Pedersoli Brown Bess Trade Gun

I'm an owner of a Brown Bess "Trade Gun" by Pedersoli as sold by Dixie Gun Works. There is nothing "wrong" with the gun. It is fun to shoot but some points...

1. In VA, it was not legal for deer hunting except during the regular gun season. This might not be a problem for you. It was for me. Where you live makes a big difference.

2. The bore is so big that I "feel" that it is too big for some other tasks like groundhog hunting (but not really). It works great on groundhogs with shot at 15 yards (like any other shotgun) and with heavier shot does well on other such quarry.

3. It uses quite a bit of powder although not that much less than say a .69 or .62 (20 ga.) We're talking 115 gr. vs 90 gr. for the smaller 20 ga. smoothbores.

4. It uses a lot more lead for ball.

5. Recommended ball size is .735" and that is incorrect, get the .715" mold. That size ball will work patched and in cartridge and when the gun is fouled. I can see why the military issued the .690" round ball.

6. For only slightly more than half again what this costs I could have had a custom smoothie that would be appropriate for French and Indian or Revolutionary War reenacting. This gun is not strictly accurate for those uses.

7. 12 ga. wads are not recommended 11 ga. is but 12 ga. work best in my gun.

8. I've not been able to get accurate much past 50 yards (with ball) and I don't feel good using it past 40 yards. That is MY level of skill.

9. You can easily make up buck and ball loads. However, they are not really good to use on deer. That warrants a long discussion of its own.

10. You can get all supplies by mail order. There are several suppliers.

11. The full length musket is a LOT of gun.

12. It weighs more than you expect. This might not be a problem but for some people it becomes one.

13. The balance point is right at the lock. Try carrying it one handed for any distance in your right hand and you'll see what I mean.

Links:
- Track of the Wolf
- Dixie Gun Works
- Flintlock FAQs
- Log Cabin Shop
- The Rifle Shoppe, Inc.
- American Longrifles (has a good forum)

You will also need a lot of accouterments. This alone will be an area of study. I'd be happy to answer any questions. If I don't know, I'll say so and point you to somebody who does.

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Use of the smoothbore flintlocks is now legal during the Virginia muzzleloading deer season!

A recent topic on a forum got me to thinking (always a dangerous thing). The following is a partial result.

30+ years ago there weren't many good gun magazines. As a kid I was happy to get anything to read. Often I didn't know about a magazine until I might run across it in a book store while traveling. Just wasn't the money available then as there is now to spend on this. You know this is true because of the huge number (compared to 1965) of such magazines available.

Unfortunately, that means that the best writing is now diluted. If they are lucky, a magazine editor will get a single good writer. A couple of magazines will manage to get two published in a single issue. I know there are several writers hanging out here now and then and I mean no disrespect (I've done some technical writing and know how it goes) but fellows, I've got very few favorite writers. It doesn't help that I've got 30+ years of experience and can sharpshoot the articles.

#1 are the old and now sadly departed writers: Elmer Keith, Charles Askins, Jack O'Connor, Francis Sell, Bill Jordan and Skeeter Skelton. Not quite departed, you can include Ken Waters in that list.

#2 and of the current crop is probably a tie between Ross Seyfried, John Taffin and Brian Pearce. I think Ross Seyfried's articles on the old guns and making them bark is one of the great joys of my life. Because of him, I keep my eyes open for my opportunity to own such guns and he writes well enough that I can actually get some vicarious pleasure from his experiments. I don't like every article Taffin and Pearce write but like them enough that I'll at least give it a look regardless of the subject. They are both capable of writing complete technical articles that are easy to follow and understand.

#3 might be Sam Fadala. His style is a little choppy but he writes about guns that interest me. He is also a bit of the rebel and will try things that others would not. You can also tell that he's done it and not read about it.

#4 is everybody else. Most write about things that seldom interest me. This doesn't mean that I have a personal grudge against any of them. They are trying to make a living doing something they have an interest in. How many here can say the same thing? There are quite a few writers who are simply grinding out articles. Craig Boddington, Phil Shoemaker, Mike Venturino, and John Barsness often write articles that interest me. I do understand what's said about an inability to properly frame a story in particular the articles mentioned. I read both of them and agree. They won't get clipped and saved.

Subject matter (i.e. editorial content) is another issue. That is a matter of who the magazine has as a target audience and who is editing. Editing also affects the articles. I've seen some perfectly good articles edited to an unrecognizable state by those who don't understand the subject. Good editors are as hard to find as good writers.

