Griff

I've pulled hundreds with my 40-something RCBS inertia impact puller. Eyesa Horg has the technique right. Hit the end square on. I just use the concrete floor of ny shop. Turn them into your local Sheriff's Dept as found hazardous materials. Call ahead for insstructions.

Exactly, as Henry stated in their initial advertising that they disassembled an original and copied it. Although they had to lengthen the carrier & mortise to accomodate the .44-40 vs the 44 Flat.

Hmmm... well the OP dud state his intended use was for home defense. And his question has been answered to the best of anyone's non-professional ability. The "Trench" gun with its heat shield & bayonet lug is NOT SASS cowboy, but is WB legal, advising someone of that IS appropriate. The civilian or police "riot" fun, sans shield & lug is both SASS cowboy & WB legal. SAAMI shells should be safe in any shotgun in good repair. Quit yer bickerin'.

Since I have no competition, (or... is that no one is in competition with me?), I really don't have anything to worry about.

Sometimes, rarely, hardly ever, haven't seen it in years... And, starting a ruckus on the Wire is generally an unintended consequence of starting ANY thread.

.38 Spl has always been the most popular cartridge in cowboy action shooting. It's just that most 45 Colt shooters are more vocal! Kinda like certain politicians... tell a lie (i'ts the best), often and loud enough, even others start to believe it! So loudly that even some folks shooting 38s tell everyone they're using 45s!

One last thought, then I'll bow out of this topic. Cast bullets vs. coated. The polymer bullets offer one advantage over plain lead cast. And that is lead contamination. Unless you're using a bullet feeder, loading will involve handling the bullets. Good powder coated bullets reduce the possible lead contamination by a large margin. When I load plain cast lead bullets I wear nitrile gloves to minimize that exposure. And whether you're wearing gloves or not, coated bullets or not, do not eat or drink while loading. Just as all the recent safety warnings tell us, keep your hands (gloved or not) away from your face. Wash thoroughly after every completed loading session, (that includes boxing or otherwise storing the finished ammo)... BEFORE you do anything else.

I recently acquired Hoss' Lightning in 44-40. Run it this past Sat. in a WB match. Ran flawlessly. It's my new favorite rifle. Ran some rounds thru it at the range the day before, and figured out where it shot... and that gave me the confidence to run it on Sat. Didn't miss a target with it all day!

I wouldn't get a 20 gauge. Go with a 12, and here's the reasoning behind that recommendation: A 12 weighs more, bigger receiver. Which equates to lower felt recoil. That, and the fact that you can get lighter loads in 12 than a 20.

And continue to do so, as they have for mine that's nearing 33 years old! Even for the 2nd one I bought used... for a deeply discounted price, (and not from them)!

I've shot cap & ball pistols in SASS since the late 1980s, and have never been penalized for either rotating the cylinder by hand to make a second attempt on a cap, or by cocking and lowering the hammer as I also moved it around, whether by using 2 hands or one. Frontiersmen need a bit of latitude in clearing such instances. As Range Officers we should remain mindful of that, keeping safety of everyone in mind.

I've been reloading longer than Dillon has been making presses and dies. The store where I bought my first reloading outfit, carried RCBS. And when I bought my first 550, I got one set of dies with it... the rest I just continued using my RCBS. I have a couple of Redding sets. I've been given Lee dies for a couple of cartridges I don't load much... and FWIW, they're fine. But, having loaded with RCBS dies for over 40 years... I've come to trust them. I just bought a set of 44-40 dies, loaded my first 50 or 60 rounds on my single stage, (haven't received the Dillon caliber conversion set yet), and they loaded this new brass, with NO issues, using 3 different bullet weights and shapes. I did crush one case on the Lee Handloader making a dummy round, but I had a small divot in the mouth before I started. Should've straightened it out before I seated the bullet, but... wanted to see just how easily 44-40 cases crushed as compared to my 45 Colts. Bottom line... anyone asks, I'll always recommend RCBS, but... have some loads where I prefer the Redding sets (bullet guides, micrometer adjustable seaters, etc., used for match grade ammo in 5.56 and 30.06), and others where I don't care that the dies are Lee (25ACP & 38S&W). I have some cartridges, (38 Spl & 45ACP), where I have both RCBS and Dillon dies, have loaded with both, and the finished product is indistinguishable.

Over crimping may bulge the crimp so it'll be hard to chamber. You generally only need enough crimp to keep the bullet from telescoping into the case while in the magazine. OAL will be determined by the length of the ramp in the front of the carrier. It's this ramp that allows a case partially in the carrier to be get pushed back into the magazine as the carrier rises upward on the forward stroke of the lever.

My pocket pistols.

I sincerely believe that no 44 Russian ammo is considered "hot"... too many relatively weak actioned pistols were chambered for it. Ammo manufacturers are very cautious with ammo fitting still active antique firearms.