1860 Henry’s

[Rye Miles #13621]

I’m talking about the 1860 Henry’s. A CAS post on Facebook mentioned that some clubs outlawed them. Is that true? The 5 different clubs I go to are okay with them but they are mentioned in the safety meeting about loading them properly. 
Anybody know any clubs that have outlawed them? Just curious 🧐 

Edited February 23 by Rye Miles #13621

[Cayuse Jack, SASS #19407]

Probably 25 years ago there was a rash of 1860’s having rounds in the magazine tube fire.

Rash being two or three…

 

There where some clubs that banned them.

 

But that was a long time ago…

 

In a galaxy far away.

[Colorado Coffinmaker]

 

PLUS ONE for Cayuse Jack.

 

There was a period of time when ignorance reigned supreme and folks were loading the Henry in an unsafe manner, by just dropping cartridges down a near vertical barrel/magazine and it got ugly.  A very few clubs immediately said "can't have that" and banned the 1860 Replicants.  I don't know of anywhere today where the 1860 is still excluded.

 

Those magazine discharges are also part of the reasoning to not use round nose bullets in tubular magazines.  There have also been a few magazine discharges from recoil when using round nose or pointy bullets.  I have actually witnessed a couple in years past.  Ugly.  Very ugly.

[Cholla]

Rumor has it some clubs in Northern Indiana won’t allow their use. I no longer live there so I couldn’t say if that has changed. 

[Abilene, SASS # 27489]

They could also be dangerous when pulled from scabbards, but I haven't seen that done in many years either.

[Cayuse Jack, SASS #19407]

3 hours ago, Cholla said:

Rumor has it some clubs in Northern Indiana won’t allow their use. I no longer live there so I couldn’t say if that has changed. 

You shouldn’t listen too rumors…

 

I have shot with the three northern IN clubs since the late 1990’s and non of them have ever banned the 1860.

[Cholla]

12 minutes ago, Cayuse Jack, SASS #19407 said:

You shouldn’t listen too rumors…

 

I have shot with the three northern IN clubs since the late 1990’s and non of them have ever banned the 1860.

One of the people who told me that was one of the guys that supposedly had the incident. If I recall correctly, he had staged the rifle with the follower past the end of the table and when he picked it up, the follower caught and then slammed back causing a chain fire.

[Cayuse Jack, SASS #19407]

Like I said, shot with the N IN clubs and never heard of the incident you mentioned. 
Maybe it was before I started in 1997.

 

I was at Hidden Valley in MI near the IN border when there was an incident where the shooter was at the loading table, picked up his rifle to move it forward to make room for the next shooter to load.

 

The follower caught the edge of the table and when it snapped back all ten 45 Colt round went off in the magazine.

 

No one was hurt.

 

We figure that one or more rounds probably had a high primer.

[Rooster Ron Wayne]

I live in Michigan and I have used my 1860 Henry and every club that I can think of that I shot at locally. 

 

I have heard the roomers myself. 

But I have never found a issue anywhere that told me No .

 

I love shooting my Henry with my Cap Guns and a Single Shot Shotgun. 

 

It's slow as Hell but with shooting all that Black Powder, 

Everyone's choking and gaging lol 

I love it ! 😂🤣😂🤣

[watab kid]

none of the clubs i shoot at have a restriction , and ive never witnessed an issue , i actually dont see this as being a real issue but i dont shoot mine often , 

[Cholla]

The wooden spacer shown several times on this forum is the cure to any such issue.

[Griff]

8 hours ago, watab kid said:

i actually dont see this as being a real issue but i dont shoot mine often , 

Trust me, it is.  Exercise a little Google-foo and you'll find many instances of such occurrences.  A number of them reported right here on the SASS Wire.

4 hours ago, Cholla said:

The wooden spacer shown several times on this forum is the cure to any such issue.

Cure?  No... but a limiting factor.  

[Colorado Coffinmaker]

 

In my sordid past, whilst shooting Front Loading Henry rifles, I brought fourth  "Stick" which then morphed into "Stick, Mark 1, A1"  It's primary purpose was to make the Henry safer, but a side benefit was to enable holding the rifle a little further out from the receiver.  Then, when using a modified carrier for Cowboy 45 Special cases, one could use a REALLY long Stick, Mark 1, A1, and really reach out on the barrel.  I deliberately built my Sticks to limit follower travel to 3/4 inch after loading the ubiquitous 10 rounds.

