New Project

I picked up a new project a while back. It started out as a rimfire. I converted it to centerfire a few weeks back.
I have a few lebel rounds converted to 41 swiss and a new mold ready to go. Soon I'm going to cast up a few bullets and put together some rounds for this. I hoping I can shoot the bullets as cast, lubed with lee liquid alox. If not I'll have to come up with a sizer for the bullets.

here it is a 41 swiss M-78

 

This thing is fun to shoot. I'll load up a few and plink away. I've been sizing my bullets with a 44 bullet sizer in my RCBS sizer.

Had to modify the front sight because it was shooting high, installed a ramp and new sight. Shooting really good, probably going to hunt white tail deer with it this year.

 

not sure if I posted this before but here is a bit info on the 41 swiss. Got to love those WV boys.

https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2014/3/13/guns-of-the-battle-of-blair-mountain/

 

I'm afraid that something like that could happen again.

That is a sweet looking rifle.

 

Randyt ,

Question for you concerning this .41 Swiss rifle and it's ammunition.

Am I to understand that as originally produced this was a black powder cartridge???

I am thinking so by the date of the rifles and when they were produced before the Schmidt Ruben type rifles.

And as I recall ..there were some black powder cartridges produced in America in the 40/44 caliber range in rimfire as well....before centerfire caught on.


Thanks,
Watcherchris
Not an Ishmaelite.

 

it was a blackpowder load in rimfire made before the scmidt rubin. I have a few older blackpowder rifles that I shoot with light smokeless powder loads. for example my trapdoor springfield in 45-70. American ammunition made the original rimfire round to about the mid 1940s. There is also bigger American rimfire rounds such as 25 rimfire, 32 rimfire and 44 rimfire, I'm sure there are others too.

here is a original Remington 41 rimfire compared to a 22 lr My reloads use a 315 grain bullet , sized to .429

 

here's another photo, a little fuzzy. That's not a primer but a U

 

Thanks Randyt...for that historical perspective as well as the photos. I verily enjoy much of the small details of history when I can read and learn them.

Olde Rifles and reloading for them are also very much history.

A lot of dedicated black powder shooters at the gun club to which I belong.

And before I forget ...some of the members at this gun club have black powder metallic cartridge rifles in which the metallic cartridge does not have in it a primer or ignition device. They still use a percussion cap ignited by a hammer.

The metallic cartridge has a hole in the back of it wherein the percussion fire can ignite the charge...

These are some 52 to 54 caliber rifles.

Oh and in a newer adaption of these early metallic cartridges ...the new cartridges or cases are made from some kind of heavy poly or plastic material and the black powder filled and bullet seated...just no primer in it.

This was quite a education to find that this was the very early system on the way to todays modern metallic cartridges of which we so take for granted.

Oh...and this particular rifle had a hinge on the top and would open up ...sort of fold open ...the cartridge inserted then closed...hinged back down ...to it's locking position and a percussion cap placed on a nipple to ignite.

Until I joined this gun club I knew nothing of this kind of early cartridge development....,

I find such historical details fascinating...


Thanks again...

Watcherchris
Not an Ishmaelite.

 

Those sound like Sharps. Old rifles are my thing.

here's my trapdoor, was my father's rifle.

 

on the hunt for a Snider Enfield, need to make that round from 24 gauge shotgun brass