Need some Advice.....

[Major Matt Lewis]

To celebrate taking an earned break in Army Training, I bought a Colt Lightning Pistol today.     It is in .38 Colt.  So, I would like to find a nice shoulder holster for it and would like to know how difficult it would be to find reloading equipment.  Yes, I got it so when I am finally available I can at least compete in the NCOWS double action championship, plus, I always wanted one.  I also would like to get some stag or pearl handled grips.  Anyone know where I could pick up a pair?

[Dr. Bob]

Maj. Matt,

Talk to Irish Dave about a shoulder rig.  His are GREAT!!  I imagine that Midway will have the dies for 38 Colt.  Congratulations on a good buy!

I traded into a Sharps Model 1-A today.  It's nickel and functions well.

Hope that your Army schooling goes well and fast!!

[Dedwood Dave]

Irish Dave might be able to fix you up with a shouldier holster, you might want to ask him.

[Advertising]

[Major Matt Lewis]

Thanks,

I will shoot him an email. 

Bob,

Army training is at the half way point.  I finished up at Ft. Sill and there is a 3 week break in orders until I hit Ft. Leonard Wood.  So, I am grateful to be out of "Hell's Furnace" aka Ft. Sill.  I had trouble with my run time, but finally got it figured out.  Besides that, I am proud to say I was able to hang with the young bucks.  The training was basic infantry leadership stuff.  The land navigation course was tougher than anything I ever did as a Marine Infantryman, but it was a feeling of accomplishment to get my "GO" on it.  The training also focused on Urban Operations, Convoy Operations, FOB Operations and we had Basic Rifle Marksmanship and Advanced Rifle Marksmanship.  A lot of my classmates thought that the training was redundant, but after my 16 year break in service, it was probably just the thing I needed.  A course to bring everybodies basic soldiering skills up to par.

I will say that I would have done just as well if I did not loose all the skin on the bottom of my feet on a ruck march.  I can say that that event directly had a negative impact on my run but, I got over it.  I look forward to my next course and being in a cooler part of the country.

Besides that, it is kind of weird.  I feel like a stranger in my own house, but won't really go into that here.  I am told that what I am experiencing is VERY common to soldiers that have to step a way for a while and leave the family.

[Tame Bill]

Major Matt,

You face a couple of challenges both shooting and reloading for that Colt Lightening revolver.  The Lightning’s internal are notoriously fragile and do not holdup to repeated double action use.  There once was a gunsmith in Springfield, Missouri over on Division Street that could make the Lightning revolvers relatively dependable.  I think the gun shop where he worked was named the Gunsmoke Gallery or something of that nature.

Your second challenges lies in reloading in as much as your revolver requires a heeled bullet in the 38 Colt loading. A heeled bullet has its bearing surface in front of the cartridge case mouth just like a 22 rimfire cartridge.  The 38 Colt is about .375 inches diameter, the same as the cartridge case diameter. The base portion of the bullet, the heel, is crimped inside the case mouth, and the lubricant is applied to the outside surface of the bullet as opposed to todays cast bullets being internally lubed. That being said I have heard of some hollow based bullets being used with some success, but I have no experience with them.  You might check with Buffalo Arms about loaded ammunition and reloading components.       

     

[Whiskey Bill]

Tame Bill said everything about he Lightning that I would have.  I have fired one and found it to fragile and inaccurate.  If you needed a vintage six shot double-action revolver to use in competition, the S&W .44 Russian would have been a better choice.  They are much more rugged than the Lighning and easier to reload for.

[Will Ketchum]

While the Lightning is fragile I have seen it demonstrated by an Lightning expert that double action is a lot easier on the guns than single action.  They were designed to be shot double action and experience far less stress than when shot single action.  As far as the heeled bullet, you can buy hollow base 38s that work fine.  I use them in both my Remington conversion and my 1895 Colt.  You might want to contact Lone Gunman.  He shot a brace of them at the NCOWS National shoot one year. 

Lots of luck and thank you for your service.

Will Ketchum

[Lone Gunman]

To celebrate taking an earned break in Army Training,

Arrrmy training Sir!

how difficult it would be to find reloading equipment.

Buffalo Arms offers two sets of .38LC dies, the CH4D dies are specifically made for .38LC, the Lyman set is .38 Special dies with a little machined off the bottom. I've had no problems with the less expensive Lyman style.  All early Lightnings had the larger bore, I've had good luck with the hollow based bullets...also only use black powder. Some late production guns might have .357 bores, you'd need to slug yours to know for sure.

I also would like to get some stag or pearl handled grips.

  I just happen to have a set of vintage stag grips, I'll try to locate those and get you a photo. BTW, if you're going to get anywhere in the Army you're going to have to understand that only a pimp in a New Orleans whorehouse would carry pearl handled pistols.

[Ottawa Creek Bill]

Major Matt...
Its right that the .38 colt was originally a heeled bullet....but, the good news is you can load a .38 hollow base bullet into that case and it will shoot just as accurate and is loaded with regular dies...no special crimp needed. I load both.

Bill