Loomis Battery Michigan Historic Artillery Match : or : And you thought $1 per shot was expensive !

*Note- I'm sorry this is not so much of an article as just pictures and captions.


Every father and son who get along reasonably well should have a annual road trip/ pilgrimage that they embark on with other males to "bond" and have fun. The road trip that my father, our family friend Roger and myself embark on once a year trip such as this that also happens to involve live fire cannon matches, field guns, mountain howitzers, siege mortars and coehorn mortars. The annual Loomis battery civil war artillery match which takes place in Grayling Michigan is a one of a kind shoot that holds the famous "bacon creek" match for rifled guns (3" bore) at 1000 yards (might have been at 1200 yards this year but I'm not sure) Where competitors attempt to place 3 shots onto a sheet of newsprint at that distance. Its been done on several occasions which is really something when you think of these overbore muzzle loaders and the technology of the day back then.
This year my father finally finished building (still needs painted) a 24 pound coehorn in which we shot in the coehorn match with. Seven shots and the closest five are scored via string method from a pegged flag down range. Every year I learn something new and interesting about all the guns at the shoot and how they were utilized, how their sighting systems work and the different types of projectiles they fired.
During the 600 yard smooth bore gun match on Saturday competitors shot at a block house demo target with round balls 3" on up to show just what solid shot could do. This was not nearly the destruction could have been would they have been shooting bar shot or chain shot but the demo block house and some trees behind it took a severe beating.
This is what my dad does, he studies the history and a few weekends every year he lets loose with guys that every time they pull the lanyard they are letting $20-$50 fly downrange. Although this year I think dad let loose a little to much. As I was directing him to reposition our gun onto the target we had our first casualty of the match dad put a little too much UMPH into moving the gun and his pants couldn't take it.
My favorite gun at the match this year was a 3.2 Span Am cannon that was being restored to its former glory. Its a breech loading gun that has a interrupted thread locking system for the breech. The breech plug is a newly manufactured one by the match host and I was lucky enough to see the testing shots. Along with the 3.2 span am gun there were little hotchkiss cannons that are also breech loading. One of these would round out my collection very well if I could save up the money for one. All in all its a great way to spend a weekend if your a history buff, gun nut or just want to see some really unique. Check with the Grayling tourist info center for future match dates.

Born of fire and Vodka! ; or ; 12 ton press and Mt Dew!

Gunsmithing as I mentioned earlier is a practical hobby and skill (kinda) I enjoy. You definitely have to have a feel for it. Though I'm not a master at it I'm fairly in tune to the workings of a firearm and what makes them work and tick. I've worked on a goodly amount of firearms in my short time on this earth but there is one gun that no matter WHO is using it....It will never FAIL TO JUST SIMPLY WORK. The AK-47 Family of firearms has been a popular gun for the home builder lately. For about the same price as buying one off the shelf (so to speak) you can build a legal semi auto AK-47 (so long as you have the pre required tools to do so....we did....and then some) In the case of the RPK I have $254 in it exactly


Usually to build one of these AK's or its clone one needs an assortment of punches and hammers. Cold chisels, a good anvil, leg vice or LARGE table top vice, welder (optional), large case of Mt. Dew, hydraulic press, $0.23(0_o) in pennies or so to use with the press to protect the barrel and perhaps an adapter for a air hammer to rivet rivets in.

The above picture shows my very good friend using a tig welder to weld up the front sight on the RPK after I atempted to remove it to install the new bipod (one was not installed when I got the kit). I gave up and simply busted the rivet out of the bipod to install it.

This being the 3rd AK clone that we've built we tried something a little different when it came to the receiver. In the first place it was the wrong receiver it was in fact one that was intended for a folding stock AK however it was on sale and I needed a receiver for the project (cost was $40). To fill/patch the large holes we cut and ground patches out of the old receiver which was actually a little thinner than the new receiver...not sure why. But after the receiver was patched up I had Anthony just weld the rear trunnion in as I did not want to mess with locating and drilling holes for the rivets that had to be put in!

The RPK's actually had the front and rear trunnion spot welded to the reciever so I had my friend spot weld the front after I drilled holes in the receiver. It serves to stiffen up the receiver being the RPK was built as a LMG( in theory). Now you gotta remember this was a Russian design made for the dumbest peasant to use. These things JUST FREAKING WORK. I've yet to have a jam in any of my builds, however we did run into a problem with upper rail length in my friends Romy G but that was fixed with a buffer welded in front of the rear trunnion so the bolt would not pop itself out of the reciever.

These builds are fun and if you have the few tools that are needed it can be a relativly painless build. The first one I did (the Yugo underfolder) proved to be a hard first build as the folding stock assembly had a lot of jesus parts (JESUS....small part springs across the room)

NRA convention 2008: or : Tactical Road Trip with Dad!