I take American Rifleman because I'm a member of the NRA). I subscribe to Rifle, Handloader , Successful Hunting (mostly for Ross's articles), Muzzleloader, Muzzleblasts (again, I'm a member of the NMLRA), Blackpowder Hunting (more Seyfried articles), Traditional Bowhunter, Primitive Archer and my wife subscribed me to Peterson's Hunting (no, I never express disappointment in a gift ;)). I sometimes buy other magazines (yeah, I get sucked in now and then) but lately it is the odd Shotgun News or Shooting Illustrated. This for specific reasons such as a particularly interesting article.

There are lots of other magazines out there. Most of us aren't aware of all of them. This is far better coverage than existed 35 years ago and probably a good thing. It is also more mainstream. A lot of the simplicity of the articles is directly related to all the new shooters coming into the sport and their need for info they understand and can use. Now having new shooters is a very GOOD thing indeed. If I have to look a bit harder for good magazine articles because of it, well I'll put up with that.

I am going to try to bring together some related posts I've made to various forums...

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Is there something wrong with TC's .35 Rem barrels for the Contender?

With all the TC made barrels I've seen the problems aren't in how the guns are bored (I think they are very consistent in that regard) but in how they are chambered, crowned or finished. Finishing is a minor problem that brings the price down for the astute buyer. Incorrect crowning can be corrected as well. However, guns that are improperly chambered are a big problem. Often, only rechambering to a larger cartridge can solve the problems with the chamber and/or throat. That can be expensive as sometimes that also requires a foray into the world of wildcats (i.e. .358 Bellm or .358 JDJ) and additional dies, etc. Sometimes, that won't work either as there have been reports of chambers so far out of kilter that they simply can't be repaired. Bobby has probably seen a lot more .35 Rem barrels than I have and TC doesn't have a great rep for quality control so there may be something to the idea that the .35 Rem barrels are more likely to have problems.

IME, the .35 Rem and it's relatively small shoulder is a big problem for some reloaders who don't pay attention to detail or, perhaps, are somewhat lacadaisical in their approach to reloading. This even in perfectly set up barrels. When the dies are improperly set, there can be problems with proper functioning or case life. Many shooters will blame it on the barrel and move on.

I personally think the reason there are so many .35 Rem. barrels out there is that the .35 Rem is too mundane for a lot of shooters. Sure, it was a good first barrel but later... There are a LOT of options, and most want to try them. Rather than simply accumulate barrels (HEY!, don't look at me ), they sell them off and use the cash to buy new barrels, dies, etc. Contender shooters as a group seem to be more likely to do this than most shooters. We seem to love to buy, trade, accessorize, etc. However, it seems to me that there is a lot more of this activity among shooters than 30 years ago when many shooters only hauled out the guns to kill pests in the garden, go quail or dove hunting or for a couple of weekends of deer hunting.

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The .357 Maximum...

I have a TC factory 21" barrel for my Contender. Excellent.

There seems to be a lot of stuff out there on the .357 Max and some of it seems to be true! The best powders seem to be W680, AA1680, H110/W296 and H4227. Lil'Gun might be in the running here, too. I'm going to be trying it this summer. Remember to use small rifle primers.

In the longer rifle barrels I think it is possible to get 2000 fps with the 200 gr. jacketed RN and AA1680. 2000 fps for the various 180 gr. jacketed bullets seems to be no great thing. 21 gr. of H110 and the 180 gr. Hornady SSP gets 1960 fps in my gun. This is plenty good. With the Leadheads 205 gr. LBT GC I get 1600+ fps from a charge of 17.5 gr. of H4227. Now this is a fun load to shoot and it is still effective.

Some people say that it reminds them of the .38-55. I think they're right. I'm hoping I can get a 200 gr. to leave my barrel at 1900-2000 fps using AA1680 or Lil'Gun and if so it will be very close to that .38-55 255 gr. jacketed moving out at 1850 fps. The .357 Maximum is really a hidden jewell.

Of course, it is basically the .38 Extra Long. One of the recommended loads for that cartridge is 6 gr. of Unique under a 150 gr. cast bullet. Using 158 gr. swaged lead bullets with this charge gives .38 Special peformance from the rifle and is loads of fun for small game and plinking. Great training round, too. In fact, the .357 Max is capable of swallowing all the .38 Special and .357 Magnum ammo you care to feed it. Just be sure to clean out that chamber later so that the Max cases have no problems sliding into the chamber.

