Help me build my dream rifle...

[Tall Dark Slim]

Basics:
30" pistol grip Uberti '73 replica.

Wants:
.45 CS carrier.
Short stroke kit.
Vernier sights.

Where would you order the rifle from?
Who would you send it to for slicking up and stroking?
What else would you do it and where would you get the aforementioned parts from?

I'm curious to see the prevailing opinions and thanks for playing!

[Pettifogger]

Depends  on what you are going to do with the rifle.  Just some considereations, not criticism.

First, a 30" barrel is HEAVY and is a poor choice if this is going to be a competion gun.
Second you want a .45 CS carrier.  .45 CS brass is virtually unobtainable at this point in time.
Third, you want vernier sights.  Why?  The .45 CS is a short range cartridg so the very expensive vernier sights will do no good.
Last, you want a short stroke.  Again, a 30" barrel is simply not a good gun for competion and if you are using the gun for long range shooting (the purpose of vernier sights) a short stroke is completely unnessary.

Where would I order the rifle?  There are basically only two games in town.  Cimarron and Taylors (EMF is a question mark since the owner died recently.)  

Who would I send it to?  There are lots of good 73 smiths.  I would pick one as close to where I live as possible in case there are problems.

Where would I get parts?  The only source for .45CS carriers is The Smith Shop.  Other parts are available from a varity of sources. Venier sights can be very expensie (are you really talking about a tang sight?) and MVA has some of the best.

[Tall Dark Slim]

Yes, I am aware the .45 CS is currently unobtainable. I also believe Starline can be reasoned with in this and convinced to start making the brass commercially available in light of the new owner of the caliber not actually producing anything and not marketing anything other than loaded ammo.

I am also aware that the 30" is not the lightest of rifles. I am not a fan of light rifles and inlove the lines of the long rifle. I am also not going to win any national championships in cowboy action. I'm just not shooting it enough.

I think realistically I would like to be able to shoot out to 200m maybe stretch to 300m. I understand that I am stretching it and looking for the slightest of dings and a rainbow trajectory. Maybe even a paper only proposition.
As far as the short stroke kit, why not? If I shoot it at a CAS match it will be fast and I can hold a bunch of the short shells for Zombie shoots or PCC steel matches.

Does anybody know of a Smith that could make one of these guns run .45 ACP brass? In lieu of the .45 CS ever becoming marketable again...God Forbid.

Thanks for the tip on the MVA. I will check into it. I may be going back and forth between the case lengths as the matches necessitate...by distance mainly I guess.

Thanks for your input. This thread was mainly done to get folks thinking about their rifles and sharing ideas. Please continue and thanks!

[Pettifogger]

Yes, I am aware the .45 CS is currently unobtainable. I also believe Starline can be reasoned with in this and convinced to start making the brass commercially available in light of the new owner of the caliber not actually producing anything and not marketing anything other than loaded ammo.

I am also aware that the 30" is not the lightest of rifles. I am not a fan of light rifles and inlove the lines of the long rifle. I am also not going to win any national championships in cowboy action. I'm just not shooting it enough.

I think realistically I would like to be able to shoot out to 200m maybe stretch to 300m. I understand that I am stretching it and looking for the slightest of dings and a rainbow trajectory. Maybe even a paper only proposition.
As far as the short stroke kit, why not? If I shoot it at a CAS match it will be fast and I can hold a bunch of the short shells for Zombie shoots or PCC steel matches.

Does anybody know of a Smith that could make one of these guns run .45 ACP brass? In lieu of the .45 CS ever becoming marketable again...God Forbid.

Thanks for the tip on the MVA. I will check into it. I may be going back and forth between the case lengths as the matches necessitate...by distance mainly I guess.

Thanks for your input. This thread was mainly done to get folks thinking about their rifles and sharing ideas. Please continue and thanks!

Green.  Been tried.  Starline has no interest as this is a boutique brass and there is no commercial interest.

Red.  Cody Conagher does .45 ACP convervisons.

Again, not a criticism since I have built some strange guns myself, but have you ever handled a 30" Uberti 73?  It's not a matter of them "not being the lightest rifle" they are just plain HEAVY.  If you are going to shoot long range off shooting sticks they aren't to bad.  Also if you want to shoot 300 meters you are better off with the regular .45 Colt for two reasons.  One is that you have more loading flexibility and two is that with the .45 CS (and I have several thousands of them) the bullet has almost a half-inch jump before it hits the rifling.  Not a good thing for long range accuracy.  The .45 ACP conversions don't have this problem as the barrel is set back and rechambered so the bullet to rifling distance is correct.

[King Medallion]

45 CS, what is that? Colt Short?

[Tall Dark Slim]

Green.  Been tried.  Starline has no interest as this is a boutique brass and there is no commercial interest.

Red.  Cody Conagher does .45 ACP convervisons.

Again, not a criticism since I have built some strange guns myself, but have you ever handled a 30" Uberti 73?  It's not a matter of them "not being the lightest rifle" they are just plain HEAVY.  If you are going to shoot long range off shooting sticks they aren't to bad.  Also if you want to shoot 300 meters you are better off with the regular .45 Colt for two reasons.  One is that you have more loading flexibility and two is that with the .45 CS (and I have several thousands of them) the bullet has almost a half-inch jump before it hits the rifling.  Not a good thing for long range accuracy.  The .45 ACP conversions don't have this problem as the barrel is set back and rechambered so the bullet to rifling distance is correct.

38 TJ is also boutique brass, but they make that...

A codymatic in .45 ACP!?! Oooh ahhh. I like this idea. I will have to find out just how much barrel I'd lose. I'd bet he could make me a 34" 1873 in .45 ACP. Now, that would be cool and unique. Then I wouldn't be so worried about the brass at matches either. Don't care... tired of losing expensive brass and .45cs is legal and it wasn't original or period either.
Now the wheels are spinning indeed.

.45 CS....45 Cowboy Special. Apparently a defunct chambering that was once peddled by a good dude who sold it to a bunch of people who are thinking they'll make a buck selling loaded ammo to cowboy shooters. *ROFL* Probably the highest percentage of handloaders per capita of any shooting sport save schuetzen or long range rifle. They had a chance with the brass, but likely too little too late.