I recently bought one and don't have much semi-auto experience. Been reading up on it and probably want to go with cast coated (bayou, sns,bbi, etc) Apparently swc are a no go with this gun. I checked under the slide as suggested by some. I'd like to know what some of you have found to be the most reliable and most accurate bullets for it. Are fp's ok? 230 or 200 gn? Any suggestions appreciated. Thanks!
xd 45 tactical
1 - 17 of 17 Posts
Very nice handgun. I have a 45 Service. Any good brand FMJ should be just fine for target/Iplinlking. I load and shoot 230 FMJ for the most part. I have some 230 Hornady HAP FP but I have not loaded them up yet. I'm planning to use them for my XD and 1911. If you are new to reloading, start off with FMJ. Lead is a little harder to load and can cause leading in your barrel if your velocities are too high.
Joined
·
3,491 Posts
You can load cast coated to whatever you want, good performance and almost no leading or smoke with most powder. I'm not sure where you found that SWC's are a no-go in the XD - that's why SWC's were designed. They combine the WC characteristics with better feeding. You'll just have to find OAL your pistol likes.
Much of my net research is saying that. They're saying that the XDm slide was designed to reliably feed swc to prevent ejecting shell catching on the swc shoulder of the next round to feed in mag ) some seemed to imply that newer XD's had a hump redesigned on the bottom of the slide to keep the next round off the ejecting brass and to check for it which I did. My slide does not have it.
Joined
·
2,473 Posts
There are several round nose and round nose flat point bullets of the coated variety available in 200 and 230grn. Those should work just fine. I have used a lot (I think it is over 4000 so far) of the SNS coated bullets mostly in 9mm. They operate at pressures at least 1/3 higher than those would in .45 with no leading and fine accuracy. I would not hesitate to use them in your caliber. Two of my guns are older XD types that I use for 9mm. One is a Tactical that began life as a .40, but also sports a 9mm conversion barrel. It feeds the round nose flat point 147grn bullets without flaw, and I'm sure your .45 variant will do likewise.
I would avoid the SWC designs with your pistol. Fred has some experience with them in an XD type and, if I recall, it didn't go that well. You could damage a magazine if the extracting case hangs up on the SWC still in the magazine as it tries to feed. There is nothing to be gained by insisting on trying the SWC in a gun not meant to shoot them.
I would avoid the SWC designs with your pistol. Fred has some experience with them in an XD type and, if I recall, it didn't go that well. You could damage a magazine if the extracting case hangs up on the SWC still in the magazine as it tries to feed. There is nothing to be gained by insisting on trying the SWC in a gun not meant to shoot them.
I just checked the sns site and they seem to have a good price on the 230 rn 1k. Since the sites are fixed on this gun I'm guessing that they're probably set for 230 gn at average shooting distance.
Joined
·
2,879 Posts
200 gr. RNFP coated bullets are pretty versatile as well. That's all I shoot outside of 200 gr. SWCs and JHPs of various weights. Some believe there's a recoil advantage in pushing a heavier bullet slower, but with a bit of safety margin thrown in at say 170 PF, that's 850 FPS and the 200 gr. RNFPs can easily be loaded faster if necessary. Maybe others can discern a difference but at 170 PF, bullet weight doesn't matter much and the lower powder charge thing gets kinda overblown, IMO.
I'm still loading with the last cast 200 gr. SWCs I have (BulletWorks). I've used the Blue Bullet's 200 gr. RNFP and it's a great bullet. Unfortunately, they dropped my favorite 9mm, 125 gr. RN (SWC type) but SNS has them and JSG has been telling me good things about SNS for quite some time. That's who I'll order from next time around.
I'm still loading with the last cast 200 gr. SWCs I have (BulletWorks). I've used the Blue Bullet's 200 gr. RNFP and it's a great bullet. Unfortunately, they dropped my favorite 9mm, 125 gr. RN (SWC type) but SNS has them and JSG has been telling me good things about SNS for quite some time. That's who I'll order from next time around.
Joined
·
12,197 Posts
I agree! One of the guys shooting at my club is in search of the Holly Grail of light recoiling 45acp for major. He is shooting a 255gr bullet @ 670fps, thinks it is sooo much less recoil, but I have fired it & don't see the diff between it and my 205gr @ 820Fps load? I have a good feel for the recoil thing, why I like WST so much, it "feels" softer shooting than the vel indicates.I'm still loading with the last cast 200 gr. SWCs I have (BulletWorks). I've used the Blue Bullet's 200 gr. RNFP and it's a great bullet. Unfortunately, they dropped my favorite 9mm, 125 gr. RN (SWC type) but SNS has them and JSG has been telling me good things about SNS for quite some time. That's who I'll order from next time around.
