I have one and would be interested in feedback.

Having evolved to a notable state of Looneyism I have, as many of you know, undertaken a few projects slightly outside the box, and find myself in a curious circumstance. My shotguns shoot proper patterns with the shot of choice, and the rifles in my collection shoot quite well. Translated, that means they are boring me, not because of mediocrity, but because there is no place left to go with them. I have a few handguns and they will, on demand, shoot minute of jerk. So, what's next? I draw a blank. I load the scatterguns, rifles and pistols, cast bullets and even load a .45 caplock pistol with rice now and then for the purpose of eradicating pesky lizards. Yes, I use a wad and Lord Black. I shoot straight black and sometimes duplex loads in the Quigley rifles and they all shoot quite well.

Of late I have been considering the use of small capacity cases to shoot .30 cal round balls. Something like the .32 S&W or .32 Short Colt for example.

I'm bored and need suggestions. You have any pet projects, goals, innovations and such that bear consideration?

I switched to shooting right handed with iron sights... Some guys say that using scopes is cheating.. There's always ways to change things up. Try switching over to your weak side for a while:








I've been shooting AR's for a couple years now, so that also changed things up a bit..

That be some good shooting there, and I will be the first to admit that irons are getting to be a challenge as the years pass. That said, they are not a high hurdle yet. I'm weird enough that I don't have much use for high magnification glass though I have a few guns so equipped. Muzzle loader slug guns mostly. I also shoot a bit with 3 MOA red dots, just dinking around with oddball objectives. For example, I had Steve Brooks make a mould awhile back for my 77/44, a 320 grain thing intended for subsonic applications.



And of course my pig poker has a red dot also. Here's 25 yards w/elbow rest


My .45 flintlock, offhand at 50 with irons bores me blind.


Sittin' on the 100 yard butt with the .250-3000 is an exercise in tedium


My Marlin 94 has a tang sight. The info on the picture is incorrect....it was the first 2 shots.


Good grief, boredom reigns...not even offhand cures it.




The old RSB? Another yawn...


I need help....a challenge if you will.


Obviously this was not enough...

How about a long bow?

shooting cedars....

Make a longbow of hickory and shafts of cane or bamboo. Nature's carbon arrows. I am building a bow with the youngest Grandson.
We have a bit to go yet but he is interested in graduation things. I will let him have his time. He was cheated this year by the China croop. As all grads were. I have to steer him toward the finish line and then to make our own arrows. He hasn't been dinging me to go deer hunting. Yet. Be Well DD, Rustyzipper.

How about a .22 caliber muzzle loader? Little tiny patched round balls and a couple grains of Holy Black?

I've been messing with breech seating .22 bullets in single shots. Soft 1:30 bullets, Lyman 225438, breech seated .030" ahead of a case charged with a pinch of Bullseye and sealed with a thin card of floral foam. Accuracy: good but not up to Eley Tenex grade. Yet. There in lies the challenge: tweaking/improving until match grade accuracy is achieved (or the supply of empty primed .22 LR cases dries up). Practical? Nope. Fun? Yep.

Gave up on long bows when I was about 7 years old. Shot one straight up...started to run but it nailed on the back of my left heel. Ya, I was a stunt shooter way back then. And that was a little too exciting.

You need to get some of that RRC CF brass for your .22s gnoahhh. Course then you gotta convert your RF bolt to CF.

I may not be looney enough to start patching .22 round balls for a ML yet. But I’m thinking.....🤪

Hmmmm. My Ballard #3 .22 target rifle has a #2 breech block with convertible rf/cf firing pin....

I surely didn’t know such genius was lurking out there. A convertible Ballard...I’m smiling here.

Very nice. I can see where that can be a problem. I was thinking maybe you could try jackrabbit hunting with your cap and ball revolver. That is a kick in the pants

Yea, If you like to compete, or just shoot for the fun of it, try a PRS match. Shot my first last wkend, and tho i`m 77 and WAS a HM in hi-power, this new sport is a challenge, and I made it through the course with out passing out!
I bet you have a rifle or two you could use.

This sit at a bench and off hand slow fire stuff does ware on ya.

