Garrison Joe

This was just a survey, AFAIK, so I see no need for folks to run down others' opinions. State what you like and leave it at that, right? GJ

Colt Series 70s for Traditional. One I've had since 1973 - that's still my main match gun. Have a backup built in the 90s, needed more smoothing and tuning. Medium trigger, flat mainspring housing. Replacement 10-8 rear sight and custom front dovetail sight. Springs tuned for 160 PF loads. good luck, GJ

Slots in the retaining cap (at forward end of the slide handle) for the action slide, it sounds like. I have successfully used the Boyd's 97 fore-end wood to replace a real Winchester 97 fore-end which used that slotted retainer cap. Brownells had a spanner wrench that I bought 10 years ago for Winchester 12 and 97 model fore-end retainers. Works well. With some care, though, a flat end punch will USUALLY let you CAREFULLY drive the cap around far enough to let you unscrew the rest of the way by hand. Slightly different design than the one I have: https://www.brownells.com/tools-cleaning/gun-tools/shotgun-tools/winchester-model-12-double-ended-forend-wrench/ Midway shows this wrench out of stock now. But by the time you order wood, it might be back in stock. https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1007012423?srsltid=AfmBOopPuDQdLydQsJJEt2SOwaPprUHov0RHSBofymO8N2ECiBD0HozD&pid=976945 good luck, GJ

Wolff most likely has to be snipped too to make 6 rounds fit. There are kits available with a replacement follower which is shorter than the Winchester (or Chinese) original. Those help, but they also replace the spring with a shorter length, IIRC. I've got 3 of the IAC 97 clones which will take 6 rounds in mag AND feed perfectly well with only a spring cut back to be 5" longer than the total magazine tube (that is, with all the guts out of the magazine, action closed, the forward end of the uncompressed spring is 5" longer than the mag tube body itself). That includes the factory follower being used. Snipping a spring is free - the 6 shot conversion last time I looked is about $40. If you make a mistake, order a new 12 gauge spring for a Rem 870. Same diameter and strength, and easily available. $7 last time I bought one. good luck, GJ

Very few sources for factory lead bullet loads at the slower-than-factory velocities common in WB. WB is a reloader's game! GJ

Get WST powder. Cleaner than Titegroup. 200 grain slugs making about 160 PF will probably need 4.6 grains of WST, but I find each 1911 gives slightly different velocities. Find a buddy with a chronograph and test your loads. good luck, GJ

In Wild Bunch Shooter's Handbook, no mention is made of pocket pistols. I would GUESS that if a match is offering to have some sort of pocket pistol side match, they will have to define what guns they will allow and how troopers will shoot it. The SASS Range Operations and Match Director Guide - Wild Bunch Action Shooting is not currently available on the SASS home site, or I would have searched through that. If you know of matches that are hosting a P P side match for Wild Bunch shooters, you might mention what match that is. Right now, AFAIK, pocket pistols is an official side match only on the Cowboy side of the organization. good luck, GJ

Declaration of a gun malfunction should mean there should be greatly increased attention be paid to the gun and the shooter's attempt to unload it. Not the range safety officers (perhaps including the unloading table officer at the time) ignoring the shooter's situation and leaving it to him to make a really bad safety move. "Malfunction" is called on the line to relieve the shooter of having to try to clear the gun on the clock to be able to continue. Shooter can even declare that themself. Also, it alerts the line workers that the gun needs special attention to get it to the unloading table safely, without the shooter carrying it, worrying about it, perhaps even trying to jiggle the action. And, of course, it relieves the shooter from the penalty of restaging a gun that is in an unsafe condition for normal restaging (loaded or cocked hammer on live round), so that they can continue shooting the rest of the stage. Then at the unloading table, it needs special attention to note what failure condition and how many unfired rounds are in the gun, and then attention to returning the gun to good function safely. Nothing in that awards a free pass to commit unsafe acts with that gun. Unsafe acts with a still loaded gun just magnifies the safety risks. Declaring a Malfunction is not a penalty, it's a notice to the posse that the shooter will not be trying to fix a problem with the gun on the clock. good luck, GJ

