Handloading for Taurus, GAUCHO .45 (LONG) COLT REVOLVER

[Robert357]

I was at a gun show on Saturday and saw the Taurus 45 Gaucho.
 
I asked the dealer if like my 45 Ruger Blackhawk, I could handload the Taurus to the higher (near 44 Mag) loadings found in many reloading manuals.   Since the manuals are pre-Taurus Gaucho, and they usually only list Thompson Contender, Ruger Blackhawk, and Freedom Arms for the "heavy loads,"  I thought that I would ask the dealer.
 
He had no idea.  We looked at the literature on it and of course the manufacturer strongly recommended against any non-factory ammo.
 
I know that Graybeard is not a fan of Taurus, but thought that I would try to satisfy my curiosity anyway as to whether the Gaucho is to be reloaded to standard pressure levels or if like the Ruger Blackhawk, it can be loaded much more heavily.
 
I will also post this in the reloading area.
 
Thanks

[timothy]

Negative, standard pressure only in the Gaucho. sixguns.com has some impressive load data for Colt clones in the 45 long colt article.

[Robert357]

Thank you.

I am now convinced as to the Taurus being a standard load Colt 45.  I also got an email from the Hodgdon Powder company staying not to load this revolver above their standard recommended loading (i.e. not to use their special Ruger, TC & Freedom Arms higher loads).

[44 Man]

I have a hunting load I have used for years in .45 colt.  It is listed as safe in all modern Colt/clone guns.  That is 20 gr of 4227 under a 255 gr swc or flat nose bullet.  It does 975 fps from my 4 3/4" bbl and just flattens anything it hits (specifically whitetails).  My personal favorite is a swc I purchase from a friend.  It has a very small shoulder and a big, flat nose and casts at 265 gr from wheelwts (I don't know the brand of mold or number).  Impressive load and yet safe.  Good shooting.  44 Man