Cholla Hill Tirador

I was recently given this fascinating old Winchester that will celebrates its 105th birthday this year. The butt stock is split lengthwise and has been repaired with brass screws and the forearms has a deep, rounded dent in it; I'd nearly bet its been bucked off of a horse, judging from the damages. It was covered in rust (that turned out to be mostly surface) and the lever could barely be worked with one hand. After a disassembly and good cleaning it's better, but still pretty difficult, owing to the very heavy hammer spring. Adjusting the hammer tension screw doesn't help. Any ideas as to where I can get a replacement hammer spring? Thanks! Cholla

Uberti's bore/groove diameter for their .45 caliber cartridge revolvers is .442"/.450" respectively. Uberti knows how to properly dimension their revolvers barrels and chambers. If you want to see that info for yourself, here are a couple of links- Bore Groove Twist - Uberti The Official Uberti USA Rate of Twist Chart The cylinder throats of their .45 caliber revolvers have been .452" in my experience. Since you're obviously an old hand at bullet casting, you'll know what to do with that information! Choice of molds is highly subjective. I hunt with my SA handguns so I prefer good quality molds from RCBS, NOE and Lyman, but if short range CAS is all you plan to do, Lee will be fine. One l thing discovered when I started casting/loading for the 45 Colt is there is typically a great deal of difference in points of impact between the "standard" 250 gr. bullet and lighter ones. So if you go with a really light, slow bullet, be prepared to aim high or take file to your front sight! Good luck, Cholla

I've thumbed through my copy of SIXGUNS but can't find the 4th of July event, I know it's there, just haven't found it yet. I intend someday to re-read the book and dogear all the pages with relevant info. I did find where he mentions sizing "45-90 bullets" down for use in his 45 Colt's and I assumed it/they were from a 457191 mould. Cholla

I read SIXGUNS and I certainly could've missed it, but I don't recall him loading .458" bullets in a 45 Colt. I know he did commonly resize rifle bullets to use in handguns. Does anyone recall what chapter in the book he describes this? Elmer wasn't insane at all. There is so much misinformation about him on forums, mostly I think, by folks who have never read any of his books. Cholla

I cast this bullet which weighs around 220 grs. for my 1866 Sporting Rifle in 44-40- It has plenty of lube capacity for loading BP, and I've used it with both BP and smokeless. Plenty accurate for deer to at least 200 yds, IF you're good at range estimation. I load 9.5 grs. of Unique, Power Pistol or Herco and get right around 1300 fps with any of the three, same velocity, and accuracy with a case full of Swiss 3Fg. . A couple of years ago I whacked a buck with this load and he died right away with no complaints. The bullet sailed on through for parts unknown, so I don't think another couple hundred fps would've made a bit of difference. Cholla

I NOE 432421 in a 4-cavity and it casts great bullets, but they weigh almost 260 grs., if that matters to you. Also, they're currently out of stock and I've found that sometimes it takes quite awhile for them to get moulds back in stock. As others have said, Tom at Accurate moulds is a great person with whom to deal. He cuts moulds when they're ordered, you have your choice of iron, brass or aluminum, and the number of designs in his catalog is mind boggling. Accurate-.44-moulds He's a little higher than NOE but his moulds are works of art and for no additional charge you he will modify the design of any mould to meet your requirements, if you wish. Cholla

Thanks for the kind words, guys. The finish is BLO cut 3-1 with pure gun turpentine, no stain is used at all. The process takes weeks, sometimes months if the oil is slow drying and is definitely a labor of love. I strip the stock with the stuff from the hardware that would exfoliate an elephant. After whiskering the stock, using 1" squares of wet/dry sandpaper dipped in the oil mix, I sand the stock beginning with 220 grit, then 320, then finally 400 three to four times with each grit, allowing it to dry for 30 minutes before sloppily wiping it off with paper towels . The sand paper removes almost no wood, but makes a sort of mud that fills the grain. After each round of sandpaper, I let the stock dry. After the final round with 400 grit, I apply a tiny amount of the oil to the stock and rub it in with the heel of my hand and let each coat completely dry. I have no idea how many coats I apply, but it is a bunch. I stop when I like the looks of the stock. This one actually didn't turn out as good as the others I have done as the oil didn't seem to want to dry, and I can't figure out why. Maybe BLO get old or something. I've been using the same can for years. Several years ago I did a stock on a '70 vintage Ruger 77. That stock had all the beauty of a mud fence, but refinishing it as described above, it took on a pretty, deep look and exposed grain that I had no idea was there. Ditto for an old Ruger 10-22 that my Dad bought me when I was a kid: Before: After: Redleg, coming over there and shooting is never far from my mind. I have a full set of ancient 38-40's I want to come shoot with BP, but I have to get some more brass and some more BP! Cholla

Factory finish- After stripping and hand rubbing in linseed oil-

Get out there and do it, Dan! Cholla

I love using old and reproductions of the old firearms for hunting. This 131 year old '73 Winchester in 38-40 worked perfectly this year. Was loaded with 1.9cc of Swiss 3Fg under a home-cast 192 gr. FP cast from ordinary wheelweights. Last seasons take with the pictured Bisley in 45 Colt. Both were right at 50 yds. out and taken with a cast bullet handload. (A little luck helps with shots like these!) This little Uberti has been a wonderful hunting arm for me. This old '97 got me a limit of the little gray rockets. Cholla

I guess it's a good thing nobody told the owners of 1886 Winchester 45-70's not to shoot RN bullets in them for the last 130 years.

If it helps with your decision, I sold a 3rd Generation Colt 4 3/4" .44 Special and kept a like configured Uberti. Absolutely no functional difference and the Uberti has provided yeoman service, especially in the field! Good luck in your quest. Cholla

Dang right they're out there.... ...not even close to for sale, though. Regarding the strength of the 1873 action, I've not seen a single documented case of an action destroyed, but over on the CAS forum there are a couple of pics of toggle link actions that were over loaded. In each case, the action survived intact, the barrel, not so much.