Ruger old Army...........

[Pappy Myles]

I have an option to pick up a ROA SS with adjustable sights.      Planning on getting it anyway.    But since it has adjustable sights, where would it fit in SASS category?

[Angel_Eyes]

Dont know about SASS rules but I had the same dilemma over here in British western comps.
I removed the foresights and manufactured some half round ones, then removed the adj rear sights and screwed a slotted block into the top strap.
Apart from anything else, they go in and out of the holsters easier and you dont catch your fingers on the sharp rear sight blade.
Got to my first comp and found a few shooters with the original sights still on!!!

Have fun, UKshooter

[Sgt. Jake]

   Pappy     Any of the age based catagories, no more Modern and Traditional they are know age based.     Adios  Sgt.Jake

[Pettifogger]

It's not legal in Frontiersman, which is where C&Bs are normally used.  If you plan on using it in SASS matches you would be better off with fixed sights.

[Pappy Myles]

thanks for the info,  I went ahead an picked it up.  The price the guy was asking for it was screaming "TAKE ME!   TAKE ME!" 

I'm really in it for the fun and just getting into black powder shooting.   I have a OMV in SS with a 7 1/2 barrel and was hunting for a mate.   This may be it.

Anyone familar with the Kirst Cartridge Comverter for an ROA?

[Angel_Eyes]

Hey Pappy, I wish you luck with your new ROA, but surely if you get a conversion cylinder, you are straying away from  proper B/P shooting!
It just becomes cartridge shooting with a different powder, you ain't gonna get the fun involved with all the on-site reloading procedures, bits of cap in the action and all the grease, sweat and tears involved in the pure discipline of cap and ball!!!

Have fun, UKshooter
(Who wishes he could have conversion cylinders, as well)

[Pappy Myles]

Oh I hear you UK!,

I ordered the Kirst anyway so I could have the option of shooting cartridge.   I have several OM ruger vaquero's, of which one is a stainless steel 71/2 45 cal that I exclusively shoot black powder in.    I picked up the ROA so I could have a mate for it, either cap & ball, or BP cartridge.

[Pappy Myles]

Well, I picked up a Kirst cartridge converter for the ROA.   And shot it.   I like it!  but like UK said, it aint as fun as playing with you cap and balls.

Thinking about having the ROA converted to fix sights.......and the ramp sight hangs up on the holster ( OK I could get a longer holster)

Comments anyone?

[Pappy Myles]

The continuing saga.........

Well, I picked up a 2nd ROA, so now I have a pair.

On the 4th of July I took them and shoot my 1st all dark match. (OK  cringe now, but I have a mess of pryodex that I'm trying to use up before I get the REAL STUFF)   Had my pair of ROA's, Uberti 73 in 44-40, an a TNN 12 dbl.   Had an absolute ball.   Though I came in 24 out of 28, I had a clean shoot!.well I didnt miss, and came in number 1 in the fun department.

I used Dick Dasterdly's ROA 210 grain mold with spg lube and about 32 pryodex P and CCI #11
OK   I'll be changing to Remmington's 10.   the #11 were a little squirly at times as to fit and the cap spawling off and trying to jam up the works after firing.   I did size the 201's in an RCBS sizer .454 dia with SPG like the instructions that came with Dicks Mold.    Noticed a little difficulty in getting the bases to go into the cylinders, but I attribute that to (1) nimble fingers, (2) alloy in casting being pure lead so I figure there was some base expansion when I sized (3) had a couple of chanbers in the cylinder that looked like it had a small bur or ding that interfeared.
Thinking about taking the cylinders and having the open end of the chambers slightly camfered about 2 or 3 thousands of an inch to allow the base to fit.    On experimentation after the match and after the guns were clean, I took several bullets and trial fitted before any sizing, and they slipped right in, no muss, no fuss, up to the expansion shoulder.  Overally performance was great.   I really like these, and with using the big lube bullets, I didnt have to mess with bore butter or any other greassy, messy stuff.

I know this is the RATS forum, but I really like the 44-40 with black.    There was virtually no blow by or crap left in the reciever area of my uberty 73 carbine.   Functioned flawslessly.  I use the lyman 200 grain 427666 bullet with SPG. (Sorry Dick, but I got that one before I discovered Big Lube Bullets),  It does have a large center lube grove, not a big as DD's but it worked ok.