For years I carried a .45 Colt Combat Commander. Given the clothing I was wearing, it was easy to conceal AND with small kids in the house, I wasn't going to leave a gun out anyway. At night I took it off and then set it up at bedside. However...

The wife took exception to my having a cocked pistol next to the bed. Explanations of the mechanics were futile. Now the kids are grown, the daily clothing and work schedule have changed and has been easier to have a S&W M13 3" or Ruger Speed-Six (both .357s and no longer made, get a M65LS instead) for both uses. When I leave the house (I now do most of my non-profit work at the house), it is easy to pick it up and go. The springs are always at rest and the cartridge will do what I want including required applications at the farm.

Sometimes either of these guns is just too big. Then I carry a S&W M36. Very little transition needed.

I have used an alternative which I consider inadequate for winter work due to the heavy clothing some people might be wearing. That is the Pistolet Makarov using the 9x18mm cartridge. Pluses include low cost (VERY important to some people) of both the firearm and the ammo (which you can get for $60 for 500 rounds delivered!), light recoil (like the .38 Special), moderate capacity (8-9 rounds or more), and the double action feature (which makes MY wife very happy). Negatives are the bulk of the gun for the round utilized, what might be considered under-penetration by the 9x18 HP round, relatively limited effective range (compared to the heavier .38/.357 and .45 bullets), and limited range of support equipment such as holsters (although this has improved).

Most people don't have to use their carry gun on the farm but many do have families with whom they want to or must interact and whose skill set they must consider. For me, the answer is a .357 Magnum or .38 Special level load (including the 9x18mm Makarov) in a double action pistol or revolver.

I was recently reminded that some people don't vote. They don't vote for a variety of "reasons". To me any "reason" to not vote is simply an excuse (lest you're in a coma or unexpectedly bedridden).

I always vote. Always.

Some 372 years ago my first European ancestors arrived in this country. It took a while, but they finally really got their hair up and took a chance to stand on the side of liberty. I believe that my first relative to stand under fire did so April 19, 1776 in a little village called Lexington. There were several more who took up arms in support of what was the beginning of the free world. One relative by marriage shot a certain General Frasier at Freemans Farm (Saratoga, NY). Since then, there has been at least one direct ancestor of mine who served in time of war, the only exception being my Grandfather who was rejected for having TB in 1917. I would hate to think that the my right to have my voice heard through my representatives, fought for by my grandfathers (and suffered through by the grandmothers left behind), was lost due to my laziness or ignorance.

Sloth and apathy are the allies of evil. When you don't vote you are in fact voting for evil. As God is my witness I believe this. To me voting is a sacred duty, a sacrament of free will, free will given by God.

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Now some might think this over the top, but consider that your shooting rights are controlled for a reason. That reason is to limit your free will, not to protect or defend others but to keep you from defending yourself and your family. Your vote is the only thing that prevents these people from winning here. I also believe that freedom here gives hope and encouragement to the many millions worldwide that they might also be free. It isn't just about guns...

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So far as actual shooting, I've not had the time to fire a single round.

Well, this past Saturday I received a package of 50 .375", 255 gr. jacketed soft point bullets from Mr. Dave Deering of Saint Petersburg, FL. A hobbyist maker, Mr. Deering is turning out a great product, in so far as I can tell without shooting them! They have been very consistent for weight, diameter, length, and finish. I'm personally hoping that these bullets will replace the Barnes original for my use.

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While I don't agree with all that the inheritors of Dr. Martin Luther King have done in his name, I do still have a great respect for this man. Recently, somebody on one of the forums I frequent made some negative comments about Dr. King by way of referring to the recent holiday in his honor as "James Earl Ray Day". It really pains me that some people just don't get why we have this great country and why we make the sacrifices we make (at least some of us make) to protect and preserve her. It also POs me that this fellow, by writing what he did, was working to perpetuate this myth of the gun owner as bigot. Got my goat and I had the following comments:

The Reverend Mr. King was killed by a white trash career criminal who used a Remington pump in .30-06. His birthday last Thursday was celebrated and commemorated by many people as was his holiday, yesterday. It is fitting and suitable that such people, heroes, be celebrated, remembered and honored. This is preferable to the honoring and popular beatification of people known only for drug use, mulitiple marriages/unions, and incidental creation of entertainment such as movies and music. Mr. King did more to preserve the union through his support of nonviolent civil disobedience than most who purport to support the same goals as Mr. King.

