Commercial American-made mass market ammo(Winchester White Box, Federal American Eagle, etc) tends to be loaded just on the edge of where most semi-autos will reliably cycle with it. I'd shoot that and not worry about it. If you're concerned about pressure, just stay away from European stuff(Fiocchi, S&B, Herters brass, etc) as they tend to be loaded closer to cartridge max for a given caliber.
In the 'teens S&W and Colt metallurgy was as good as you'll find from anyone from that era. The Colt New Service frame is also absolutely massive and very much overbuilt for 45 ACP. As others said, I wouldn't worry about it.
This is also a good excuse to get into reloading
. Since I don't load 45 ACP I'll refrain from specifics, but if you want to go with minimum pressure and don't mind the firing line smelling like a litter box Trail Boss powder can be great. Bullseye is also the classic choice for light loads.
On the light load thing-one other potential issue is sqibs, or bullets that don't make it completely out of the barrel. They can cause problems when you fire a second round behind them, although admittedly in a low pressure round you'll often just get a bulged barrel instead of a kaboom. I've had exactly one squib-it was a 32 S&W Long shot out of an old I frame S&W. I thought it felt "soft", then looked at the gun and saw the bullet pointing out the end of the barrel. I learned my less that day on that cartridge-the powder weights are so and have such a narrow "safe" range that it's really not a good idea to use a powder thrower. When I reload it, I generally weigh every charge. I shoot so little of it, though, that I usually just buy it.
In the 'teens S&W and Colt metallurgy was as good as you'll find from anyone from that era. The Colt New Service frame is also absolutely massive and very much overbuilt for 45 ACP. As others said, I wouldn't worry about it.
This is also a good excuse to get into reloading
On the light load thing-one other potential issue is sqibs, or bullets that don't make it completely out of the barrel. They can cause problems when you fire a second round behind them, although admittedly in a low pressure round you'll often just get a bulged barrel instead of a kaboom. I've had exactly one squib-it was a 32 S&W Long shot out of an old I frame S&W. I thought it felt "soft", then looked at the gun and saw the bullet pointing out the end of the barrel. I learned my less that day on that cartridge-the powder weights are so and have such a narrow "safe" range that it's really not a good idea to use a powder thrower. When I reload it, I generally weigh every charge. I shoot so little of it, though, that I usually just buy it.
