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Post by bradshaw on Apr 18, 2024 22:16:28 GMT -5
It has throats of .431 what diameter bullets are you feeding it? I have a BFR with .430 throats and .431 bullets shoot extremely well, some .430's are good and all .429's have been poor. ***** wheelnut.... many IHMSA silhouette matches and an assortment of championships have been settled by Smith &wesson Model 29’s and Ruger Super Blackhawks shooting the Sierra .4295 240 JHC and Hornady .430 240 JHP through chamber exit holes in the .432-inch zone. To be match accurate, a harmony must be struck between the revolver’s vital dimensions. If your BFR .44 Mag with .430” throats prints .431” bullets tight, but poorly with .429’s, first place I’d look is GROOVE DIAMETER. Then I’d name exact bullets which shoot straight, and iname bullets which shoot poorly. Accuracy, in order of importance1) Revolver. 2) Bullet. 3) Load. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 18, 2024 16:56:38 GMT -5
Some time ago I told yall how I love my new Uberti Bad Boy 44 Mag. Well, I am starting to have problems. Firstly, I cannot find a load factory or handload that shoots well in this weapon. 4 to 5 inch groups at 30 yards. I have tried loads from "rocks and dynamite" to powder puff loads. Bullets from 180 grains to 310. Nothing groups well. Second, accuracy is not good enough for my wishes. Which puzzles me; every measurement on this weapon is spot on (or seems to be). Throats are .431 best I can measure. Barrel slugs .430. No tight spots, but the forcing cone is DEEP. Think "Taylor Throated" or "Weatherby throat". The rifling is crisp and sharp though. The crown seems smooth and even. The barrel is "over cocked" which makes it shoot slightly to the right but with adjustable sights that can be overlooked. Third, a recent development, it has started to misfire. This being a three notch cocking system (which I know absolutely nothing about) I was told there was a piece of metal that backs the firing pin when the trigger is pulled making it safe to carry 6 rounds. Well it aint working. The misfire does not follow one particular chamber. Might misfire at any time. The importer here in Texas told me to send it in but dang I hate doing that. I am sure they wont replace the firearm with another proper one, they will just fix the misfire since it does "function" as a useable firearm. I have been shooting every load I can find or make. Standing, sitting, Creedmoor, supported, unsupported, everything but closing my eyes. Even had my wife load the cylinder with empty and loaded cases and spin the cylinder to see if I was flinching. The grip fits me better than the stock new Ruger grip and I love the weapon but if it doesn't shoot well what are my choices? ***** Trey.... the short list of dimensions you illuminate condemns the forcing cone. As you know, I disdain a deep forcing cone. There are exceptions, demonstrable only in detail. Missing from your list: * bore & groove----uniformity. * forcing cone----alignment with bore; smooth or rough. * chamber-to-bore aligment----chamber axis vs bore axis: runout & longitudinal. Revolver accuracy is an orchestra of dimensions Within this concert, some dimensions are more important than others. The balance of a perfect bullet, thrown off balance before it seats in the rifling, cannot be saved by a perfect bore & groove. Of course, damaged bullet balance worsens in a wavy bore, or bore with loose groove diameter. Forcing cone diseaseEnough over-excited handloading accompanied the Magnum craze of the 1960’s into the 1980’s to provoke SPITTING (sideblast of propellant & bullet particles from cylinder/barrel gap) to get the attention of manufacturers. A expedient “cure" was introduced----the deep forcing cone. S&W, Sturm, Ruger, and other magnum makers adopted the remedy without accuracy analysis. The disease persist some forty years later, albeit with lapses back to sanity vis the traditional modest forcing cones. By dint of the competitive firing line, this shooter happened to be on the ground floor of articulating the problem. Still, despite the soaring growth of Handgun Silhouette, too many in manufacturing regarded long range revolver marksmanship as exotic. The proper cure is to consider the FORCING CONE as absolutely critical to accuracy, to show it utmost respect in the first place. (The same is true for LEADE in a centerfire rifle.) Providing bore & groove dimensions are sound, a bad forcing cone can be remedied by trimming BARREL FACE and SHOULDER enough to turn a concentric short cone the good barrel. In the prices trimming BARREL SHOULDER at achieve proper THREAD TIMING. My preference is for the barrel to hand tighten 10 to 12-degrees BTDC (Before Top Dead Center). Barrel/frame alignmentIf the barrel socket in the frame is crooked, the manufacturing remedy is to replace the frame. At the gunsmith level, surgery may or may not save it. A tenon crooked on the barrel will require shortening breech end of barrel up to an inch to cut a new tenon. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 15, 2024 8:52:46 GMT -5