The PRS match might be worth a smile or 3.....Hmmmmm

We ain’t got no jack bunnies here in Floriduh. Mebbe cap’n ball on the pigs? -pondering-

There's some interesting stuff in airguns these days, mostly PCP. Calibers up to .50. I'm going to install a steel breech and rail on a Crosman 2240 CO2 pistol, maybe tonight if my nap doesn't run too long. Less than $150 invested, total. Gonna mount a red dot or maybe a See-All and a laser. Hip-shooting with a laser is fun.

I have 200 .30/.22 sabots sitting around waiting their turn too, for about 10 years now. Back in the day, the idea most had was to use them to turn your .30/06 into a .220 Swift ala Remington Accelerators. My notion is to create loads for pot--shooting rabbits, or maybe even turkeys. Got some Speer 46gr HPs with that in mind.

I think you need to hang with Terry Wieland at that auction house he's been going to lately. He's picked up some nice vintage project guns. Seems to keep him busy working on making cases, casting bullets, sourcing period correct sights, period correct restoration of the rifles/shotguns. Check out recent columns in Shooting Times. Not my cup of tea, but very interesting none the less.

I have a friend with a .45 cal airgun made by Airforce. Gave him some .400 gr .45-70 bullets and it was surprisingly accurate....and LOUD. Might as well have been shooting the .45-70.

3 shots at 20 yd, 2 at 50

You're gonna get me in trouble with Mrs. Dan. And she is a very good shot.

Here's a different way to go. Buy some bulk Remington and Winchester bullets in different calibres and show the world how well they can shoot.

You could try pulling 17HMR bullets, casting for same, and paper-patching them.........................

I would suggest going out to cut down some trees. However, after thinking of how many tree cutting references you have made here, I guess you've already clear-cut all your property.

Have you tried slingshots, or better yet, slings. I used to be right sharp with a homemade sling.

We also made up a batcha bolos using heavy cord and rubber balls. Them gauchos knew a good thing when they saw it. Wasn't a dog in the area that didn't tuck tail and run at the sight of us....

Want fun? Try Cowboy Action Shooting!

Maybe make up a cast net with heavy mono and go for pigs.....

Inspired by HOOK and the bolo................

Steve, my options are somewhat limited at present. I don’t have any of the newer popular cartridges. Couple of .30s, small herd of .25s, 7mm, buffalo and elephant guns. Never had bad experiences with Rem/Win bulk in the past but note some other brands seem a bit better. Dunno my looneyism is inspired with the idea at the moment. OTOH, a race between their bullets and my cast versions might be interesting. 🤪

Muffin, I already got some buffalo guns and paper patched lead. Anyway, I found out awhile back that .22 cast is about as small as I want to fool with. Maybe a young dink lad would like it, whaddya think?

Could you be interested in DIY cannons?


Well, maybe like this instead.

Go fishing!!

Okay here are my suggestions

How to lathe turn or cast bronze/copper mono's for .30 cal. rifles at home.

How to harden and or plate lead shot commonly available for improved performance.

Market a loading box for refilling the mag box on a Krag quickly. Ever seen the Scandinavian guys run a Krag?

Source a good supply of cheap TSS and figure out how we can apply this to CF rifle bullets.

And if you really get bored switch over to the shotgun forum and wax poetic about your grandfathers LC Smiths, need all the particulars...........I am a vintage shotgun fan!!!

I already done that.

Didn't really need a cast net, but have to admit it was awhile back. I'm not sure I could hang upside down from a tree limb for very long these days.

Cowboy, I like cannons but they are a bit outside my means. Anyway, back in the day it worked better if I let someone else shoot them and just radioed what adjustments were needed. My two favorites were the 8" SP and 155mm. I did have a brief single experience with the Jersey and the 16" guns but I'm not worthy.

I don't shoot fish very often.

1. I don't own a lathe and am addicted to soft lead, not monos.


2. Don't see a need for that, thus I am uninspired.
3. Don't have a Krag, and never shot one. I'm weird like that.
4. WTF is TSS?
5. This covers most of what I consider to be vintage style shotguns. I likely won't wear these out, but am working with diligence trying to do so with some others. First two pics are a Charles Daly 16 made by JP Sauer and Sohn. Last is a Webley Scott 20 SxS. One of the things that Gramps proved about the LC Smith is they can survive years of use with little maintenance. I don't recall that he ever cleaned a gun in his life.