Awhile back the NRA held its annual Convention. This year it was in Louisville Kentucky and well within a tactical day road trip for my dad and I from the mid Ohio region. We get there and the size of the show is just enormous. I enjoyed meeting and shaking hands with industry leaders as well as famous faces. The convention is a great place to get Q's answered and handle and get a close up look at firearms you've always been curious about or interested in. My wish list grew a little bit as I looked over a few big bore rifles and reproduction's that really caught my eye.
Here we see my dad taking a close look at a Trapdoor Springfield reproduction by Uberti. As you can see by his hat and shirt he is a Artillery buff (watch for future articles on his heavy weight hobby this summer). The convention did not offer a lot for sale although I did purchase a book or two that have been on my wish list. All the big names in the firearms industry was there. Sig, S&W, glock (with the gunny)...and all sorts of poster girls going through sharpies like dirty underwear signing posters. I got to handle some very unique weapons as well as classics like a Merkel Double rifle, Thompson's and sharps rifles. As well as view a display of older S&W revolvers. The various CZ 550 models on display really caught my eye. They seem like a good solid rifle with lots of options including express sights. My focus was mostly on the Big bore magnums. Here we see ones chambered in .404 and .500 Jeffery. Impressive to say the least!


The whole convention was a very worthwhile trip. But I would not go out of my way to travel long distances for it more than once a decade. It's nice to see what is out there and see famous faces in our culture. But unless the convention showed up in my backyard again I won't make a point to go. Though if you get the chance please do go. Take the kids, a Camera, backpack and a notebook. There is something there for everybody and you will have fun. Take somebody who is just slightly interested in firearms. They will enjoy themselves. Here is My Dad again with a marlin guide gun in 45/70....we ended up seeing the whole show and getting back to my apartment in less than 12 hours.

Made in Japan! : or : Buy one get the 2nd one cheaper!

My good friend who purchased the 6.5 Carcano I mentioned earlier on this site has also been longing for a Japanese rifle as well after seeing his grandfathers WW2 war bring back in his relatives small gun collection. I kept half an eye out for a rifle that would suit him and me being a rather patient person I happened upon a listing of a small Japanese rifle collection that was being sold. I called and inquired about the different models and such but the seller didn't even know all that much about them other than one was "big jap" and the other two rifles were "little jap". The prices given to me on the phone seemed reasonable so I told my friend to get out of bed and that we were gonna go look at some guns today!

I looked the 3 Japanese rifles over as well as the other WWII circa rifles that the gentleman had up for grabs but I was focused on the 7.7 jap type 99 rifle for my friend. We agreed on a price for it and then I looked the little type 38 6.5 carbine over..."I have no use for it, and I don't need another groundhog gun" But I put down a offer thinking he would pass on it but he took. We walked out of there paying $140 for the two rifles and me thinking...."I really shouldn't have done that"

I don't know what possessed me to randomly purchase a rifle of such vintage and origin but I did. And like most people who do random things they try to rationalize their decision "it will make a great groundhog gun" I told several people who asked why I had purchased it. Then upon reading "Bolt Action Rifles" by De Haas I came to the conclusion it was a perfect plains game rifle round and barrel length. And that it is indeed one of the strongest rifle actions ever made! Bullets I have as they will be cast from the mold we got for the 6.5 Carcano project. Brass will be made with anything with a base diameter that is appropriate for the 6.5 jap and is long enough. pretty much anything that uses the 30/06 as a parent case will work. .270 winchester being the top pick from what I can tell. Run it in steps through the sizer die and turn off the remaining belt in the lathe at home. I have a goodly amount of range pick up brass to make both 7.7 jap and 6.5 jap brass from though I should think no more than my friend shoots that 50 pcs should be sufficient for him and I think 50pcs should do for me as well.



Above you can see a 6.5 Cast bullet and a 6.5 that is lubed loaded into a modified 22-250 case that has been run through a 6.5 carcano sizer die to form a belt that has been roughly hand filed off. The Carcano head diam is only .001" larger than that of the 6.5 Japanese. Next to the dummy round is a 6.5 Japanese round by Norma then a 7.7 Japanese round. 30/06 brings up the end to show case size comparison and conversion feasibility.

Ruger Blackhawk 45 long colt follow up!

-Above picture Lyman 454424 , 452423 , 452389 Note nose profile and meplat of first two

After having the Ruger Blackhawk out to the range a few times since its been getting warmer and warmer and trying the 252gr lee mold, 454424 lyman 255gr and the 185gr 452389 mold as well as already cast 200gr SWC's and 230gr RN I've come to some conclusions.

