Odin
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Post by Odin on Feb 6, 2024 20:50:42 GMT -5
The Brian Pearce article in this group is the standard reference.... www.goodrichfamilyassoc.org/44_Special_Articles/All of them should be required reading for owners of a 44 Special. There is another Pearce article with similar loads. I can't recall if it contained bullets in the 270-285 grain range. There's also LoadData.com,. which is worth its weight in gold.
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Feb 5, 2024 14:16:50 GMT -5
Kelye does still have some pins in stock. It'd be worth the effort to find out if he still has the 454/480 pins available. And Ronnie Wells said in a previous update that he will be picking up where Kelye has left off. No mention of a time frame, but they will be available.
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Feb 2, 2024 10:33:45 GMT -5
How did the lil' 22 perform? What range, presentation, etc? I often carry the same and although I've only seen a couple armadillo here, I've wondered how the little rimfire would fare. I shot it at about 15 yards, I waited until it was facing me and shot it in the top of the head with a 40gr. HP (Waltz die). It did a lot of flopping. Thanks for the specifics. I lived on a river as a teenager. My mother hated the ducks that would congregate on her dock, for the mess they would leave behind. I took to popping one in the rear with a shot from an old break-action pellet rifle every few weeks to keep them cleared off. Early summer came and I grew tired of the silliness, but went down to clear them off again anyway. Whacked one in the butt and they all flew off but one. The little junker rifle wasn't exactly true to the sights, so I thought about where I aimed at the first duck and where the pellet struck. Held off about that much on the straggler and let fly. About 15 yards, maybe a bit more. Thwack! Right in the noggin. It did a lot of flopping too... And we didn't see another duck on the dock for the rest of the summer.
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Feb 2, 2024 9:38:12 GMT -5
Ever since armadillos have been migrating north I have been looking for the opportunity. Yesterday I shot my first armadillo with my 617. Warm February day are said to bring them out. How did the lil' 22 perform? What range, presentation, etc? I often carry the same and although I've only seen a couple armadillo here, I've wondered how the little rimfire would fare.
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Feb 2, 2024 8:44:11 GMT -5
Just found one for a pretty good price and ordered it up. Aquaticgear.shop Have you used that site before? Something doesn't seem right. Contact info phone number is Idaho area code. Listed address doesn't seem to exist.
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Feb 2, 2024 8:26:23 GMT -5
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Feb 1, 2024 12:48:38 GMT -5
To add to the above, were both test platforms revolvers? Sometimes a Contender type setup is used and there's no barrel/cylinder gap. It'll make a difference in velocity.
Pressure can be differences in bullet design and seating depth. Alloy used. Primer choice. It all makes a difference.
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Feb 1, 2024 8:00:16 GMT -5
The main reason for this is OSHA!!! Actually, it's the EPA and the individual state regulatory agencies, but I get your point. I work in Industry, specifically in Environmental Health and Safety. Most folks are truly ignorant about what we're doing. As much as the state and national agencies are a pain in my...side, we should be very, very thankful that they exist and that they are as stringent as they are... Goodness me, I can't believe I just typed that. What a pain in my ass. But what's the alternative? The sorta-kinda-free-for-all people seem to desire? Sounds good, but remember what Larry Niven said - Mother Nature doesn't care if you're having fun!
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Jan 31, 2024 12:24:24 GMT -5
good point marlin35. But you fail to realize that here in America,, it's all about the almighty dollar. Unless there is a potential for huge profits,, companies prefer to "outsource" the products. And remember,, a CZ company now owns 3 of the 4 primer makers here. To quote Yoda; "Screwed we are!" That’s what I don’t understand, is that the almighty dollar would say, you can make all the money there is to make with nitrocellulose if you produce it here. With all of the military contracts, and civilian market, and China and Russia saying no more, then the market is wide open for production. You would think the incentive would be there for the government, since we supply so much to other countries by way of manufactured munitions. As a nation we're not having an issue producing munitions. And as a percentage, the civilian market is negligible, almost laughable. Our nation's gun culture was born of military surplus and will always play second fiddle to the military. This, regardless of how many black guns and how much ball ammo folks stockpile in their basements.
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Jan 31, 2024 12:11:58 GMT -5
Okay so after some google foo, this is what I understand. Nitrocellulose is made by using a mixture of nitric and sulfuric acid to nitrate cellulose polymers. Cellulose is present in all plant material, with higher contents in woody and fibrous plants. Think wood pulp or cotton. So, this isn’t the product of some geographically available mineral deposits or a byproduct of environmentally damaging production. The process reads as being quite simple (relative to what the US is capable of manufacturing). It is much more simple than say lithium mining or pesticide chemical manufacturing. I gather that there is no more reason to depending on China or Russia for nitrocellulose than there is depending on the Middle East for oil. The creation of nitrocellulose produces an astronomical volume of volatile organic compounds as a byproduct. Environmentally and economically new domestic production is a non-starter in the US.
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Jan 31, 2024 7:25:06 GMT -5
Both IMO I think most shorten the cylinder just a tad instead of opening up the frame length. At least that’s what Bowen, Clements and Horvath have done on mine. I understand that frame windows are typically not opened up to the front, but longer than standard cylinders are often installed. If, for example, one were to have a maximum cylinder shortened to fit full length in a standard Blackhawk frame and a 4 5/8” barrel was requested, would the barrel be cut so the muzzle is even in length with a standard ERH, or would the barrel extend beyond the ERH an amount equal to the length that the new cylinder is longer than the standard length cylinder? Another angle to consider is the fact that large frame NM 357 Magnum cylinders are shorter than 44 mag and 45 Colt cylinders. The 357 mag barrel tenons are longer than those on 44 mag and 45 Colt barrels, yet Ruger does not account for this in there barrel length descriptions. Unless I am mistaken, barrel length is measured from the front of the cylinder window, NOT the front of the cylinder. The portion of the barrel tenon sticking into the window is not part of the measurement. This is how manufacturers achieved standardization in nomenclature and aesthetics. There is no correlation between cylinder window dimensions and barrel length. The only reason to trim the front of the window is because your chosen cartridge won't fit any other way. In my estimation, thinning the yoke (weakening it) to fit a 500 Special into medium frame New Model Flattop is unnecessary at best. The word that keeps popping into my head is reckless, but I suppose your chosen builder knows what they're doing and knows why it needs to be done.
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Jan 30, 2024 21:56:44 GMT -5
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Post by Odin on Jan 30, 2024 14:43:34 GMT -5
However long the cylinder, I would leave room for a HUB, a.k.a. gas ring. Does it do anything besides help to maintain cylinder gap? Why not have the barrel tenon almost fully within the cylinder frame and the hub/gas ring fairly minimal? Seems to me without a gas ring, the entire face of the cylinder would ride against the front of the cylinder window. I can imagine a number of... results. None of them good.
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Jan 30, 2024 14:39:47 GMT -5
So, what are you having built? I'm all for wildcats and such, and long seating of bullets seems an interesting path, but every time I've done the math I end up with 454,475,512 and then my calculator flashes "MAXIMUM!!"
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Odin
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Post by Odin on Jan 27, 2024 18:53:46 GMT -5
Are the loading gates on New Model flattops a different size than the standard NM Blackhawk? One of my flattops has a hideous gap at the bottom of the gate. I'd be willing to buy a couple just to see if I could improve the fit.
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