Any of you fellas had success with round balls in cartridge guns? If so, do tell.

The pics posted early on of the Zimmer and the target that followed. 50', offfhand, 2 shots/target. Fairly obvious to me it can work, but the questions that rise are what are the particulars? Case, powder, bore/groove/ball specs etc etc....

Have used round balls in several handgun cartridges, such as the .32 ACP, though not much in rifles. They work fine when sized correctly and a little lube added.

I keep from being bored by trying a lot of stuff outside my previous experience, from 150-year-old cartridge rifles to the latest, cutting-edge stuff. My latest was an 1893 Marlin in .32-40, which I tried with everything from black powder and cast bullets to jacketed bullets with smokeless

But I also have more fun researching the history of rifles than punching lots of holes in paper.

Plus,both Eileen and I hunt a lot, because that's how we acquire the complete proteins in our diets. Am about to started handloading for a TC Contender in .357 Maximum, because that's what Eileen has decided to start hunting with in our local no-rifle area. Looks like a 180 Speer Hot-Cor can be started at 1800 fps--the same bullet, at the same velocity, she has used in her century-old German combination gun to crumple deer out to 150 yards.

I would be bored SL if my shooting life meant punching holes in paper.

I’m with you in that. I look at paper punching as a necessary step if placement is important however. Light ballistics pretty much mandate that unless a fella is OK with being a hog’s appetizer. Do you recall any of the specs with the .32?

Have you ever tried loading some pinfire? I've always thought that would be an interesting challenge. One requiring a good deal of care too, I expect.

No, I've only seen a couple of pinfire guns in my day and never laid eyes on any ammo. Challenge writ large I suspect.

Always thought Remington Bronze Points were really cool, but think they've gone the way of the dodo.

Once Upon a Once, Rem and Win slugs could be had at excellent prices; still have some Hornet-types I scarfed up years ago. Then, for some reason the prices jumped into the ozone, for no particular reason I could see. Gave up even looking at them. Now I look for bargains wherever I can find them, which might explain the heavy "overstock" boxes under my bench.

I have not, so far anyway, purchased bullets in a caliber for which I don't have a gun.

If you pull bullets and dump powder from the .32 short and replace with a single O buckshot over the primer rammed down flush with the case mouth, don't shoot your brother in the ass with it. And yes the statute has run on this.

Somewhere I read that an ordinary percussion cap can be placed inside the case under the pin so that it will be whacked, hopefully setting off the main charge. Might be one of Bob Haley's tricks. Sounds fraught with peril to me, but then so does the whole pinfire concept. Reminds me of the poor schmucks in the Soviet Union reloading .22s with match-head paste as priming.

That is more or less the size of it. I've seen the odd few rounds of pinfire ammo in various calibres kicking around, years ago. I even had some, and might have the odd photo. It was made in various diameters for revolvers, from very small (I've seen 6mm, and heard of smaller) up to about 15mm. Shotgun shells too. I think the smaller calibres would be a mite fiddly to put the cap into, but a 12 mm or 15 mm would give a bit more room. The rounds for revolvers that I've seen had a very simple case - no more than a cup drawn into a cylindrical shape, with no rim or extractor groove, in thin copper or copper alloy. I don't entirely know how the primers were fixed in place, but I suspect it was with the use of some sort of gum or wax to hold it in position against the side of the case, with the pin protruding. I wouldn't be surprised to find that the pin was held in place by gum or wax too, both to hold it in position and to make the rounds weather resistant. All the rounds I've seen still had the pin, even well over a century after they were made.

I've always rather wondered about handling the stuff too. It does seem a bit hairy with the pin sticking out. You probably wouldn't want to drop it. It was popular for a time though, and there were some nice pieces made to fire it.

Liking the looks of that! Might have to adopt a brother though. You recall if any powder was used in the charge or was it strictly primer powered?

