{"id":1494,"date":"2020-05-21T19:43:09","date_gmt":"2020-05-21T19:43:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ammoforsale.com\/ammo-club\/?p=1494"},"modified":"2020-05-21T23:20:48","modified_gmt":"2020-05-21T23:20:48","slug":"45-long-colt-vs-45-acp","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ammoforsale.com\/ammo-club\/45-long-colt-vs-45-acp\/","title":{"rendered":"45 Long Colt vs. 45 ACP"},"content":{"rendered":"

Too many cartridges wound up with similar names despite being totally different from one another. We often have shooters ask us if they can fire 38 Super in their 38 Special revolvers. It\u2019s perfectly fair of them to wonder if they could \u2013 \u201csuper\u201d and \u201cspecial\u201d are similar concepts, after all, and it doesn\u2019t help when they\u2019re preceded by the same number.<\/p>\n

On the flip side, too many cartridges also have multiple, dissimilar sounding names. We get plenty of people asking if they can fire 9mm in a Glock 17 with \u201c9×19\u201d engraved on its barrel. Perhaps no two rounds\u2019 names lead to more confusion than the 45 Long Colt vs. 45 Automatic Colt Pistol (ACP). We dread getting the phone call:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy won\u2019t this ammo I ordered from you fit in my 1911?\u201d We know the answer before they say anything further: \u201cYou got the wrong ammo!\u201d<\/p>\n

The Difference Between 45 Long Colt vs. 45 ACP<\/h2>\n

45 Long Colt<\/h4>\n

\"45 The 45 Long Colt was developed in 1872 in partnership by Colt and the Union Metallic Cartridge Company, which is now a subsidiary of Remington. Originally a black powder round by necessity, the U.S. Army adopted 45 Long Colt<\/a> in 1873. It served as the official handgun round for their Colt Single Action Army revolver<\/a> for 14 years.<\/p>\n

45 ACP<\/h4>\n

\"45 John Browning developed the 45 ACP in 1904. At the time the Army wished to replace their revolvers with semi-automatics, but naturally without sacrificing accuracy or power in the process. As the Thompson-LaGarde Tests of 1904 had determined .45 caliber to be the most effective pistol cartridge, Browning kept that bullet.<\/p>\n

Browning\u2019s 1911 pistol remained the main sidearm of the U.S. military until its replacement by the Beretta M9 in 1985 and then the 9mm SIG Sauer P320 in 2017. The primary difference between the 45 Long Colt and 45 ACP is readily apparent: One is designed for a revolver, while the other is designed for a semi-auto. The 45 Long Colt\u2019s shell casing thus features a rim that enables it to sit securely in a cylinder.<\/p>\n

While plenty of semi-autos can handle rimmed cartridges \u2013 the 22 LR being the most popular that comes to mind \u2013 rims are generally considered a detriment to smooth feeding and extraction. While 45 ACP ammo<\/a> technically does have a rim, its rim diameter is eight times smaller than that of the 45 Long Colt\u2019s when you compare the rim’s protrusion to the base diameter of the cartridge.<\/p>\n

As a dedicated semi-auto cartridge, the 45 ACP features an extractor groove that provides a surface for a handgun\u2019s extractor to purchase against during extraction. You will not find such a groove on a revolver cartridge. If you would rather differentiate the two cartridges by their lengths alone, the 45 Long Colt is 0.325\u201d longer.<\/p>\n

The Similarities Between 45 Long Colt and 45 ACP<\/h3>\n
\"45

A close-up shot of 45 Long Colt ammo on the left and 45 ACP ammo on the right.<\/p><\/div>\n

John Browning didn\u2019t set out to create an entirely different cartridge than that which the U.S. Army had become accustomed to. He actually developed the 45 ACP to match the ballistics of the 45 Long Colt fairly closely! It\u2019s not an apples to apples comparison, though. A typical 45 Long Colt cartridge has a 250 grain bullet and 860 fps muzzle velocity, giving it 411 ft lbs muzzle energy.<\/p>\n

In comparison, a standard 45 ACP cartridge has a 230 grain bullet and 850 fps muzzle velocity, giving it 369 ft lbs muzzle energy. The 45 Long Colt is effectively a more powerful cartridge, but with a 1911 you get seven shots in the magazine instead of six in the cylinder. It\u2019s a lot easier to reload a semi-auto than a revolver when you\u2019re in a hurry, too, which is why they\u2019re generally more favored. The 45 Long Colt has a .452\u201d bullet.<\/p>\n

The 45 ACP, on the other hand, has a .451\u201d bullet. If you consider one one-thousandth of an inch a great length, then you may argue that the two cartridges\u2019 bullets are in fact very different from one another. It\u2019s going to be a tough sell, though.<\/p>\n

The Takeaway<\/h3>\n

\"45 It\u2019s dangerous to mistake some rounds for others when they share identical dimensions yet create very different chamber pressures. That\u2019s why you should take every precaution against running 5.56×45 through a rifle chambered only for 223 Rem, and why you also don\u2019t want to run 9mm +P+ through an original Luger pistol.<\/p>\n

Fortunately, you\u2019re not likely to mistake a rimmed 45 Long Colt for a rimless 45 ACP. They simply look too dissimilar to permit such a mix-up. Simply avoid buying 45 ACP for your Single Action Army, or 45 Long Colt for your semi-auto, and you\u2019ll be safe. The only difficult task remaining will be actually hitting your target!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Too many cartridges wound up with similar names despite being totally different from one another. We often have shooters ask us […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":1588,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[109],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ammo-caliber"],"yoast_head":"\n45 Long Colt vs. 45 ACP | A Caliber Comparison<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A side by side look at 45 Long Colt vs. 45 ACP. 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