Cas rifle?

This may surprise some people but, one of the few good things about living in Ontario, is the broad range of opportunity that exists(so far), for sport and competitive shooters. Including: Trap, 5-Stand, Sporting Clays, IPSC, 3-Gun, IDPA, etc. Cowboy Action shooting also enjoys a strong following. Quite a few clubs offer Cowboy Action, as part of their activities. So many that, it is possible to compete at a match pretty much any weekend, all year round. Indoor shoots: throughout the winter. Plus: summer outdoor matches. Including the annual: Eastern Canadian Regional Cowboy Action Championships. This year, the venue moved from Barrie, to near Prescott Ontario. Should be a good one. As always.
Unfortunately, Covid-19 has limited some of the shoots, this spring. March being a bust. But as long as things don't get much worse; the rest of the spring and summer still holds lots of promise. Finally starting to warm up. So the cowboys/cowgirls, just like the crocuses, will soon start to appear.

Alex
 
Alex, I highly recommend shooting in Granum, they put on quality matches. In Medicine Hat, we put on 1x2 day match every June and my wife (Burnt Bacon) and I have shot Saskatoon, Western Canadian Regionals every year for the last 7-8 years. If this virus is sorted out by the end of July we plan to shoot there this year again, already registered and motel booked. Hope to get to meet you then. Years ago, when I was posted to a Base in Ontario, I was a member of a club near Barrie, my experience is that Western gun clubs at least treat you like adults, unlike the nanny state, JMHO.
 
Garand: I'd planned on attending The Western Regionals this year. Had pretty much nailed down all the arrangements. Then, family health issues threw a wrench into some of my plans. Hope to get out there again, next year. Great place to shoot. Plenty of good folks. Always enjoy myself. Greybeard, Granny One Shot and all the fine folks at SMLC do an outstanding job at this event. Gets better... every year. I'd like to see them host the Canadian Nationals, sometime in the near future.
You know....its possible that we've crossed paths there, already. At a busy event like that it's hard to keep track of everyone, though. Next year(if plans hold together, I will certainly be looking for you and Burnt Bacon.

Alex
 
We wont be shooting anytime soon, we've still got 2 ft of snow on the ground here. I agree that covid has washed out the early shoots anyways, late may still has a slight window but June is the earliest that any plans are being made for at this time at AFS.

I want to shoot one more match at least (health issues....) and want to use all guns older than 100 yrs., to that I have spent the "covid" self imposed isolation to complete a "rebuild" on a couple old pistols that I want to use at least the once. One, an 1881 Colts SAA that came to me 8 or 10 years ago in a very "unusable" state. It was missing the trigger, the locking bolt was broken, the hammer screw was missing and the cylinder was seized on the base pin...to top that off, the lady of the family had used it as a make-shift hammer to pound nails & staples around the farm...then the two sons played with it and kicked it around the yard for 15 years...then when the cylinder seized to the pin, they beat on it to try and "make it work again". It definitely wouldn't be much of a desirable item for any collector so I endeavored over a # of years to acquire some replacement parts & screws . All the parts were for much later "3rd Gens" and required a lot of dremeling, filing, and emoury cloth hand work to make them work but last week I finely got her back to 3-clicking and dropping the hammer ( I poured a drink that night).

The other one is an 1858 Rem civil war vet that the govmt converted to .46 Rim Fire after the war (it has the Rollin White patent on the cyl.) that I had to convert to fire a center cartridge (.45 colt). This one was quite easy, as a Kirsk .45 colt cy was a "drop-in fit.

Rifles will be a Marlin 1889 in 38-40 & a circa 1893 Win.92 in 32-20.

shotguns will be a couple "turn of the century" 97's that have been our "main match" guns since we started this game.
 
Fingers284: I admire your efforts in bringing those old firearms back into useful service again. Well done. That old Colt revolver, in particular. In the condition you described, restoring it could only be described as: "A labour of love". Though at times you likely described it as something a bit less kind!

Years ago, an old friend of mine (long since gone) also owned an original Colt revolver, like yours. This one was dated to 1878. Still in pretty good shape, too. It had come down to him, from an inheritance. Since he didn't have a use for it at the time, he wanted to dispose of it. He had no idea what it was really worth. Was about to sell it to another fella, for 50 bucks. Until I pulled out my Flayderman's Guide and pointed it out to him. But first, I had him sit down! The look on his face was priceless. He needed a stiff drink too, after that! No idea where it's gone, since then. Or the 1889 Colt he owned at the time, either.

Likewise your Remington. Those don't exactly show up in gun shops on a regular basis. Especially with that kind of provenance. Even if you only use them the one time; it is still a tribute to their place in history. Should you get the chance to shoot these fine old guns, I hope you'll post photos or video on this forum. Should be a special treat, for the members.

Years ago, an elderly neighbour of mine had a fine Winchester 1873 rifle, chambered in .38-40. A well kept rifle, in original condition. This one had a fair bit of provenance too, having been bought new late in 1880, by his grandfather. It was one of the early 1873's chambered for this cartridge. So, quite unique. Apparently it had served his family well, over the many years of its life. Included with the rifle was not only the original segmented cleaning rod. But, the original bill of sale, too! I believe his nephew still has it. Ever since then, I've had a particular fondness for both rifle and cartridge.

Occasionally one of our local cowboy shooters competes with an original Winchester '92. This one too, is chambered in .32-20. A neat little rifle and cartridge. He does pretty well with it, too. Along with a pair of nickle-plated(Original plating mostly worn off, but still serviceable) Smith & Wesson New Model 3, revolvers. I believe those are chambered in .44 Russian. He also shoots a vintage 12 gauge S X S hammer gun, of unknown origin. Quite a sight, when he touches these off!

