Go West

I wouldn't be concerned with unburnt powder unless taken to excess. Do they work? Is it affected by temperature? Are they inconsistent (bang, poof)?

Most shooters I know are using 125 gr. or lighter bullets. As Abilene said, it would be better in a rifle.

My guns are not lightened to only use Federals, so we'll see.

I saw an ad for Magtech LPP and wondered if anyone has used them. They're advertised for $69.99/1K from Natchez which is a deal if they work ok. Thanks in advance.

I bought a vintage hat in Tombstone for $75. The felt is thin and stiff. I wear it for non-shooting activities.

I have two 5" Ubertis in .45 Colt. The mainsprings were way too strong and my forearm would tire from shooting duelist. I bought a new set of springs to have on hand and lightened the originals. I could still take them down some, but haven't bothered. You don't need special work on them unless there is a problem. The side plates come off with a rap or two, so don't try to pry them off if you want to inspect the innards.

Lyman shows OAL @ 1.44" with a 125 RN bullet: Tite Group 2.9 @ 797 231 3.9 @ 733 Clays 2.9 @ 800 Bullseye 3.2 @ 763 If you lengthen OAL, the pressure will be reduced somewhat. Load to what suits your rifle, the pistol will take any of them. I recommend having several reloading manuals such as the Cast Bullet Handbook, Lee and Lyman manuals. I also like the Load Books which feature one caliber, many bullets and powders. Powder companies have data online.

I found out the hard way about nickle cases and cases with cannelures many years ago. A local gunsmith at the time did the Cerrosafe thing and got it right out. I went through my cases and through out every nickle case and those with cannelures. That was prior to the newer case extractors coming out.

Larsen provided a logical description and photos of the issue. JM did a Stoeger for me that has worked well. It makes sense to provide proper fitting in order to use a lighter spring.

The courthouse in Tombstone is worth seeing. That's where the Earp trial was held. Could be more ideas online for Tombstone, Cochise county and surrounding area.

I paid $69 a few months ago locally. They only had a few thousand, so that's all I could get. I'll keep looking.

Can't hit them all. Once I buy some, I can't really justify buying quickly again. I would like to find reasonable LPP. You can find them, but probably won't like the price.

I've shot it twice using 1.6" rounds. Thanks for your input. Regarding a lighter main spring, I use whatever LPP I can find so it needs to be able to set any of them off. Thanks again.

I recently acquired a used 1866 that is unmodified. Would the addition of Slix Springs lever and carrier springs or equivalent be a worthwhile addition using the stock brass carrier? I'm not interested in a short stroke kit, new aluminum carrier or hiring a smith to slick it up. Some say yes to the springs with the stock carrier and some say no, so I don't know what to think. This is in .45 Colt that I will shoot occasionally. Thanks in advance.

Cheap foam plugs are very effective, but we use the custom molded plugs from onsite vendors at the larger matches. I pull one plug to hear the stage instructions and reinsert after. I like the idea of active plugs that quickly protect ears from loud sounds and allow normal conversation, but probably won't adopt. When at a public range, I use plugs and muffs due to those darn rifle shooters. I would support ranges that could/would offer suppressor rentals.

Hotel/motel accommodations in Sierra Vista (16 miles away) can be less expensive and more modern. We like the Crystal Palace and Longhorn in Tombstone, but weekends can be a crowded time. You can also visit Texas Roadhouse, Native Grill, Applebee's, Chili's, or La Casita among others in Sierra Vista.

I prefer belts without cartridge loops. My wife has a money belt with no loops and says it is real comfortable. I use several stiff straight belts and have resorted to using spenders keeping them up. I have no butt and my rig will slide to the ground without help. I marvel at the folks who can wear their belts low without danger.

I bought 5k Cheddites for $240, about $300 with tax, hazmat & shipping.

Midway has discounts for quantities on several SPP brands.

Tumble brass according to size (small gets inside big ones) using walnut media, NuFinish polish, 2 dryer sheets and a dash of paint thinner. Run about 2 hours and separate in rotary separator (mine is a Harbor Freight one). Dump in your clean brass containers. I use 3 gallon water jugs with the neck cut to form a pour spout. Pour brass into your case feeder and give a few squirts or sprays of case lube. Let dry a bit as you go about loading primer tubes or other jobs around your bench. Your arm will thank you if you run large quantities or you have new large caliber cases using case lube. Lots of folks do wet tumbling now, but being lazy, I don't like the extra steps.

When I started SASS, money was in short supply. Over time, I was able to buy sufficient cases, primers and equipment. Today, I prefer to have enough cartridges loaded so I don't need to sweat in the garage in the summer. It doesn't take long to load shotshells, so that isn't so bad. I buy different powders based on availability and already knowing that they will work suitably for my intended load. I have varied on bullets, but try to stay within certain weight and shape parameters based on my experience. The newbie is less likely to know about various powders or bullets. While still learning, it would be prudent to not load a crap ton of rounds without knowing how they will perform with their firearms. It would be helpful to have a mentor for the reloading portion of this game. I've had some painful lessons because I didn't have one. On the other hand, those lessons are not forgotten and are therefore useful.

I spray a couple of shots in my case feeder and let the swirling mix it up.

You may touch shells after the beep unless otherwise directed by the stage instructions.

The Sizemaster resizes the metal base.

I have a Sizemaster that makes nice shells and have almost run out of Remington Game hulls and have been forced to use AAs. I use a mop that was sprayed with oil after every stage. I forgot the mop at the last match and had two hulls that stuck. I do use the machine that puts a small taper on the end of the shell that makes them easier to load a double. We bought 35 cases of game loads when we started and only a few remain.