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Cimarron 1873 with or without pistol grip?


Quizcat

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I checked the safe and most of my rifles have the straight stock.  At the same time I noticed that my shotguns have a pistol grip.  I don't think that there is a lot of difference in feel.  Find what is most comfortable for you.

 

BS

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It is mainly personal preference.  Personally I prefer straight stocks. 

 

I have been told that a pistol grip can be set up to have a slightly shorter stroke, so to some it might be a slight advantage.

 

 

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With the pistol grip the sights sit higher.  If you're choosing between the two and can try them both out do this:  Shoulder them with your eyes closed.  When you open your sighting eye, which one has the sights better aligned?  That's the stock for you. 

 

I also prefer the angle of the lever on the pistol grip.  It's more down and forward whereas the straight stock feels more straight up and down.  

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11 minutes ago, Shooting Bull said:

With the pistol grip the sights sit higher.  If you're choosing between the two and can try them both out do this:  Shoulder them with your eyes closed.  When you open your sighting eye, which one has the sights better aligned?  That's the stock for you. 

 

I also prefer the angle of the lever on the pistol grip.  It's more down and forward whereas the straight stock feels more straight up and down.  

 

Wow Mongo, look at you being all logical and stuff!

 

My Marlin was straight, and I liked it.

 

When I first tried a pards 73 it was a pistol grip, and I liked it, and I like the looks, so my 73s have the pistol grip.

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Curiosity got the best of me....So I checked and found that The "Rifleman," Chuck Connors, carried a straight stock version of the 1894 Winchester...but, the rifle was an anachronism, as the show was set 12 years before John Browning designed any such rifle.  Kind of interesting information on that rifle, as follows:

 

The rifle used on the set of The Rifleman, an 1892 Winchester caliber .44-40 carbine with a standard 20-inch barrel, appeared with two different types of lever. The backwards, round-D-style loop was used in the early episodes. Sometimes the rifle McCain uses has a saddle ring (the purpose of this ring is to allow a mounted soldier to carry the rifle via a sling over the opposite shoulder, keeping the rifle at the ready while his hands are free to hold the reins). The lever style later changed to a flatter lever (instead of the large loop) with no saddle ring.

 

McCain fires 13 shots from his rifle during the opening credits: eight shots in the first close-up and five more as the camera switches to another view. The blank cartridges are shorter than standard cartridges, so the magazine will hold more of the blanks. The soundtrack contained a dubbed 13th shot, to allow the firing to end with a section of the theme music. The rifle was chambered for the .44-40 W.C.F. (Winchester Center Fire) cartridge, which was used in both revolvers and rifles.[10] He could supposedly fire off his first round in three-tenths of a second, which certainly helped in a showdown.

 

Gunsmith James S. Stembridge modified two Model 1892s for use in regular and close-up filming.[11] In addition, a Spanish-made Gárate y Anitúa "El Tigre" lever action, a near-copy of the Model 1892, was modified for use as a knockabout gun. The El Tigre is seen in scenes where the rifle is in a saddle scabbard and is not drawn; and in stunts where the rifle was thrown to the ground, used as a club, or in any stunt where there was the possibility of damage to the original Winchester 1892s.[12] These three rifles were the only ones used by Connors during the run of the series.

 

The now-defunct Stembridge Gunsmiths provided the rifles and ammunition. Ammunition was quarter-load 5-in-1 blank

cartridges containing smokeless powder, which did not produce the thick clouds of smoke the genuine black powder cartridges of the 1880s did. Most (if not all) of the sound effects for the rifle shots were dubbed, which is why the rifle sounded so different from the other gunshots on the show.

 

The 1892 Winchester is a top-eject rifle (opening the action by pushing the finger-lever forward moves the bolt rearward and thereby opens the top of the receiver). Loaded rounds or empty cases from the chamber eject straight up when the lever is pushed fully open (forward). When Connors cycled the action by spinning the rifle to his side, the cartridge in the action could fall out. Therefore, the rifle was modified with a plunger, which would hold the round in place.

 

The Winchester Model 1892 rifle was designed by John Moses Browning and, other than general appearance, it has nothing in common with earlier lever-action rifles using the same class of cartridges. The significant improvement was the addition of vertical lugs that securely lock the bolt and receiver when the gun fires. Winchester originally produced this gun from 1892 to 1941; total production was slightly over 1,000,000. 27 variations in five chamberings were made over the course of production, but the basic design was largely unaltered. As with the earlier Model 1873, the light and handy Model 1892 was chambered for handgun cartridges, favored by many Westerners to simplify ammunition supply problems by using the same cartridge in both a handgun and a rifle. The Model 1892 was replaced by the Browning-designed Model 1894, which also had an impressive manufacturing history, with over 7,000,000 produced; it is still being produced to this day by a successor to Winchester. The Model 94's popularity and long production history may be related to its being the first Winchester to be designed for the then-new "smokeless" powder.

 

270px-Riflemans_Rifle_Replica.jpg

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8 minutes ago, Kansas City Munny said:

If you plan to modify it later, go straight. My understanding from another SASS shooter is that short stroke kits and such don't play well with the pistol grip stocks.

Plenty of shooters have pistol grip stocks with short strokes.

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39 minutes ago, Kansas City Munny said:

If you plan to modify it later, go straight. My understanding from another SASS shooter is that short stroke kits and such don't play well with the pistol grip stocks.

 

 

 

????? News to me. I know a BUNCH of shooters (and really fast shooters) with SS's in pistol grip 73's.

And have had no problem getting parts.