Apply gc and size before or after? Concerned that if I powder coat before I apply gas checks and size the paint will come off in th process. The gas checks are a tight fit to start. Mold throws at .412 , I size to .410 ***** foxtrapper.... contender and boatswainsmate are correct. The first batch of the Bradshaw-Martin .357 194 SWC Gas Check bullets cast by Lee----in the bullet's first mold (Dan, now retired, @ Mountain Molds----had some gas checks fall off of em in shipping. These bullets I set aside for targeting @ 100 yards. Reset gas checks by hand and deep seated the 104 grain semi wad cutters one 18.5/H4227 in Remington .357 Maximum 1.605” brass with small rifle primer. My best groups sandbag 5x5 around 2-inches from stock Ruger with 10-1/2” Blackhawk Maximum. Bradshaw-Martins 194’s recovered from penetration through water jugs retained gas check. Likewise, bullets which zippered through snow and grass. My little experiment with gas checks slightly crooked on the heal of the bullet at the start of seating suggests that firing fully seats the gas check. Make sure edge of gas check doesn’t catch on heal of bullet. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 12, 2024 20:17:43 GMT -5
Pete.... Bill Ruger liked to make one parts serve two jobs, an engineering concept invented long before John Moses Browning or Bill Ruger put it to use. Couple of examples on the New Model * BASE PIN spring loads transfer bar while serving as cylinder. axle. * LOADING GATE swings open to load/unload, simultaneously "locks" transfer bar. * TRANSFER BAR enables hammer ro strike firing pin (when hammer is cocked and trigger is pulled). Transfer bar & loading gate form heart of the passive safety.. * LOADING GATE SPRING holds gate closed, and when open. As gate is opened, gate spring depresses bolt to allow cylinder rotation from loading/unloading. Gate spring also secures trigger pin.
Since hammer cannot be cocked while trigger is blocked, revolver cannot be fired during load/unload sequence.
With revolver at rest, hammer does not reach firing pin.Ipening the loading gates locks the lockwork. Loading & unloading are accomplished WITHOUT TOUCHING HAMMER or TRIGGER. By definition, a PASSIVE SAFETY system. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 10, 2024 9:18:59 GMT -5
Benjamin.... a few notes on the Browning 1926, aka Pistole 35, aka Hi Power, aka High Power.
Magazine safety Logic behind magazine safety probably originates with an agency issuing the pistol in an unfireable state. Allowing gun to be shot only with issuance of magazine. Curious, the same mentality never spread to rifles.
Magazine safety is deactivated by removing pin in trigger which holds a spring-loaded plunger. Insertion of magazine depresses plunger. Plunger rotates a “push rod” into alignment with a rocker arm pinned to the slide. As trigger is squeezed, “connect rod” pushes forward end of rocker arm... causing rearward end of rocker arm to depress SEAR... causing HAMMER fall.
Removal of magazine safety eliminates drag of plunger on magazine, which instantly smoothes & lightens take-up.
Burr hammer vs spur hammer The Browning P-35 continues the too-short tang of Browning’s original 1911. The short tang 1911 was corrected on the 1911-A1 by incorporating a longer tang on the grip safety. Such improvement must be incorporated in the frame on the P-35. I get hammer bite from the original 1911, and hammer bite from the original P-35 with burr hammer. The spur hammer saves me from hammer bite. Unlike the 1911, which is beautiful with burr hammer and with spur hammer, the P-35 is much more attractive with burr hammer.
Magazine catch The P-35 probably represents this first pistol made with an extended magazine catch. This works fine for speed loading, yet its high button on the double column grip exposes the magazine to accidental release. Which I’ve experienced with naked carry, Canadian military canvas holsters, and holsters which put leather in contact with the catch. That result can turn the P-35 into a single shot (proving the mag safety has been removed and the pistol has a round in the spout.
Accuracy Depends on the gun. I’ve had a Browning Hi Power which was wonderfully accurate, and a later one which was mediocre. When Bill Ruger developed his centerfire auto pistol, he gathered representatives of 9mm Luger pistols. He asked me to try some of them during breaks from shooting .357 Maximums. There was no Ruger 9mm to try at that time. Up on the hill behind the houses of Bill and Bill, Jr., there swung a rack of steel plates, some of which were six or 8-inch squares. I could pelt these with regularity from my Browning. Some 9mm’s, and an inaccurate Browning, would not do so. A Walther P5 with amazing ergonomics----which retailed from Interarms at an astronomic $960----did miserable against the plates @ 50 yards.
