Author Topic: Lit up my new 45LC Handi last night... (Read 1696 times)

Land_Owner · « **on:** December 30, 2010, 01:26:30 PM »

...with 102 rounds of 230 grain Ranier copper clad round nose ammo in short succession. Warmed her up good. Had one round mushroom and come nearly straight back from the target, a piece of standing lighter pine 20 yards away, landing about 5 feet past us on the shooting line. A real eye opener!

That rifle is SHARP, CRISP, and FUN to shoot. One round was a real "barn burner" making a report about 1.5 times that of all the rest. A regular "Proof Load" of unknown pedigree and one of my own reloads from two years ago. Quality Control is the watch word for further reloading of that cartridge. The new Handi hardly flinched, took it in stride and spit out the remaining 60-70 rounds without further anomaly. I doubt that it was a double charge of Unique powder, although the rounds were loaded to Ruger Blackhawk weight, but within the maximum of the load books.

Accuracy testing will start after some additional fun shooting it at "nothing in particular". It is drilled and tapped for a scope and a scope is now in order. Probably one of the renewed Redfield line.

quickdtoo · « **Reply #1 on:** December 30, 2010, 01:56:46 PM »

Hopefully the next range trip will be less exciting!! Just goes ta show ya that light loads aren't always safe either!! $:-\$ I was standing next to a friend on a blackpowder trailwalk and watched him shoot himself with a .54 cal round ball! He dry balled(loaded without powder) so he removed the nipple and sifted a few grains of 4f priming powder into the fire channel of his Lyman GPR and replaced the nipple, capped and sent the ball towards a maple tree about 10yds down range, it came right back at him and smacked him right in the possibles bag!

Tim

LONGTOM · « **Reply #2 on:** December 30, 2010, 02:13:54 PM »

the possibles bag or HIS possibles bag?

LONGTOM

quickdtoo · « **Reply #3 on:** December 30, 2010, 02:18:56 PM »

The leather possibles bag that he was wearing, made a pretty good thump! There were several of us shooting with him, we were real glad it didn't hit someone in the face!

Tim

MSP Ret · « **Reply #4 on:** December 30, 2010, 02:23:25 PM »

Ques. - "the possibles bag or HIS possibles bag?"

Ans. - "The leather possibles bag that he was wearing, made a pretty good thump!"

Comment - lucky it did not hit him in "HIS" possibles bag as well....<><....

quickdtoo · « **Reply #5 on:** December 30, 2010, 02:25:56 PM »

OUCH!!

Dinny · « **Reply #6 on:** December 30, 2010, 03:15:21 PM »

Quote from: MSP Ret on December 30, 2010, 02:23:25 PM

Ques. - "the possibles bag or HIS possibles bag?"
Ans. - "The leather possibles bag that he was wearing, made a pretty good thump!"
Comment - lucky it did not hit him in "HIS" possibles bag as well....<><....

I'm glad that was clarified. I was very concerned and cringing in pain myself until I read on. Now I'm just...

Thanks, Dinny

petemi · « **Reply #7 on:** December 31, 2010, 03:35:50 AM »

I have done that, but after dumping the 4f down the nipple hole, I shoot into the ground about 5 or ten feet in front of me.

What's even more exciting is shooting your ramrod down range. I haven't accomplished the feat as yet, but I have two friends that have. The really funny thing is they're both range officers. In fact, one of them did it at the National Shoots.

Pete

spinafish · « **Reply #8 on:** December 31, 2010, 04:01:16 AM »

I'm quite certain several hundred Indians were shot with a ramrod followed closely by a round ball!!

dpe.ahoy · « **Reply #9 on:** December 31, 2010, 04:41:49 AM »

Never done it myself, but seen it happen. Seems to let em know on the recoil end of the shot as well.

I can't use a bow fer crap, wonder if this would work for archery season

. Just kidding.

DP

Hit or Miss · « **Reply #10 on:** December 31, 2010, 08:27:39 AM »

I shot mine some last night also! As others have mentioned, the factory sights leave a lot to be desired and with the 2 different loads it was shooting 12" high at 60 yards. I can move the sight left to right easily with finger pressure too. I'm mostly a pistol guy but I think this is the coolest rifle I've ever seen!

I'm trying to decide whether to put a peep of some kind on it or just throw on a 4x scope I've got laying around.

gcrank1 · « **Reply #11 on:** December 31, 2010, 02:15:32 PM »

One of the things I like about these rifles with open sights is that it is just so easy to scope them and really find out what they are capable of, then drop the scope and go have 'confident' fun. Or, leave the scope on, like Ive ended up with on my 38-55 TM; I just got used to the way it looks.......and works.

Land_Owner · « **Reply #12 on:** December 31, 2010, 09:30:36 PM »

Putting on a scope would leave dovetails in the barrel where the front and rear iron sights are removed. Who makes dovetail inserts for Handi-rifles to plug those?

quickdtoo · « **Reply #13 on:** January 01, 2011, 05:14:21 AM »

Marbles and Williams makes em, Midway and Brownells sells em.