I well remember the night he was murdered. It was the night of my confirmation as a part of the body of Christ, the army of God. Our joy was completely ended when we returned home from worship to find that he had been ambushed by agents of evil in Memphis.

I served 27½ years in the military attempting to do my small part in preserving this country AND the ideals this country represents including those promulgated by the Reverend Mr. King. I take your comment, "...James Earl Ray day..." to be a personal insult. No thinking or righteous Christian person could make such a statement.

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On that same forum, a fellow was talking about wanting a good snubbie for carry and, as it turns out, to round out his collection. I had the following comments:

Years ago I got an M36, blue, 3". Of course it is .38 Special and I use the FBI Load. For a couple of years it was all I carried until...

I was threatened by some skinheads in my unit and the local PD detective recommended I be "prepared". I then got a Combat Commander in .45 ACP but switched to a M13 in .357 Mag when my wife went nuts seeing the Colt in cocked and locked mode. Sometimes I carry the very similar Ruger Speed Six 4" that was my dad's. All these guns have exposed hammers and I've experienced no problems. I feel very fortunate that my reputation saved me from actually having to use any of these in any but farm related vermin control.

I shot (as opposed to used or carried) the Ruger 101 in .357 and while it is bigger and heavier it (and its grip) handle the full-house .357 ammo better than anything else and this includes the K frames with factory grips (or factory grips and Tyler grip adapter).

I've never fired one of the new "flyweights". However, having seen other people fail to hit at 21 feet with the 2" M36 and 40, I would think that the flyweights would exacerbate control issues for many.

Even with farm use, I probably carry 6 months for every 1½ minutes of actual use. Carry comfort (and security) is extremely important and the holster makes a big, big difference but what works for each person is very dependent on body shape. For many, the rolls and folds make bigger pistols uncomfortable to carry and thus impractical. Weight is really important to some people but seems a bit overrated to me. I think an ankle holster is excellent for somebody who does a lot of driving but isn't so good if you're on foot. How you plan to carry should influence the choice of handgun. If one uses the pistol or revolver as you should, to break contact with the bad guy(s), your 640 or 649 should do for you.


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I've recently joined a new forum, AmericanLongrifles.com, which is very interesting. A recent thread titled, "Flints", has really gotten my interest. As a consequence, I'm learning far more than I expected to know about flint and gunflints.

Flint is a silicon based material that forms into nodules that settle in layers within beds of chalk. These layers are frequently disturbed by the forces of nature, such as the ice sheets and meltwaters of past ice ages - resulting in scatters of broken flints in the top soils, even outside of the chalk bed areas. Rivers, streams, and seas cut through the beds, and the broken flints are frequently rolled into the form of pebbles in the water. In Britain, the chalk bed areas are mainly resticted to the lowlands of Southern and Eastern England. Here, flint was frequently abundant. good nodules could be fond on or near to the surface, although in some cases, people would quarry and mine down to deeper layers for flint of a higher value. In areas of North-west Britain, where good flint was scarce (poor quality flint existed in the form of sea pebbles and derived nodules), it was imported, or when possible, replaced in use by igneous stone.

Flint has a slightly elastic nature, so that if it is struck hard, with a narrow point, it does not shatter - but fractures in a controlled manner. Energy dissipates in waves away from the point of impact, forming a cone. One side of this cone can be seen on the face of any flake that has been struck off the side of a prepared core of flint. The cone appears as a bulge on the new face of a flake, called the bulb of percussion or conchoidal bulb. This bulb, radiating away from a point of percussion, on a clearly defined striking platform is evidence that a flake of flint has been created by a sudden impact - usually in the hands of a human being.

The bulb itself is the best evidence of a sharp, sudden impact, but other clues can include: a bulbar scar - a scar frequently forms on the bulb of a flake, where the fracture occurred; ripples - waves of rings can sometimes be seen radiating from the bulb and point of impact. The sharper and harder the impact, the more pronounced the ripples; fissures - small scar lines can sometimes be seen shooting down from the point of percussion, over the bulb; flake scars can frequently be found on the back of the flake (dorsal surface), where flakes had previously been struck off the core; finally, utilisation - if a flake was actually used for a job, it might bear signs of wear along its edges, or even retouch.

