Well, Muddy Creek Sam and Katie One Shot invited me out to their place and offered to help me equip myself with rifle and shotgun for the match. I was draggin' around my '51 Navies after having them repaired by Rowdy Yates in CA and was lookin' forward to getting to shoot the latest Signature Series I picked up.
The best part allowed me to enjoy a homecooked meal, (if you ever spent any amount of time "on the road", truck stop food is highly over-rated!
After today's match they also took me out to sample some fine SC BBQ!Well, as to "on topic" part, I was able to shoot for the first time a Marlin Cowboy "Competition" 24" rifle in .357 and a Chaparral 1873 24" rifle, also in .357. And as an added bonus, I was able to shoot for the first time, the TTN 1878 Colt clone.
1st the rifle loads: these consisted of a full .38 Spl. case of Goex Cowboy with Snakebite Boolits from Springfield Slim. These boolits allow a .38 Spl. case to attain the overall length of a .357 Mag and carry plenty of lube for BP use. They can also be lubed with a firmer lube and shot with smokeless. These fed thru both rifles with ease and 100% reliability.
Marlin Cowboy was basically, NEW, having only had about 10 rounds of ammo shot thru it. I fired it in 5 of the 6 stages today, for a total of 48 rounds. I did have a couple of failures to fire, but simply recocking the hammer ignited the primer and I suffered no real delay. I'm not sure anything was wrong with the rifle, but rather, was a result of my inconsistent levering of the Marlin. Whether I was appliing too soft or too firm a lever technique, I couldn't really say. However, when I made sure to stroke it all the way thru the end of the cycle it fired every time. So, I really figure I might have almost short stroked it, failing to get the bolt fully closed, and simply recocking it and the added grip to accomplish this was the final millimeter to complete the cycle. The only rifle miss I had was when I overswung the rifle and didn't catch myself before I let off the shot.
Again, the Chaparral 1873 was basically new, with only about 100 rounds thru the rifle. I shot it on the last stage of the day, running my best time and fairly flew thru the 10 shots. As the action is virtually identical to my 1985 production EMF/Uberti 1873 in .45 Colt it was like coming home in cycling this rifle. It has had an action job, but sans the "short stroke" kit that's so popular with CAS shooters. The "short stroke" kits lengthen the links, shortening the stroke to about equal to that in a Marlin 1894. Overall the finish on this "Charles Daily" import was 1st rate. Wood was excellent, almost "figured" and the CCH of the frame was nice and even, the action tight, yet oh, so smooth, well... like a '73 Winchester. The contour of the bottom of the stock is very similar to the Chaparral 1876, vs. the slighter curve found in the Uberti clones. I'm told the Chaparral is closer to the original than the Uberti, but... frankly, both of them are first rate guns, and well suited to the CAS game.
As an owner and shooter of an IGA/Stoeger Uplander and Coach Gun for over 20 years, the TTN is a slight departure. And, this one, with its polished and chamfered chambers was a joy to shoot. While the TTN isn't the 1st hammer double I've shot in competition, it was quite a few years since my last exposure. And, sure 'nough, I failed to cock those hammers twice in 6 stages, about 20 rounds. It pulled up to the shoulder with ease, opened and closed with minimal effort and fired to the same point of aim I've always used with my double 12 guages. I like to see about 3/8" height of the rib, put the bead directly under the target and pull the trigger. This one performed flawlessly, never failing to knock over those dastardly evil-doers represented by steel knock-downs with authority and finality!
I don't have any pics of me... good thing, my camera's still in one piece, but here are a couple of some of the pards & pardettes shootin'.
If you find yourself in their area, and have a hankerin' to either try or at least watch a finely run match, I can heartily recommend this club. The Geechee Gunfighters of the Palmetto Gun Club shoot on the 4th Saturday each month, (except May, '08 when they're shootin' the 2nd Saturday to ease conflict with the Regional Championship in GA).
I get to stay in SC another day, as I don't pickup in Charleston until Monday.
Great post. 
