The .45 Winchester Magnum is a .45 caliber

rimless A rim is an external flange that is machined, cast, molded, stamped, or pressed around the bottom of a firearms cartridge. Thus, rimmed cartridges are sometimes called "flanged" cartridges. Almost all cartridges feature an extractor or headspaci ...

cartridge intended for use in

semi-automatic pistol A semi-automatic pistol (also called a self-loading pistol, autopistol, or autoloading pistol) is a repeating firearm, repeating handgun that automatically ejects and loads cartridge (firearms), cartridges in its chamber (firearms), chamber afte ...

s. The cartridge is an externally lengthened

.45 ACP The .45 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol), also known as .45 Auto, .45 Automatic, or 11.43×23mm is a rimless straight-walled handgun cartridge designed by John Moses Browning in 1904, for use in his prototype Colt semi-automatic pistol. After su ...

with a thicker web to withstand higher operating pressures. The 45 Win Mag is nearly identical in dimensions and loading to the .45 NAACO developed by the

North American Arms Corporation North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography. Etymology The word ''north'' is ...

for their

Brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...

pistol, developed to supply to the

Canadian Army The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...

after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The army ultimately did not adopt the pistol and its non- NATO standard ammunition. The cartridge has been primarily used by small game hunters and metallic silhouette shooters.

Specifications

Although the .45 Winchester Magnum may be based on the

and have the same Rim and Base dimensions, the .45 Winchester Magnum has no parent case. The .45 Winchester Magnum case is redrawn with thicker walls and longer case. The thicker wall dimensions of the .45 Winchester Magnum are designed to accommodate a higher internal pressure (40,000

copper units of pressure Copper units of pressure or CUP, and the related lead units of pressure or LUP, are terms applied to pressure measurements used in the field of internal ballistics for the estimation of chamber pressures in firearms. These terms were adopted by con ...

) than that of the .45 ACP (18,000 copper units of pressure, 21,000 psi, or 140 MPa).

History

The .45 Winchester Magnum had been on the drawing board for two years before its introduction, in 1979, by Winchester. The cartridge did not gain much popularity due to the intermittent availability of the

Wildey The Wildey is a gas-operated, double- or single-action pistol designed by Wildey J. Moore. It was designed to fire several high-pressure proprietary cartridges including the .45 Winchester Magnum and the .475 Wildey Magnum. They are currentl ...

and LAR Grizzly pistols. The cartridge was chambered in the

Thompson-Center Contender The Thompson/Center Contender is a break-action single-shot pistol or rifle that was introduced in 1967 by Thompson/Center Arms. It can be chambered in cartridges from .17 Bumble Bee to .45-70 Government. History Warren Center, working in his ...

single shot pistols. The cartridge was also chambered for the

Freedom Arms Freedom Arms is a Freedom, Idaho and Wyoming, Freedom, Wyoming–based gun manufacturer , firearm manufacturing company, known for producing powerful single-action revolvers. The company was founded in 1978 by Wayne Baker and Dick Casull to pr ...

Model 83 single-action revolver via an available optional cylinder. The .45 Winchester Magnum gained a following among

IHMSA Metallic silhouette shooting is a group of target shooting disciplines that involves shooting at steel targets representing game animals at varying distances, seeking to knock the metal target over. Metallic silhouette is shot with large bore rif ...

competitors as it provided the power and performance necessary to knock down targets at an extended range. The cartridge has been used by handgun hunters and is among the few semi-automatic pistol (as opposed to revolver) cartridges which have been adopted for this sport.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:45 Winchester Magnum Magnum pistol cartridges Pistol and rifle cartridges Winchester Repeating Arms Company cartridges

Specifications

History

See also

References