The lee 252gr Mold has too much body/shank and not enough ogive/nose. It therefore does not stabilize enough from what I can tell in the tests I have run. it seems to just tumble out of the barrel which ends up as poor results and keyholes on paper. I'm not sure what is causing this but my guess as stated before is the nose to body proportion.

The 200gr SWC's offer a nice plinker load and the 230gr RN is a nice bullet as well. The king of the crop so far is the 454424 Keith style 255gr mold with its generous meplat and sensible size of driving bands lube grooves and ogive. It is accurate with 2400 powder but non of the Unique loads I loaded and tried seemed to work all that well. The slower 2400 powder worked just fine and gave a good performance. Though further testing will be done until a all around load is settled on I imagine it will resemble a load right out of Sharpes book ("The complete Guide to handloading" of which I now own several copies). Black powder loads are a thought though but will be given no serious place outside of the accuracy testing and general range work. My goal is a accurate load that will have stopping power suitable for anything in North America...yes I may be guilty as being another person trying to magnumize the 45 Long colt but I think its a not so much of a question as can it be magnumized as a challenge.

Shot loads are something I plan on working on as well. Though #12 shot is ideal for any handgun or revolver shot load...I have access to only the shot I have from breaking down range pickup shotshells that were discarded (So anything between #6's and #8's I'm guessing). A 45 gas check will be used as the top wad and if I can get away with it a cardboard wad will be used as the lower. Although my concern is the fit of the lower wad keeping powder from working by. Perhaps a 45 wad punch should be invested in as I would use it for wads for the sharps as well as for punching out wads for this beast.

I am not the greatest shot with this Ruger BH yet. My natural point of aim and hands are so used to S&W grips and balance that this is a whole new horse I have to learn. It really seems to like the heavier bullets though I have not been able to go any heavier than the keith 255. A lighter Keith style 454423 mold has shown up at my door and bullets have been cast, lubed and sized. I need to get some serious target work done to compare the lighter bullet to the heavier Keith although I'm thinking the heavier bullet will outperform this slightly lighter brother. But only burned powder and punched paper will be able to tell.

So far I've been going over just caliber and bullet follow ups. The gun itself seems to be getting better with time. Grips are still going on and off of it until I find something that really feels natural to my hands. The sights are ok and what little midrange shooting I did with it last range trip I was happy with the results. 4 out of 6 shots hit the clay pigeons I was aiming at at just under 50 yards.

#1 way to be disowned by your history buff father : or : Trade a live horse and $100 for a dead horse?

After obtaining the 1874 Sharps Long Range Express rifle only a few days ago I had it in my plans to sell the H&R 1871 45-70 that I started with. A mentor friend (Doug) who was at the same gun show that I purchased the 1871 at told me if I ever wanted to sell it to let him know. So last weekend when I went home I caught up with him as he was still interested in the rifle. But he didn't have any cash handy though he offered up a partial trade. What did he have to trade? A Original Trapdoor Springfield either model 1878(73?..stamp is in question..see pic) or 1884 (I'll get to this in a bit). I looked the rifle over as best I could with a bore light and such. Doug never shot the rifle as he was afraid to after hearing stories about the weaker actions. I was well aware of the stories myself but have never heard of any specific cases only that the trapdoor action failing. For some odd reason I actually traded the H&R 1871 and $100 for the Trapdoor Springfield that Doug was afraid to shoot...this all makes sense so far right? trade a working rifle and $100 for something that was more than 100 years old and people are afraid to shoot...hehe. So I take the rifle home to take a closer look at it.....it looks like somebody took a pipe wrench to the rear of the barrel at some point in time though there was still life left in the 3 lands and grooves in the barrel. Then my dad saw the rifle....."You got a Trapdoor Springfield....my son is an idiot" was pretty much what came out of his mouth. I was taken aback greatly at this comment. My father #1 called me an idiot on a choice of firearms.....that just does not happen. And #2 my dad who is a Civil War Expert/all around History buff looked down on the Springfield trapdoor so much as to call his son an idiot who had just obtained one (eh maybe those 2 reasons go hand in hand...I dunno). Now what have I done?...did I make a mistake? Looking over the rifle the front sight is very thin and the Rear Buffington adjustable sight looks like something a target shooter would greatly appreciate but perhaps not a foot soldier. The action locks up just fine and the big 16 ton hammer is that of the 3 click tumbler model. First is the safety I assume then the notch that allows the action to be opened then one more back and the hammer is ready to strike the firing pin and fire the rifle. The only thing missing so far as I can tell after taking the rifle down is the ejector spring and pin that helps the ejector kick a fired case out (lathe project). Right now all I have is an extractor instead but thats not going to hurt me anytime soon. I figured I would go ahead and slug the barrel to see what I have to work with. I started the first of the 3 round balls I usually run through a barrel to get bore and groove measurements. 3/4 of the way down the barrel was just fine the slug went in and on its way down with little force after taking the initial shape at the muzzle. Then about 5" left till the breach it stopped....dead....I gave the 1/4" brass rod that we use for slugging rifle barrels and gave it a good "ram rod" motion and the slug pushed its way down and out of the action. I took a look at what I had and I was dumbfounded. A good sized groove was carved into the slug at 6 o'clock and at 11 o'clock. We thought it must have just hit the ejector ramp or something so we pushed the other 2 lead balls through the barrel carefully. Same thing. I then took a closer look down the muzzle with a small flashlight and saw the culprit. A solid burr about .03" high was sticking straight up near the throat of the chamber....The very LONG chamber I realized. The burr at 11 o'clock was very hard to see but it was much smaller than the 6 o'clock burr. Were these related to the tool marks on the outside of the barrel? and perhaps the long(er) chamber? which is over 3" long by the way. I really would like to get this rifle back into working order. I think it still has life in it but I will take the same precautions with this as I did with the Damascus double barreled shotgun I cut down due to a flaw in the barrel. No need to rush things but Depending on further observations we will see if the burr will shoot out or not. Though I think if one can be had and done at a reasonable price a barrel liner will be in order if things do not play out well for this fine old rifle. Also the tang needs some attention due to some seperation from the breach plug.

