Chuck Would, SASS # 53289

I bought my last front sight from Happy Trails( Bill English at the Smith Shop. See: thesmithshop.com/beadbrass.html

OK. You're right. I got mislead when someone else mentioned caliber.

The short answer is no. The longer answer is still no, but. The same calibers on both pistols would be recommended. Makes it much easier at the loading table. I have a pard who shoots both .45 - in his pistols - and .44-40 in his rifle. It is possible to load the right ammo into the wrong firearm. Its one of the reasons that loading blocks or Strips are available. The other reason is ease of reloading. Most of us reload our ammo. Using the same caliber for pistols and rifles means that you're buying not as many components. Different powders, different brass.

Go to a match or two. Maybe three. Call the match director ahead of time and let him know you're coming. That will give you a contact person, He will likely hand you off to another person you can talk to and ask questions. If you think you have questions now. Wait until you get to a match. We're a real friendly bunch. Don't be afraid to ask questions. We generally love to talk about our firearms, the game and just about everything else related. Don't buy anything until you've been to a match. A lot of folks buy a large loop lever, 'cause that's what John Wayne used in a few movies. I love the look but they are not as fast as the regular loop on most levers. 'Sides, you can't spin them in the game. You'll need to bring a sense of humor and a thick skin when you start playing with us. If you don't have both of those now, you won't have fun with us.

What you want is a Safe Rigging company. They have the tools and the experience to move a safe. I was able to get 3 Mosler safes from a company I worked for that had downsized. 3 LARGE Mosler safes. No way I had the truck with life gate to move them. I called a safe rigger and they moved all thee in one shot. The cost was $500. To me well worth it. You could also think about a piano mover. Again they should have the equipment to move large heavy items.

Got an up date from my friend. This is the only .44 Russian he has. Picked up a VERY nice 7-1/2" Flat top target Colt Bisley at an auction for a good price. He wants to shoot it as it's very tight. From the picture I saw, it's like new condition. He will be loading on his Single Stage as he only plans to shoot it occasionally. So the expense of a new tool head et al is not worth it. Driftwood. As always, I appreciate you help and I love the pictures. You do own some very nice pieces.

I am using Dillon's .44 Magnum Dies to load .44 Special but I've never tried to load .44 Russian with them. What I'm being told is that it will not be a high volume round and he really doesn't want to buy another set of dies just to load for this one pistol he just purchased. My thought was that the only die that might be an issue would be the Crimp Die. A Lee FCD for .44 Russian might be the answer.

I'm actually asking for a friend of mine who is not a SASS shooter. What dies are you using to Load .44 Russian. Are .44 Magnum Dies too long? The process will be on a Dillon 650 if that matters. I know that when I tried loading .45 Cowboy Special with Dillon .45 Colt Dies, the Crimp Die was the big issue. Screwing it down to Crimp I hit the Shell Plate before it would crimp.

I load 5.8 grains behind a 250 grain RNFP for my rifle. I changed to Schofield Brass for the pistols with a 200 grain Bullet. For that I'm using 5.6 grains.

I started out that way because I could and shot in the Duelist Category for many years. You could also shoot in the Gunfighter Category as you do Not need to shoot both at the same time.

In one word. Yes. I bought a hand made Custom hat from Smitty at Colorado Mountain Hat Company back in 2003. I'm still wearing that same hat in 2019 even though I bought another one 3 years ago from him. And I just bought a third. That original hat has been worn to a State match - more than once - when it rained all weekend. The hat was soaked but never ever lost it's shape.

If I see you at a match with that pistol and pearl grips, I'm gonna have everyone on the posse calling you by new alias ala George Patton.

Mine was in the Spam folder as well. Just sent it in. Besides the weather, my only complaint was the mud at stages 5 and 6. Could have used some boardwalks. Man, that mud was deep. Almost sucked my boots off!

I saw a very similar pistol at a couple gun shows in our area. The price was remarkably only $1500.

Tom, The one I recently set up on the North Shore in .45 using Trail Boss had the Large charge bar installed.