French amber flints were an international standard. Apparently there were different knapping styles depending on regional preferences. Look in the upper left hand corner of this photo for an example of French gunflints found in Germantown, Tennessee during the late summer of 2002. Obviously, French gunflints will be found at sites of French occupation and where the natives with whom they traded lived. Another example of this is at the Gilbert, Texas site where gunflints such as these were found. However, there is a view that the English flints we think of as standard, were not. (See Buffalo Springfield's view) I tend to believe this as I've read much the same view elsewhere (and am searching for on-line documentation).

I haven't been posting here very often. My last post was on November 17 and that is about the last time I did anything shooting or hunting related (other than cruise the web).

There are a lot of things I want to do and accomplish this year and I hope to do them all.

One of the things I want to do is to get in better shape. I think this is critical especially for hunters who still hunt. Still hunting requires a lot of muscle control and uses muscles not often exercised. A very basic program can help tremendously and works for everyone because it is self regulating. That is, you automatically do only as much as you can and will develop/improve no matter at what level you begin.

The program? Push-ups, sit-ups, and leg lifts in sets of 3 (or 4 as you improve). In circuit take one minute timed excerise with a 45 second break between for the first push-ups, sit-ups, and leg lifts (in that order), then repeat but for only 45 seconds with a 30 second break between and again for 30 seconds with a 10-15 second break. Pushups move from close hand (diamond) to wide hand to standard in order to fully exercise all those related muscles. You can also vary the type of sit-up.

Primitive Seasons?

I wrote the following because of a discussion on a shooter/hunter forum. I didn't hit on all the details of the situation but it captures my visceral reaction to those who claim to have taken muzzleloading trophies when they use the in-lines.

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I remember when many states had no "primitive weapons" or "muzzleloading" seasons. This was a hot discussion item for many, hunters and biologists alike. Some thought those D@#% bow hunters and antique shooters were going to maim and cripple up all the deer (no one particularly cared about anything else!) so that they wouldn't have a deer to shoot OR they thought that these morons would pay the extra money for tags which would be available to be spent on game management without losing a single additional deer. In between, you did seem to have one or two who thought it was no big deal since their daddies or granddaddies had killed all their deer with a muzzleloader. There were big regional prejudices at work, too. In Kentucky they even had a primitive weapons only hunting AREA. Well, it was only natural, this was the "home" of Daniel Boone! What better place to have an area where you could hunt just like the old frontiersman himself! Well, after a bit the inertia was overcome and the laws written or regulations changed and muzzleloaders were allowed. Exact wording depended on the sophistication, knowledge, prejudices and politics of a whole lot of people. Now throw in the inevitable technological advances that will be made by those responsible for marketing and making money for their companies. What do you have? It sure as heck ain't primitive, it even extends to muzzleloading guns using canister grade smokeless powders! Who'da thunk it?

I can't imagine why anyone is surprised that there are hunters so desirous of extra hunting/field time that they will buy the extra license and equipment just to take advantage of the season.

Here in VA for a time, you only got one deer. Didn't matter what you used. Lots of "modern" gun hunters, a few muzzleloading and bow hunters. After all, who was going to spend that extra money for no extra opportunity, well, only the primitive nuts! Then, VA allowed hunters to harvest more of the herd and bag limits rose to 5 deer per season (even west of the Blue Ridge). Low and behold, hunters started to try bow and muzzleloading hunting. Heck, if they failed they could always get their deer during the 2 week regular season with a sure fire .30-06 (or equivalent). Then, the regular season was really crowded so a lot more hunters would show up for the one-week earlier muzzleloading season and get the jump on their buddies in the competition for those "big" bucks.

That created the market for the product improvements and it has been snowballing ever since. For the last few years the muzzleloading seasons have been more crowded than the "regular" gun season! Why not? Where long shots aren't much more than 100 yards hunters using modern in-lines and conical projectiles are at absolutely no disadvantage compared to .30-06/.30-30 shooters AND they get to start a week early. A concurrent change is in the view of this hunt by game managers who see it as a way to remove more deer from the herd and to better control regional populations.

Another interesting development here in VA is that regs prohibit the use of smoothbores (like my Brown Bess) during muzzleloading season but not during regular gun season (when I could use old Bess OR my 12 double barrel!). No, not due to ballistic inferiority, heck it's primitive... and allowed during the regular season with the pretty equivalent Foster slug loads. But we do allow in-lines (including the smokeless shooters) with any sabot and telescopic sights. So the true primitive hunter doesn't have a season unless that hunter doesn't mind competing with even more .30-30 equivalent guns. That's a big deal to the primitive shooters who originated the movement for muzzleloading seasons and are now outnumbered by the "anything to kill another deer" crowd.