Now on to the model of the rifle. In the little time I've had to research the rifle I have narrowed it down to 3 years though most likely I'm thinking its a 1884 due to the rear sight and serrated trigger. The breach block appears to be dated 1878...however...the 8 looks a bit like a 3 further research is needed on the breach block to determine its year. However it will not dictate the year of the rifle overall. since parts were made standard and could be swapped around. Follow up articles to come!

You tell them....Valdez is coming :or: Sharps Long Range Express 1874... Buffalo not included!

I've been burning for a Sharps rifle for a spell now and after somebody on one of the online forums I'm on gave me the name and a email address of his friend that had a Sharps along with a good size package of gear for sale I jumped on it. At 12 pounds and some change it is a weighty rifle though almost the same as my .22 match rifle it balances a little different. With a 34" half round half octagonal barrel and a 1:18 twist and a overall length of just under 51" it's not for somebody who likes light short rifles. It is chambered in 45-70 for now (possible re-chamber down the road to 45-90 at least,for that little extra velocity) and slugs out to 457 grooves and 447-448 lands (bore daim, which is important for paper patching) there seemed to be a tight spot near the chamber throat when pushing the slug muzzle to breech. Right now I have got things figured out to paper patch boolits up to .450 but until I have a chance to take a chamber casting of the rifle I have reason to believe the throat will not accommodate patched boolits all to well without a little lapping to knock imperfections out of the throat...i.e. sharp angles. The rifle is fairly new with few rounds down the tube. It came from an older gentleman who wished to thin out his collections to just bench rest rifles. At 74 years old and the presence of the thick recoil pad on the rifle when I got it I do believe he might have had issues with the recoil. However this I can not be sure of as I've known many older gentleman who will shoot anything you hand them. The rifle also has a Pedersoli mid range sight 2" staff along with an adjustable hadley eye cup. A raised cheek piece, double set trigger and shotgun stock were all things I was looking for in a Sharps and this fulfills them all. The Rifle is Pedersoli made and was sold through Cabelas as per the stamp on the barrel. My plans for the rifle right now will be shoot the loaded ammo that has come with it and try some of my patched and grooved bullets in it. I would like to have a 550gr or slightly lighter postell/creedmore bullet mold obtained or made for it as well as something comparable for paper patching. The fitting of the wood to metal is rather good on both forearm and stock. The only thing that I might alter down the road is the butt piece with has a little metal overhang on the toe of the stock and could cause premature wear on shooting clothing, mats and cases....its not that big of a deal but is rather something that I might do to make it just that much better. The lock up of the action is like that of a bank vault. Though one must get used to re-cocking the hammer after each shot to prevent damage to the firing pin and wear on the case base. Along with the rifle I was supplied with a goodly amount of brass, loaded ammo, dies and other things. I'm not sure how well the 500gr grooved and patched boolits I have on hand will perform but I do believe a heavier projectile will be subtable for all around use in this long barreled big bore.

A range report will follow soon I hope as the weather here in central and N.W. Ohio has finally started to warm up. I'll attempt to do some gong shooting this weekend at various distances up to several hundred yards if things show promise.

Gun shows, Cigar boxes and leather :or: It takes a tri state gun show to raise a boy

I started going to gun shows way back before I can even remember. I'm sure my first gun show was the tri-state area show held at our fair grounds which was only a short drive from our home. My dad used to take me on his weekends off and I always looked forward to it. I remember walking the rows with my dad and listening to his words of wisdom on different subject matters. Some things made sense others would take years to understand and some will take even more years to understand.