Dan_Oz, the pinfire thing sounds interesting but I’m going to need to rise up and get my Looney PHD before I wander down that path.

Hey Digital, if you're bored beyond standing on your head on the bottom of the Mississippi River stacking greasy BBs, get you the rattiest old gun stock you can find, I mean UGLY with a capital U, and commenced to making saw dust. Sand that thing and apply your favorite oil repeating until it looks beautiful. I find this to be my therapy of choice when I've hit rock bottom of the boredom scale. Then again, I'm wierd. I'm what you might call a "Mega Looney."

Strictly primer powered. Grand dad would let us shoot rats around his hog pens with this load in his little S&W Hand Ejector. I guess he thought us kids and his hogs were safe enough - but in hindsight I am sure it would have killed any of us.

Dan,

The .32 ACP load was a 00 buckshot with 3.0 grains of Unique. In a Beretta Tomcat it functioned very reliably, and got around 850 fps, with accuracy similar to jacketed bullet loads. (Of course, the Tomcat is not known as a target pistol....)

Just a thought there a quite a few POS rifles and shotguns out there which can be gotten for free due to their stellar condition (please note use of the sarcasm font).

There can be a good bit fun to be had in taking a firearms destined for the dump and dropping many hours and a few bucks into getting it into useable shape. I saw a thread on a Surplus Rifles forum (milsurps.com I think) years ago where a gentleman took a rusted up old falling block and got it back into shooting shape. Part of the process was for him to create a reverse electroplate system to pull all the rust off the rifle.

One of the 1860s Snider - Enfield conversions in .577 snider would be really interesting, or perhaps more exotic one of the "indian trade guns" made for the SN .577

Good luck in your search for the next project Dan.

Thanks GRF, I'm getting some ideas here. I have restored a couple of guns to functioning condition though not from appearance. Always thought looks took a back seat to function.

Mule Deer, thanks for that. Never handled a Tomcat, but none of my pistols are target guns either. Somehow they still hit paper once in awhile. I would not have thought it would take 3 gr of powder to get to that velocity threshold, but there be a lot of things I don't know.

I tried it while doing an article on handloading the .32 ACP, which mostly involved jacketed bullets. Wanted a cheap practice round with about the same POI as the other handloads (and factory ammo), and that's what worked! In fact was kind of surprised by how well it worked!

Mr Dan, Take your best rifle that uses Holy Black, balls or bullets and even smokeless as a chase and go to a rifle match at least 500 miles from your base. You need to win that match to rescue your soul! (keep going until you win)

Last time I drove to a match I was on the road for 6 weeks. Drove out to Cody for a slug gun/picket rifle match. Even passed thru your neck of the woods on the way. Great trip it was, but I only garnered 3d in the slug gun match and 2d with the picket rifle. Those boys out west don't miss a trick....wind was blowing 15-20 full value....it's a bit of a learning experience plinkin' in wind like that with a 200 yd target.

Wow....this stuff could turn into one of those genesis legends before you know it!

Geez. Now I'm casting about for a buckshot mold. 00 for sure. Is there a buckshot size that correlates to .22? Thinking maybe trying my hand at making my own BB caps (see earlier reference to primed .22 brass in my possession). That or a BB-Hornet load. I bet Mr. Kilbourn would smile. Hovering carpenter bees at 20 paces best beware.

just a thought DD make you a ss hand gun or rifle or muzzle loader

Devil and details showed up, now I'm thinking about it. Pigs are squealin' in the swamps.

You posted while I pondered. I'm thinking a pistol barrel for the Contender might have a use. Much to consider here. The .32's might find another home.

A bit less ambitious, and decidedly low-tech, but I've sent a bunch of stinkbugs on to the "next level" with a cutoff carbon arrow and airsoft pellets, pea-shooter style, while sitting on my front porch. One second they're there, and then.... gone!

Some of us just never grow up.

My condolences.

May you return to interesting times.

That is really good shooting. I have not read though all the suggestions so this may have already been suggested. You must have several friends who has a rifle or two that need some attention in order to become a great shooting rifle. You have the knowledge and each of those rifles would be a unique situation.