It's just as dangerous as if NOT declared a malfunction. There should be no "free pass" here when a potentially mortal or serious injury could result. IMHO. The rules establish the stage firing line with a 170 degree downrange direction required to be able to fire any of our firearms. That eliminates most loading and unloading tables right there as being places where a gun can be fired for any reason, and maybe as a last resort, to clear it. This gun was declared malfunctioning. But for the shooter themselves to go ahead and try to fire that malfunctioned gun, without range safety officers attending? And without successfully determining what caused the malfunction? That is, generally, insanity. It's trusting to hope instead of finding and being sure the problem with the gun has been corrected. Did declaring the gun malfunctioned mean the gun would not fire? Not in this case! This particular case sounds to be an INTENTIONAL firing. Not an accident while trying to empty the gun and somehow getting an unintended firing because of lack of knowledge, lack of care, or a mechanical problem, all of which should have been avoided by an experienced range safety officer taking charge of the malfunction. good luck, GJ

BTW, every WB (and Cowboy) match needs access to a squib rod to assist the shooter with clearing stuck rounds or squibbed bullets! Lengths suitable for pistol clearing and rifle clearing. And a squib rod or drop weight to test for and remove wads stuck in shotgun barrels. Using one in this case would have been a correct way to get a round that the extractor cannot grab out of the chamber by running the rod from muzzle to chamber. Stick a small rag over the slide face and extractor to make sure the primer of the round does not contact the extractor tip when the cartridge is bumped out of the chamber. Why? Isn't this just a crutch for an ill-prepared shooter? No, it's because a loaded firearm may not be taken from the unloading table (which is the final "station" on the firing line of every stage) until it is cleared, except with direct supervision by a match official. Without a suitable tool to assist a shooter or a match official to clear the stuck round, one of the match officials must find a way to assist the shooter to place that still-loaded firearm into safe condition for temporary storage and transport - maybe even over the public road system. Make it easy to do so - keep clearing rods around the match. good luck, GJ

That's disappointing, IMHO. But glad you are seeking better understanding of the rules. GJ

No, as a matter of clarification, I did not allude to an answer. I provided the exact spot where the rules state the error and the penalty. The Pocket RO Card is part of the rule book, yes, but it has historically never been the main reference for the rule and penalty. It often lags behind being correctly updated when the rules are changed. It often paraphrases the rule and may be written in shorter form. The RO committee writes/approves the rules, they normally (from my understanding) do not compile the changes to the RO pocket card (an admin function after the rules are approved). good luck, GJ

Firearm discharge at the unloading table - rules say Match DQ: Under the Match Disqualification section, page 29 of WB Shooters Handbook: The only possible reprieve would be if the shooter had asked for a match official to assist with clearing the pistol, and they found that the only possible way to clear the gun would be to cautiously BLOCK or lower the hammer, take the pistol to the firing line, and fire it safely downrange with the rest of the posse safely behind the firing line. Then that becomes a supervised firing of the gun downrange, and no penalty is incurred. It is a major failure to attempt to clear a firearm at the unloading table if there is any chance it may discharge. There should never be an idea in the mind of a shooter that cocking and firing any gun at the unloading table is a safe thing to do. And, importantly, I have never seen a case where a well trained range official cannot get the firearm unloaded without it firing. And if there was any possibility of it firing, I would have insisted they do THAT at the firing line with safe downrange conditions. There is NEVER such a level of time or peer pressure at a match that the shooter should consider endangering themself or other shooters or spectators. good luck, GJ

Free advice given here is guaranteed (money back) for at least 60 days, so no rush getting it taken care of. 😄 GJ

I have given up on trying to use tenon mounts for larger/taller front sights, as have many smiths I know. Tenons just will not hold a heavy sight securely. Pretty easy to have a smith mill a standard dovetail on the front and mount a sight. Then the front as well as the rear is drift adjustable. And MUCH more secure. Perfectly legal for any Wild Bunch shooting. good luck, GJ

Gun stainless steel is usually a 41x or 44x series stainless, which IS MAGNETIC. That slide is very different than the common (acid resistant) non-magnetic stainless, like 304 or 316. THOSE are non-magnetic, soft(er), and not amenable to heat treatment due to greatly different alloy content. Nope, your slide is gun-grade stainless, almost certainly. good luck, GJ

