Black Powder Cartridge News Spring 2018

Lately our travels have taken us to Sheryll’s homeland of New Zealand. We enjoy our trips there for the obvious reason that it allows us to visit family while dodging a significant portion of the cold Montana winter. Another thing that we both enjoy is that time spent there gives one a different perspective on many aspects of life, which I think makes us appreciate both places to a greater degree. ...Read More >

The artwork on this issue’s cover is a favorite of mine, sent to us courtesy of Leo Remiger. The original was by Bill Leftwich and was used in the book, Getting A Stand, by Miles Gilbert (Hal Green Printing, Tempe, AZ, 1986) where it depicted two buffalo hunters on a “scout” for new hunting ground. ...Read More >

In 1895, the riflemen of Butte, Montana, created the Rocky Mountain Rifle Club and spawned the beginning of a proud heritage of excellent shooting in that area. As followers of BPCN know, the time period from the mid-1880s through the Great War saw an intense growth of interest across the country in the offhand, 200-yard shooting that we know today as Schuetzen. ...Read More >

On the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation and the 149th anniversary of the Dominion of Canada Rifle Association, the “Black Powder Gang/Motley Crew” met for the annual big bust. We are a relatively small group of dedicated shooters, numbering 23 this year on the mound, using 140-year-old technology in an effort to hit the center of a target as far away as 900 meters. ...Read More >

Cecil Fredi was a certified gunsmith with 2,760 hours in gunsmithing and formal instruction at the Colorado School of Trades Gunsmithing School who was ready to open his own shop in Las Vegas, Nevada. If success is measured by the amount of gunsmithing work that comes your way, Cecil was very successful. ...Read More >

I absolutely love vintage double rifles from the U.K. (England and Scotland). It’s even better when I find a vintage double (pre-World War II) with the original case and accessories. The absolute best is the added plus of a rifle with a strong history behind it. The rifle herein has all three attributes. ...Read More >

The Sharps Model of 1877 is one of the rarest and most beautiful of the old Sharps breechloaders. In the target versions, less than 200 were made. The Model 1877 Lower-Sharps are in a separate listing because they are so different. It was the only sporting rifle made using the ’77 action. ...Read More >

There are several reasons for relining a rifle barrel. Restoring the bore condition is the most common, but with relining you can also change the caliber by selecting a liner with a different bore size than the original barrel. I’ve been doing this a lot lately, such as reducing a .45-70 to a .38-55 and making a .17 caliber into a .32 caliber. The availability of some brass sizes also gives cause to relining to a caliber that has more readily available brass. ...Read More >

Rath and Company (represented by Charles Rath, Robert M. Wright, and James Langton), Myers and Leonard, and the Cator Brothers filed suit in the U.S. Court of Claims for the recovery of losses they suffered during and after the battle of Adobe Walls. Their sworn depositions contain interesting information regarding the actual battle of Adobe Walls and the immediate events afterward. Other individuals who provided sworn depositions either in support or contradicting previous testimony concerning the events at Adobe Walls were Andrew Johnson, William “Billy” Dixon and W.B. “Bat” Masterson. ...Read More >

With the recent announcement that the grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) has been removed from threatened and endangered status after 40 years, I was reminded of the specimen-collecting work I did for the University of Missouri Comparative Osteology Laboratory in the greater Yellowstone National Park (YNP) area so many years ago. ...Read More >

Among serious small-bore competitors, finding a lot or “batch” of ammunition that their rifle prefers is the holy grail of accurate rimfire shooting. Some suppliers go so far as to have a machine rest available for customers to test different lots of ammunition in their specific rifle. When a superior lot is found, a quantity of that ammo is purchased. Needless to say, once that particular batch is exhausted, the search starts all over again. ...Read More >

Overland Park, Kansas (August 9, 2017) - RCBS, the leading manufacturer of ammunition reloading equipment for rifles and pistols, has selected the National 4-H Shooting Sports Program as the recipient of its 2017 youth shooting sports donation. The funds are generated annually by dedicating a portion of every RCBS Explorer and Explorer Plus Reloading Kit sold to a youth shooting sports program. RCBS recently presented a check for $8,480 to the National 4-H Shooting Sports Program ...Read More >

Mike Venturino and I wrote the first edition of the Primer “way back when” and now it is in its ninth iteration. We’ve steadily added to it over the years with additional information that was pertinent to the topic and so far, I’m proud to say, no one has been unsatisfied with it. ...Read More >