.45 load and 165pf

[Dman]

We just ran some loads based on 200 gr swc lead and 4.2 gr of clays, 1.250 oal and crimped at .469. This load avg. was around 858 -870 fps putting it in the 171-174 pf. I know I need to stay above the 165pf. But how close should I cut it? Will dropping to 4.1 get me to close to the floor? This was the 1st time loading Clays and it sure seemed a tad smokey. Is the vv310 load talked about here cleaner and with less smoke? Thanks for all of your help. This is the best place on the net!

[Carlos]

I have shot Clays with lead, plated, and jacketed bullets in .45.Likely the smoke came entirely from the lube on the lead bullets - not the Clays powder. To cut down on smoke, you will have to switch to a plated or jacketed bullet. Westcoast makes an excellent 200grn plated SWC in .45 that I used with straight, regular, plain old Clays throughout my first season in USPSA. If you want to cut some (but not all) the smoke and still use cast bullets, try some of the molly coated ones like the "black bullet" (are these lazercast's maybe??).

On the other hand, if the same bullet at same velocity and same OAL smokes less with other powders (not sure how you would be able to tell) then the culprit would seem to be incomplete ignition of the Clays. lthough rare and unlikely in your case, I had this problem once with long loaded plated 185grns in .45 - there was so much case volume, the powder was not fully igniting and there was more smoke. I now use the 185 load data for Clays from the Lee manual. It works.

[Patrick Sweeney]

How close you can cut a load to the threshold for Major is not determined by its average, but by its spread.  If you have a load that runs a 200 gr bullets 830 fps, with a spread of plus or minus 1 fps, you don't need to change it.  (Assuming no changes in temperature or altitude, fat chance of that.)

However, if you have a load that runs at 850 fps, but the spread is +/- 50 fps, you are cutting it too close.

The old rule was chrono ten rounds, and have every single one of them over the minimum.  It would probably leave you at about....175PF.  Sounds to me like you're done testing.