Going to a gun show is the most natural thing in my life. The treasures one can find at a show is limitless. I've purchased most of my firearms and accessories at shows.....at sometimes ridiculously cheap prices. Complete RCBS reloading die sets for $10 or $20 with multiple shell holders, $5 pistol grips I've wanted to try but refused to pay the $25 retail price tag ( my friend Anthony is the grip guru, always buying grips to try). Ammo cans that we get in bulk at a great price. My top favorite past time that is not shooting related is haggling.....95% of the time I can talk a guy down on price or have them throw in something to sweeten the deal. Its just my nature. Some times its just walking around and talking to friends that make the shows worthwhile. A few of the vendors know me by now at the various gun shows we haunt. Its nice to go home on that first full weekend every month bright and early Saturday morning roll into town, wake up my friend Anthony and head on out to the show. If you're on a time crunch you can go through in about 1 hour and 15-30 minutes...but we usually do it in 4 hours+.....we take our time...talk to the vendors and the other people walking the show. This is how you learn....you just shut up and listen. I learn something new every time I go. While walking the rows however things start to catch your eye...you start seeing things you would like to have. Like a 32" leather belt rig and Holster for a single action 45 revolver.....I've been looking for one now for about 6 months...finally found it at the gun show...ticket price was $25...and the guy who's granddaughter I went to high school with let me walk away with it for $20 mostly I think because there are very few 32" waist guys who like big bore revolvers. Later on in the show I found myself picking through a Cigar box of cartridges putting one or two aside every so often. Talking to the vendor the collection was from a guy who had passed away and enjoyed collecting such things...about 80 or so pieces in all some I recognized some I flat out did not. The vendor who admitted he was only a hunter and did not care for such things seemed to be impressed with my knowledge of such things and the history behind some of the cartridges. Though I was saddened when he told me the really big ones had already been sold. Non the less I paid him $5 for a good sized handful of the cases and was off again. About 10 minutes later I came back put down $20 and asked him if that was enough for the rest of the collection. Seeing as how I was young and ambitious he took my money and gave me not only the cigar box of cartridges but several other boxes containing pistol rounds like the 44 and 45 Webley and rifle rounds like the 264 winchester magnum and 11mm Mauser. It was a great find for somebody with a interest in such things like myself. There is a small handful of shotgun shells in the collection as well but these have little interest from me. I hope to sell them and recoup the cost of the collection I purchased and maybe the cost of the holster I picked up as well.

The things that can be had at gun shows is seemingly limitless however there is always a certain etiquette that MUST be had when going to any event like this. RESPECT the vendor and those around you and ask permission to look at things. Please don't just grab things off the table like I see so many people do. Don't walk around the show like you are the only one there standing in the middle of a row, walking around with your finger in the trigger guard of a firearm is another one of those things where I just wanna whomp the person upside the head. Be friendly to those around you as this is one of the few forums where all types of shooters can converse under one roof. Some good things to take to gun shows by the way. A recent price list of reloading components, small tape measure, bore light, index cards, pens, zip tie cutters and a shoulder bag instead of a book bag...book bags get in the way and you can't get into them with out having to take them off. Shoulder bags are much better IMHO.

Beware the man with one gun because he probably knows how to use it : or : Admiting the fact I bit off more than I need

In the introduction to this whole blog I stated that I enjoyed collecting various actions and firearms. Though with both national economic trend and my ability to utilize my rifles to their full advantage with the time and space I'm given now. I sometimes wonder if I should drastically thin out what I have spent years collection to get something I would truly enjoy instead of having a dozen or two firearms that sit in the safe making dandy paper weights. For a while now I've been thinking about getting a Black Powder rifle to replace the W&H 1871 45-70 I've been shooting with for a while now. Though due to my limited if not non existing income I would have to sell a goodly amount of what I have to finance such a dream. A 1874 Sharps Long range express has been tantalizing my dreams for a while though they are somewhat expensive from $1,200 on up easily. But such a move would force me to become highly proficient with it. A sharps rifle is unrivaled in the firearms world....the finer versions are the Roles Royce of firearms. I never cease to amaze myself at how often my tastes in firearms is so very much backward to the trend that is popular now esp with others my age. Here I want something that has been around for more than 100 years and others around my age have to have the aimpoints with rails and lasers on their assault rifles. Please don't get me wrong I like a good AR any day. Though the paratrooper AK does things just fine for me. Its just that the way life is right now I'm not enjoying the vast collection I have acquired and a small part of me is saddened that they are nothing more than just paper weights in their current condition. thoughts?

Putting Out The Red Carpet for New Shooters.

