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Thread: Obtained a couple of Muzzle Loading Replica Pistols Yesterday

  1. #1
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    Obtained a couple of Muzzle Loading Replica Pistols Yesterday

    1) Armi San Marco .44 Colt Walker Replica Revolver.

    2) Indian Manufactured Scottish All Steel Flintlock Pistol in .52" calibre smooth bore.

    The Colt Walker is second-hand and was in bits as the previous owner had taken it apart and couldn't get it back together again so it would work!
    After a few hours cleaning it up and removing the burrs from some of the components and reassembling it correctly, all I need to get is a new percussion cap nipple and I have what appears to be a good quality and good condition .44 Colt Walker replica which is in good working order.
    Looking forward to using it, but it does appear to be a heavy old lump.
    Maybe you could let me know what is the best size of ball to use in the .44 Colt walker and where I can purchase them from?
    The Scottish pistol has never been fired even though is four years old it remains to be seen how accurate it is with a patched ball.

  2. #2
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fronteria View Post
    1) Armi San Marco .44 Colt Walker Replica Revolver.

    2) Indian Manufactured Scottish All Steel Flintlock Pistol in .52" calibre smooth bore.

    The Colt Walker is second-hand and was in bits as the previous owner had taken it apart and couldn't get it back together again so it would work!
    After a few hours cleaning it up and removing the burrs from some of the components and reassembling it correctly, all I need to get is a new percussion cap nipple and I have what appears to be a good quality and good condition .44 Colt Walker replica which is in good working order.
    Looking forward to using it, but it does appear to be a heavy old lump.
    Maybe you could let me know what is the best size of ball to use in the .44 Colt walker and where I can purchase them from?
    The Scottish pistol has never been fired even though is four years old it remains to be seen how accurate it is with a patched ball.
    ASM firearms have a mixed reputation over the years, some were okay and some were dire - here's hoping your Walker is one of the good ones. The date code stamp will tell us when yours was made, BTW if you have a look and tell us - Roman numbers or a two letters...You'll also need an elastic band to hold the loading lever up - it drops on recoil, jamming up the cylinder - a well-known foible. Another well-known foible is the problem of loading it with enough powder to give some degree of compression - in one ASM 3rd Model Dragoon I saw it was impossible to put less than a good stiff 40gr load as the loading lever just did not go far enough into the chamber to give a good compression. An air-gap in the chamber WILL blow your gun up - be warned not to use reduced loads without a lot of filler of some kind - cous-cous or smeolina is fine for that.

    Ball for the Walker are usually .451" diameter, and loads are anything up to 55-60gr of FFg - seriously. I shoot fifty in mine, BTW. You'll need six nipples, as they are sold in sets of six. Henry Crank usually has them in stock. Only the Ruger Old Army uses anything except a metric thread - just tell them waht you have and they'll do you fine.

    I have no experience of owning the Scottish pistol - but, assuming that it HAS been proofed for use and is not a wall-hanger - some are - you'll have a real problem finding ball to shoot in it without a custom mould. You MIGHT get away with using a .50 calibre ball and slightly thicker patching over 40gr of FFg...trial and error are your friends here.

    If and when you get it shooting, don't expect Olympic-style accuracy - IIRC a Scottish pistol of my acquaintance groups like a garden hose set on 'shower'.

    Good luck.

    tac

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by tacfoley View Post
    ASM firearms have a mixed reputation over the years, some were okay and some were dire - here's hoping your Walker is one of the good ones. The date code stamp will tell us when yours was made, BTW if you have a look and tell us - Roman numbers or a two letters...You'll also need an elastic band to hold the loading lever up - it drops on recoil, jamming up the cylinder - a well-known foible. Another well-known foible is the problem of loading it with enough powder to give some degree of compression - in one ASM 3rd Model Dragoon I saw it was impossible to put less than a good stiff 40gr load as the loading lever just did not go far enough into the chamber to give a good compression. An air-gap in the chamber WILL blow your gun up - be warned not to use reduced loads without a lot of filler of some kind - cous-cous or smeolina is fine for that.

