Spencer Sporter

[badlands]

I built ole Painless a few years ago as a winter project.  A friend told me to reduce the powder and not compress the load so much and it would shoot better, so the pic of the target is the first three reduced loads and the top five are the compressed ones.  Ole Painless seems to like the compressed loads OK.  Range is 100 yards.

[dusty texian]

Shoots that second load just fine ! Nice Spencer sporter.,,,DT

[badlands]

Thanks DT!!

[Jack Wagon]

Badlands, that is a very nice looking sporting rifle. Can you tell us what you are feeding ole Painless. Looks like 56-46 in your belt but I can't quite make it out for sure.   Thanks Jw

[treebeard]

I sure like the looks of those sporters! Made me think maybe turn my repro military rifle into a sporter configuration just do not think I can bring myself to cut the barrel down. If pictures of the sporters keep getting posted I may not resist the temptation.

[badlands]

Thanks DT!!

I shoot .515 375 grain bullet from a custom mould over a full 56-50 case of 2f, I know it's compressed quite a bit but painless likes the load.  It shoots as good as I can see.  Dropped a 350 lb wild hog where he stood at a lased range of 93 yds and I've taken two nice white tails with it as well.

[Jack Wagon]

Thanks for the reply Badlands, very nice. And some advise for Treebeard. " resistance is futile"   Jw

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Not a few Spencers were sporterized by Gemmer and some other 'smiths in Hawken style. Go back with a search on this board.

[mtmarfield]

   Greetings!

   GREAT looking Sporter!!

               M.T.Marfield

[Baltimore Ed]

I've always liked the look of Gemmer/Hawkin single shots. Rolling Blocks and Sharps look great, a Spenser should be neat too.

[injun john]

Hey there Badlands!
I built one of these Sporting Rifles in 56-50 with a 26 inch barrel from a Cimarron Armi-Sport for myself and have an original as well. 
Both the 56-50 and the 56-46 are hammers on whitetail.  You've got me looking for some place to find a Georgia Hog now.
I just love shooting and hunting with them.  They put my 30-30 into retirement.
Fine job on your Sporting Rifle. I really like the way yours looks. 
If you ever want to try a load in smokeless for 56-50, I've had very good loads using A-1680 and keeping the velocities in the 1,200 fps or less range.  24grs to 25.8grs as a max ( best accuracy with soft lead was at 25.6grs)  using my 377gr custom bullet @.512 diameter. 
It is pretty much a duplicate load of Spencer's 56-52 in proformance. Pressures were pretty moderate. 
Used Blue Angel lube with no leading even with a 20-1 mix of the lead.
WW LRP.
I have a 1 in 24 twist barrel with a .510 bore.

[badlands]

Thanks Injun John,
   We have quite a few wild hogs here, they are the bomb to hunt.  Yep the old  Painless is a hammer on about anything I've busted a cap on.  Hey I might try that load, hate to fix something that aint broke though.  Thanks again Pard.
Bad Lands.

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

I've always liked the look of Gemmer/Hawkin single shots. Rolling Blocks and Sharps look great, a Spenser should be neat too.

I read through a Hawken history book once. The Spencer was the one that was known to be "gemmerized"! There was no reference to the Sharps, 'though I think I have seen references to percussion Sharps' being so altered. I have seen photos here showing other 'smiths doing a mountain rifle treatment on the cartridge Sharps.

I have a Pedersoli Sharps gemmerized by Gabriel Law. Beauty rifle, to look at and to shoot!

[dusty texian]

OK Badlands  gotta ask how did you come up with the name, painless ? Have been fighting off the urge to build me a Spencer sporter for a couple yrs. now. Really just have not ran into the right donor Spencer yet. Sure been eyeballing that sporter you built. Very nice rifle. ,,,DT

[badlands]

OK Badlands  gotta ask how did you come up with the name, painless ? Have been fighting off the urge to build me a Spencer sporter for a couple yrs. now. Really just have not ran into the right donor Spencer yet. Sure been eyeballing that sporter you built. Very nice rifle. ,,,DT

I had just gotten the spencer sporter done and went to a friends feed bunks, where he had seen a lot of hogs in the evenings cleaning up the loose feed the cattle left.  I took a stand in some trees around a hundred yards away.  Sure enough four hogs came running up to the bunks like some thing was chasing them, they stopped and started feeding.  I told my pardner I was taking the big one.  I was shooting off sticks and let one rip, dust flew off his shoulder and the first thing that hit the ground was his chin, he rolled on his side and didn't even kick.  My pardner said dang that was painless and it kind of stuck next time I saw him ask if I had shot anything with painless. So now it's not a spencer sporter it's ole Painless.

[dusty texian]

Great story, nothing better than hunting with the old Bp. guns. ,,,,DT