Note- This post has been edited from its original version.

I recommend revolvers to start those who want to learn to shoot handgun for several reasons

*They do not have any safety's-Which if you think about it is beneficial for our use. We want to keep everything simple here. including the amount of functions the firearm has like various levers, switches and buttons on some makes of guns can be daunting to the uninitiated. The more you try to throw at them the more they might get frustrated.

*They are safer than automatics-After a round is fired the action must be cycled in order for the next round to come into battery. In a automatic all that is needed is a slight release on trigger pressure and reapplication of pressure to fire again. This could result in accidental double or triple taps...I did it the first time I shot my dads .45 1911 when I was young. Its just not a good idea. The obvious option to this is to load 1 round at a time. This is a good idea as it will familiarize the shooter with the weapon and its workings fast. But a standard revolver is just impossible to accidentally double tap with normal target loads and a new shooter. Or any loads for that matter.

*Smoother action- Firing single action a revolver has a much smoother trigger pull than 95% of the Semi auto guns I've handled and shot. There are very few times double action is required in firing. Being charged by a bear or the occasional zombie is the exception.

*Super reliable-A revolver can handle light loads up to red line loads without fail of action. In a semi auto the ammo must be in good condition and powerful enough to cycle the weapon without being too powerful to crack frames and break parts. The revolver will eat anything you throw at it and more. you can load the cylinder of a revolver with full wad cutters, Semi Wad cutters, Round nose and bird shot loads and it will shoot one right after another without fail. Try that with a semi auto and you will give up in short order.

*Takes time- A revolver forces the shooter to slow down esp when shooting single action. It isn't a race...seeing who can throw down more lead never makes for good practice. Though speed loaders are made for revolvers its not the same as a auto shooter blazing one mag away after another. Also have the new shooter remove their finger from the trigger after each shot after they are acquainted with the weapon. this helps burn in good finger placement on the trigger. You can take this one step further and have them set down the gun or just remove it from their strong hand grip after each firing. Load 1 round in the cylinder at a time perhaps. This will cause them to make a habit of how they place the revolver in there hand. As well as getting used to loading and unloading to the point it is second nature.

*Ergonomics- Revolvers tend to have a better selection of grips available than with auto loaders. Look at your hand, its not shaped like the grip of a 1911. The small grip I have on the 63 works well esp for female hands. The magazine wells of pistols tend to dictate grip size and shape. Revolvers do not stick to this rule at all. This is why rounds like the .45 GAP emerged as a way to make a smaller slimmer grip for females in guns like the Glock.

Some additional tips I would like to add. Don't force a new shooter to shoot any particular gun. They loose interest if they are not having fun! DO NOT I REPEAT DO NOT give a new shooter a large caliber firearm. I keep seeing these videos online of guys given new shooters esp girls large guns like 12ga loaded with slugs or .50AE Desert Eagles. They end up hurting themselves /create a dangerous situation. Guy with the camera almost always laughs. yeah ok its funny if you get a guy who thinks he can handle a .375 H&H after shooting some .22's but thats a ego thing. Its just not cool when you are putting it on the unsuspecting and telling them to just "HOLD ON". Thats the kind of thing that turns them away from the sport. (end rant) At the end of each range session ask them what they learned today. I've been asking this for 2 years now whenever I'm acting as instructor.....you yourself can learn a lot from feedback. It also allows the trainee to reflect on what they have learned.

I have something to put in the broom closet now I guess

I went home for the weekend a while back and picked up this C96 broom handle Mauser pistol. Originally in 30 Mauser (The 30mauser was the most powerful pistol round until the .357 Magnum came out, It is a longer 9mm necked down to 30cal). Upon closer examination of the weapon the barrel is shot out....bulged and no rifling, Extractor...gone..along with the rear sight..Other than that its all there and matching numbers as well..woot.. ( I did notice all of this before I put the money down...just so you know). The grip seems bent but that isn't gonna hurt anything any time soon.

I plan on lining the barrel to 9mm luger as many of these guns were chambered in that round and little work will be needed on the full conversion. The case head is near if not the same dimensions for the bolt as the 30 Mauser. The internal magazine will work just fine with 9mm luger. If it does not I can mill some extra followers and mess with those. Do not want to alter the frame too much unless I deem it needed for function/reliability. The gun NEEDS a good cleaning along with a chamber casting to make sure there are not any greater flaws inside that I can't detect at this time. The C96 is the first truly reliable auto loading pistol and I hope to get this one back into working order in short time. Theres a lot of history behind these and I might post some more on the gun and its model history down the road.

