Would you? .45acp Revolver "Birds Head"

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That would be pretty awesome, I think. If I do that, I will be sure to put up some pictures of them together. :D
 
Something weird happened yesterday. I took the money out of the bank, went to the LGS with my brother, . . . . . . held the Ruger, pointed it [safely, of course], worked it. . . . . . . . . but left without it. I'm not sure what happened. At [after taxes and a 50 round box of .45acp] ~$650, I couldn't commit to buy it. Beautiful revolver! A bit awkward to hold [being a semi-auto guy]. Nice trigger. But I started wondering if it was good to buy. Would I like shooting a .45acp revolver [recoil, expense, and starting a new caliber]? When you buy, it is yours. . . unless you can find another to buy it off you [usually at a loss to you]. Anyway, . . . very weird. I was excited . . . until I got there.

Comments? Not completely discounting the possibility of still getting it. I wish I could test fire one first.
 
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If you have doubts, you probably did the right thing. Better than having buyer's remorse. The Birdshead .45 acp is definitely more of a niche revolver than a mainstream "must have".
 
I think I got caught up in the look [because it looks very nice] and the more "hands on, get to know your gun" type of thing you get with that style of revolver. But yeah, "buyer's remorse" came to my mind, yesterday, for sure. Part of me still wants it just because of how it looks, but that really isn't the best reason to buy something when other more important items could be purchased instead. I have an M&P Shield on order at the moment [have about $195 down on it so far], but really need to get a quality Quick Release scope mount for a rifle of mine.

For a while, anyway, . . . I dreamed of it, but it is probably best that I stick with what I know well, semi-autos.
 
Orion, do you reload for any of your present guns? Or are you considering getting into reloading in the near future? If you do or are then don't sweat the cost of the longer .45Colt. It costs no more to reload a .45Colt than it does a .45ACP round.

If you're only going to have one revolver (yeah, right. Like THAT will last for long :D) I'd also suggest that it be one with adjustable sights so you can load up a variety of ammo and still adjust the sights to hit at POA. I know the SA revolvers with the bulky adjustable sights are not as pretty to look at but they sure are nicer if you want to hit where you aim with a variety of load recipes.

So along that line I'm going to suggest you look at either a plain jane Blackhawk in .45Colt or maybe a Convertable in .45ACP/Colt. The Convertable keeps your options open for ammo and since they use the same bullet size you've even got commonality of bullets to justify buying more at a time.

As for recoil that's another excellent reason, besides saving money, to reload your own .45Colt "torpedoes". When you load your own you can load 'em up anywhere from soft mouse fart like loads up to full on max SAMMI pressure "wrist wreckers" or at any level between these two. With some rather enjoyable experimenting you'll soon zero in on a recipe for bullet, powder and velocity that results in an accurate and pleasant round to shoot.
 
BCRider, . . . loved the comments. :)

Anyway, no, I do not load, nor am I planning on loading anytime soon. I have a rather small apartment with no table to work on. So, the cost of ammo was one of my considerations. Later, should I find myself getting a house, I may look into the possibility of reloading. I think it would be a fun thing to do.
 
It IS very rewarding. But if you're stuck for room I can understand that.

If you're keen on a revolver in the meantime shop around for a good used option in .357. Or perhaps spend that money on a .357/9mm Convertable Blackhawk. Ammo for that would be cheap and you're still getting a clasic style revolver to enjoy. And later on once you have the room to reload you can sell it or trade it towards a different gun in .45Colt or .44Mag depending on which you like.
 
Well, I DO have a lot of 9mm. I'll have to consider something like that. Thanks for the suggestion.

Unfortunately, it won't look as good as that New Vaquero with those black laminate grips. Maybe I could find some aftermarket grips that would be similar. I suppose, if I'm feeling extra sporting, I could attempt to make my own grips.
 
If you can't afford the mess of reloading then you won't want to take on home woodworking in your apartment either. But if you have somewhere else where you have access to some tools and a bench then there's surely no reason why not.

I'm in the middle of my new home renos aimed at making up my retirement workshop. Most of my tools are still packed in boxes awaiting the completion of my new shop area and the storage to unpack the boxes. Yet I still managed to make this set of new grips for my Ruger Super Blackhawk. This picture was taken after only one coat of tung oil. It's got two more coats since then and the wood has a lovely lustre to it now. It doesn't take much for tools to do wood grips.

grips4.jpg
 
VERY nice looking grips! Well done.

Yeah, I would have to use a friend's place to do the woodworking. He has tools. As for what gun, I am just going the cheap route and getting a Heritage Birdshead in .22/.22mag and have fun with it. I can still try to work up some type of hand made exotic grips if the ones that come with it aren't that attractive.
 
Well, probably for the best if the gun didn't speak to you. For me, it was love at first sight, especially since I'm already a 1911 fan and reloading .45 ACP.
 
Don't get me wrong, gpjoe, it spoke to me, and still does. . . .as it is truly a fantastic looking gun. I just don't think it was right for me, considering the cost, recoil, not reloading, thus the cost of .45acp to run through it. It was a painful thing to walk away from, but was probably the right decision. I think the Heritage should satisfy my desire for that "hands on" Birdshead style revolver.
 
Well, from my other post, Heritage wasn't going to cut it. AND. . . . today I am back on the "wanting that .45acp Birdshead" thing again. I should just buy it, enjoy it, and be done with all this. :(:eek:
 
There is, at least for the short time, a limited supply of those Birdshead Vaqueros. Although, it could be that their popularity will mean more of them to come, my point is that if you wait long enough, your choice will be made for you. If that happens, you'll get over it and find something else that catches your eye. If you do take the plunge, I doubt you will regret it, based upon my own experience, and would likely have little trouble selling it later if it doesn't suit you. It's a niche piece that not everyone would want to buy, but being a limited item, those who would want to buy it would likely want to buy it with some seriousness (not saying it will appreciate in value, just that it shouldn't be too hard to sell).
 
Well, if it is still there after work, today, I will buy it. I foresee it being something that I won't be shooting a lot, so it should stay in prestine condition, should I decide it best to part with it later. :)
 
Blue, it has been purchased. ;)

Here's a picture of [for the heck of it, just because I wanted to] a loaded cylinder [minus the one behind the hammer, of course].

IMG_6278.gif
 
I have a 1960's vintage Colt SAA in .45LC. In 2000, I sent it to the Colt Custom Shop and had it refinished with a .45 ACP cylinder fitted to the gun giving me the option of both calibers. Best money I ever spent. The ammo savings has more than paid for the work. To top it off, the .45 ACP in my gun seems to be the more accurate of the two.

In single actions, its a great working investment.
 
PRM, what difference was is there between .45 Colt and .45acp in the area of recoil?
 
I really have not noticed a lot. My .45LC were either standard factory loads or reloads with black powder. The black powder are the really fun cartridges to shoot.

Muzzle velocity is a little higher (maybe 100 FPS) on the LC depending on manufacture for the factory loads. I'm not a big fan of the hot stuff.

Remington 45 LC, SW 225 Grain 460 ft lbs 960 fps
 
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