There is absolutely no reason why these old firearms can't be used even today, while respecting their age and limitations. Personally, I'd like to see more of them. You deserve plenty of credit, for keeping yours alive.

Alex
 
Thank you for that Alex and yes that Colt has been a labor...a lot more to the story on that gun...and I hesitate because we are sure hijacking the OP's thread ... Alex I think we could spend many hours in my gunroom/vault over a cold drink and not run out of something to say LOL.

I acquired that gun 8 0r 10 years ago from one of the original farm ladies sons...he became a life-long friend of mine. I was helping him & his wife out over the guns that would be in his estate, this was 1 week before, and he was already on his death bed. He had this one pistol and a bunch of hunting guns that were to go to his son and grand children but none of them were licensed up at the time. He knew I would have purchased the Colt in a heartbeat but said it had to go to his son if he wanted it (and he did) but he did tell me that if I could get it back to shooting condition and use it for a shoot, that I was welcome to keep it until that time. His son was more than willing to go along with this as he would get a working gun in the end...neither one of us thought it would be this long but because of my health issues and sourcing old parts, it has.

Now I have to create some very light BP ammo for both of those guns...I certainly don't want to "strain them" in any way. Due to the differences in barrel bore & cylinder bore dia. , they probably wont be "long range" accurate but at a 7 or 8 yards Cowboy distance, all I need is a "ding". The colt barrel slugs at .459 and the cylinder at .455 so the bullet will be a loose fit from forcing cone to bore, probably use a .452 RNFP powder coated bullet up to .455 to reduce leading with a grease cookie behind it.

The Remington is also "generous bored" but not as bad, .455 and the Kirsk cylinder slugs at .452. I would love to use the original cylinder in it but that .46 rimfire round used a "heeled bullet" and a case that is almost identical to the modern .44 special. It would require a special order mold and I don't plan on shooting it enough to make that worth while...and also, I would have to source a different hammer to fire the center fire round (the rim-fire hammer will strike the firing pins in the kirsk cylinder).
 
Fingers284: I am sure the OP and others following this thread may forgive us, for getting a bit off topic. But, considering some of the valuable information you're sharing about your old revolvers, I believe it worthwhile. You're right, too. We could likely jaw for quite some time.

I believe your solution has merit. Nice thing about powder coating is that, it allows for plenty of 'compromise' in bullet diameter. A powder coated, pure lead bullet may even bump up enough to offer a decent bore seal. Certainly enough for your purposes. I agree, the metallurgy of that old Colt likely isn't up to today's standards. Easy does it.

As you undoubtedly already know, bp cartridge loading can be a relatively simple task when loading reduced powder charges. The grease cookie makes sense, too. Even a coated bullet could benefit from the extra lubricity and softer bore fouling. Especially if the Colt's bore is less than pristine. I'd also be tempted to load 2F rather than 3F...to make it a bit softer(though sootier) shooting, too. Old Eynsford (mfg by Goex) is generally pretty clean burning stuff. So if you can locate some in either granulation, it should work well. Otherwise, good old Goex.

If you were finicky enough, I suppose the throats of your Remington's replacement cylinder could be reamed out a bit to accommodate the .455" bullet. Though likely limiting the cylinder's use to that revolver, alone. Not enough real difference to bother. I agree....not worth the hassle of locating a custom heeled-bullet mold. Plus a die set. Plus a replacement hammer. For a revolver you likely won't shoot more than a few times a year. I like to work on the : "K..I..S" model too, whenever possible.

As a matter of interest, how is the cylinder timing on the Colt? From the description of the abuse it suffered over the years, I suspect some significant damage to the hand. Possibly even the cylinder ratchet. That, and the hand spring may be compromised from corrosion. I suspect the hand/spring was replaced and cylinder re-timed, too. Along with the other parts. The hammer safety notch being gone is no surprise. You've still got a fully workable revolver. It just won't let you know its a: "C...O...L...T"....anymore, when cocking it. Purists might be aghast. But, I expect you'll have no problem ringing those plates with it, though.

In any case, this sounds like a fun project. Once it warms up enough to get rid of all that snow. Ours has disappeared, now. But thinking of it puts me in the mind of Ian Tyson's song: "Springtime in Alberta". Please do keep us up to date on your progress. Plus a shooting report!

Alex.
 
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Well; this is getting to be like a long lasting dose...you just have to keep treating it...

The timing on the old Colts is actually perfect. The notches in the cyl are still almost perfect and the hand & spring, although both rusted with a fine red consistency rust, worked perfectly. The 3rd gen. locking bolt was the part that required the most fitting, all at the prong end, the lug itself while not as high ( still tall enough o engage slots firmly), it fit the frame cut-out perfectly . The new 3rd gen bolt screw & hole in the bolt are 4 thou smaller than the 1st gens and have a slight bit of play in the frame fit but its not enough to make it unworkable. The prongs needed a lot of very cautious re-profiling & thinning to have the room to act appropriately within the early ser.# frame in conjunction with the camming node on the hammer ...lots of trial assemblies happened here.

both pistols fired primed cases off the deck last night, of course with no "back pressure" to reseat the primer, they did lock up after each firing but they did fire...I had another beer...

And we haven't even got started on the line-up of Cowboy Levergun sillywett rifles we can discuss yet LOL...or the Buffalo rifle as well.
 
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