what I've heard, have had decent results.
One more thing - As I've never ran across any, I reckon lead gas check type .45ACP bullets are kind of rare. Are you sure the lead bullets you're intending on using in your .45ACP are gas check types? I'm not making fun of your question. I asked the same one more than 30 years ago when I started loading my own ammo. Only I asked about installing gas checks on those Speer swaged lead .357 bullets after badly leading up the barrel on a Ruger Blackhawk.

 

[Hazzard]

No. A GC is not required for 45ACP.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

Not necessary.

Most Hard Cast Lead bullets won't lead up the barrel until you push them over 1,200 fps. The softer ones are safe below 1,000 fps. Most .45 ACP recipes will keep you under 1,000 fps with many under 900 fps. I would say you are very safe loading .45 ACP with Lead bullets.

I just started reloading 9mm with Cast bullets and I've kept them ~1,000 fps and so far no leading.

 

[Snapping Twig]

Another trick to avoid leading is to oversize the bullet by .001, like .358 for a .357, keeps the gas from getting around the bullet and melting it a hair.

Good lube is a must, I like Alox, but there's plenty good ones out there.

I shoot same size, ie: .452 for .452 and I cast WW - no leading so far.

 

[jungleroy]

No I Don't think it necessary to have a gas check on a lead slug in a 45auto.
I cast them out super hard with 10% tin and leading is not a problem.
I also cast soft 45 slugs that are just slightly harder than frozen butter, and still no leading problems in my Sig P220.
.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

In the unlikely event you do get a little lead in the barrel you can always fire a few FMJ rounds through the barrel before you leave the range to clean out the lead.

 

[Deanimator]

NEED it? Not unless you're pushing them very hard.

For the standard bullseye target load of a 200gr. LSWC and 3.8-4.0gr. of Bullseye, you'll never need a gas check.

Moderate loads with hard cast bullets won't need a gas check.