There's a penny start auction for a Colt M1894 on GunBroker.
It's going to go for a price that well exceeds my max bid, but it's fun to be in the lead for a while.
I've no idea where one would come up with .38 Long Colt anyway.
Besides, I'd need ANOTHER holster.
Yeah, I have been watching a COLT SINGLE ACTION, 45 COLT US MARKED ARTILLERY MODEL from 1890 penny auction. It's now up to $1325 with a couple days to go. Am I still interested? Yes. Will I win it? Probably not.........
ReplyDelete.38 Long Colt brass is still made by Starline, dies are available and it takes a .357 diameter bullet. I say go for it. That's just a tad easier than making ammo for two .38 Rimfire revolvers that I have........
I've been able to find specialty .38 Long Colt ammo for the New Army & Navy that I have. It is loaded with a black powder substitute which is a lot less messy to clean up than real black powder. The brand I've usually bought is Black Hills. I have reloaded it using Hodgdon 777 and cast lead round nose bullets.
ReplyDelete38 long colt is the same case as 38 special just .125 shorter. Loaded with 150 gr bullet.
ReplyDeleteYou could probably trim down .38 Spl cases if you don't care about the head stamp being incorrect. But proper head stamped brass is relatively easily available. The big thing to consider is that .38 Long Colt was originally a black powder cartridge, and most of the handguns chambered for it are not designed for smokeless powder. And most of them are also over 100 years old. So using either black powder or a black powder substitute designed for use in those kinds of firearms is in my opinion prudent. It may be possible to come up with a very light smokeless load that won't blow them up but my experience with very light loads in a relatively large case designed for black powder can lead to inconsistent ignition among other problems. The smaller the load the harder it is to consistently measure it, and you really don't want over or under charges. Not only is it bad for accuracy, it can be dangerous, and not just from blowing things up directly, a squib load that blocks the barrel can lead to disaster if another round is sent down the barrel.
DeleteBut on this blog I'm probably preaching to the choir, so carry on.
The most important part of this post is the title with regards to needing .38 Long Colt ammunition.
ReplyDelete