Explain? I have two options: a) AR brass or b) 45ACP brass + moonclips. Why is one better than the other?
Howdy
One is not better than the other, they were developed for different purposes. The Smith and Wesson Model 1917 could fire 45 ACP ammo with or without clips. The chambers were designed to headspace the ammunition on the case mouth, so if no clips were used, the extractor could not grab the spent cases. That is why the revolvers were issued with ammo with moon clips. If shooting 45ACP without clips, the ammo could be fired, however empty brass would have to be poked out of the chambers with a stick. Trust me on this, I have done it. The Colt Model 1917, on the other hand, did not always headspace the ammo on the case mouth, some of the early ones had chambers bored all the way through and without a clip to hold the ammo in place, the firing pin might shove the ammo forward without firing it. So clips were a necessity for the Colt Model 1917.
After WWI a lot of these revolvers were surplussed out. Civilian shooters might or might not have access to moon clips, so in 1920 Remington developed the 45 AutoRim cartridge, with its extra thick rim, that could be chambered in the S&W Model 1917 or the Colt Model 1917. Since the AutoRim cartridge headspaces on the rim, no clip is necessary, and the extractors can grab the rims to extract the spent brass.
Any Smith and Wesson revolver with a 6 for the first digit in the model name is a Stainless Model.
The Model 60, the 38 Chiefs Special Stainless was the first of these in 1965. This one shipped in 1975.
I have a S&W 625 that I just inherited … perfect condition. And I also just ordered AR brass from Starline. So I went to the S&W website to look up my gun and couldn’t find it. Just curious.
I went there too. It looks like S&W is not making any revolvers chambered for 45 ACP right now.
The Model 25 is a little bit quirky. Some were chambered for 45 Colt, some were chambered for 45 ACP. They are not interchangeable, each gun will only chamber one of those cartridges, not the other.
The revolver at the top of this photo is a Model 25-3, chambered for 45 Colt. It left the factory in 1977. The revolver at the bottom of the photo is a Model 1955 Target, chambered for 45 ACP. It left the factory in 1955.
The next two photos should give a comparison of the space behind the cylinder for the appropriate cartridge. Notice how there is more space behind the cylinder in this Model 1955 Target, chambered for 45 ACP.
This is the Model 25-3, chambered for 45 Colt.
This S&W Model 1917 shipped in 1918. It came with an almost full box of 45ACP loaded onto Half Moon clips. The ammo shipped in 1918 too.
Here is a photo of the same Model 1917 with some of my 45 AutoRim reloads. I use Starline brass, and 45 AutoRim can be loaded with 45 ACP data.
A close up on the space behind the cylinder. The space is about .100, which allows for the .090 thick rims of the AutoRim cartridge.
The bottom line is, if you expect to compete in any of the steel matches, which are timed, 45ACP with clips is probably a better choice because you can reload quicker with clips than popping in individual cartridges.
If on the other hand, if you don't need to reload quickly, and don't want to be bothered with stuffing ammo into clips, 45 AutoRim is an excellent choice.
As I said earlier, you can use standard 45 ACP data to load 45 AutoRim.