The SIG/Sauer P225 (aka P6) wasn’t available, nor its followup P226. Nor was the the HK P7, which I later found to be exceptionally accurate, with a super trigger, yet plagued by a noisy squeeze-cocker firing system which contradicts flex-reflex of the human hand. The SIG/Sauer P225 (single stack 9mm) and P226 (double stack 9mm) would prove exceptional accuracy.
Bill Ruger was most concerned with durability and reliability, and thinking along the lines of “service accuracy.”
Sweat & corrosion Bluing of carbon steel affords poor protection against humidity & heat, especially perspiration, which varies greatly from individual to individual. I am low on the acidic scale, yet Meixcan carry has shown nascent rust on a Browning Hi Power and a SIG/Sauer P226 in less than a day. Freezing cold impedes oxidation, but who carries next their skin in cold?
Bluing on bead blast shows rust faster than bluing on high polish.
Mexican carry A pistol with a flat, not fat, slide rides better, of which the 1911 and Hi Power are prime examples. Naked carry will never be as secure as a proper holster. My Chic Gaylord inside-the-pants scabbard for the 1911, made around 1960 of very thin pigskin, retains its integrity all these years later. Pigskin can be skipped thin while retaining strength, but, as Snyd on Singleactions has observed, has become hard to find these days. Unlike deerskin, which is great for shooting gloves, pigskin is great for shooting gloves and inside tnside-the-pants leather.
For this shooter, Mexican carry is for immediate action, not steady carry.
Small of back Should be limited to the most immediate of immediate actions. I wouldn’t want to be caught wounded while carrying in small of back. Which is to say, one fall on the backside stands ton wreak havoc on the spine. I shun any carry which places the handgun on bone. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 9, 2024 13:14:07 GMT -5
Hijacked thread. Nothing wrong with a hijack, especially delivered with wit. However, a post delivered in vituperation stinks up the gumbo. The last post deleted accordingly. David Bradshaw
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Snyd
Apr 9, 2024 7:57:29 GMT -5
Post by bradshaw on Apr 9, 2024 7:57:29 GMT -5
Bob.... thank you.
Summit this one, Perry, as you have some of handgunning’s steepest challenges, David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 8, 2024 22:26:11 GMT -5
Ed Verge, my late shooting partner, packed a Model 57 .41 Mag with 8-3/8” barrel, while I packed a 6-1/2” M-29 .44 Mag. We shot neck & neck continuously. Once, while hunting, we jumped a deer in snowy softwoods. Ed about 20 yards to my left. Neither knew the other drew, but drawn we did, each cocking on the draw. Sounded like a single stereoscopic shot. Dressing the deer, we found both shots intersected the heart, an inch or 1-1/2 inch apart. Ed felt neither outgunned nor undergunned with his .41. Same went for his partner with the .44.
Neither shooter ever suggested the other shooter change caliber.
The advent of handgun silhouette drew this shooter like a magnet, but not Ed, although his marksmanship possessed a serious competitive spirit.
I thought about the .41 Mag, yet did not want to pollute my feel for the .44 with the .41’s slightly flatter trajectory. We were better off sticking to our guns. Handgun silhouette saw the screwdriver replace Kentucky. Those who came to with Kentucky could take advantage when distances varied and light conditions messed with sighting. Had Ruger made the Super Blackhawk in .41 Mag, and especially the 10-1/2” Silhouette Super and Silver Hornpipe, the .41 would have attracted more shooters. Dan Wesson Arms would have found the .41 more difficult, as the M-44 .44 Mag Vent Heavy 8-inch (VH8) barely slid under the 4-lbs weight limit. To make weight, a .41 Mag VH8 would have had to hog more metal off the barrel shroud. Same diet would apply the a DWA .41 Mag with 10” Vent shroud.
As our James from Jersey notes, the N frame Smith is a natural for the .41 Mag. But not for trying to launch the Space Shuttle. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 8, 2024 12:41:13 GMT -5
seminolewind.... revolver in photo essay Vol. 34-2 is a Ruger S410N .44 Mag “Silhouette Super”----10-1/2” Super Blackhawk from earliest production (introduced 1979), and winner of the first International Revolver Championship.
Must now get ready to watch eclipse. Shall check screw arrangement on .357 Maximum later. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 8, 2024 7:11:02 GMT -5
Pete.... as Tyrone (contender) says, “Never say never with Ruger.”
