TEST-FIRE REPORT n&R Revolvers By Dave Reynolds More years ago than I care to remember, I set about the serious business of learning how to shoot. My battery
A NECKED-DOWN .45 ACP THE POTENT .41 AVEIGER By Russ. Gaertner The consensus of most semi-auto experts is that.4() or .41 is the best caliber for a big-bore handgun. This diarpeter combines the stopping power of big bores, with the superior ballistics of smaller calibers. That's on the receiving end. For the shootf!r, .41 means l70-to 220-grain bullets at higher velocities and muzzle energies, but less "felt" recoil than the .45 ACP. Advantages are easier control, faster repeat shots, better practical accuracy, and deeper, straight-line penetration: A host ofgood reasons, whether your interest is self-defense, IPSC (International Practical Shooting Confederation) competition, bowling pin matches, or silhouette shooting and hunting. No. .40 or .41 caliber semi-auto round has been generally available to those shooters who like the idea. The most publicized of the new breed is the Bren The basic kit contains a match-quality barrel in either stainless or chrome-moly steel with a fitted barrel bushing and link, a set of Pacific reloading dies, and a h.eavy duty hammer spring for use with rifle A new kit for about $235 converts .45 autos to this new caliber and beefs-up muzzle velocity and ene·rgy. primers. The barrel can be ordered either as a drop-in unit or made oversize for bestaccuracy fitting. J.D. JONES 'BRAINCHILD' My first comment when I heard of the: .41 Avenger was, "Why didn't I think of that?" Once you've seen the little .41 case, 10 (10 mml AO caliber) with a straight- it seems obvious, but so do a lot of other walled case firing a 200-grain bullet ~t up firearms inventions-including John to 640 foot pounds of muzzle energy from Browning's famous .45 automatic. a fiv.e-inch barrel. Production of the Bren The .41 Avenger is the brainchild of 10 is promised soon. ." J. D. Jones, one ofour most able handgun N ow. we have a new conversion kit writers. More than just a writer, however, (made by SSK Illdustries) which does "J. D." is a pioneering designer, having ineverything the others have promised. Op- vented the JDJ series of "hand cannon" tions are available to convert either a Colt cartridges for the Contender, (also pro Combat Commander or any of the stan- duced by SSK Industries, ofwhich "J. D." dard ,45 autos to .41 Avenger, a necked- is president). These are super-magnums down .45 ACP round.· for silhouette shooting and the biggest of AMERICAN HANDGUNNER . JANUARYIFEBRUARY 1983 big-game. "J. D." founded Handgun Hunters International and edits its paper, The Sixgunner. When the kit arrived, my first problem was to install the new barrel in a .45 auto. Most standard guns will require no fitting, if the drop-in kit is ordered. Fortunately, my barrel was the oversize type in chrome moly, because I wanted to get a good bead on accuracy. Fitting the barrel turned out to be so easy and the results so fine that I believe many shooters can do the job themselves, if they have an accurate, tight .45 to convert. Or, they can have a gunsmith do the job, the resulting gun being well worth the added cost. I decided to put the barrel into an oldmodel, well-worn Colt Gold Cup .45, which has a Bo-Mar sight rib and still shoots close to one-inch groups at 25 yards from a machine rest. The barrel could not be pushed into the slide because the barrel extension, or tang, was too wide. The tang was narrowed with a fine-cut needle file by keeping the sides ofthe tang parallel to the link, until the barrel slipped into the slide with the locking lugs fully meshed. The fit was still tight (the tang was a bit long), so I shortened it with a hard Arkansas stone. The barrel then dropped easily into the slide. The barrel/slide assembly was run onto the frame, leaving out the recoil spring guide and spring. The barrel bushing in the kit would have needed fitting to the slide, but the old bushing gave a nice fit. But when the slide stop was inserted, the S9
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LIMITED EDITION BUCKLE A century ag
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JANUARYI FEBRUARY, 1983~ Vol. 8, No
- Page 6 and 7: INDUSTRY INSIDER JERRY RAKUSAN ECON
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- Page 15 and 16: CONVERSATION WITH A CHAMPION By Jon
- Page 17 and 18: o HOLIDAY SPECIAL o~: 0 ,~t 0 0 WE'
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- Page 31 and 32: Tom Ferguson of the San Antonio, Te
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