I am a brand new member. Have been "lurking" for a few days, and have had many of my questions answered. I started to post on the political forums, but decided not to stir that pile quite yet. I bought a Lyman Spartan press and dies, a pound of Unique, primers, scale, powder measure, pocket cleaner, etc. in 1973 to load for my brand new .45 Blackhawk. It became an old model just a few months later. I quickly settled on 10 gr.Unique, 255 gr. lswc as a good all around load. Move forward to 1993. Bought a Lee Pro 1000 and loaded probably 2000 rounds. Bought 10 lbs Unique, 6000 large pistol primers (Winchester) and put 'em in 50 cal ammo cans with moisture absorbent material, which I have never changed out. Stored the powder on closet shelves, in original unopened containers, in proverbial cool dry place. Central heat/air, about 72 degrees year 'round. First question: do I need to toss the powders and primer and start anew? I figured to load 200-300 rounds and try them. About 5 yrs ago my brother gave me a RCBS vibratory case cleaner for Christmas. I have never used it, but somehow the instructions have been lost. I think it says 3 1/2 qt capacity. Second question: How much media to put in with how many .45 lc cases, and how long to process? What is an easy way to separate the media from the shells? Is it necessery to inspect each case to make sure it does not have media left in it? I understand that I should use a vinegar soak before polishing or cleaning in the cleaner.
I still like the 10 gr Unique load. My nephew has recently started Cowboy Action shooting, and wants me, at the ripe old age of 54, to start. I understand that they mostly use squib loads, or factory loads that are very mild. By the way, he killed a nice 7 pt 150 lb. buck with one of his factory cowboy loads in a rifle. Heart shot, it ran about 20 yds and dropped. I don't know what brand, but judging from the bang and the recoil, it isn't even equal to the old 750 fps factory load. Another question: Are the Valiant cast bullets still available? I used to buy that brand at gun shows in Macon and Columbus, GA. I believe the guy was from Alabama. I really liked those bullets. Still have about 1500, and would like more. One last question and I'll quit. What is wrong with Unique powder? Is it still available? (that was two, wasn't it) I saw a thread on this or another forum about favorite loads for .45 lc, and only one respondent listed a Unique load. That's enough for now. Looking to reap the benefits of your collective expertise.

I am still shooting ammo that I loaded in the 1970's. Open a can of your powder, and check it's appearance. If it still gives off a smell like ether, and there are no signs of red powder or red clumping of the powder grains, it is OK. Properly made smokeless powder, if kept in sealed factory containers in a cool, dry environment, will last "indefinitely". Same for primers. When I was on an Army pistol team, at one time we were issued .45 ball ammo for practice that had been loaded at a U.S. arsenal-during WWI!! It was marked "17", ie, 1917! It was not quite accurate enough for match shooting, but it all fired! And it was plenty good enough for practice shooting.

ditto to what eldeguello said.... powder and primers will last a long, long time, if stored in the "cool, dry place"....
I'm pretty sure Unique is still being made, but I think it's been modified slightly to make it cleaner burning. I'm not sure if the burn rate is still the same, although I would think it would be....
.... on your case cleaner... I have never soaked any brass in vinegar before cleaning. That's the job of the media... I use treated crushed corncob media, and it lasts quite a while before it loses it's "stuff".... I DO check each case after cleaning, to make sure no granules have gotten stuck in the primer flash-hole. If you turn each case upside down and rap it on the side of the bowl, the media usually just drains right out of the bottle-necked cases... straight-walled pistol cases empty out easily.
I personally use WW231 for my moderate loads in my Ruger Blackhawk... I shoot a 255gr bullet at about 1050-1100 fps. Very pleasant load to shoot... Much easier on my "flinches" than my full house loads.

Dirt Farmer, yes indeed, Unique is still being made, and is one of the all time great powders. I use 8.5 grains Unique, in front of a 255 gr. hard cast bullet, which gives me 865 FPS from my Blackhawk .45 Colt with 4 5/8" bbl., and the same from my Colt's S.A. New Frontier 4 3/4" bbl.

As said above, you shouldn't have anything but good results from the Unique you've had stored. I recently loaded 500 rounds of .45 Colt, the above load, with some 22 year old (I date everything as to when purchased and when opened!!) "new" Unique, and used some WW Large Pistol Primers, same date, and got those chronographed velocities I listed.

If you get into SASS/CAS shooting, you might drop that Unique load down to 7.2 grains. That'll work fine for SASS, and won't beat you to death when you cap off a whooole bunch of them.

Best of luck.

L.W.

Under the conditions you've stored them, powder and primers are good virtually forever. Alliant still has a test sample of the very first lot of Unique ever made - back in 1892, I think!! - and it still tests as good as the day it was made.

The 45 Colt is an amazing round, one of my favorites for 25 years or so. I use two loads in mine. The general purpose mild load uses the Rem 2 1/2 primer and a 230 RN lead bullet actually meant for the 45 ACP, over 7.0 grains of W231, HP-38, Red Dot, Green Dot, Nitro 100, 700X, Solo 1000, Clays or even the long-gone Alcan AL-5! That's right, just use 7.0 of ANY of those powders. You'll get right at 900 fps with any of them.

I got my other load from Hank Williams, Jr. It's a hunting load and uses a 255-260 lead SWC over 21.0 of H4227 and a CCI350 magnum primer. My Blackhawk gets 1100 fps with this, which I find to be plenty of oomph for deer out to 100 yards. This one needs a heavy crimp, too.

Thanks, y'all, you make me feel better about my powder and primers. Also appreciate the advice re the case cleaner. It is good to know that there are a lot of folks still shooting the old .45. As I get older, I have found that most of my handgun needs are met with three rounds; .45 lc, .45 acp, and .22 lr. Wolf, you may be right about the reduced loads for cowboy shooting. I guess the 10 gr. load is sort of semi-hot, but it is not nearly as punishing as .357 mag, or even.38+p in a J-frame. If I start loading for my nephew to shoot cowboy I might have to go a little milder.

Thanks again

Welcome Dirtfarmer. I too have learned alot here. Have you tried Lazor-cast bullets? If you don't go over nine grains unquie they will not lead. My Blackhawk has a 5 1/2 barrel and it likes them. I have been trying to come up with a 300 grain load but no luck yet.
What part of GA are you in? I'm just below Albany and I too like to play in the dirt.

Thanks JD
I live in Butler, just up the road from Albany. About 78 miles, I think. Home of Barrow Automotive. If you are a shooter in S. GA, you are probably familar with Barrow. I just tried to send you an e-mail, but it wouldn't go through.. I have to go check on a cow in labor now, and when I get back, I'll try again. There is a thunderstorm going on right now, and that is a pretty good sign that I will have to pull a calf. I want to find out about the lazor-cast bullets.