Input request. 44-77 BN

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Dai;  Go for that carbine!  Good shooting, and I hope Penny has a great time at the shoot.

[Dai.S.Loe]

Dai;  Go for that carbine!  Good shooting, and I hope Penny has a great time at the shoot.

Thanks mate.

Been very down for a few months now and just this week things seem to have taken a turn for the better.

Penny is so excited about going to the shoot. Not for another 2 weeks but she is planning it all now.

What she doesnt know is that I have arranged with a couple of my CAS mates from other parts to teach her how to shoot.

Penny is only tiny (5' 1" and 100lbs) and cant handle my SAA's. My mate is bringing a pair of 32's and a 32-20 carbine for her to try. Shotgun is going to be a worry though.

Her enthusiasm has cheered me up imensely.

Dai

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Another soul gone to the darkside!

[Four-Eyed Buck]

Dai, my wife is 5' 4", about 120 off and on. She shoots .38's out of a set of Model P jrs.( Uberti Stallions) that fit her quite well given her small hands. We did have to shorten her rifle and shotgun butts by about 3" to get a good LOP for her................Buck

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Have we hijacked Dai's thread, but he swiched first!  Great hijack!  Its always a pleasure to hear about new converts.

[Dai.S.Loe]

Have we hijacked Dai's thread, but he swiched first!  Great hijack!  Its always a pleasure to hear about new converts.

No objection from me regarding hijack. All good conversations start on one subject and wind their way through many threads before finishing.

Buck I will tell Penny about your wife.

Penny is nervous about making an idiot of her self learning to shoot so I have arranged some very good friends to take her to a range that is quiet and teach her very slowly. Starting her on .22 pistols then .32's. I would love it if she turned into a Soot Lady but even to have her come to a shoot and join in the spirit of the event by wearing costume, is great.

She is all for getting the Ballard carbine also.

My Rolling block project will be back in 3 weeks. All stocked.

Dai

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

I love wandering threads!

Dai;  I trust that you went with the .44-77 for your Roller.  Have you joined SCORRS?

[Four-Eyed Buck]

Dai, any help I can be, even at our great distance, just ask. I've got her shooting .38's and a 12ga. She uses a Marlin 1894CS in .357 as her rifle. It's the 18 1/2" round barrel carbine that holds 10 .38's and 9 .357's without tinkering( shortening the mag spring will get you 10 .357's). The SG is a 26" Stoeger with home made shells in her favorite color( PURPLE!!!). These are pretty close to the AA Featherlite's if not somewhat lighter.........Buck
Oh yeah, almost forgot. Once you get that Roller back, pics would be nice if possible. And maybe some of that Ballard carbine( always interested in those old Marlins).............Buck

[Ed Clintwood]

Dai,  A little late coming in on the thread, but Track of the Wolf has brass etc for the .44-77.  www.trackofthewolf.com

[Dai.S.Loe]

Some good news at last.

The Ballard Carbine is mine.

The current owner has been in Australia fo a few weeks but when he got back the person that told me about the rifle spoke to him.

Told him how I have been researching this rifle and what I have found out so far.

The owner has decided that the dealer who was after it can take a flying jump. It goes to me as I will obviously love and look after it.

Apparently the rifle was stripped about 20 years ago by NZ Army armourers. They cleaned up everything inside including he barrel. They stripped the firearm right down and gave it a good clean, oil etc. It has never been fired since.

My mate told him I may not be able to get the money straight away (wrong) and the current owner said he will keep it for me as long as I wish until I have the money.

YAHOOOO.    A piece of history will be mine.  BTW the American soldier who brought the rifle to NZ had a surname of Roderick. I have e-mailed this to a historian who has the muster listg for Co. K 12th Ohio Vol Cav.  I would love it if he was in that list. \\

Dai.

[Four-Eyed Buck]

Let us know when you get the reply, Dai...............

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

I LUVIT WHEN A PLAN COMES TOGETHER! :

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Heh! Y'All;  I finally got to my copy of SINGLE SHOT RIFLES AND ACTIONS, by Frank de Haas, 1968.

of the 3 chapters on Ballards, the first, on Early Ballards answers some question for us.  Charles H, Ballard patented his action on 5 nov 1861, but almost immediately sold the patent to BALL & WILLIAMS, who manufactured most of the civil war pieces.  Most were carbines, but there was a military rifle, and a "Kentucky" rifle.  They will bear the name inscription of the maker on the top flat, with Ballards patent & date on the right, and the agents name on the left.  Other makers existed.  Of note was Merrimack Arms & the last was Brown Mfg, who went out of business in 1973.

About 200 frames were cast brass, with the remainder, as well as breach blocks and trigger guards of cast steel.  A feature of the early Ballard was the two tangs at the rear of the action to secure the butt.  Later Marlin Ballards had these tangs removed and a "through bolt" system to secure the butt.  Older military weapons were in .54 rimfire, (Cartridges of the world states this was the .56-56 Spencer round) and later they were in .44 Long.  This was a rimfire round with almost identical dimensions to the .44 Colt for the Richards conversion, including a .451 heeled bullet.

An unusual variation was a dual ignition feature on some guns.  There was a percussion nipple fitted in the breach block, centrally to the bore.  The firing pin could be tipped back, and a reloaded rimfire case with a hole punched in the centre of the base, could be fired.  A great idea for the "belt and suspenders" crowd!.

Post war civilian models were made, usually without barrel bands.  As far as can be determined, all were made in rimfire, with some being converted to central fire privately later.

In 1875 the Receivers for the Brown assets sold the patent to John Marlin, a maker of derringers, and the rest is for the next chapter