This would be a good way for you to entertain yourself and spread your knowledge.

Perspective on my community if you will? One of the oldest populations in Florida, quite conservative and they know everything. They also have more firearms than the USMC. Lot of possibilities no doubt but the biggest hurdle is giving them the Looney Virus-35. If it shoots they are satisfied for the most part

Maybe you could rekindle an old hobby. I found this old picture of you modelling guns from your army daze. I believe you sold them to earn money for college. It sounds like you have a whole community of customers, willing to shell out some greenbacks for pix of fine old military gunz!

I'm speechless. Dan has his finger on the trigger.

Thank you all for a fun read.

I don’t think that was me. I had a mustache back then.

A couple of things I have wanted to try but have not as of yet, maybe in retirement.
Reloading 22 rimfire, maybe with BP, maybe smokeless. There is a source for primed cases, also a place where you can buy a mould/crimper combo and priming compound to reload fired cases. Can't think of exact websites at the moment but a search should find them.
Making a 32 short or long "garden gun" by relining an old rifle or .410.
A gunsmith friend of mine is now playing with .14 caliber centerfire. I believe Shilen has barrel blanks, forgot what cartridge he based on, maybe 20 Tactical, I think he's got one source for bullets, maybe made dies?, had to make cleaning rod. If I remember 3500-4000 fps and if going after varmints, claims they just "disappear".
Good luck in your search.

Nick, I already wore that "reload the .22" idea into an obedient servant, but not with rimfire.
https://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/12274426/1

There are a few out there that have dabbled with BP in the .22, but I've not gone down that path. Yet.

Could be this .32/roundball thing has its claws in my backside, still pondering.

DD,

I only see 3 good options left.

Way I see it, you can either set up a forge and start turning out knives.
Please avoid the fantasy blades



Or you can buy the offshore boat and fish/explore the world.
If you get Ginger and Mary Anne on board, call me before you get lost.



Or...
Buy some running shoes
Let your hair grow
Go all Gump

I'd be willing to bet Dan's got at least two of those choices under his belt already.😛

Safe bet. 3 out of 3 are covered. Qualified on the point of making fancy knives. I’m more of a machete kinda guy. My forte with steel is making ordinary blades shaving sharp. However, I prefer shooting critters to running over them with the brush hog.

Maryanne is a mutt in comparison to the girlie that took part in the sailing adventure.

Back when I was a punk I did 4:19 running a mile in combat boots.

Appreciate the suggestions nonetheless.

Dan,

Probably mentioned this when we talked, but have had a .22 rimfire reloading article on my Handloader schedule for at least two years now. Have all the "stuff" to reload rimfire cases, but so far something has prevented it from happening, whether weather (the reloads can apparently be less reliable in colder conditions) or assignments on new, cutting-stuff--or much older cartridges where a suitable rifle unexpectedly appeared in my life--as they tend to do a few times a year.

But so far it looks like I might actually get it done this summer!

John, there’s a time and place for all things. Stay well, aim small!

Dan

PS: What is this “cold” thing you speak of?

"Cold" is the opposite of "hot," which I loathe--and the reason I live in Montana!

Thanks. I guess we don't get much cold down this way.

For a while I was casting, and loading, 72 cal roundballs over ffg Goex in Win "AA" hulls and shooting them out of an old Belgium double hammer gun (thinking pigs) but never got around to shooting more than paper with them.

You are running short on new things to try. Heard it told that Minneapolis needs firemen. At least til they run out of stuff to burn...

That’s interesting. I have a Damascus WC Scott 12 bore double in very good condition, and a very good supply of BP. And lots of pigs....

Tell me about the wads please.

Johnw, I’m gonna wait until that town is a smoking crater before I visit.

Fire is your friend.

I'll see if I still have my loading journal about this. It was longer ago than I care to admit.

I would use a T/C wonder wad over the powder, cut the gas seal off of plastic wads and then Alcan fiber wads to adjust column height. Regular 8 point crimp from the Mec, label the hull so there was no mistake and then go punch big holes. I remember I did shoot a bowling pin with one, actually split it. Even that little bit of plastic made a mess, but didn't shoot a lot of them in one sitting.

