American Handgunner July/August 1979

CustomShop_BY EVAN P. MARSHALLFOUND: A PISTOLSMITH WHO IS A .WINNERIN MORE WAYS THAN ONE~ereseems to be three basic categories1 of custom pistolsmiths. The first is theunscrupulous individual who cheats hiscustomers. The second is the competentman who does excellent work, but doesnot participate in the type of competitionfor which he builds weapons. The third isthe pistolsmith who not only does excellentwork, but is a successful competitor.The advantages ofhaving a competitionweapon built by the third type of pistol­,smith should be obvious. Only a competitorcan understand what will reallywork and what won't. Furthermore, only awinner can detect the subtle differencesbetween what is needed for an also ranand a winner.Lou Ciamillo (26200 Frederick Road,Hyattstown, Maryland) is just such an individual.Lou is not only a top-notch PPCgun builder, but is also a highly successfulcompetitor. He's a member of the NRA1490 club, holder of the NRA DistinguishedMedal, and the winner of numerousNRA Regional Police Revolvermatches.Lou is employed as a Range Officer andSWAT Team Leader for the MontgomeryCounty Police. An educated man, he'scombined a college degree with the necessarytechnical training to produce topquality custom handguns. He got into thePPC gun building business, because hecouldn't afford to buy one and because hehad not been overly impressed with thequality of the weapons then available.I sent Lou two weapons for customwork: a Ruger stainless steel .357 for PPCand a Colt Combat Commander for IPSe.I chose a Ruger because it's an inexpensivetop quality weapon, and becausethe shorter distance between triggerguard and grip is ideal for my relativelysmall hands. The combat Commanderwas chosen over the longer GovernmentModel because I also wanted an off-dutyweapon.Lou equipped the Ruger with a Douglasslab-sided stainless steel barrel with onein-fourteentwist. A customized Bo Marrib was installed along with a yoke lock forthe crane. The weapon was converted todouble action only and the trigger pull reducedto eight pounds. A trigger stop wasinstalled in the trigger guard, and all endAMERICAN HANDGUNNER· JULY/AUGUST 1979Lou Ciamillo does all his own work in this well-equipped shop. He'salso a Range Officer, NRA Distinguished Medalist and SWAT TeamLeader.Deluxe PPC gun features Douglasslab-sided barrel, Bo Mar rib, actionlob, yoke lock and triggerstop.shake was eliminated. The muzzle wasradiused to provide equal gas escape whenthe weapon is fired. The chambers in thecylinder were chamfered and numbered.The result is a highly accurate PPCweapon. Using Federal match wadcutterammo in a Ransom Rest, this weapongrouped under I \/2" at 50 yds. Furthermore,in spite of several thousands ofrounds fired through this weapon, it is justas tight as when it was new.What do top PPC competitors think ofLou's work? Well, Jim Collins, severaltimes National PPC Champion, personallytold me that Lou is one ofonly two individualshe considers qualified to buildhim a weapon for PPC use. Furthermore,a list of Lou's customers reads like a Who'sWho of PPC, with top competitors likeAlan Arrington leading the list along withCollins.Lou's expertise with the .45 goes back(Continued on page 65)35