Rimfire Cases Are Available

[Eggman]

I noticed reading down through old posts that there is a common impression that you cannot shoot Spencers in their original rimfire configuration because of a lack of ammo. That is wrong. For many years Dixie Gun Works has had a case for the rimfire Spencer. To accomplish this a brass case is machined with a pocket for a .22 blank drilled tight against an inside edge and the area outside the edge of the pocket cleared for the firing bar. Of course you cannot magazine load this case but must single load it in the breach with the .22 in the 3 o'clock position. These cases have been improved lately to very exact specifications and perfect consistency.
To find this .56 cal case use "brass cases" in your Dixie search.

[G.W. Strong]

That is interesting. I have been debating getting the CF conversion, magazine follower, dies, mold, and brass to shoot my spencer. My barrel is pretty rough so I doubt it would shoot well. That seems like a lot of investment ($500+) for a rifle that won't do its part. However, for about $100 I could grab 10 of those and a few .22 blanks and balls and go to town.

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

As I understand it, those rimfire adapters have to be oriented to the rimfire strikers every time.  Therefore they do not work properly for rapid fire.  For that you need the CF breachblock.

[Eggman]

That is correct Sir Charles. The bullet must be placed in the breach with the .22 in the 3 o'clock position each time. And Hopalong that is also correct - this is the low cost way to put those poor Spencers sitting neglected in the gun rack all these years back on the line without any alteration. In the 70s when I started shooting mine with this case before the conversin blocks arrived, the bore was so pitted  I could only take one accurate shot and then had to wipe the barrel. However it did shoot and it was accurate and it was fun.

[Eggman]

I'll add here guys I have a quantity of the rimfires Dixie sells available. Price exclusive to SSS members is $4 each with a minimum order of ten plus postage. Please send personal message if interrsted.

[Arizona Trooper]

I can report from personal experience that these work well in Joslyns too. 

[DJ]

FWIW, these did not work for me in my '65 Spencer carbine.  On the Dixie examples I purchased, the .22 case was not held close enough to the side of the chamber to be struck by the firing pin.  It was real close, but still a miss.  After repeated failed attempts (that beat up the rimseat of the case pretty well), I gave up and put the cases away.  It might be possible to make some adjustments to the firing pin (or swap it out) to get things working, but I just never got around to making that attempt before acquiring a centerfire block.

The Joslyn firing pin strikes a little further from the edge of the case and it appears as if the Dixie cases would work better in a Joslyn than they did in my Spencer (as Arizona Trooper attests).  I also set one into the breech recess of a rimfire Gallagher, and it looks as if they should work in that carbine as well. 

Happy shooting!

[Eggman]

You may want to give them another shot. The .22 pocket is consistantly tight against the inside wall so possibly the new production will work better. They work fine in my old '60 model.

[Eggman]

I got to thinking guys maybe I should provide a few more details about these things. These are based on an original so the case is only .88 inches long where a Starline for instance is over an inch long. It is .56 inch diameter on the outside and .515 inch on the inside. The wall is fairly thin so it's possible the .22 has gained a couple of thousanths to the outside. If you have doubts about how well it will function in your Spencer I would recommend buying one from Dixie for testing. Anyway, like I said they work fine in my gun but the strike on the .22 is not much. The cleared area around outside of the .22 base is very nice now. (disclaimer -- measurements based on my old Midway vernier caliper).

[G.W. Strong]

OK Now I have 10 Rimfire cases from Eggman and I got a mold off a feller on Cast Boolits so I am darn near ready. As soon as the .22 short blanks arrive from Dixie I will be shooting my old carbine. It probably has not been shot in 100-125 years. I look forward to this and I will report back.

[G.W. Strong]

The old girl goes to the range tomorrow. I will report back.