Tim

http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/sid=21641/pid=8820/sku/Blue__No__87?utm_medium=shoppingengine&utm_source=googlebase&mc_id=10000&gdftrk=gdfV21820_a_7c187_a_7c745_a_7c579087100_d_579087100_d_1150

http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/sid=44064/pid=19920/sku/Aluminum_Slot_Blank?utm_medium=shoppingengine&utm_source=googlebase&mc_id=10000&gdftrk=gdfV21820_a_7c187_a_7c745_a_7c962000034_d_962000034_d_1150

bikerbeans · « **Reply #14 on:** January 01, 2011, 06:01:35 AM »

LO,

Look closely at the New Redfield 3 9 40 since I believe you like chasin' pigs. I noticed with my new 3 9 40 it has very good low light performance for a cheaper scope. Also, I have one of the new Redfields on a 45-120 and after several hundred rounds it is still working just fine. Since you seem to have implemented the same Quality Control Program in your reload room that I use, the ability to withstand excess recoil is important.

BB

gcrank1 · « **Reply #15 on:** January 01, 2011, 06:35:21 AM »

Go to a local gun show and look for dovetail blanks or file some out of mild steel, or even brass, scrap you have laying around. A little cold blue on either material makes it blend in fine. The real key to making things like this is to have a long enough piece of stock to really clamp in a bench vise so you can shape the end to what you want. A fine tooth triangle file from the hardware store will make the dovetail cuts. I would grind the teeth flat off one side to make it a 'safe' side. That will also give you a good sharp edge.
Do NOT file the barrel dovetails to make sights or blanks fit; after that nothing will fit again.
Buying them is easier, but at the price and with S&H I cant bring myself to order little stuff unless I have more to justify it.

Land_Owner · « **Reply #16 on:** January 01, 2011, 03:05:57 PM »

Quote from: bikerbeans on January 01, 2011, 06:01:35 AM

...you seem to have implemented the same Quality Control Program in your reload room that I use...

It is good not to be alone. Can we still say "There's safety in numbers"?

Misery loves company.

Perhaps I should purchase 10 to 15 dovetails at one time, since I am now leaning toward the purchase of a 223 Handi to join my 357, 45 LC, and 12 gage...

These rifles are so much fun they are ADDICTIVE.

gcrank1 · « **Reply #17 on:** January 01, 2011, 04:55:17 PM »

Good to hear you are having FUN; that is really what most of this is about, until we get 'serious' and go hunting. You almost have me convinced to waive the .357 and go straight to the .45C, but Im set up for both calibers, whichever shows up priced right.

Land_Owner · « **Reply #18 on:** January 03, 2011, 01:20:55 AM »

The 45LC is a short (16" barrel) and sweet little carbine of a rifle with walnut stock and steel butt plate. It doesn't need any recoil pad.

My 357 by comparison has a bull barrel, no factory sights to dovetail, black synthetic stock, rubber butt plate, and now sports a 4X scope and green lazer giving it "Black Ops" sort of look. It is a sweet shooting rifle (one that I have not worked for accuracy yet), medium in weight, light in recoil (the 45 LC is too), easy to feed, and I am grinning from ear to ear every time I go to the range to shoot it.

Poster 45-70 is my "Pusher" and got me addicted to these (THANKS TIM!!! and I mean that most sincerely). Now I need one for me in 223 caliber as well as another safe in which to house them all. Maybe I need three in 223 caliber and a couple more each in 45LC and 357 since both of my boys will be wanting one for themselves. Better yet, maybe I will wait and their Mother and I will give them one on their birthdays respectively. That's forward thinking right there.

This addiction is about as bad as land ownership and its inherent "Adjacency" disease. As the Texan said, "I don't want to own it all, just the adjoining parcel(s)."

Gohon · « **Reply #19 on:** January 03, 2011, 02:41:40 AM »

If one is sitting at a shooting bench and shooting nothing but cowboy loads I might agree a recoil bad is not needed for the 45 Colt BC. But when I'm at the bench shooting hunting loads at Ruger and TC power levels I absolutely do use a slip on recoil pad. Never did make sense to me to allow a gun to beat you up when there is no need to do so. I do not use a recoil pad when in the field hunting but hunting and sitting at a bench and leaning into the gun are not the same.

diddlyv · « **Reply #20 on:** January 08, 2011, 02:39:21 PM »

Shooting high and loose sight

A judiciously applied center punch on the bottom of the dove tailed piece on the sight can tighten things up.

Reference shooting high. You can slide the insert down some also there is a small V on one end and a larger square or U on the other end of the insert. Switching orientation can get the front sight down a little farther. If problems cannot be solved with lowing the rear sight you can always increase the height of the front sight.

gcrank1 · « **Reply #21 on:** January 09, 2011, 04:07:19 AM »

Though the center punch has been used for years as a 'dimpling' tool for loose sights, there are better approaches today with the readily available different grades of Locktight, etc. I say this after having seen too much damage done in dovetails with a punch. If you must punch, do yourself a favor and do it, as said above, on the bottom of the SIGHT, not the bottom of the dovetail in the barrel. (always 'modify' the least expensive and most replaceable parts). A lot of little dimples are better than a few big ones.
I have a couple of rifles that -o- nicely for the ranges I want that I have taken the elevator bar completely out and the sight leaf just sits atop the barrel. Put the 'bar in a little baggie with a note what its for (they often disappear otherwise).