45 Colt Ammo
About
The .45 Colt Ammo, also known as .45 Long Colt Ammo, is straight-walled, rimmed handgun bullet that was designed in 1872 and manufactured in the next year, 1873. The .45 Colt Ammo was initially created as a black-powder round for revolvers. For 14 years, the .45 Colt Ammo served as an official handgun for the United States military since 1873. The modern .45 Colt Ammo loadings use smokeless powder. The .45 Colt Ammo cartridge is an inside lubricated type, meaning it was completely safe from dirt and grit during handling, making it quite popular. The .45 Colt Ammo remains popular in Cowboy Action Shooting, while the bullet is also used in handgun hunting and target shooting competitions. The overall length of this bullet is 40.6mm, while the diameter measures 11.5mm. The .45 Colt Ammo can travel at a velocity of 1,125 feet per second while creating an energy level of 450 ft.lbf.
Manufacturer
The .45 Colt Ammo resulted from a joint operation between Colt's Patent Firearms Manufacturing Company and the Union Metallic Cartridge Company in the United States in 1872.
Uses
The .45 Colt Ammo still remains in use 148 years after its introduction and is widely used in hunting medium to big game like deer, elk, and black bear. The heavier variants of the .45 Colt Ammo create enough penetrating power to take down the heavy game easily.
The .45 Colt was introduced in 1873 to be chambered in Colt’s Model 1873 Single Action Army revolver. It was adopted by the US Army as the standard issue handgun and served in this capacity for 14 years. It started as a Benet primed, black powder cartridge but was updated to a Boxer primed cartridge in 1874 and modern loads use smokeless propellants.
.45 Colt (.45 Long Colt) History
.45 Colt (.45 Long Colt) Usage
.45 Colt (.45 Long Colt) Usage
The .45 Colt is a popular choice today for Cowboy Action Shooters and some hunters of medium sized big game using lever action rifles or carbines and paired with revolvers chambered for the same cartridge.
.45 Colt (.45 Long Colt) Trivia
Rifles were not chambered in .45 Colt until the latter part of the 20th Century in response to the Cowboy Action Shooting sport. Most modern revolvers will not safely fire +P or “hot loads” so care must be taken on firearm selection if planning on use for hunting. The name “.45 Long Colt” started as a distinction between the Colt and Smith & Wesson .45 caliber cartridges since the Colt was longer and could not be loaded in revolvers chambered for the Smith & Wesson cartridge.
.45 Colt (.45 Long Colt) Trivia
.45 Colt (.45 Long Colt) Design
.45 Colt (.45 Long Colt) Design
The .45 Colt is a rimmed straight walled cartridge with an overall length of 1.6” and a case capacity of 41.6 grains (H2O). It fires a .452” diameter bullet and uses large pistol primers with a maximum pressure of 14,000 PSI.
.45 Colt (.45 Long Colt) Types
Ammunition options are cast lead, hard cast, soft point, and hollow point with weights ranging from 160 to 300 grains. The rounded or flat nose bullets make this a safe cartridge for tubular magazines of lever or pump action rifles.