Recommendations for least expensive .45 ammo

[Guest Nikator]

I need to get some .45 ammo for my first handgun chambered for that round. I travel for work frequently and don't mind going outside of Williamson county. I'll be down in Tullahoma tomorrow, leaving from Spring Hill. Anyone know where to find the best prices? I don't care if its a reload or original from the factory. I'd prefer to buy from a shop as I'm looking to shoot this weekend.

[DavidD]

As much as I hate to say it, Wal Mart...

[Patton]

As much as I hate to say it: Tula brand ammo from Walmart.

[Guest 6.8 AR]

Handloads!

[peejman]

Buying a box, wal-mart. Buying a case... lots of online places.

[Jonnin]

I have found some "factory reloads" or whatever you call them (small companies that have their FFL and such allowing the sale of their ammo) at gun shows, and the cheapest .45 was about $10 a box. I could not point to your local reloaders or anything but if you look hard enough, you will find it. Most of these places do NOT sell it on the web because they cannot meet the demand -- several times I have bough out a vendor in a caliber which means I bought 5 boxes...

[Guest FroggyOne2]

What 6.8 said.. Your own handloads.

[Caster]

Handloads!

What 6.8 said.. Your own handloads.

I'll go too, roll your own.....and start casting!

[Guest Nikator]

What 6.8 said.. Your own handloads.

I wish I could. I'm relatively new to gun collecting. I'm planning on reloading in the future but I haven't taken the plunge yet. I will be saving my brass and picking up what I see at the range when I go.

[QuietDan]

Get a lee classic handloader and a good hammer.

Classic Loader 45 ACP

This is the cheapest way to "taste test" reloading. A pound of powder, some cast bullets, a tray of primers. With your attention to detail, very accurate ammo.

The stuff pays for itself after a couple hundred rounds. I bet there are handloaders on this very forum that have built a spreadsheet that can tell you just exactly how many rounds for break-even.

And, it's very therapeutic. Nothing like working with explosives with a hammer!

[peejman]

Personally, I would never use someone else's reloads. $0.20/rd compared to $0.50/rd sounds like a great savings until you blow up a $500+ gun with no recourse.

If you plan to shoot a lot, do your own reloading or buy in bulk.

[gregintenn]

Winchester white box at WalMart. You could buy stuff that's a bit cheaper, but not much.

[Lumber_Jack]

My guns will run the Tulla Ammo from Walmart but is only slightly cheaper than Winchester White Bix 100 packs, and I keep the brass(Tulla is steel cased)

If you want to buy bulk, Georgia Arms travels to gun shows. Thats not bargain basement, but its a good deal for good ammo.

Sent from my Mom's basement

[red dirt]

I've had good luck with sportsmansguide.com however just went in on a reloader with a friend so that will be my new .45 and 9mm source for range ammo.

[Guest Nikator]

Winchester white box at WalMart. You could buy stuff that's a bit cheaper, but not much.

Confirmed. Checked a few shops. Tula brand is $16+ 50 rounds at Walmart in Murfreesboro. White Box Winchester 100 rounds $31.97 in Cool Springs.

[packingvol]

This is a pretty smokin deal:

Cope's Distributing

Bout $17 a box shipped for nickel plated UMC.

[Guest BrianJ]

This is what I use when target practicing with my 1911: Champion 45 ACP 230gr FMJ - WM5233

[Guest BrianJ]

But if you are just looking for cheap ammo: CCI Blazer .45 ACP 230gr FMJ 50rd

[SavageSig]

If you wanted cheap, you should have picked up a 9mm. I would recommend getting a .22 conversion if it's available for the pistol you purchased. And I would +1 on not buying someone else's handloads...it's not worth saving 20-30 cents a round to have your gun blow up in your hand.

[Dolomite_supafly]

I can now shoot 45 ACP cheaper than quality .22 lr. Still working on cheaper than cheap .22 but I am still about $.01 away from that. And that is not some miserly, weak load but full power, 230 grain loads.

How do I do it?

I cast my own bullets from free wheel weights. Primers run about $.03 each and the powder I use is about $.02 for each round. You can even find the Tula primers for $20/1,000. That would get your cost to under $.04 each. You could even use an even miserly powder with the Tula and probably get the total to $.03 each.

So I am able to load each round for $.05 each. It does take some labor but your labor is free unless you are talking off of work to reload. I am using a load of Power Pistol which is giving me ~1,000 rounds per pound. I am using CCI primers that cost me $32/1000. Total cost per round is 5.2 cents per loaded round.

Even if you bought the bullets and did not cast the cost would only be 13 cents a round. And again the labor is free.

I just sent a list off to another member of what it would take to reload 45. It isn't very expensive to get into the reloading game. You would break even in under 500 loaded rounds.

Dolomite

[Caster]

^That's Right!!!

I do 9x19 for about the same. Maybe a penny less. It does more than save you money too. It gives you yet another aspect to get hands on with your hobby, ensuring that you remain un-fazed by boredom. There's much to learn, much to experiment with and with success comes pride you can't buy with money.

[Dolomite_supafly]

And Caster is the one who helped me make the jump to casting. I thought it was rocket science but he told me it wasn't. And after about 10 minutes I was casting perfect bullets. It is easier than I ever thought it was.

Dolomite

[Guest Nikator]

If you wanted cheap, you should have picked up a 9mm. I would recommend getting a .22 conversion if it's available for the pistol you purchased. And I would +1 on not buying someone else's handloads...it's not worth saving 20-30 cents a round to have your gun blow up in your hand.

I was asking for recommendations on where to buy the least expensive .45 ammo. If you would have read the thread you would have seen that two posters provided good recommendations.

[Dolomite_supafly]

Another great thing about casting is I am pretty much self sufficient now. The single most expensive component to loaded ammunition is the bullet and I make my own now. I have plenty of powder and primers. My goal has been to get as much lead as I can get my hands on and cast them into manageable chunks.

Dolomite