Griff

I have a Colt copy made in 1985, (AN date code), the barrel is marked on top with "Jager Italy mdl 1873. 357 M". Along with a "Cat 1466" and a couple of Italian proof marks. It has a makers mark I can't quite make out, nor have I seen anything like it in any reference materials I have access to. It was imported by EMF where I bought it as my wife's CAS gun. It was tuned by Bob Munden in 1986, shortly after I bought it at EOT that year. In the early '90s when I got her a Colt SAA, it was then used by my son as his first CAS gun. The cartouche for the maker (I think), looks like: or with less glare but a little blurry:

And continue rusting after a cleaning that would be sufficient with any other powder. Took three times the amount of effort to stop the rusting in my Colts. I think someone once said, "...don't even use it as fertilizer, as it'll rust your roses!"

Or you do the Ruger handspring conversion, and never worry about a broken handspring again. I've done both my Colt SAAs, & four 2nd Gen 1951s.

Shotgun recipe's are usually very specific, especially wad selection & powder along with hull and shot weight. If you start off using someone's specific formula, and all of a sudden you can't find one component, you can't just substitute another similar component, for you might very well choose unwisely. Generally speaking, powder charge, wad height & shot column should add up to allow a firm, tight crimp, that isn't convex or concave, both of which can leak shot. Once again, I recommend getting a Shotshell reloading manual and learning the basics of what is entailed. Lyman's 6th edition Shotshell Reloading Manual is out & on store shelves as well as on-line retailers.

If your rifle is a 45 Colt, you might just save that brass for the rifle... Your pistols (and pocket book), will love the savings you'll realize by using less powder with the Cowboy45Special brass. All it takes is the addition of a roll crimp/seater die designed for the 45Auto/Gap/AutoRim. Whereas folks are using 5 grains of TiteGroup for the 45 Colt, I'm only using 3.4 for theC45S. From a 4-¾" bbl, 5 grains from a 45 Colt with a 160 RFN yields about 696 fps @ 5,400 psi. Whereas my C45S with the same bullets and 3.4 grains of Titegroup yields 619 fps @ 4715psi. A tad slower, and less felt recoil. That 3.4 is running as close to the edge as I want to... Upping that charge to 3.9 grains give nearly identical performance to 5 grains the larger 45 Colt case. 1.1 grains may not seem like a bunch, but the difference over a pound of powder is 1,400 rounds of 45 Colt, vs. 1,794 @3.9 grains and 2,058 @3.4 grains in the C45S. I'd STRONGLY suggest the Lyman 4th Edition of their Cast Bullet Handbook. But you can find the 3rd Edition on line @: https://archive.org/details/366588877-lyman-cast-bullet-handbook-3rd-edition-1980/page/284/mode/2up?q=.45+Colt

Whatever you settle on, don't be a skinflint and simply buy a pound at a time. If the 21st century has taught us anything, it should be to recognize that the reloading market is highly volatile, subject to supply shortages of various lengths. I haven't looked at APP specifically, but BP or almost every smokeless powder can be stored almost indefinitely if kept in original containers, so a reasonable supply should be at least 16 lbs. Check your local laws and ordinances. I don't shoot as often as a lot of folks, but... so far that's worked for me. Oh, well ignore that 1st sentence... I keep my "working" inventory in a 1 lb jug... that way I only have a maximum of 1 pound of powder out of my storage cabinet at a time, and it's properly marked by maer & product, (if not lot #, which can be affixed with a post-it if you're so inclined, (I'm not, I can just look at the opened 8 lb jug in the cabinet). When I finish off the 1st 8 lb jug I immediately start shopping for its replacement. One last tidbit... the hazmat shipping surcharge is the same whether you buy 1 lb (or 9 oz for you TB fans), or buy 24 lbs. (3 8 lb jugs), hint... hint... All of the above also works as a hedge against future price increases... IIRC recall correctly my two jugs of RedDot have an almost $40 price differential... Lastly, since my early reloading mentor thought it important enough to stress, I'll reiterate it here... You should always work up to your favorite loads whenever you change lots of powder. Buying in bigger quantities will cut down the number of times you verify the performance of you new lot number.

