Crisco

I know it will sound odd as all hell, but original Armor All works as a catalyst with Tru-Oil, such that you can do multiple coats each day. Didn’t quite believe it when I read it, but tried it to refinish a Browning 92 several years ago. It worked really well and the finish seems to be aging like you would expect from numerous coats of Tru-Oil. Can’t quite picture how anyone discovered this in the first place...

I have had good luck with 4 Stoegers and 2 Baikals. Both brands are very rough out of the box, but the only repairs ever needed so far was when one of the Stoegers quit reliably cocking one side after 10-15 years use, and it was a cheap fix at a local smith.

I think it is Cartridges of the World that mentions that part of the reason this type of ammo was discontinued was because it was "hard on people that don't read labels"...

When I have had the same problem it usually seems to be misalignment of the primer ram with the hole in the shell plate. the primer cup catches as it enters and gives the primer a flip. It doesn’t take much misalignment to do it.

I am not good on dates, but think that the last time they gave a Colt for the high noon shootout was in the late 90’s, maybe ‘97.

We use the Walker’s and like them. They come with several foam sizes so you can choose what fits. My wife has the rechargeable ones, and she likes them for scorekeeping, although I have heard from one friend that his no longer last all the way through a match on a charge. Luckily they make pretty good plugs when they die. My replaceable battery ones last several matches on a battery. My only complaint would be the wind can get irritating and run your battery down amplifying it. The first pair of electronic muffs I bought (quite a while ago) shut off completely on loud noises, and seemed to take a second or two to come back, so wouldn’t work well for a match. The current technology mutes the loud noises but you can still hear conversations. I have some MSA muffs that work the same way, just not with a cowboy hat.

Buckaroo Bobbins might be a good bet, but you would have to give them a call. Geneva makes leather riding skirts to order and I believe I’ve seen jackets and such too, but I don’t see anything but the skirts and accompanying vests on the website. I expect she can make it if you let her know what you want. River Crossing is still listing outfits like you are looking for too, but also made to order.

I used to see a piece of thin wall pipe with one end crimped shut used like that when shooting single actions in "combat" shoots. A lot faster than loading from ammo dumped into a jacket pocket, and pretty much anything is faster than a full reload from a belt.

I believe the centerfire 1866’s were late production, chambered for the .44 Henry Centerfire (same dimensions as the Henry but centerfire), and most, if not all, were shipped to somewhere in South America that escapes my memory at the moment. Seems like very few show up in the states.

Our knockdowns (mostly US poppers) are 3/8" AR500 with 1/2" pipe stick welded to the bottom to mount in our bases. For static targets we've been using 3/8" and 1/2" mild steel for years, and they age pretty well with lead bullets and cowboy loads, but are getting too heavy for most of the folks willing to come out and help these days (not to mention being easily and heavily damaged by boneheads with rifles). We are gradually changing over to 1/4" AR500 targets with a small rectangular slot centered near the top so they can hang from a hook made of 3/8" AR500. Very much like what MGM sells for Steel Challenge if you want to see examples. We initially went with 3/8" AR500, but I saw another club using 1/4" 18"x24" targets that are aging very well in speed steel matches, in which they are getting worked over heavily with jacketed 9mm, .40S&W, & .45ACP, from both pistols and carbines. Since then everything I buy is 1/4" and they are much nicer to haul around. I just go to Pacific Steel with a cardboard template or drawing and they use a plasma cutter; I've not seen any issues with wear or such in the heat affected areas. For long range targets (and even Plainsman rifle targets) the 3/8" AR won't crater, but starts to bow pretty quick when it gets whacked with a few 405 or 500 grain bullets.

Can't answer definitively about the "antique" classification but will tackle the concern noted above about getting them back into the US. SImply fill out a customs form 4457 and have the guns verified by a customs officer BEFORE leaving the states. This form provides the proof that you took them with you so you will not be accused of importing them on your return.

I'm sure it's been longer than I think, but Numrich Arms (now Gunparts Corp) used to sell conversion kits to change your model 94 over to .44 Magnum. I think the "kit" may have consisted of nothing more than a barrel and carrier/lifter. If so, that will answer your initial question, at least for the larger cartridge.