Not 44-1/2--it's an early "square cut" 44.  No model no. on front face of rcvr., so must be one of the pre-'96 3-digit models.

I thought 803440056 looked off for a 44 1/2.
Yet 802554814 looks big & strong and yet ID'ed as a 44.

oneatatime wrote on Mar 11^th, 2019 at 5:42pm:


Very.  But probably more of them were installed on 44s, simply because they were in production longer than 44-1/2s.

The serial number of 803440056, the 44 with the DST, is 2911, which might just barely still be in the 100 series.  If it was chambered as a 38-55 (on the basis of the extractor being marked?), I'd be interested to know if it has a lugged hammer this early.

Bill Lawrence

802554814 is a 44 1/2. Don't tell him because I am bidding on it. Condition is not as good as I want but the caliber is one I have been looking for. Have had brass for a while and am looking for bullets.

He added a picture of 803440056 with the hammer back and it does indeed have a lug.  Hot damn!

Bill Lawrence

Bill Lawrence wrote on Mar 11^th, 2019 at 6:28pm:


It most definitely is within the 100 series. I have two examples of 100 series with serial numbers 2629 and 2745 logged.  

The S.O.B. has broken it up and has the barrel on evilBay.  
(You need to Login or Register to view media files and links)

The hammer picture he sent me directly has no lug. 

It would be nice to see somone put the pieces back together. While some guns are worth more for parts than they are in one piece, I hate to see a rare piece broken up unless it is in really bad shape. I bought a wire stock for a Stevens tip up pistol years back and discoverd the guy also had the rest of the gun. It had some issues but I bought it and put it back together and made it shootable. Have more in it than its worth but it had someinteresting modifications and it shoots well now. Good luck.

I got the 44 1/2. Probably paid too much but it's not the first time and probably not be the last. Some you get cheap and some not. It all averages out in the end i guess. Now I realy need some .22 lead bullets. Anyone?

@Slumlord44 - Sent an email to your hotmail account.

Bill Lawrence wrote on Mar 12^th, 2019 at 5:18pm:


In the same class as kidnappers for ransom, in that case.

This is what I enjoy most about this group. The last bastion of people with a sense of history and ethics.

slumlord44 wrote on Mar 24^th, 2019 at 1:42am:


I have accomplished this using a "C" clamp and a rod of proper diameter and length to insert in the empty unprimed case.  Start the primer with your finger, insert the rod into the case, put all this in the "C" clamp, and carefully screw the clamp until everything bottoms out.  The primer is seated flush.

Good luck,
Curl

Clever !

I could make a bushing to modify an Ideal tong tool in minutes.  Already done it for .25-20 SS.  In a pinch, a thin washer of the correct I.D. suffices.

Did some tinkering today and discovered that .22 Hornet shell base is realy close to the diamater of the .22-15-60 case. The rim is a little thicker but the shell holder should work. Used it in my Depriming die to remove primer. Will try it in my Lee Auto prime tool tomorrow if I have time. I have all this reloading equipment including presses mounted to a bench. Too many hobbies and busnnes stuff. Not enough time for everything.

I've had that thought. Will play with that if need be. My understanding is that with a single shot using the brass in one rifle you may to be able to get by without dies. Seem to have seen discussion on the subject here in the past. Don't really need to crimp bullets for target shooting with a single shot.

The Hornet shell holder worked great in the Lee AutoPrime. I used my muzleloader powder measure to fill cases. Around 17 grains of FFF blackpowder. Used the Hornet seating die to seat the bullets. Compressed the load a bit. Loaded and shot the 7 rounds that I have in the back yard. I used 52 grain .228 bullets discussed earlier. Tried them without the gas checks first. Accuracy off my deck using the deck rail for support was not what I had hoped for but hit the target at 25 yards at least. The bore is less than perfect but I can always re line it if all else fails but thats my last resort. I don't need pinpoint accuracy. I need to try the gas checks next and the lighter bullets also. First time I have shot a cartridge that I loaded myself. Wish I had done this a long time ago. That skinny little .22 black powder round sure makes a loud boom when it goes off! Now I'm hooked on another hobby to eat up my time. I emailed RMC about getting another 20 rounds of brass. I recall seeing something about the company being for sale a while back. That was stated on their website. Are they still in business? RCC makes them but they are $5 a round with a 50 round minimum. $250 is more than I am comfortable spending and I don't need 50 cases.

Solid head cases. I'm not as picky about details as many here. Lube may not be ideal and I'm sure there are better options but it works ok for me. Black powder is much more forgiving than smokeless. Prety hard to overload it. My understanding is that the real problem is leaving a space between the powder and the base of the bullet. Never understood that since when breach seating there is a space. I will eventually try a smokeless load. I have a powder scale and powder. Need to check if I have Bullseye. Really appreciate the bullets. This is fun.