Nice work. Is that cerakote on the frame now? Nice two-tone vibe. Bigger fixed sights would make it a great carry and WB Traditional gun! good luck, GJ

Decide if this is a shooting gun or a BBQ gun. Just that often sets the tone to get you to "perfect". From the mixed pedigree of parts, this seems to beg to be a shooter or daily carry, not a dressed up gun. BUT - What parts you use are really what meets your taste and performance goals. I really like good checkered wood grips on 1911s. Some folks like G10 plastic with real aggressive checkering, if you need the extra-firm locked-in feeling grip. And I like a relief cut for the thumb to reach the mag release easily. (But, my tastes would not run towards any of the 3 sets you show. Just me) I would use the barrel bushing that fits the slide moderately tightly and the barrel moderately tightly. The heck with the "appearance" - I would go for 100% reliable performance and good enough accuracy. If you get 3" groups from rest at 25 yards, be delighted. It's always better for cleaning if the bushing will come out without a bushing wrench, but if I get great accuracy with a tight fitting bushing, I'll put up with always carrying a wrench in my kit. good luck, GJ

Those would be MIM metal parts. Sintered metal powder. If sintering (heating to almost the melting point) is not done well, the metal does not consolidate into a solid part, but retains porosity and weakness. I only use bar-stock milled fire control parts in any 1911, to avoid such occurrences. Wilson and many other of the good 1911 parts houses carry such parts. I've never had any of those fail, especially the Wilson "bulletproof" parts. A few bar stock extractors have lost their spring tension, however, but that is kind of common with 50,000 rounds through a gun. And I too strongly favor a real Series 70 Colt. good luck, GJ

Be even closer to the game if it were one of the six "American Eagle" DWM 1906 Lugers made in .45 ACP (designed for the US Army trials that were won by Browning and his 1911). https://www.firearmsnews.com/editorial/american-eagle-luger-tests-by-us-army/464295#replay good luck, GJ (yep, I labeled it .45 ACP because that was the designation of the time, before SAAMI came along)

Got multiple mags that work in it, and lead bullet ammo? I agree it would be fun, just not "the game." good luck, GJ

Perfect description for a "shooter" gun. Make it yours. (Kroil and fine bronze wool scrubbing will take all that remaining rust off, when you decide to do that) good luck, GJ

I've staged loaded magazines at EOT Wild Bunch, Bordertown WB, state matches, etc and never once were there any "stage instructions" that interfered with putting down magazines in a safe and easily accessible manner. Someone got a little carried away with rulebook modification, I would think. If a stage instruction mandated doing that in some specific way, then of course, I'm sure WB shooters would try to comply with the restrictions (or allowances) that the stage instructions provide. Stage instructions override the rule book for the stage they apply to! But surely the rule book does not need to keep re-iterating that principle over and over on specific rule points. good luck, GJ

Can be loaded with lots of powders. I get great accuracy with 5744, but it's very expensive. For 100 yard shooting, 2400 or 4227 is a good choice. Red Dot can even be put into use. For 200 yard accuracy, better to go to a powder like 4198 or 3031 or Reloder 7 - of course, those are rapidly increasing in price, too. Really depends upon what you want the muzzle velocity to be. And accuracy of each cast bullet load in a rifle tends to be specific to that rifle. Here's a great summary of military rifle cast bullet loading: https://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?13425-Cast-Bullet-Loads-for-Military-Rifles-Article My favorite for 30-06 with a 170 to 200 grain slug at about 1800 FPS tends to be........Reloder 7. 4227 if shooting slower loads (1400 FPS) friendly to normal steel "cowboy" targets. A copy of the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook 4th Edition (all cast bullet loads) or the Lyman Reloading Handbook 51st edition (this edition now has several cast bullet loads for each bullet and cartridge combination) is going to be your best reference material. good luck, GJ

Yep, shell stops are also cartridge stops and cartridge cutoffs. "Shells stops" sure are easier to type without having to correct spelling. My Radocy Win 97 Disassembly/Reassembly Manual calls them shell stops in writing. Chicone "Gunsmithing Guns of the Old West" - shell stops. JB Wood - "Firearms Assembly and Disassembly - Shotguns" - shell stops. Think I can keep on calling them shell stops, too, and be in good company. 😉 GJ