Bill Ruger incorporated two ALIGNMENT LUGS on the “ears” of his GRIP FRAMEs. These ears align into cuts in the rear of the FRAME. These allow the grip frame to be held to the frame by a single screw in front of the trigger guard. I used this convenience when doing trigger jobs on the original .357 Maximum prototypes. I learned this trick while tuning the letoff on Bill Ruger, Jr.’s coffee table.
“You know, you don’t have to use all five screws to test your work,” said Bill, Jr. “The front [grip frame] screw is all you need.” (I declined Bill’s invitation to fire a few rounds with just the front grip frame screw.)
Both right & left lugs on the grip frame were notched to allow passage of the long grip frame screw. As well, both holes in the frame were drilled deep enough to accept the long screw. On a gun so-made, all you had to remember was to insert the long screw as the flute in the flute in the hammer pin.
Variations, later on.... * As has been noted, there came grip frames with just one alignment lug notched for screw clearance. * Frames have been made, in which the two holes behind the trigger drilled to unequal depths. * Grip frame alignment lugs and corresponding cuts in frame were eliminated from production perhaps ten to more years ago. * Long screw and hammer pin flute are normally on LEFT side of frame. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 7, 2024 21:01:33 GMT -5
Pete.... check out Gallery section, DB Photos Vol 34-2 (XXXIV-2), to see the long grip frame screw goes to the left of the trigger----opposite loading gate. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 7, 2024 20:56:54 GMT -5
Pete.... lookout photos #14, 15, and a couple others to see the LONG GRIP FRAME SCREW goes in the hole to the left of the trigger guard (opposite loading gate. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 7, 2024 12:37:03 GMT -5
Just a reminder to everyone, the hammer pin goes in with the grove on the loading gate side of the frame, and the long grip frame screw also goes in on the loading gate side. The frame is cut to accept the long screw on the loading gate side. Damage to the screw can occur if the long screw is installed on the wrong side. Been there. ***** Correct. When stripping revolver, it is a good idea to clean drilled & tapped holes. Gradou, including steel cuttings, sometimes clutters holes in a Ruger frame. Same is true for tapped holes in S&W frames which receive the side-late screws. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 6, 2024 14:15:16 GMT -5
Mr. Bradshaw not to argue with you, but for information. Let's say you're shooting a BP load in a revolver and you get 1000 fps muzzle velocity. So say if you load smokeless and it gets slightly less muzzle velocity, which has less pressure? My understanding is pressure=velocity. More pressure more velocity. I understand the pressure developes differently between BP and smokeless. ***** I would love to visually watch smokeless propellant, black powder, and high explosives combust in ultra-slow motion. Short of that, I’d appreciate a lab tutorial on the heat and detonative decomposing of solid and liquid chemistries into gas; to watch TTP (Time to Pressure), with simultaneous displacement of Material at Rest (whether it be bullet, rock, steel, or water). I expect much of the mathematic information is available, and that very little visual info has been developed. Having used some early SEMI-SMOKELESS powder, and blown up a black powder mortar with semi-smokeless, provides the impression smokeless powder continues to expand long after black powder finds atmospheric equilibrium. That continuing expansion of smokeless suggests, at least to this shooter, that PRESSURE TIME translates to Work on Target. This is easily demonstrated with HE (High Explosives). Also readily demonstrated through handloading. Piezo pressure equipment would be the way correlate black and smokeless characteristics. Meanwhile, back in the Handload Jungle, I would feel better loading antiques with black powder or Pyrodex. And, I would call Hodgdon Powder and listen. David Bradshaw
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Post by bradshaw on Apr 6, 2024 12:50:30 GMT -5
Mr. Bradshaw, what is your opinion on the safe production dates for colts to use smokeless powder in? You stated using smokeless loads in an 1897 colt, and I have an 1896 colt that has been in my family since it was bought new in St. Louis. I have never shot it as I do not currently possess 44-40 dies nor black powder. What says you about loading light smokeless loads for this gun?[/quote] ***** marlin35.... god question, for which I haven’t a measurable answer. After shooting that beautiful 1897 Colt, I decided a continuous diet of my load might prove too much for the old steel. Technically, black powder is an explosive, whereas smokeless powder is a propellant. Yet, the expansion ratio and pressures generated by black powder is less. My late friend and maestro TIG welder in Austin, Texas, made weldments to antique guns for a couple of America’s top revolver smiths. Looking at the parent steel under magnification, it amazes me----the fantastic machine work and gun making that was done in the 1800’s. Inclusions are to be found in old steels with really challenge welding skills. These same inclusions do not make steel stronger over time and probably increase exposure to fatigue. David Bradshaw
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