.45 ACP ammunition/ cheap?

Question

What is the cheapest .45 ACP ammo available that will not hurt the gun and functions properly.

Bought some Mexican stuff, just under 15usd a box. Haven't tried it, does it work?

The cheapest I can find in my catalogs is just under 12usd a box, Blazer. Speer bullets w/ CCI primers. Is this stuff OK? I notice the local range does not allow it, why?

Where do you guys get your .45acp? I look for sales at Sporting Goods stores but I also want to know of a steady supply that has a consistently low price. Thanks for any help.

How much would it cost me to get the most basic reloading setup? How many rounds would I have to reload to break even.

I have a furnace already, so I can melt lead.

I still don't understand the range regulation. If it is so they can sell that brass, they have to sort different types of brass out anyway so wouldn't it not matter? Also, they allow us to shoot steel ammo such as wolf.

I assume it has sometihng to do with the aluminum casing but I don't know what the actual problem is.

Answer 1

Blazer ammunition is perfectly fine for practice.

Likely the reason the range doesn't allow it is because the case is aluminum and non reloadable.

Many ranges sell the spent brass for salvage or to commercial reloading operations.

Allowing aluminum cased ammo means they will have to sort it out before they can get their pound price for it, so all ammo shot at the range has to be brass cased.

As stated Blazer ammo is inexpensive and perfectly good for practice .. and competition too by the way.

Answer 2

Personally, I load my own. While it is "cheaper" per bullet, the price doesn't take into account the cost of my time. I don't much care, because I enjoy it, but you might feel differently.

The cheapest commercially, commonly available ammo that I've found is CCI Blazer. You mention that your range doesn't allow it, and that may be because the cases for the cheapest Blazer ammo are not brass. However, CCI also makes a cartridge with a brass case called, appropriately, "Blazer Brass." It's a brass case with a jacketed lead bullet, so I can't think of any reason that a range would prohibit its use, except that they make money when you have to buy your ammo from them.

Blazer Brass is available from Wal-Mart for about $11 or $12 per box of 50.

Answer 3

Cheapest Reliable source i have been able to find is Walmart

Generally about $25 - $30.00 per hundred rounds... about 250 - 300 per thousand for Winchester "White Box" (WWB)

Occasionally, I can pick up some American Eagle from a Show a few times a year... about 260 Per thousand rounds

I save the brass and have someone re-load them for me.
not all ranges allow for re-loads (which is why some fo the posts here say to reload, and check with the range). My range allows for re-loads, lead or otherwise. Some can also re-load with a full Metal Jacket (FMJ) and slide in under the re-load policy... if you save the original boxes

WWB has exccellent brass for reloading

Answer 4

I purchase Winchester .45 ACP at walmart for 27 bucks for 100 rounds They also have CCI Blazers for $13 something for 50 rounds there.

Prices there have not changed much in the last year but they will never have a sale on them unless they are getting rid of a product.

Answer 5

Surprisingly, the Mexican stuff is pretty good. At least the .22 ammo that I bought was and I assume that all of it is equally as good. That's what I've been told,anyway.

The thing about the Blazer ammo is that several years ago, a rumor went around about Blazer ammo blowing up and hurting people. It wasn't true but it was told and retold so many times that peole just accepted it as fact. One of the outdoor magazines did a survey to find if there was any documented case of Blazer ammo blowing up and none could be found. It was all rumor. Unfortunately, so many people expressed a fear of Blazer ammo that ranges had to ban it in order to keep theri customers happy even though they were misinformed. Add to this the fact that Blazer is made with aluminum cases that cannot be reloaded and have to be picked out of the range brass by hand, and one can see why ranges do not want it. It's safe but just a pain in the butt to range operators. The reason that they don't have a problem with steel cases is that they can be easily removed with a good magnet.

