WN,
Glad you had a good experience. Many have tried that, got the parts in and found that it was hard to lever, or had some other quirk. Changing the geometry can have unexpected results. I work on gun a lot, but didn't wish to tackle the '73. The guys that do this all the time have it worked out.
I have two '73's, one a full house carbine by Pioneer with their special carbine band front sight. The other is a short rifle by Cody Conagher, both with short strokes. Cody welds his own, probably using a jig, whereas Pioneer has an in house made CNC machined kit that they use. To me, the Pioneer gun isn't as loose as the Cody gun and it's the one I use. They're both slick and fast.
Most CAS shooters evolve to the .38 Spec. after starting with larger calibers. The only reason I can think of for using over .40 rounds is the classes that call for the larger caliber. And I don't shoot is those classes.
The '73 is COAL critical due to its design. To gain the .357 COAL, using .38 Spec brass, I use Moulton Lead, 147 gr. bullets. They are long and when seated in a .38 Spec. case, result in a .357 COAL. Most '73's will cycle a .38 Spec, but work better, IMHO, with a .357 COAL. The shorter round has to be cammed back into the mag tube as the gun cycles. Less camming, slicker the stroke.
DF
Mine levered a little hard at first, but after firing a couple of matches, it's really slicked up. In fact with the heavy brass carrier block, when closing the lever, it feels almost like it's closing itself. Now that I've done one of the short stroke kits, it should be an easier task in the future.
I've been told many times by other competitors that .38s are "better" for competition and that there's no need in using larger calibers, but guns to me are tools and I don't like the idea of owning firearms that are only used for competition. I chose the .44 Special in part because the cartridge intrigues me, but mainly because properly handloaded it will do a great job in the hunting field.
I haven't had any issues so far with c.o.a.l. When I first started using the 44 Sp, the only bullet mould I owned cast a 250 gr. Keith SWC, so I made do with it. The rifle fed it just fine a fast as I cared to lever them through. Since then, I ordered a custom mould that drops a 170 gr. RNFP. It's somewhat shorter than the 250 gr. SWC, but no feeding issues so far.
35WN