Joined
·
2,473 Posts
Hi Fred... Like you, I have noticed that some powders, even though they provide the same or better velocities with a particular bullet, will seem to produce less recoil. WST seems that way in .45, while Silhouette seems that way with 180grn bullets in .40. Longshot, though some people say is louder than most (it is a slower pistol powder so still may be burning as it exits some barrels), also seems to provide less recoil in several calibers for the same velocities as other powders. I guess it has to do with the burn rate under a specific bullet, or at least the ignition rate and maybe longer, flatter pressure curve in a particular application.
Recoil sensitivity is most likely a pretty "personal" thing, and no two people will feel it the same way. Some seem to prefer more "rapid" powders that deliver all the recoil in a brief amount of time, while others, like me, seem to prefer powders that give a longer "push" vs. the sharp hit of faster propellants. 'Merica! buy what you like.
Joined
·
2,879 Posts
Absolutely agree, Fred. WST does produce soft shooting loads with any of the 200s I've used. Only have the 4.8 gr. charge left to try with the BulletWorks 200 gr. SWC and I'll do that tomorrow. I'm hoping it will be the one, but if not I'll probably settle for the 4.7 gr. load. BTW, I had a pretty interesting experience going from 4.9 to 5.0 grs. with this bullet. 4.9 grs. produced 833 FPS from my 4.5" SR45 with an SD of 11. The velocity increase was fairly linear in comparison to the lighter loads. But, when I went to 5.0 grs., velocity jumped up to 879 FPS which surprised me. SD was 9 and it was a great load but for that type of velocity I can do better with True Blue which I'm trying to reserve for JHPs. Hodgdon data goes up to 5.1 grs. where at 5.0 it appears I'm only losing 20 FPD from the 4.5" barrel So, I want to continue on with WST for cast and poly-coated because we can get it. 4.7 grs. is pretty sweet at 823 FPS with SD at 10 and it's comfy to shoot, so if I can't do better with 4.8, the 4.7 gr. load is good enough.
Depending on what powders can be found, I might look for something comparable to WST and I'm leaning a bit towards AA #2 that's also bulky for its chargeweight. Don't know about Solo 1000 coming from Spain and all and it is a flake powder, but since its single-based, I might get around to it.
Joined
·
12,197 Posts
Only negs I've heard about s1000, from guys that actually use it, is quite a swing from lot to lot. Maybe not a Big deal If you buy two 8# of the same lot, but buying singles, could be a Bigger issue.
I keep looking for wst, I want to buy 16#, should keep me busy for 3-4yrs of shooting. Wst is also great in 9 or 40 minor powder. Just 3gr runs my xdm 40/5.25 @ 130pf.
I keep looking for wst, I want to buy 16#, should keep me busy for 3-4yrs of shooting. Wst is also great in 9 or 40 minor powder. Just 3gr runs my xdm 40/5.25 @ 130pf.
Joined
·
2,473 Posts
Hi Fred... The last time I tried WST in the 40 I was using 180grn lead bullets and used 3.6grns which gave around 146pf in a 5" Tactical. I am surprised that your 130pf load would run your 5.25 if you are using a stock recoil spring. I guess I'll have to try your lighter load in one of my guns. What was your OAL and what bullet where you using?
Joined
·
2,879 Posts
Yeah, that's mainly why I haven't tried it. I'm not particularly fond of flake powders and if I used one I'd prefer it be single-based. If it wasn't being discontinued I'd buy some SR 7625 if I found it. I've only known for a year or so that S 1000 comes from Spain. Not exactly known as a gunpowder Mecca among European powder producing countries. I have no problem using WST in minor type or bunnyfart loads in the case of .45 ACP. So long as it's available we'll continue to use it. I've never used AA #2. but like that it's a bulky, low density ball-type like WST. Back when I had more ZIP, I mainly used it for cast loads in .45 ACP and formed a similar opinion about it like I hold for W231. They work well enough but have actually worked better at higher pressure in 9mm. With the 124 gr. MG JHP loaded at 1.142"/29mm, 4.8 grs. of ZIP chrono'd 1060 FPS (131.4 PF) with an SD of 8 from my SR9 with very good accuracy. Thing is, I can't get ZIP locally where I can get 231 if I want it. The biggest digfference between them is that ZIP burns cleaner, but I don't consider W231 all that dirty. WST is better than either for light cast loads in .45 ACP.
Joined
·
12,197 Posts
Sorry, dropped to a 14#, runs a 175-176gr bullet @ 740fps in my 5.25". Red dot is actually a bit more accurate, but the wst is softer shooting at identical vel in my gun. Both will do under 1.5" @ 50ft offhand.
I use my own cast from range scrap, 10bhn, but did initial load work with some Missouri 175gr. One is the old Lyman 175gr RP for the 38-40, the other I a modern RCBS 170grtcfp. Both come out sized/lubed @ 176-177gr. I load all my cast to 1.130".
Joined
·
2,473 Posts
Ok... I would have thought as much about the recoil spring. 1.130 is similar to my OAL for lead too.
1 - 17 of 17 Posts
Join the discussion
Join now to ask and comment!