Edward R S Canby, SASS#59971

If you come across any Alliant Sport Pistol, give it a try with plastic coated bullets (coated with that great coating you sell us). It is formulated for compatibility with the coating. I find it burns clean and meters great. I will switch to it for all my smokeless handgun loads after I use up my stocks of older powders. BTW I like the imported powders Hodgdon rebrands and sells here.

If you are willing to tolerate thread drift, would you please provide whatever information you have regarding the import restrictions?

Brands are not too important. You need to find a bullet weight that shoots to point-of-aim from your revolvers. You also need a cartridge overall length that feeds well in your rifle and a bullet shape (truncated cone or round nose flat point) that feeds smoothly into the rifle chamber. Once you buy your firearms perhaps another shooter will let you try some ammo to see how it works. BTW, once you start loading you can settle on a round that works well in both your rifle and revolvers.

When you test the Rossi, work the lever vigorously. The action might feed rounds reliably when worked slowly but not quickly.

PL, I shoot some of the modern action shooting sports that GJ mentioned. You can shoot a 1911 in both IDPA and WB. There have been some good deals recently on entry-level 1911s. If you are interested in improving defensive skills I'd try IDPA. It emphasizes shooting from behind cover and shooting while moving. In many scenarios you can make up a bad shot without penalty. BTW, a pump shotgun like used in WB is an incredible self-defense weapon when loaded with buckshot.

You may need to replace the nipples on the Navy cap gun with aftermarket nipples. The stock nipples often have dimensional problems that make them unreliable. Also, have a plan for loading on a rainy day. It doesn't take much water in the wrong places to make them unreliable.

They have an ejector that is legal. With practice one can bounce empty hulls off the TO.

Cabelas still advertises 30-30 lever action rifles for CAS even though they are not legal in a main match. I've also heard gun store clerks spout nonsense about SASS costuming requirements. (These are the same yokels who believe they are ready for the Top Shot television series.)

I love Trail Boss in a 30-30. I use the maximum load published by Hodgdon. I found gas checked bullets improved accuracy.

Trail Boss is a good powder that prevents double-charging a case. However, there are powder check dies one can install on a progressive press that prevent loading an overcharged or undercharged case. I use an RCBS lock-out-die. Loading uncoated bullets leads to a slow buildup of lead shavings and bullet lube in seating dies. Coated bullets prevent this. I don't care how dirty my guns get. They get cleaned after every day of shooting and always function through six stages. BTW, I prefer softer lead bullets to hard cast bullets. We get some backsplatter off of steel targets and soft lead bullets minimize backsplatter. Many CAS shooters keep some standard velocity loads with them for knockdown targets. These are not needed for other targets and most shoot lighter loads. Use enough powder so you have some felt recoil and your loads are reliable in cold weather.

First, Berrys (as I understand their business) supplies plated bullets. CAS requires lead only bullets (coated is OK). 125 grain bullets are a popular choice. Since you know how to load, buy a progressive press, I agree with AW, drive to Dillon in Scottsdale and check out the Square Deal, 550 and 650 presses. Price their cast lead bullets too. Try to find a local caster in your area so you can obtain bullets without shipping. Some out-of-area casters will deliver to Winter Range without charge. Evil Roy has a set of DVDs that show you how to train. Sportsmans Warehouse is selling primers at a good discount right now. Buy all the Federals you can while prices are low. There are many powders that will work well. If you have a powder left over from loading 45 ACPs it will probably work. Search this Wire for threads listing pet loads.

the guidelines

I keep a stainless Marlin rifle around for shooting in wet weather. If you buy a stainless gun, keep it well-lubricated.

I shot a WB match yesterday with social distancing. It worked well. The TO wore and mask and gave the shooter more room than normal. Only two persons allowed at the loading table - one at each end. Just one person at the unloading table. One thing that was not planned but worked well was good use of the wind. Those who needed to talk to each other stood at right angles to the wind, six feet apart. Everyone showed much discipline. I felt safe.

I've seen low-income SASS shooters whose dedication to the sport exceeds mine. We have a retiree who plucks spent bullets out of the back of a berm and recasts them for future matches. People camp in canvas tents at EOT in 100-degree weather when air-conditioned motels room are available for $50 a night. I've also seen a family of seven cram into a small passenger van with all their carts and guns and travel to out-of-state matches. I'd hate to see such people priced out of the sport.