The cat came back the very next day...jk...make that two months later

The new quarter started only a few weeks ago and I sure do feel like I've hit the ground running. Over break I worked for UPS on the trucks delivering all your presents and gift baskets but when the season ended so did the job, out of a job I'm on the hunt once again and its slow going. I would also like to tell a bit about a girl whom I am dating but I'll save that for a later post dealing with what guns (revolvers, pistols and rifles other than the ROTC match rifles) you should start Girlfriends out on ( she is truly an amazing female..and the president of the Rifle club). Right then...to the business at hand

As I mentioned in an earlier post about my favorite revolver being sent back to Smith & Wesson for repairs on the hammer and trigger stud. I was getting a little antsy when after almost 2 months the gun had not shown up and in a letter that was sent to me it was stated that it would only be 2-3 weeks. Well I called S&W yesterday and much to my surprise I was told the beloved revolver would be at the doorstep the next day (my hometown house not my apartment, But my dad was going to come down to see a friend in the hospital and brought it down for my inspection). I am happy to say that the sixgun seems to be in fantastic working order however I can't really say that for sure until I start tossing lead around with it. This poor revolver has been through a lot with me and my experiments with various hand loads of lead, shot, wax, bullets with condoms (jacketed) and some things I won't admit to shooting out of a revolver HOWEVER none of this was contributing the breakage that occurred. It is my go to revolver and unless I pick up a .357 Mag that balances and shoots better at long range I will not be letting go of this baby any time soon. It's toppled many steel targets at 200 yards by both my hand and others who wish to try it. It has served me in combat matches and on many road trips as well. I will run it through its paces and make sure its just as reliable as it was before it went belly up on me from a bum steel cast in 1985.

On another note the 6.5 Carcano project is moving along I didn't blow up the gun and it hit a paper plate at 100yards "ok" but I think we can do better. Now to process the brass and work up a load with the 6.5 mold after I get some cast up and sized so on and so fourth and such like. I also picked up another project at the local gun show and I'll post something on that later this week if my class work does not drown me first.

The Carcano Project Part I

Walking down rows and rows of drunk rednecks and tables of guns(welcome to the Kenton Coon Dog Trials) we were on a mission. To stop my good friend from buying a 6.5 Carcano. That loathed Italian rifle for its supposed weakness and its "role" in the death of a president. And here we are trying to convince a friend to stay away from buying one. Ammo is not readily available nor is the brass and the thing could simply blow up on you. We rounded the corner of the next row and a shout came from behind us so we turned around. Running up to us was our friend with a 6.5 Carcano in hand and a smile on his face.....We had failed the mission and we were screwed. Looking over the gun it didn't seem all that bad it has a gain twist rifling and is a handy length and weight with simple sights. But I knew that I was going to have more to do with this rifle that I wanted to admit. After my friend purchased the rifle I did a little reading to get up to speed on the old fence post. Frank De Haas's book "Bolt Action Rifles, Revised Edition" came off of one of my shelves and the proper chapter was located. It's not an exciting read but is packed with great info. He states that the Carcano has always been downplayed as a weak action but the Italians never seemed to have a problem with the design. This little rifle was starting to not look so bad in my eyes.

Fast forward to a few months later my good friend and I have moved down to Columbus for school the three of us (my friend, his girlfriend and I) are all under the same roof. One night towards the end of the fall quarter my friend comes into my room with that little rifle on his shoulder and states that its time to shoot it. I start to tell him he has no ammo but then I stop myself and think for a bit......I seemed to remember being given a cigar box full off odd calibers not to long ago. I told him I would look and see what could be had. The next time I was home I went through the box and came up with 30 rounds of Norma 6.5 Carcano ammo that looked like it had really seen better days along with 6 clips (6 round clips). I brought the whole mess back with me and pulled bullets & dumped the powder and on my next trip to the ROTC range tested the rifle with just the old primed brass. The bullets and brass were tumbled and since I weighed all the powder charges of the factory ammo I could reuse the powder but at a reduced charge. Though some of the powder was wet and was simply thrown out. The charges were in the 39.5-40gr region so I knocked them down to 37gr to play things safe. I found the easiest way to pull the bullets was use the Rock chucker and with the proper shell holder run the ram up grab the bullet with a pair of pliers and pull the ram down. This worked very well and did very little damage to the bullets. The inertia puller was not working well due to the tight factory crimp/neck. I located a set of reloading dies for the rifle and with 9 1/2 Remington Large rifle primers set about reloading the pulled down components. Some of the bullets have surface corrosion from poor storage but that won't hurt a thing in the long run. The brass will be annealed after the first firing to ensure case life though more re loadable brass will have to be found eventually. A bullet mold was promptly ordered from a group buy and should provide a nice projectile to experiment with from this Italian workhorse.

A range report should follow. I'm still gonna strap this thing down to a tire and shoot it from a distance the first few times......just incase De Haas was wrong.