Thanks for that. I might get in trouble with this one !

Buck and ball out of a side by side. Idea is intriguing. I remember an article in Double Gun Journal about just such a gun. Can't remember when it was, some time ago and I'm old, memory fades. Dan, for pigs do you think the .72 ball has any advantage over a standard slug? Any recommendation for a 12 bore buck load for swine? Have only shot 3 but with a rifle, how far you shooting them down your way?

Good questions that I can reply to with a little bit of a foundation.

I've used slugs, 20 & 12 bore on pigs and the result has been indistinguishable. Boom-whop-flop. Longest shot of this nature was about 50-60 yards with the 20 ga. I have killed several tons of pigs with #3 buck using an Ithaca 37 and note they all had to be shot at least once. None required a second shot, but over the course of time I killed 3 with a single shot on three occasions due to the shot passing thru the primary target and visiting horror upon those in the background. I'm not talking wee little piggies either.


That said, one of the things noted over time was that Forster slugs NEVER exited. Buckshot did. I suspect that a .72" ball would zip thru a hog like light thru the solar system, though alloy mix of the ball would likely have influence on the outcome.

I also relate that the only hogs I ever had to shoot twice with buckshot had been perforated by my 12 ga using the world famous and immensely popular 00 version. I haven't owned or shot any of that since those events occurred back around the mid '90's.

Cover down this way, meaning most of the SE is typically close in bottom country which is where I do most of my pig whacking. Shots are typically in the 15-30 yard range though some trend a little bit further if the right style of weapon is in your hands. I don't use buck much beyond 35 yards and my longest rifle shot (.30-30) on a pig was about 50 yards. Doesn't mean I wouldn't take a longer shot, but such opportunities are not common in bottom country.

In more recent times I've been using .22 CCI CB shorts with a T/C Contender. Longest shot was a measured 38 yards. Only one out of about 150 required a second shot.


Sneaky Dan

Foster slugs are hollow shells of soft lead (which you know). Typically they flatten out or the skirts peel off of the nose. Deadly on lung shots, but bone (and presumeably gristle) are hard on them. If I ever hunt with a shotgun again, it'll be with Brennekes or the imported steel ones. Have some of both to try in my 20ga Deerslayer, just for fun so far.

BTW, I was re-reading an old piece by Layne Simpson on shooting cap and ball revolvers. He wrote that he has shot a bunch of pigs with various models and doubts that conicals penetrate any better than RBs, in close anyway.

I played with buck and ball loads in my Brown Bess many years ago. Can't verify the load's effectiveness on pigs but can say they were pretty effective against closed ranks of Redcoats.

Pigs is pigs, I see a new excursion on the horizon.

Looking forward to hearing about it! I built a 458 Socom with pigs in mind, but it's pretty modern, lol! Might start looking for a 10 bore double. Just picked up some more Goex too.

Well OK then......

I suggest YOU/we hunt pigs....... 'sportingly'

I have made us a couple of 'weapons'







They're about 5' long......

If we're going to hunt like MEN, I suggest we keep a Safe Hunting Distance SHD apart of about 10' minimum....

If we're going to hunt like Social Justice Warriors, throw and run, then I suggest maybe SHD of 25'

Back to hunting like MEN, I think we should wear metal or Schedule 40 PVC 'leggings' of some sort, I'll leave that to you.

So we throw out some corn, wait for the piggies to show and 'wade' in.

If you're worried maybe we could get JeffA, frogman43 or maybe another CF local looney to back us up with a real firearm, 'course we would need to see them shoot under pressure before trusting our lives to them...

Are you THAT bored????

Only half the day.

Realistically I was poking around looking for a shooting project, and think a proper idea is on the table. BP buck’n ball from the 12 bore DAMascus! Brass shells in the way!

Spears are cool though, too bad my name ain’t Chucker. They might even work on lizards. Lemme work out this B&B thing and I got your 6 when you go pig huntin’.

muffin, complete with loin clothe? Lol!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85B_SWvKvpo

Could be this young fella has a first rate close range bacon maker. My mind is running riot on what could be done on the cheap with a Parker, Fox or LC.