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u/JanglyBangles

r/TheLowly32Long r/reloading r/amateurradio r/Revolvers r/CCW
Another L for Google’s AI summary
▲ 10 r/CCW

Another L for Google’s AI summary

I got this answer to a Google search trying to refresh my memory about good leather holster care. Per Milt Sparks themselves, this is bad advice and will ruin your holster over time. Saddle soap softens leather and you don’t want to soften a leather holster.

Follow your holster maker’s instructions that your holster maker provides on their website. Don’t get answers from a LLM trained on forum posts from dummies.

I know I can add “-ai” to omit the AI summary from Google results but it’s extra stuff to type and I often forget. If anyone knows a way to turn it off permanently, I’m all ears.

u/JanglyBangles — 3 days ago
▲ 2 r/reloading

Max delta between data bullet weight and actual bullet weight?

I’m working up a 357 Magnum load with HP-38* and MBC’s coated 140gr “Zinger” bullet. I can’t find any data for cast bullets of this weight with this powder**, so I’m working off the following two loads from Hodgdon:

* A 135gr cast lead bullet. 5gr is pretty close and I found a few stray mentions online about using this data with Zingers successfully.
* A 140gr XTP bullet. I’ve used low-end jacketed data with coated bullets successfully. This will be a light practice load so I’m not looking to push max pressure.

I’m comfortable with this approach, but it did raise the question: how big of a delta between the reference data’s bullet weight and the actual bullet weight are you comfortable with? Would you use 158gr or 125gr cast lead data? How about 110gr cast lead data?

* I’m using HP-38 because I have a lot of it, I don’t want magnum velocities, and I’m firing these out of a 3” revolver so I want a bit faster powder burn.
** Hodgdon has data for Hornady’s 140gr Cowboy bullets but those are swaged. I think I’m better off using 135gr cast data than 140gr swaged data.

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u/JanglyBangles — 8 days ago
▲ 61 r/TheLowly32Long+1 crossposts

32 Thursday: J-frame in God’s perfect snub caliber

S&W 432UC with Hamre AFR grips. High Desert 32H&R wadcutters in the gun, High Desert 32H&R 100gr XTPs in a speed strip.

It’s a light, low-effort gun to carry while still being very capable. The sights are quick to acquire and easy to see. The grips alleviate the J-frame’s cramped trigger reach. The wadcutters’ recoil is very manageable, and they shoot like friggin’ laser beams. All of this makes for a gun that punches well above its weight.

u/JanglyBangles — 12 days ago
▲ 11 r/Revolvers

High Desert Cartridge 357 Magnum ammunition

I've been trying to find a good carry round for my 3" 19CC. The biggest issue I have is the report. I mostly shoot at the indoor range down the road and shooting a 3" compensated 357 Magnum indoors is pretty hard on my ears even doubling up with plugs and muffs. I've been looking for a carry round that has better ballistics than 38+P, which is a bit anemic by modern standards, but that I can shoot indoors somewhat comfortably.

Enter High Desert Cartridge Company. They make high quality niche ammunition marketed to revolver degenerates such as myself. I've been a fan of their 32H&R ammunition since I first bought a 32H&R revolver. They make a couple 357 Magnum carry rounds that are advertised as having reduced recoil and muzzle blast so of course I was interested in trying them out.

There wasn't much information comparing the two online so I decided to try both the 140gr and 157gr versions. I took them to the range today along with some Speer Short Barrel Gold Dots in 357 Magnum. Here are some notes in no particular order:

  • All three had less of a report than the 125gr Golden Sabers I had been carrying.
  • The 158gr load had more recoil (like, it moved the gun more) than the 140gr load but it had a quieter report.
  • The High Desert 140gr round and the 135gr Gold Dot round were very similar in recoil and report. I put two of each in the cylinder to shoot them side by side and I couldn't tell a difference.
  • POI of all three was basically the same. I think the 158gr round might have hit a bit higher? I'd have to shoot off a rest instead of offhand to be sure.
  • I was sighted in for the Golden Sabers and didn't need to mess with my sights at all, which was nice.

I left the range loaded up with High Desert 140gr XTPs. I think I'd feel OK with either of the XTP rounds, but I'd rather carry a round that moves the gun around less in my hands.