Red Rover Red Rover let Ruger come over

I took a bit of a step outside my comfort zone this past summer when I purchased a Ruger Blackhawk from a friend in 45 Colt for a whopping $250. I'm usually a S&W guy and love my .44mags but this was a project that looked fun. I'll say it up front this Ruger single action was in sad shape at the end of its 4 5/8th's barrel was a hack job of a front sight and the rear sight...well I'm not really sure if you would call it a rear sight at all. Also the frame was rounded at the front and back by one of the first owners. My friend had purchased the gun like that however hoping to have a short range cowboy gun to play with. When he sold it to me (less than 2 months after buying it himself, He mentioned it shot 18" high at 20yards) he included a new front sight from Brownell's and put the $250 I gave him towards a different manufacture 45 Colt an Uberti if I remember right. Not long after I got the gun a 45 Colt 3 die set was on its way after a want ad was posted on a few of the forums I frequent and 1k pieces of brass was inbound from starline in short order.

The first thing I did when I got home with the Blackhawk was knock the front sight off with a lead hammer and played around with some hip shooting with the few pieces of 45 colt brass I picked up over time at the range(didn't want to dive into the NEW brass just yet). Then the gun sat while I searched for a rear sight which I was not in a hurry for. The rear sight came to me a few weeks ago for $10 from a parts dealer at a gun show, it was a like new take off sight. Now I could put the gun back together. The rear sight was installed by the dealer at the show (to make sure it was the correct sight) and I had my Dad solder on the front sight using the rear sight to properly line it up. Not a whole lot involved in lining it up mostly done by eye. A holster was had for $3 but had to be cut down as it was for a 7" gun but works perfectly. Once I got the gun all ready I loaded up a sampler of 200gr SWC loads and some Ruger only 230gr RN loads to test out over the chronograph.

Using Unique and the 200Gr SWC I was able to get 980-1120fps out of the 45 Colt with little gain in speed after 10.5Gr of Unique under the 200Gr SWC using the new starline brass and CCI 300 primers. I had reasonably good accuracy with the group shown in the picture which was shot at 20 yards standing but with the original wood stocks that were on the gun from the factory. I've yet to try the Hogues that my Dad scrounged up for me but they feel so much more natural than the hog leg wood stocks.

I'm waiting on the 454423 mold from a group buy to be finished still. It's supposed to throw a .45 keith style weighing in at 244gr and is supposedly usable in a 45ACP as well. It should perform well in this nice little six shooter. I got a little impatient and purchased a single cavity Lee 252Gr FP mold this past weekend to try out next time I'm home and have the pot fired up.

The molds so far with maybe the exception to the 252Gr Fp (1911,magazine taper at front might be too much but we'll see) can all be used in my other .45's. I'm looking to develop a good bear load with this gun now and pack it with me on hikes as its a good gun to do that with and has enough power if loaded properly. Please refer to updated and tested load data before attempting to duplicate any of the loads listed. I'm not responsible for any damages on your part Yes it worked for me but your results may vary. The Boolit in the picture is that of a 230gr RN shot into dry phone books clocking 1000fps went in about 5" and ran out of steam.

A Bench Built for Reloading, Not Work

I Have been reloading at home for many many years. Unfortunately when I moved away for school I also moved away from my fathers workbenches, walls of tools, drill press & lathe, many presses, dies, books and so on, so fourth and such like. I started to ache for my reloading tools not long after I moved down to Columbus. I have my own single stage 50BMG press and Rockchucker, as well as dies for all my pistol calibers and some rifle. Lots of brass and the other accessories that go with the above. It was during a conversation with my welder friend that the idea of a custom bench could be built and outperform anything that I would pull out of the dumpster while on a diving expedition as far as using a regular desk to reload on and in lieu of this computer desk upon which I type on now. I measured the only wall space I had left and came up with some figures and sent them to Anthony. He bent angle from 4" flat stock and in a short 3 hours had a frame done up. On a trip to Menards we decided we were just going to use deck wood but while passing a "pre cut discount" bin that had tongue and groove wood flooring we figured it would be cheaper and finish A LOT better than deck wood. It took some time to get it all laid out and drilled. Not long after I brought it down (this was while I was home for thanksgiving break) and tore it apart and gave the top two surfaces about 4 coats of polyurethane and the frame a good coat of Semi gloss flat black rust-o-leum. With Anthony's guarantee of 600# on the frame I was not afraid to load it up for the needed weight. As this is a bench that can be moved by 2 people & a nice 20" x 36" footprint it needs weight while FL sizing 45-70 and .44 magnum brass that have been run hot. For what it is it has a generous amount of storage and work space. And will service me for many years to come however I hope that when I get my own place a much more impressive set up will take its place.