Gotta work on the shotgun loads.    Have magtech's 12 gage brass ones.     Used 70 grains of pryodex RS, cardboard wad, Felt 3/4 in wad soaked in bore butter, cardboard wad, 7/8 ounce #7 shot, top card board wad, elmers wood glue.    That was the combination.    Was my 1st black shot gun load.      Overall performance we mediocre.   There were several knock downs that didn;t seam to have the umpf to knock over the targets.   Plus very little recoil.    My 1st reaction was not enough powder.     I had someone tell me to cut back on powder??  go figure.     The story line was with the felt ballet in the shel  as the felt exited the brass shell, and no real chamber cut into the barrel, there was a split micro second that the hot gasses from the powder blow past the wad and causes a lot in speed varriations and thus   loss of power.      Gotta play with that one.

All in all, looking foreward to my next one!!!!!!

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Pappy;  Your Pard may be right.  It isn't powder that knocks em down.  It takes Lead!

Several things to think about;  But first PATTERN YOUR LOAD!
1.  You should not have to load more powder than lead by VOLUME.  That is the common square load.  To be precise, square load more properly refers the height of the shot column being the same as the diameter.  For 12 gauge, that is 1 1/16 oz.  OK, I'll give you 1 1/8 oz.
2.  Less powder tightens the choke effect. Up to 30 % less powder seems to have plenty of choke tightening, and sufficient power.
3.  Heavier shot tightens the choke effect. Lighter shot and more powder opens the pattern.
4.  Is your pattern so wide that you can't cover the knock-down with the bulk of the load? Then apply either #2 or #3.  Additionally you can use fibre wads without shot protectors to ease the pattern, or use plastic wads or shot cups to tighten it.
5.  Do you know where your pattern is hitting? You should, by now, but in the heat of a match it is too easy to raise your head and lose the stockweld.  The result is a high shot. Have a Pard watch while you go through a stage to see if the strike is on the sweet spot.

That's my contribution and free advice is worth every penny spent!

[Pappy Myles]

Thanks Sir Charles..........

Hadn't thought about that aspect.     I'm kinda the guy that learned how to swim by jumping ( or being thrown ) into the deep end.     I have no idea about the pattern.    It was my 2nd attempt at loading BP shot shells.   My 1st attempt I used plastic shells, then spent the next three days scrubbing plactic out of the barrels.   This load was with magtech brass shells and a schematic from somewhere.        I'll pattern the shot next trip to the range and follow your advice coupled with a reduction in powder.............maybe heavy up the shot to 6's also???

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Pappy;  Pattern your existing load before getting too involved in changes.  I usually put up an old target at 10 to 15 yards, and snap shoot a round at the centre.  It will show two things;
1.  size of the pattern.  I'd be very happy with a foot circle at 15 yards.
2.  whether the pattern is centred on your aiming mark. 

Most aiming errors when shooting at ground targets are OVER.  Often it is caused by not shouldering the butt correctly, usually it is too low. The other common cause of overshooting is lifting your head off the stock, (to see the target better?).  Trap shooters sometimes call this "taking a peek".  A gun cut down from a field gun often results in high shots, as the sight plane has been altered.  If purchased as a coach gun it may be already compensated for at the factory by raising the rib. For a saw'doff, a larger bead might help.

I MAKE MY AIMING POINT THE BOTTOM THIRD OF THE TARGET.  This is my fudge factor to account for the accumulation of minor errors.

Look at your ranges rules for max shot size.  Commonly it will be #7.  SASS and the other groups may also specify max shot size.  Stick to #7s, I say. 

Only alter one thing at a time, unless it is so bad that you need a fresh start.

Another thing I might add, is that you can make a shot protector by rolling a strip of paper and inserting it in the case over the cushion wad. Some folks fold the bottom to form a thimble shaped cup.

[yeti76620]

Yo There Pards.  I noticed that ya'll talking about them shotgun loads and what happened to my Pard out here in Colorado Territory is that he had too much powder in relations to the amount of shot; therefort, load was out of "square".  The powder blew a hole in the middle of the shot and he was firing a shot "dognut" at the targets.  He's all square now and the targets go down HARD by a BP Freight Train!!!!!
Yeti76620

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Yeti; "- he was firing a shot "dognut" at the targets."

What did the dog have to say about that?

[yeti76620]

Oh golly Sir Charles, Ya know, Dognuts those things the Revenuers eat.  I be think-n you might be refurn to Rocky Mountain Oysters offa mutt.  Poor puppy, the darn DO-Gooders did the mutt wrong and cut um off!!!   Then he just died of embare-assment 
Yeti

[Pappy Myles]

WEll, I made a trade today.    Found a gent in town that had a pair of old army fixed sights and wanted to get rid of them.   So I took 'em