Why is this a hot button for me? Well, even though I've seen this struggle since a formative part of the regulation process and even though my Dad was involved in these early discussions, I'm solidly on the traditionalist side of the fence. I'd like to be able to safely hunt deer during the ML season with my Bess even if that means that I have to get just as close as I do when carrying my stick-bow. I've never hunted to kill but to go to that place (and time) to which I'm transported. A place where a man was a man and not some product of a nagging wife and gang of 5 nutty queers.

Well, there were no deer seen today. However, I got there this evening and clearly they are in the area in the morning. Unfortunately, although there are a few rubs, it isn't yet the rut here and I've not seen any bucks at all. All deer seen, some probably more than once, are does. None have been seen at more than 90-100 yards, well within range of the .41 Remington Magnum Contender carbine.

In doing chores this morning I had to pass the public range and picked up several pounds of rifle brass. Mostly .243 Winchester and .30-30 with some .30-06 and .30 carbine. Undoubtedly, there are some similar rounds, possibly .260 or 7mm-08 Remington, as I didn't have a chance to actually sort through it on the range. About one third is in the vibratory polisher now.

This brings me to a related subject, the relative popularity of various rounds. Among the non-reloaders of the centerfire rounds #1 is clearly the .30-30, with .30-06 a close second followed by .270 Winchester, 7.62x39mm, .308 and .243 Winchester, and the .44 Remington Magnum. Also in the running is the .30 Carbine but I hesitate to include it as it is clearly being fired in "fun" guns as are HUGE quantities of .223/5.56mm ammo. While I've no need for the brass for reloading, now that I have a buyer for scrap brass I'll probably be picking every single case up for one use or the other.

Pistol rounds are represented by 9mm Luger/Parabellem, .40 S&W (police shooters practicing I think), .45 ACP, .38 Special, .357 Magnum, .380 Auto, .45 GAP (Glock Auto Pistol), and even the .50 AE! I don't have any idea what I'd use them for, but I couldn't let those huge cases just sit there!

Well, finally, a post!

Today was the first day of the "regular gun season" here in VA. I wouldn't have been able to go but we had an electrical problem at work and so were closed today. I went to Mom's farmette and set up in the aptly named Doe Hollow. After about 30 minutes the squirrels and other fauna were back to their normal routine and shortly after that a mature doe came quietly up the hollow. Completely unaware of me, she moved to a slash pile in the middle of the recently cut over area and after going all the way around it she was satisfied it was safe and bedded down where she could look both ways up and down the hollow. I had several opportunities but it is not a doe day and in any case, I don't want to take does in this area. However, try as I might, I could not will a buck into following her in to my sights. After 3 hours the wind changed and I think she felt a little uncomfortable so got up and moved back down the hollow and out of sight. I didn't pursue but felt that this was a pretty good indication that there weren't any other deer there today so I went home.

I don't know about you but on the first day of the season, and a Saturday (we can't hunt in VA on Sunday), I don't really feel safe on public land. I used to and that is when there was more hunting pressure than today. However, I think there are some real bozos out there who weren't brought up hunting by their fathers/uncles and just come unglued when they think there's a deer around.

I was carrying my .41 Mag barrel, the one that has the Simmons Turkey 4X scope mounted. For some reason I can't get used to this scope and I guess one reason is the narrow field of view (compared to my other 2.5X scopes) and another is that I can see the inside of the scope when looking through it. However, the cartridge and scope were well up to taking this deer if needed as she was within 70 yards of me.

Temps got to 48 degrees (from 32 this morning) but it was overcast all day and threatening rain. Also it was sporadically windy which made it slightly uncomfortable to sit on the ground for over 4 hours. I'm not 18 any longer!

I guess I've done a lot of random thinking the last few days. These are some of my random thoughts.

Reloading New Brass Over the last 30 years I've used a lot of brass made by various manufacturers. I've found that the best way to ensure the necessary uniformity when loading new brass is to full-length size (this makes it the same as all your other ammo) and square the case mouth (as a minimum, you may have to trim...). There are almost always case mouths that are out of round and not square. While a particular lot will let you get by without doing this, there may be one case within any given lot which will give your problems if you don't. I've even had some cases in which the mouth split, even before the first firing. To me this is a quality check and assurance step which you can't avoid.