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Hmmm...Not sure if he had difficulty with the toggles, coil spring conversion or what, but he's installed short stroke kits on both straight and pistol grip stoked '73s and said the straight was simple fitting and timing where as the curved pistol grip model needed much more additional work to fit. I'll see if I can get specific details and post.

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41 minutes ago, Kansas City Munny said:

Hmmm...Not sure if he had difficulty with the toggles, coil spring conversion or what, but he's installed short stroke kits on both straight and pistol grip stoked '73s and said the straight was simple fitting and timing where as the curved pistol grip model needed much more additional work to fit. I'll see if I can get specific details and post.

Coil spring conversion has nothing to do with short stroke kits.  The most common issue with short stroke kits is head space, which has nothing to do with stock type.  Now the 4th gen C&I short stroke also requires a new lever, so in that case the kit would probably be different depending upon the stock type.

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2 hours ago, Kansas City Munny said:

Hmmm...Not sure if he had difficulty with the toggles, coil spring conversion or what, but he's installed short stroke kits on both straight and pistol grip stoked '73s and said the straight was simple fitting and timing where as the curved pistol grip model needed much more additional work to fit. I'll see if I can get specific details and post.

 

Have had the C&I 3 gen and now run the 4th gen in my pistol grip 73 and have never had a problem.

And know some of the fastest shooters out there that run the same thing with no problem.

 

As for installing them. Don't know. Maybe the pistol grip does take a little more. But if your smith is

worth his salt. There should not be a problem. 

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1 hour ago, Kansas City Munny said:

Hmmm...Not sure if he had difficulty with the toggles, coil spring conversion or what, but he's installed short stroke kits on both straight and pistol grip stoked '73s and said the straight was simple fitting and timing where as the curved pistol grip model needed much more additional work to fit. I'll see if I can get specific details and post.

 

Having done it, my opinion is that the coil spring conversion is a solution in search of a problem.  After I evaluated the results, I switched back to the modified leaf spring.  Easier, far cheaper, and still reliable.

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3 hours ago, Grizzly Dave said:

 

Wow Mongo, look at you being all logical and stuff!

 

 

Unfortunately you're giving me more credit than I deserve.  I had this exact conversation with Cody Connager years ago at a SASS Convention.  He's the one who turned me onto the eyes closed shouldering trick. 

 

I just wish I could remember to open them back up when it's time to shoot. B)

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3 hours ago, Shooting Bull said:

With the pistol grip the sights sit higher.  If you're choosing between the two and can try them both out do this:  Shoulder them with your eyes closed.  When you open your sighting eye, which one has the sights better aligned?  That's the stock for you. 

 

I also prefer the angle of the lever on the pistol grip.  It's more down and forward whereas the straight stock feels more straight up and down.  

 

I'll have to disagree.  The rifles are the same other than the pistol grip stock has a bump between the lever and the toe of the stock.  Print the pics in the OP and put them one behind the other - everything lines up.  The stock drop is the same, the lever is the same, the sights are the same.  The pistol grip stock may cause you to shoulder/hold the rifle different than the straight stock, but the sights don't "sit higher" in relation to the comb or heel of the stock.

 

To answer the OP, I prefer the pistol grip because of the checkering - which doesn't make any difference at all until you shoot in the rain.  Of course checkering can be added the the straight stock(s).

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There's zero difference installing a short stroke in a straight stock or pistol grip. It can vary a little from rifle to rifle regardless of the stock configuration. Never noticed any difference in how the sights set between the two. Have notice the sights can vary a lot depending on how I mount the rifle after the buzzer goes off. :-)

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I found the pistol grip easier to acquire a sight picture.  You need to shoulder each and see what feels better. From a table, pick up quickly and shoulder and align the sights on a distant object. Do it repeatedly and quickly. See which suits you.  I had to bend my neck more to get a sight picture with the straight stock. But that's just me. 

 

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I like the straight stock, I've shot the pistol grip and didn't like the way it felt. I also like the way the straight stock looks.;)

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In my early days I preferred the pistol grip only because it was offered with checkered grips and forearms. Now you can also get the straight stock rifle checkered from the manufacturer. I shoot both equally well but do notice that the pistol grip rifles tend to be slightly heavier. 

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I have both. Seldom do I shoot the pistol grip rifle. Last Saturday had 4 misses with the pistol grip rifle, shot over the target each time. I don't miss very often with the straight stock gun, this Saturday I'll be shooting the straight stock gun.

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most of mine have a straight grip - seemed right when i bought them , i have some 22s that have the pistol grip including one each of the marlin 39 , one with , one without , they seem to shoot the same for me both are quite comfortable - never think about it while shooting them , my shotguns have them 

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42 minutes ago, Badlands Bob #61228 said:

Back when I was rifle shopping, the pistol grip stock was about $100 more than the straight grip stock.  Since it costs more, it must be better.....right?

 

Yeah, and since the '66 costs approximately $100 less than a straight stock '73, it must really suck.

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Looking at a set of Marlins, the 30-30 with pistol grip has a forward lever throw angle, while the two straight stocks would lever straight down.

 

Handling the two simultaneously makes it clear then that the trigger finger angle is different and certainly that there is greater engagement of the outer fingers in the grip on the pistol grip.

WP_20191106_001.jpg

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23 hours ago, Quizcat said:

The Cimarron (Uberti) 1873 Lever Action Short Rifle is available with or without pistol grip.  Which would be your preference , and why?

 

 

It's all in what "fits" you.  One is not more reliable than the other, one is not better than the other.  That's like asking do which do you prefer, the blue shirt or the green shirt.  It's personal preference.

 

Personally, some of my rifles are straight stock, and some are pistol grip.  I can grab one or t'other, no problem.  But they've all been set up by the same gunsmith to run as much alike as possible.

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