Bearcat fun!

[Aggie01]

A couple auctions later...



Does this look like a pile of fun to anyone else?
And sure, I probably paid enough for both of these auctions to have just bought a Bearcat. ($332 to put everything in my hands) But where is the fun and adventure in that?

The revolver is actually a Super BC, and the parts look like from an early Bearcat, based on grips.

I'd appreciate if anyone has any inclination of troubles I might have assembling this thing. Or If I'm missing anything - Kuhnhausen is a bit sketchy on the Bearcats.

[nobearsyet]

Watch the timing. For that matter how does one check timing?

[Aggie01]

The cylinder bolt should drop into the notch as the hammer reaches full cock. This is when cocked slowly, keeping a light pressure on the cylinder to ensure no inertial momentum is allowed to rotate the cylinder ahead of the pawl engagement surfaces.

If the cylinder bolt is not in the notch at full cock, the pawl will have to be stretched or replaced. Or (as was the case with my bisleyization of my 44 anny.), if the cylinder bolt is in the notch before full cock, some of the second step of the pawl will have to be removed.
Cylinder alignment will also have be checked with both cylinder.

I'm a rookie at this stuff, so I can only take responsibility for what I do to MY guns. Consult a gunsmith if you want to do something like this. I tried on my OM single six and couldn't make it work, so it went in a box to Alan Harton.

[nobearsyet]

Thanks, I'll ask the gunsmith at work before I try it, he doesn't like to take my jobs anyways (says there's too much work for too little cash involved, I always make a smith set a price when he starts so it doesn't end up like the 1000 model 1300 buttstock, screw time and materials, that gets pricey too quick)

[Aggie01]

If you want to tinker with Ruger SA innards, you owe it to yourself (and your firearms) to get Kuhnhausen's book.

[nobearsyet]

I have it, but to be brutally honest, most of it is greek to me

[Aggie01]

Jun 3, 2009 12:29:13 GMT -5 nobearsyet said:

I have it, but to be brutally honest, most of it is greek to me

Much like most of my collection of Louis L'amour books, it reads better with a sixgun in hand.

[nobearsyet]

It does, and the tools to take it apart, however the specs are kind of fuzzy in my mind, I start to wonder if it says (and this is just an example as I don't have it in front of me to look at) .002-.010 then where do I want it to be set at to make it shoot the best? That's why I bug you guys wit hstupid questions like at home 5 shooter conversions

[Aggie01]

I'm guess that spec you quoted might be for B/C gap.
Much like ..other activities, tighter is better unless its so tight you get hung up.

Try not to get too hung up in the numbers. There isn't a whitetail in the world that will get away because you lost 20 fps to a B/C gap.

Also, you hijacked my thread, and I let you. Damn.
I guess I'm the only one excited about this bearcat anyway.

Maybe you old softie sixgunners would get more fired up if I posted a pic of the recipient of this thing when it's done. He is one year old now,and has a laugh and smile to melt the stoniest of hearts. Due to my sister's insistence to document EVERYTHING about her firstborn's early years, (her recent estimate is 7K to 10K pictures last year) there is now a video of me handing a ruger bearcat (essentially disabled, but still A REAL GUN, to a 1 year child. No grips on it, but he grabbed it right. I guess that's a good sign.
And yeah, not a typo, seven thousand to ten thousand pictures last year.

[nobearsyet]

Well, it seems you've got a natural born sixgunner there Aggie

[carl]

You should find a small mis-match between the early grips and the Super Bearcat frame. I have some Bearcat parts, too!




Carl

[nobearsyet]

I actually wasn't quoting any kind of spec, I made up an example

[461tim]

I love the Bearcat, I had one done up for my daughter in .22Mag and boy is it a lot of fun. After I get through with a major move in the next few weeks I intend to start saving up for my own custom Bearcat in .32Mag. That should be loads of fun.

[hoss]

Huh.... I guess I need a 32 and a 22 mag bearkit as well... Great project, Aggie. I get it. I only wish I had a sixgun that my father or grandfather had built from scratch. Good on ya, and way to bring new shooters into the fold.

[Aggie01]

Despite all the money I'm dropping on arms since I made something of myself, the last gun that I would get rid of is still the Mossberg 140K that my dad bought sometime around '64.
It's the one I learned to shoot on, learned what a sight picture was, learned what a safety was and all that kinda thing.
He gave it to me the summer I turned 12. No special ceremony, no big speech, just "you shoot it more than I do, it's yours, take care of it". If I had to make a choice between it and EVERYTHING else in my safe, there would be no contest. Everything else is replaceable.
I know that have put at least 10K rounds thru it, and may be approching 20K at this point.
My dad loves that I put a scope on his old rifle that has a retail of about 10 times what he gave for the gun new.
7 of 10 matchsticks at 100 yards the last time someone called me out when I was bragging on it.

I would love it if this Bearcat turns out to mean half that to my nephew.