If you are on a limited budget and want to get set up in reloading, I would recommend that you look at the Lee reloading kit. Not the Lee Loader, although there is nothing wrong with it, it is just not made to load very much ammo at a time. The Lee reloading kit is a kit which contains everything that you need to get started loading ammo except the dies. I'm pretty sure that you have to buy them separately. The Lee kit is pretty basic but will get the job done. If you have a slightly larger pocket book, I would recommend that you go with either Dillon or RCBS. They are tops. Well made and will last a lifetime. But..... you are talikng a bit more money. I haven't looked at the catalogs in a long while so I don't know what the current prices are but I'd expect that you could get going with a Lee kit and dies for under $150. It shouldn't be much more than that. A Dillon or RCBS will set you back about twice as much, maybe more, but it is good stuff. All of my reloading stuff is RCBS and I have been using it for over 30 years. It still works as well as the day I brought it home.

For components, I like to use Starline brass, Remington primers and Oregon Trail's Laser Cast bullets. If you want to cast your own bullets, you will ned to get a lead pot, a ladel and a bullet mold. I use Lee molds because they are a good bit cheaper than the others and they come with handles. They are accurately made but are made of aluminum. They won't rust like the steel ones but the sprue cutter can gall a bit and you have to be careful of that. I have cast thousands of bullets with my Lee molds and have never worn one out. If you cast your own bullets, you can use wheel weights. They make pretty good bullet alloy but they are dirty. Always melt lead only when you have excellent ventillation. Lead fumes are toxic. I haven't had to buy lead an many years but just several months ago, I decideed to restock my lead supply with some lead wheel weights from the local tire store. They usually have a big bucketful that they have rremoved from wheels when they put on new tires. The last time I had gotten some, I had paid only like 10 cents per pound for them. This time the price had gone up to $1 per pound. The guy at the tire store said that he understood that soon wheel weights were going to be made from something other than lead. He didn't know what but it wouldn't be lead because of the toxicity of the lead. So, that source may be drying up. If you use plumbing lead, it is too soft and needs some tin and antimony added to it. There are places that sell bars of tin and antimony but it ain't cheap. If you choose to use jacketed bullets, you can find them in bulk for about 12 cents apiece. Primers will run you about 3 cents apiece, I think. I haven't bought any for a couple of years so I am not sure of the current prices. When I buy supplies, I buy in large amounts and they last me a few years. Where another reloader may buy a couple hundred primers, I will buy a couple thousand. and where another reloader may buy a box of a hundred bullets at a time, I may buy a couple boxes of 500. I used to buy my powder in 5 pound cans but today it is hard to find these 5 pound cans and, besides, there is not much savings over just buying a pound at a time and I don't have to have my wife worrying about all that powder in our basement.

How long does it take to break even, you ask? Well, as you can see, it depends on a lot and it would be hard for me to answer. In general, I'd say that you can expect to save at least half on your reloaded ammo and maybe more depending on how well you shop and how well you police up your brass at the range. The other benefit to reloading is being able to brew up whatever you want to shoot, withiin reason. Light loads, heavy loads and all in between. Plus you can use different bullets, jacketed, cast, etc. and the thing about it is that it is fun.

Answer 6

If by mexican stuff you mean Aguila ammo, that's all I shoot for plinking. It's good ammo, clean, reliable, a little on the hot side too. It's also the cheapest brass cased ammo I've seen, if you don't mind aluminum cased ammo try the blazer, if you don't mind steel cased ammo try wolf, it's dirty, it's reliable, it's 9 bucks for 50.
Their 22 ammo is great too, but it's dirty and the eley primers stink.

Answer 7

Reloading the .45 ACP with cast lead bullets is the cheapest way to go. Let me give you some idea of cost.
1000 cast bullets- approx $28
1000 primers- approx $21
1 lb powder approx $22
Total cost of 1000 rounds - approx $71

You can get a press, dies, and a powder measure for under $200. It pays for itself in the savings in the long run.

Answer 8

as a police officer in texas we were warned not to shoot reloads.we tried them at the department range. they worked well in a revolver but had too many probs with the auto guns.for $25 per boc you cam get the the winchester ammo that has the black talon. it is the same bullet as the talon without the coating.this is all we now carry.just like in other things you get what you pay for.i get my ammo on the website gunbroker,com .
------retired texas deputy sheriff------

Answer 9

CCI Blazer

Answer 10

did you ever think of casting your own bullets and reloading them, that's the cheapest way, check out lee reloading for more info