All this fuss over dropping BP... for nigh on 50 years I've used my RCBS Uniflow measure directly into the brass "tray" for the RCBS 10-10 scale. Trickle in a few extra grains to being it up to desired weight for rifle cartridges, or just dump it into pistol cases. After ten drops thru the scale, i skip the scale. No modifications to powder measure necessary, just as assembled at the factory. Since I got my 1st 550B, it runs fine thru the Dillon measure. But, the 1st 10 drops get measured for every tube of primers... seldom are any adjustments needed. I can't hit the chickens @ 200 meters offhand whether the loads are precisely weighed or not, but seated behind crossed sticks, hits on the pigs @ 300 meters are much more consistent w/weighed charges than just dropping volume measured charges, even more important on the turkeys @ 400 meters. Beyond 500 meters you are doing yourself a disservice if you don't weigh individual charges.

I don't use a compression die... but then, I'm loading a bottle-neced cartridge, compression is not your friend.

Around my hips. The wife drew the line at leaving the guns in the holsters at bed time... with or without the chaps... 0

I have a Great Western in .38S&W, about as close as you can get to a Remington. It's not anodized aluminum, it's "plumed" steel. I also have 2 Davis derringers, in 25Auto & 38Auto, both door prizes from shoots, both are, and shall remain unfired. "Junk" is over-rating them!

I weren't too far from there on Sunday,, being in Lexington, VA.

Just like any other holster positioning or style of draw, none are 100% guaranteed safe.. I will say, a match of any level is NOT the place to learn or practice it.

I sometimes do the cavalry twist draw with my cap guns, mostly to shoot gunfighter. My slim jims are absolutely straight hang. Any rearward cant to the increases the probability of your muzzles pointed uprange... instant DQ I pull up until the guard clears leather, the rotate grips to the rear and complete my draw. Fantásticos puntos de estilo, when done properly. Danged near impossible to re-holster the Patersons tho'!

For my one & only dabble in the Remington handgun world, I found a really good use for the 1858... traded it off for a pair of nice El Paso Saddlery holsters for my 1851 COLTS!

And why it takes hours for the smiles to fade!

Yep, the GOLD Standard of gun carts!

Terminology is very important when discussing details of precise cartridge reloading. So, to that end, are you referring to axial runout in your completed cartridge, or an apparent misalignment of the projectile within that cartridge? Which is only the 1st in a long list of questions to determine the exact nature of the problem, and potential remedies. Next have you checked your press for proper ram to die alignment?

If you have an older 1894 Winchester, you may want to do a chamber cast to verify chamber length. I don't believe the shorter 38-55 brass was available before the 375 Winchester was developed in the late 1970s.

The last 2 times I had brass on back order, they contacted me to confirm my back order & payment details, prior to shipping. The time before that when I back ordered 2K pieces of C45S, it arrived 4 days later. It can take them months to accumulate enough back order quantity to warrant putting a relative slow mover into their production schedule.

An adjustable bar is also just a volumetric measuring device, same as a bushing, just allows adjusting the amount of drop. But, it is just as prone to variations between drops as a bushing, as Sedalia Dave described. But, you are correct in that while the MEC Chart is close to the amount of powder a particular bushing drops, it is not exact. I typically take my desired powder charge, pick the bushing that drops just shy of that amount, check how much it actually drops, and if within "my tolerance" go about my business.

I didn't have any fun at EOT this year... as I didn't go. Strictly on me. Did I miss out on some shootin'? You bet I did... I also missed out on seein' folks I enjoy seein', finishing in last place, tryin' my best in the Long Range stuff, shootin mediocrely in the Plainsman event, irritating folks that need irritating, makin' folks laugh that need more laugh lines... and some that don't, but don't mind 'em! Traveling is something I do... but, admittedly, I enjoy it more when I'm being paid to do it... and as usual, I just say... maybe next year! Although, I do enjoy readin' about others' experiences and impressions of EOT... good, bad, or in between.

Cartridge holders? Several things meet that criteria... fingers, cylinders, boxes, trays, chambers, among others... I'll jump out on a limb here and say "fingers" ain't what he wanted, as I pretty sure they're not 3D printed...

I just double checked, 1 oz shot bushing in once fired WIN LNLR hulls and a Claybuster CB-1138-12 wad. Less shot gave me a slightly concave crimp. Nothing volumetric drops exactly the same amount from one drop to another. It might only differ by 100ths of a grain, or 10ths, but there is a difference.

I don't load APP, but my #37 drops right at 40 grains of Goex Cartridge.

Fixed that for ya... Cowboys GOTTA know how to count to two so they can make steers!