Magazines and Books I've been going through my old magazines and books this past year. A number of books on military history, etc. were given (yep donated gratis) to the 116th Infantry Regiment Library for the use of the Regiment and the library's other patrons. You'd be surprised as to how much you'll be able to write off, if you can get the institution to accept the books.

The magazines are another story. Most magazines I have subscriptions to are of the shooting and hunting variety. Several of these I keep. The question is, how do I keep them out and available and still leave my office looking as though it is clean? Easy, Walmart, and any office supply store, has these neat plastic magazine holders designed for exactly this use. WOW! Clean and neat. About 18 issues of any particular magazine will fit in one of these. I sort mine by magazine and the rotate out the oldest as the newest comes in.

Now, of course, I'm not just tossing these. Why, that wouldn't ber very environmentally responsible, would it? What I do is to clip the articles that I simply can't do without. They are filed in one of those neat see-through plastic things that goes in a 3 ring binder. Filed by caliber, gun type/model, etc. the articles are always easy to find (relatively). All the magazines then go to another shooter. Now, he might not be happy about having articles (and sometimes, parts of articles) missing, but then again, he's not paying anything for the magazine!

.38-55 Winchester Just found a new (to me) magazine called Shooting Illustrated. In the most recent news stand copy was an article by one of my favorite writers, Sam Fadala. The subject?, the .38-55 Winchester! Whoooo-hoooo!! However, one of the loads he uses in his modified M336CB is 31 gr. of H4198 with the 255 gr. Winchester jacketed bullet. The Hogdon manual shows 28 gr. as a top load, but the pressure is a very low 26,000 CUP or so. I'm not willing to endorse this load, but I might try it, it produces 2000 fps in his gun! Note please, that he's getting his bullets from factory ammo. He pulls them and reloads with H4198.

I had a great day at the range today, if one counts a lot of time wasted as a great day. Well, you know the old saying, "A bad day at the range beats a good day at work."

Anyway, I took the .22 WMRF barrel and zeroed at 50 yards. Also found how to hold when shooting the .22 WRF at that range. Good.

Chronographed the .38-55 loads:

18 gr. H4227, Leadheads 249 gr. PB, CCI 200, 1225 fps/833 fpe, AD 20, SD 24.
28 gr. IMR 3031, Cast Performance 265 gr. GC, CCI 200, 1553/1420, 13, 17.
32 gr. H322, Barnes Original .375 255 gr. JSP, CCI 200, 1768/1770, 5, 7.

My rifle has a.375" bore and weighs 6 lbs. Recoil energy for the above loads was 8.07, 15.59, and 19.40 fpe respectively. Groups were about .5-.75" at 50 yards. This is with a Williams FPRS. The front is a bit high and I'm going to file it down a bit so that I can lower the rear sight. I want to do that so that it isn't so exposed to damage.

210 gr. XTP over the Hogdon charge of 22.5 gr. Lil'Gun when used in the 16¼" Bullberry barrel :

For 5 shots - 1872, 1845, 1871, 1863, 1837, avg 1858, ad 13, sd 16, for 1609 fpe at 7 yards. This is better than what I get from factory Winchester 200 gr. .35 Remington ammo in my 21" factory barrel. It probably doesn't carry as well as the .35 caliber bullet but it is usable without sight adjustment to 150 yards, shooting into just under 2" at that range from sitting position. My Rynite stocked Contender weighs just 5 lbs, scoped. For our area, this is one handy little deer gun!

BTW, these were taken in 50-55 degrees and correspond very closely (as I remember it) with the velocities taken on a 90 degree day.

I also took the .25-35 out with the load of 8 gr. SR4759 under the Remington 86 gr. JFP intended for the .25-20. Avg velocity/energy was 1191/268. Using the lower vertical leg of the duplex reticule as a post it went into a cloverleaf at 25 yards, on POA. This is exactly the use this load was intended for and I'll be making up more of them.

So, now I've got time to discuss recent events.

First, I thought I'd sit down with the 7mm TCU and form some more brass. Let me digress a bit and say that I like to have lots of ammo on hand. I don't know why, but I do. Anyway, I wanted to form some more brass for the 7mm TCU and after I ran the mil surp brass through the sizing die I needed to fireform it. Looking around on the bullet shelf revealed that I had 140 gr. Nosler BTs, 139 gr. Hornady FPs, 120 gr. Hornady VMAX (the replacement for the discontinued SSP) and a cast 140 gr. FPGC from Beartooth Bullets. Due to the shortness of the 7mm TCU neck, I don't think it is suitable for the cast bullet (I don't want the lubed bullet to extend into the body of the case or for the lube grooves to be exposed).