 

PLUS ONE for Griff you betcha.  Several times on You tube, famous supposedly knowing Gun Gurus have been shown loading a Henry by "Dropping" cartridges down the vertical Magazine.  One of whom was that "45 Whatever guy."  It can be a very real issue.

 

PS:  forgot to add, I sent a Sample Example of Stick, Mark 1, to Driftwood Johnson who did a thread on it and it took off.  Driftwood made his own iteration out of "Delrin (sp) Rod"

Edited February 24 by Colorado Coffinmaker

[Abilene Slim SASS 81783]

3 hours ago, Colorado Coffinmaker said:

PS:  forgot to add, I sent a Sample Example of Stick, Mark 1, to Driftwood Johnson who did a thread on it and it took off.  Driftwood made his own iteration out of "Delrin (sp) Rod"

And I continue to proselytize said rod to those who observe me slinging lead without doing the “Henry Hop”. 😁

[Blackwater 53393]

The magazine detonation is very real and it is NOT restricted to the 1860 Henry and replicas of same!

 

I have seen the aftermath of such an occurrence more than once on lever action, tubular magazine rifles of nearly EVERY description!

 

I personally experienced this on my own Henry replica.  I tore up a nice new pair of cowboy trousers when the fragments hit me in the groin area.  No lead came out of the magazine, but shards of brass went everywhere, (I picked brass out of my hide for more than a year) and I ended up in the emergency room for a tetanus shot and a couple of X-rays.

 

Poor design of a bullet mold was the culprit in my episode, but excess heat, sweaty fingers, and a less than full magazine were all contributing factors.  

The bullet maker fixed his mold, I bought a new pair of britches, I repaired the damaged magazine, and I modified my loading procedure accordingly!

 

To remind myself, I keep the brass, lead, and a couple of collapsed rounds that didn’t go off in a box that the bad bullets came in in the “gun room” where I see them every time I walk into the room!!

[watab kid]

13 hours ago, Griff said:

Trust me, it is.  Exercise a little Google-foo and you'll find many instances of such occurrences.  A number of them reported right here on the SASS Wire.

Cure?  No... but a limiting factor.  

may well be , but i and a friend of mine both have had one for many years , him longer than me , no issues - i realize if you look long enough you can find fault with anything , but proper use and reasonable safety practices can mitigate the poor choices of the few 

[Griff]

On 2/25/2025 at 12:07 AM, watab kid said:

may well be , but i and a friend of mine both have had one for many years , him longer than me , no issues - i realize if you look long enough you can find fault with anything , but proper use and reasonable safety practices can mitigate the poor choices of the few 

Aye, I also have shot one for years without incident... proper use & and adherence to known safety practices prevent such negligent discharges... However, that doesn't mean that folks ignorant of known safety practices and proper use aren't likely to repeat the errors of others.  Ignoring those errors and pretending the danger doesn't exist benefits no one, especially those who love this arm and wish to continue using it in competition.  Disseminating knowledge of those safe practices and potential dangers from ignoring same benefits all.

[watab kid]

6 minutes ago, Griff said:

Aye, I also have shot one for years without incident... proper use & and adherence to known safety practices prevent such negligent discharges... However, that doesn't mean that folks ignorant of known safety practices and proper use aren't likely to repeat the errors of others.  Ignoring those errors and pretending the danger doesn't exist benefits no one, especially those who love this arm and wish to continue using it in competition.  Disseminating knowledge of those safe practices and potential dangers from ignoring same benefits all.

 

 

we can agree on that , those that are unfamiliar should educate themselves before fooling about with these , however , most of the cowboys ive met over the years are quite safe , ive known a couple that shoot these and they have no issues either , im not saying what SASS should allow or not allow but these were the period piece . im not saying this is for everyone - its not , but for those that want to exp[erience athentic period - it has its place , some of yus shoot this game for reasomns others dont 

 

much like those that are BP only , we dont all think alike nor are we motivated by the same things - just sayin