    Ball for the Walker are usually .451" diameter, and loads are anything up to 55-60gr of FFg - seriously. I shoot fifty in mine, BTW. You'll need six nipples, as they are sold in sets of six. Henry Crank usually has them in stock. Only the Ruger Old Army uses anything except a metric thread - just tell them waht you have and they'll do you fine.

    I have no experience of owning the Scottish pistol - but, assuming that it HAS been proofed for use and is not a wall-hanger - some are - you'll have a real problem finding ball to shoot in it without a custom mould. You MIGHT get away with using a .50 calibre ball and slightly thicker patching over 40gr of FFg...trial and error are your friends here.

    If and when you get it shooting, don't expect Olympic-style accuracy - IIRC a Scottish pistol of my acquaintance groups like a garden hose set on 'shower'.

    Good luck.

    tac
    Hi.Tac
    Thanks for the info.
    The year code for the Armi San Marco colt Walker is (AE) which I make the year of manufacture to be 1979 that makes it 35 years old beings they started manufacturing in 1945 and packed up in 2010 they should have been in their best period in 1979 I checked everything that I considered should be hardened and it appeared to be correctly done.
    We were shooting one of the Scottish pistols which belonged to a friend last week it was hitting a foot square target at 50 metres shooting it from a rest which is about all you can expect from a smooth bore pistol which has no sights and a three ton trigger pull pressure!
    I have been onto Kranks and they do single nipples @£2-90 each and their .451 balls are £19-62 a hundred so I ordered some.
    These are for recreation only the serious shooting is done with my 7.62mm target rifle.

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fronteria View Post
    I have been onto Kranks and they do single nipples @£2-90 each and their .451 balls are £19-62 a hundred so I ordered some.
    These are for recreation only the serious shooting is done with my 7.62mm target rifle.
    '£19-62 a hundred so I ordered some'....

    That is nothing less than sheer bloody robbery.

    You could cast them for less than a tenth of that, even after having bought all the gear to do it.

    tac, gasterflabbed

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by tacfoley View Post
    '£19-62 a hundred so I ordered some'....

    That is nothing less than sheer bloody robbery.

    You could cast them for less than a tenth of that, even after having bought all the gear to do it.

    tac, gasterflabbed
    You are right but I cant be bother messing about with moulten lead and bullet molds, sooner just purchase them off of Henty Krank and be done with it.

  6. #6
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    Just had a reply from a shooter in the USA - he has this to advise -

    'tac, a good starting point is same powder as the caliber on a long gun and half the caliber on a hand gun and then work you way up or down to suit.'

    Sounds good to me.

    tac

  7. #7
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    Shell House Bullet company are a lot cheaper than Kranks, postage was not cheap but from memory I ended up with twice the number of balls as I would have done with a Kranks order.

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by pinguisgod View Post
    Shell House Bullet company are a lot cheaper than Kranks, postage was not cheap but from memory I ended up with twice the number of balls as I would have done with a Kranks order.
    It looks like they will gain a new customer next time I order any bullet heads I require that they manufacture.
    Thank you the information.

  9. #9
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    Fired the ASM .44 Colt Walker last night with fifty grains of Pyrodex P, CCI Magnum percussion caps, wonder wads and .451 ball very interesting evening I must admit I left the range with a smile on my face.
    I was surprised by the mild recoil but the noise and the muzzle flash was awesome.
    Only complaints sight picture not good will have to do something about that, and having to clean it even worse a bit like sweeping a chimney.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fronteria View Post
    Fired the ASM .44 Colt Walker last night with fifty grains of Pyrodex P, CCI Magnum percussion caps, wonder wads and .451 ball very interesting evening I must admit I left the range with a smile on my face.
    I was surprised by the mild recoil but the noise and the muzzle flash was awesome.
    Only complaints sight picture not good will have to do something about that, and having to clean it even worse a bit like sweeping a chimney.
    The sight picture is almost non-existant, I think you'd agree, but then it wasn't made for target shooting, but for taking Mexicanos off their horses at ten feet.

    PLEASE don't put a red dot scope on it.

    tac
    Colt Walker Serial #1816

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