I decided to load up some of the 139 gr. Hornady FPs over 25 gr. of H4895. These bullets were intended and purchased for loading in my 7-30 Waters (also a Contender carbine) but I was not really excited by them in that cartridge and they were going to sit on the shelf if I didn't use them now. I had my Chrony along with me and these clocked an average of about 2000 fps from the 21" 7mm TCU. Now that's not moving very fast but it was accurate, giving 1-1¼ inch groups at 100 yards. Accuracy out to 150 yards was gratifying. So...

I wanted to see if I could speed it up to forecast velocities (the manual showed 2100+ fps in a 14" barrel!), so I loaded it over H335, a slightly slower powder which might do a bit better. Velocities with the H335 did get 2100+ fps but not plus by much! Mine must be a "slow barrel" as it gets only 2400 fps with 29.4 gr. H4895 and 2450 fps with 30.5 gr. H335 under the 120 gr. Hornady OR 130 gr. Sierra SSP bullet. Getting back to this particular load, the H335 charge didn't change accuracy one iota. I think this is a pretty good bullet, but I don't know in what application I'd use it. It gets a full 400 fps less in the TCU than in the Waters cartridge. I don't even know if it matters as I've run out of those bullets, don't plan on buying more and have moved on...

To the .30 Herrett (again). My base, standard, load is the 130 gr. Hornady SSP over 24 gr. of H4227. This exceeds the manual recommendation (but I've seen it elsewhere and in an older manual) so once again I can't accept any responsibility for your use of this data or application of this information. This load gets about 2200 fps from the 14" barrel with the Choate extension (now discontinued). It will give groups of about 1-1.5" at 100 yards. I understand that this bullet has also been discontinued by Hornady. It is hard for me to understand why. Perhaps somebody can explain this decision to me.

I thought that perhaps I might find a "varmint" load which I could substitute for my all purpose load using the SSP bullet when hunting groundhogs and coyotes. To that end I bought some Hornady 110 gr. VMAX. Looking over the various manuals, I came to the conclusion that 23 gr. H110 under this bullet would provide the best ballistic performance. The first test cases I loaded up to this level were primed with the CCI 200 primer.

I must digress again to say that while it is often recommended that one use Magnum primers with the ball powders, I've found that it is not necessary but also not always the best performer. However, the recommendation is not made lightly and it was true in this case!

Velocities ranged from 2490 to 2190 fps and the SD was 121! Clearly unacceptable, I thought to improve things by switching to the CCI 250 (a "magnum" primer) and adjusting my dies to give a stronger or tighter crimp. This did the trick! Not only did the average velocity come up but the SD dropped to the lower double digits. This had to bode well and it did. A 3 shot group at 100 yards (the target fell during the string) was less than 1" and cluster around the "X". I still don't know if Hornady intends for this bullet to replace the SSP, but at least I have a load for it.

I've also been messing about with the Leadheads PN30-149G .310" bullet. Using 5 gr. of Unique gave an average velocity of 892 fps and 12 gr. SR4759 gave 1320 fps. If I remember correctly, that's 245 and 575 fpe respectively. We're talking .32-20 power, suitable for small game and that is my intent. However, it is a bit more bullet weight than necessary so I was going to order a 115 gr. bullet from Beartooth Bullets but the on-line system would not work for me today. Oh well...

I need to get out and chronograph the .38-55 and .41 Remington Magnum loads. I hope to post the results and my comments on Tuesday.

Well, we've had two (2) storms since the last. So much for the every 18 years thing!!!! However, water never backed up despite all that Isabel and the next storm 3 days later... Plus, removing everything from the floor certainly helped.

I've been to the range and shot some to check some loads. I'm hoping I'll find time to do more than hit-and-run and provide some details. However, I've been disappointed with use of H322 in the 7mm TCU and the H110/Hornady .308 110 gr. VMAX combo. All I need is more time.

This year I've got several rifles of similar performance from which I must choose one (or two) to take hunting. We'll see.

Currently, early mourning dove, goose and squirrel seasons are in. No geese taken, 6 dove and I've not been squirrel hunting.