Garrison Joe, SASS #60708

If the primer was live, and case was empty of a primer, that case has a very loose primer pocket. Only high percentage cause of this problem. Could have been caused by a high-pressure discharge in the case the last time it was fired - as in, a double charge. I've seen a double charge open the primer pocket so far that a primer could rattle around in the pocket. good luck, GJ

For sure. The calculator will tell you that would be about 20 Brinnell or harder. At cowboy ammo pressures, I'd expect some heavy leading even if the bullet fits the grooves (from gas cutting)

That's the reason for getting and using an Art Pencil set to get a rough hardness of the lead you scrounge. I agree, cores from jacketed bullets are normally pretty soft, about 6 Brinnell. As bullet makers move in current times toward a more tough hi-performance jacketed bullet, though, the core alloy can be harder. When a mix of ammo types has been used in a bay, you don't know until you test it how hard that scrap lead is. But, it's better to find out by testing when you melt 50 pounds down in a clean-up step, than to just dump range scrap into your casting pot and try to make it cast good bullets by estimating how much hardening it needs. Now, if you can afford a Cabine Tree hardness tester or even a Lee model, that would be even better. But, then again, making cowboy match bullets is not a very demanding process. In fact, you could get away with casting a bullet or two from straight range pickup, then add in enough linotype to get to the point where you can't scratch the surface with a thumbnail (which is about 10 Brinnel). good luck, GJ

The rebated cylinder shows me it has to be a .44 gun. (It's Wales, BTW.) good luck, GJ

Trying to figure if you have just a mixture of two versions of Clays, and not anything else in there, would be a Fools Errand. Hodgdons, I am willing to bet, will not extend their blessing to such a thing. Don't risk damaging a gun over a mistake by another shooter that costs you maybe $10 to throw out. Maybe you have figured out what happened. Maybe you haven't. good luck, GJ PS - I had two bottles of powder on a loading bench just a few weeks ago. Poured half a coffee cup of one powder, after scooping 10 accuracy test loads out of it, back into the closest container, when I realized that was the wrong one of the two. That third of a pound in the contaminated bottle was PROMPTLY poured out on the lawn. Where a mixed powder will do me no harm. No more multiple bottles on the bench. Even if I am making 10 types of test loads.

What target did he have a so-called "clear miss" on? If it was on a standing target, then it would still be standing, wouldn't it?. If it was to engage the fallen target which was down when the string began or even from wind or "collateral hits" on neighboring targets, then he does not have to even come close to the target to engage it. And thus earn the hit because target is down. The rules for Knockdowns ARE A LITTLE DIFFERENT than for stationary targets. A stationary target never gets a hit called when it is missed. A knockdown that falls gets a hit with any sort of engagement (attempt to fire). good luck, GJ

A shotgun target being down when the shooter starts the shotgun string means it just has to have a shot safely fired to "engage" the target. Whether the shooter fired EXACTLY where it was before it fell, or off to the side by an inch, or off to the side by a mile, it doesn't matter. If it was a safe shot, it's OK, otherwise apply the penalty that declared it unsafe. 6 rounds fired, 6 targets down. Like Hoss said, No Call. good luck, GJ

Use that calculator - it's pretty accurate and easy after you try a couple of alloy mixes. Umm, there's a lot of variance in what is dug out of ranges, and it depends upon what type of ammo has been shot there. Range lead that is mostly cast bullets will have significant antimony content. I use 97% lead, 2.5%% antimony, and 0.5% tin in the calculator for "cowboy" scrap bullets. The antimony comes from folks shooting wheel weight scrap, or commercial bullets, almost exclusively. A .22 range will be about 99.5% lead, 0.5% tin. Or about that same composition on a range that is all jacketed bullet use. I agree with your monotype composition, though. True monotype will be 19% antimony, 9% tin and rest lead. Monotype and cowboy range lead mix, using the calculator, will be: 0.25 pounds monotype (4 ounces) 9.75 pounds range lead from cowboy ranges. Which makes a total of 10 pounds Calculates to 12.6 Brinnell hardness, which is the hardness of good old-fashioned wheel weights. I'd suggest you learn to use the calculator, as you always find your scrap lead never quite matches the "average" of what is in the calculator to start with. So, I leave the "linotype" recipe for you to calculate. It will take a lot more of monotype than making 12 Brinnell wheel weight alloy. And, my "target" for good cowboy bullets (to be shot at 1000 FPS or less) is to make them at 9 Brinnell hardness. Which is very close to what comes off the cowboy ranges, with perhaps a little (0.5%) tin added to make the bullets cast better. Practically speaking, I've not found a need for monotype. I have to add only a little linotype to range scrap or wheel weights even to make high speed rifle bullets (16 brinnell, heat treatable to 30 brinnell) good luck, GJ PS - get a set of "ART PENCILS" (drawing pencils) and learn how to use them for testing alloy hardness. $20 well spent. The 10 different hardness levels in the pencil set can be read as the hardness of the lead alloy that a particular pencil just barely will scratch.

Raises chamber pressure and powder burns cleaner. Makes only a little difference overall, though. Mainly a few more stages can go by before fellow shooters start asking "How often do you CLEAN that rifle?"

I get about 15 reloads from .45 Colt brass (Starline or Winchester) with cowboy match loads, and never annealing the mouth. Brass will be a small expense when cowboy shooting, unless you never get to pick it up. good luck, GJ

Uberti has been making only "standard" groove diameter barrels for .45 Colt rifles at 0.452" for YEARS. Won't have to slug this unless it's 20 years or more old. A 250 grain bullet usually starts to show more stability and accuracy past 100 yards. Within 100 yards, any weight works well. I shoot a 200 grain .452 bullet in mine, and can keep a 2" group at 100 yards with good quality reloads, and easily on SASS targets at 200-250 yards. good luck, GJ

Hollywood seemed to be able to get lots of 25 pound wooden kegs of powder in the 50s and 60s. Always marked XXX, too.

There'll be more steel in the OP's 32-20 barrel than in your .38-40 barrel..... good luck, GJ

Randy Redman of Omak Washington both makes and installs 32-20 liners in Marlins. Find his pricing here: https://redmansrifling.com/gun-barrel-relining/ Highly renowned, by the way. GJ

Yep. Clean the firing pin channel where you are in there! It's almost that bad, most likely. good luck, GJ