One note about terminal ballistics: I think the Hornady XTP and Speer Gold Dot reflect different philosophies in bullet design. The XTP prioritizes penetration over wide expansion while the Gold Dot does the opposite. I don't think either one is wrong, but my preference is for bullets that prioritize penetration. Out of a 2" gun*, the Gold Dot round just barely hits the 12" minimum in Clear Ballistics gelatin. Since Clear Ballistics gelatin can exaggerate penetration by as much as 48% compared to properly calibrated ordnance gelatin that's below what I'm personally comfortable with.

I do need to try to get to the outdoor range to get some chrono data. That'll hopefully be next week. I also need to try to work up a practice load; 140gr .357 bullets aren't super common but MBC has some coated 140gr projectiles that look promising.

* This is a 3" gun but the compensator takes away 1/2" of barrel length so I treat it as a 2" gun.

reddit.com
u/JanglyBangles — 23 days ago
▲ 6 r/Revolvers

Some notes on disassembly of a new-style S&W 19 cylinder

I had to clean some gunk out of my 19CC's cylinder and yoke, which required removing them from the gun and disassembling the cylinder for cleaning. The process is a bit different from disassembling a regular Smith cylinder and I couldn't find a how-to online so I thought I'd document some things here.

Note: I am not a gunsmith. I'm a nerd who, against all good sense and reason, got access to the Kuhnhausen shop manual and Brownell's. Follow these instructions at your own risk.

Note 2: I don't know if you need to support the extractor with empty shell cases or an extractor support tool now that S&W quit relying on those dinky index pins to align the extractor*. I still do to be safe. If you want to be safe, put spent shell casings in the chambers or use that extractor support tool any time you're applying torque to the ejector rod (or knob).

  • There's a a knob on the end of the ejector rod that holds the cylinder assembly on the yoke. It's kind of a similar setup to the old Smiths with a large ejector knob. You need to unscrew this to get the cylinder off the yoke. I used my ejector rod remover thingy on the knob to remove it. It's reverse-threaded (lefty-tighty, righty-loosy).
  • The ejector rod comes off the same way as regular ones do, but it's too thin for any of the holes on my ejector rod remover thingy. I used leather pads on my bench vise old-school style. It's also reverse-threaded, as you should expect if you've worked on Smiths made in the last 65 years or so.
  • The center pin doesn't run the length of the ejector rod any more; front lockup uses a ball detent in the frame instead. There's still a mini center pin that goes through the recoil shield but it's a little nub.
  • Pay attention to how the center pin spring and ejector rod spring are arranged when you take the cylinder apart. I found that it's simpler than the arrangement on the original cylinder, but if you're used to the way that Smith did it for 100+ years then it might trip you up a little.

If you paid attention during disassembly, reassembly should be pretty easy.

  • Getting the little center pin nub through the hole in the extractor star was a little frustrating. I found it was easy to get it through the hole in the extractor then put the extractor into the cylinder.
  • Once you get the springs back where they're supposed to go, tightening the ejector rod onto the cylinder works just like you're used to.
  • Put the cylinder on the yoke, then screw on the ejector rod knob. IDK how tight this is supposed to be so I just used the same torque as I do for ejector rods. It won't loosen with my fingers alone so I'm pretty sure it's fine.

So there you have it. Hopefully Nelson Ford doesn't come find me with ill intent because I disassembled a cylinder. It was, regrettably, necessary.

* This design change wasn't introduced in this new cylinder design. I think it's over 40 years old now.

u/JanglyBangles — 28 days ago
▲ 150 r/amateurradio

Silliest reason to get an Amateur Extra license?

My grandfather was a ham. He never really talked about it with me; I found it independently a few years after he passed. I remember he got a twin-paddle key for Christmas one year, he’d listen to morse code tapes in the car, and he talked about his antenna tower once or twice.

I recently decided to look up what his callsign was. Come to find out he had a 2x2 vanity callsign, which is pretty cool! And it turns out that I can request his call sign! I thought that would be nice.

…turns out I need an Amateur Extra license to get that callsign. I haven’t gotten around to scheduling my General exam yet. I currently have no desire to utilize the Extra bands, nor do I really want to be a VE. I would only be getting that license to get that callsign.

I think I’m gonna do it. I took an Amateur Extra practice test blind and got 50% so I’m halfway there already!

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u/JanglyBangles — 2 months ago