Shooting

[sunnybob]

Dennis, I havent heard of those moulds. It must be slow work with brass moulds, they would take a long time to cool down.
I used the Lee double moulds, but even they were prone to overheating. As I shot more than 1 calibre, I was rotating a half dozen moulds, keeping them just right temps.
But then I couldnt keep up so I started buying from KT bullets in Hereford. Kevin is long gone now, but by '96 I was buying a 100,000 a year off him.
I had a try at Bisley one year of the marlin 44 long colt octagonal barrel. I really wanted one of those, but was spending too much on competing with the pistols. Is that the model you have?


No skills, My main club was Taunton in Somerset. For several years I also belonged to Ham and Petersham in Richmond, which was where I first shot a real pistol, I was travelling between the two for work for several years so it was good. but then the work changed so I stayed at my home town club. But I competed all over the south west, right up to Birmigham, and across to Bisley.

 

[sunnybob]

Just looked at those moulds, man things have come a long way in the last 20 years. Got me quite nostalgic.

 

[mailee]

I managed to find some of the photos of my guns although they are scans of old ones and I was never a David Bailey so excuse the
quality.

At the top left was an Uberti copy of a Colt 45 which was a cheap Italian copy. Top right is a CZ75 in 9mm, Centre is the Shultz & larsen in .762, this was a very accurate rifle which I often used at Sheffield,
at the bottom is my 686. Here is a photo of yours truly at our outdoor range practising with the Uberti.

I also used to cast my own bullets and load my own rounds. I worked in a garage at the time so had access to lots of free wheel weights. These would be melted down with some Antimony and cast in a
set of moulds. I had a good selection of loading equipment. If my memory serves me well most of the equipment was RCBS although I did have one of the Lee progressive units which made re-loading a lot faster.
I mainly cast Wad cutters as those gave a good clear impression in the targets. I do have some more photos somewhere with my PPK, Colt and Winchester, There is another showing me shooting a Luger and the aftermath as I dug 6 cases from the hood of my parka where the Luger had deposited them! :lol: Now that was a beautiful gun to shoot, just like pointing your finger.

 

[sunnybob]

I never had the patience for single action revolvers (lol) My passion was fast draw multiple target comps.
Memories are bitter sweet now. I would rather still be shooting pistols than just a shotgun.

A friend had a broomhandle mouser with artillery wooden holster. When the 97 ban came in he was assuming we would get a £100 each gun like when the slr's went in 88. So he paid to have it deactivated. Later when the compensation list came out, he just about cried because as you know we all got full retail for everything.
(thank you George Stadden)

 

[Droogs]

I used to love shooting, started when I was 8 and carried on when I joined up. Had to give up competition shooting after I had a breech misfire in 1988, when we were getting ready for Bisley. We were on the outdoor range at Cultybraggin at 600m and was on a roll with a 3 shot grouping all inside the size of the old 50p and as I fired my 4th round the SMLE Mk4 had a misfire which sheered the bolt lug nut and it all came out the back end. I ended up about 12ft from the firing point and the Lee Enfield about 20ft down the range with a cracked stock and split forestock furniture. I had powder burns all down my face and a bad score across my left eye (left handed firer). After that I would always twich at the moment of squeezing the trigger. It also didn't help that just shortly after we swopped over from SLRs as personal weapons to SA 80 L1A1s. I found out I couldn't shoot for crap as a right handed firer, took me 3 years after that to pass my APWT. Was so dischuffed, especially as I had to take off my marksmans badge on my No2s and best dress uniforms.

 

[sunnybob]

Droogs, thats whats known as REALLY bad luck in one way, but incredibly good luck you didnt lose the eye. I've seen two pistols dissassemble themselves due to bad reloading, but luckily neither owner was injured, except some minor burns on his hand.
That SA 80 was a disaster wasnt it? I think theyre up to mk 77 or something now, and still no one else in the world will buy it.

 

[Droogs]

Yeah Bob. I feel I was lucky really, but '88 was a bad year for shooters. I had to get rid of my pride and joy at the time - a Sig Sauer P226. Heart went out of it then and just did the usual range days during training etc after that. The SA80 was a bag of carp. We were down the road from you at Akrotiri when we converted and had the pleasure of having 5000 rounds each to fire during the conversion. After a full day on the range the plastic foregrip had moulded (melted) to the shape of our hands and most of us had lost the dust cover during fire and manouver exercises as it kept getting caught on our webbing. HK seem to have got it sorted now. Though I wish we had opted for the G36 or the Steyr instead.

 

[DennisCA]

Dennis, I havent heard of those moulds. It must be slow work with brass moulds, they would take a long time to cool down.
I used the Lee double moulds, but even they were prone to overheating. As I shot more than 1 calibre, I was rotating a half dozen moulds, keeping them just right temps.
But then I couldnt keep up so I started buying from KT bullets in Hereford. Kevin is long gone now, but by '96 I was buying a 100,000 a year off him.
I had a try at Bisley one year of the marlin 44 long colt octagonal barrel. I really wanted one of those, but was spending too much on competing with the pistols. Is that the model you have?


No skills, My main club was Taunton in Somerset. For several years I also belonged to Ham and Petersham in Richmond, which was where I first shot a real pistol, I was travelling between the two for work for several years so it was good. but then the work changed so I stayed at my home town club. But I competed all over the south west, right up to Birmigham, and across to Bisley.

On the contrary I find brass moulds are very fast to cast with, I use 4 cavity models almost exclusively. I have one 6 cavity mold in aluminum though, also an MP-mold.

I have a Smith & Wesson 629, some kind of german special edition made by a company called Wischo I think.

 

[sunnybob]

Can you keep the flow going? does the brass keep so much heat that you have to wait every so often for the bullets to solidify?

The Lee alli moulds could get hot, but I had one RCBS mould in steel and that was a pig to use. i had to wait every three or four cats for the mould to cool off enough for the bullet to solidify.

A S&W 629 is the old Dirty harry 44 magnum model 29, but the 6 at the front denotes its made from stainless. S&W numbering systems were as arcane as our plane numbering, but generally all S&W guns starting with 6 were stainless, and 4 denoted alloy. Wishco was a german main distributor for S&W in europe. They didnt make the guns, just imported and proofed them, but sometimes ordered special editions just for their market (different grips, decorations etc etc) so you could have an ordinary 629 but with german proofs.

 

[DennisCA]

Yes I'm familiar with the S&W numbering system. It had several modifications done by Wishco, different trigger with wide face, grips, unfluted cylinder, sights and a bead blasted finish.

As for the molds I fill it up using my bottom pour lee pot (fitted with thermostat) and then I wait for the sprue to haze over, then I cut it and open the mold, I can repeat this procedure for hours once I get the settings tuned in. Sometimes I find I have to slow my casting rate but no problem in doing hundreds of bullets in a session. Though now it has been years since I last cast. Not much time in my life for shooting anymore.