Why did you choose to shoot a big caliber?

[Blondetta]

  I've always shooted .45's.  So,.45lc wasn't any big adjustment for me.  More power!  I'm thinking of getting .38/.357 since, I don't reload.    Then again, nothing beats a bucking .45lc in your hand. 

[Manatee]

Because I'm gettin too old to plant a sapling and live to see it become a large tree.

Life is short and gettin shorter.  Why go "dink" when you can go CLANG!!!?

[john boy]

Quail... cause  45 Colt synonymous with the Ole West.  Yep, there were other calibers that are period correct but every cap gun I had as a little kid was a '45 Colt'.  Now them I'm a big kid ... long live the tradition!

BTW ... except for my shotgun, every CAS cartridge firearm in my arsenal is 45 Colt

[Jose Grande]

Because I'm a WARTHOG.And we can't help ourselves.

[Stoney Pete]

For me CAS is about history and the hold west.  .44-40 is and authentic Rifle/pistol caliber in 1880 which happens to be the time frame I'm trying to replicate.  Your milage may vary.

[Matthew Duncan]

38 ain't cowboy.

Asked the son and the first thing out of his mouth was 45!

If'n I had to do over I'd go 44-40.

[Lt. Col Mark Flint]

I shoot the .38-40's partially because of all the great benefits of shooting a cartridge that is bottle necked, thin brassed and well sealing, authentic and just different.  I also like the weight of the gun.  .38/357's are HEAVY! 45's are too light, for me the 38-40 (a 40 caliber with a case capacity of the .45 and the ability to shoot bullet weights close to the .357) balances well.

And old guns are really cool and not available in .38!

[Doctor Bill]

Because you can't get 38 grains of ffg powder in a 0.38 case.   

More room for the boom!


Doctor Bill

[Silver Creek Slim]

I was already reloading .44 Mag before I started in CAS, so it only made sense to continue in that caliber for CAS.

Slim

[SGT John Chapman]

It's My Fathers Fault,........when I was about 11 or 12 he bought a H&R Trapdoor,..............and He said, " Wana try it",.........and man that was all it took,..............Well Now I shoot prarie Dogs with my little 300 Win Mag,......I call him "THOR",.........He weighs in at just shy of 14 Lbs..............and shoots 168gn BTHP Match slugs at 3200Fps.......

NEED I SAY ANY MORE ....................

[Aesop Mysleeve]

I don't know if this thread's author considers .45 a "big caliber", but I can state with historical accuracy that I do shoot .45LC because no one makes a six-gun in .75LC.

And I must admit I love it when my shotgun knockdowns get knocked down the first time, especially if the stand and legs go over too on occasion.

[Joyce (AnnieLee)]

Because .38 SWC ammunition looks like crayons. Who wants to shoot crayons???




<Loves her .45s, the boom, the recoil, the "CLANG", the size of the hole in a paper target...>

AnnieLee

[Birdgun Quail]

Thanks for all the answers.  Being a newbie and all, worrying if I chose the right caliber, wondering why others shot calibers starting with a .4, I think I'll be happy choosing a .45 Colt.  Plus, in the back of my mind I thought the .38s are for the ladies and boys...Ms Calamity Jane, Ms Blondetta, and Ms AnnieLee put that notion in it's proper place.  Ladies, I tip my hat to you ...you're my heroettes!  And, I mean no disrespect to those who shoot the smaller calibers.  Again, thanks y'all fer puttin' up with my newbieness.

[Willie Wheelgun]

I reckon I shoot a .45 cuz they don't make a .46.  Bigger is better.  I love the line by Hank Williams, Jr.  He say "I love the roar of a .44!"
Me too.
WW

[Qball]

Maybe it because we is WartHogs

[Sagebrush Burns]

You mean there's something other than 45 Colt?  Horrers at the very thought...Warthogs rule.

[Seafarer]

I have been a BIG Smith & Wesson fan for about 30+ years. Just the N frames and 41 magnum in particular. I try to only shoot handguns that begin with a 4. So when I started to get into CAS it had to be with Schofields. I started with a couple of 44/40 clones to match the clone 1873 in 44/40 to keep it simple. That didn't last long as I was lucky enough to pick up a pair of Schofields of 2000  with consectuive numbers. So it is 45 S&W with a 44/40 kicker.
I was under the impression that we were supposed to keep things in the spirit of the game and if I ever had to go into a gunfight in real life I would want the largest guns I could carry.
Seafarer

[Driftwood Johnson]

I bought my first big bore pistol, a Ruger Blackhawk in .45 Colt sometime back in the 1970's. I just thought it was a really cool cartridge even way back then. When I started in CAS, I didn't even consider anythnig else. I decided that to be able to afford it I would have to learn to reload, so I did. When I started CAS I already owned an original Marlin 1894 chambered for 44-40. Shortly thereafter I bought an original WInchester '92 also chambered in 44-40. When I went darkside, and wanted to buy a '73 with a shiny new bore, there was just no question as to what caliber it would be. 44-40 of course. So there you have it. 45 Colt and 44-40 both stuffed to the brim with FFg and topped off with big fat bullets. The more boom, smoke, and recoil the better.

[Badlands Walker]

Well, lets see!  I startin' shootin' big caliber guns when I was a lad.  My father was always a big gun buff & I grew up on the stuff.  He had an old Peacemaker that belonged to his father & that was the second handgun I ever shot... bout' 9 I guess at the time.  Well, it went off, I went on my butt & life was good from that point on.

I have always had .45LC six-shooters & wouldn't consider anything else.  I have shot a few smaller caliber six-shooters, but nothing compares to the kick, sound & stopping power of a .45LC.  This has always been my choice in personal protection, besides my AR-15.

The bigger the bank, the bigger the smile!

[Badlands Walker]

DELETED. Sorry, guess I did a double tap!