interarms 44

[fixit]

i wandered into a local gunshop today, and there in the case was an old 1nterarms 44 mag with about a 7 in bbl. beyond holster wear, it looks very good, and the price is right! at 299$, it looks like i'm going to be adding a new caliber to my list!

[NuJudge]

A Virginian Dragoon. The first year or so they were made by Hammerli in Switzerland, then they were made by Interarms at a facility in Virginia. They were made in a variety of barrel lengths, and blue and stainless.

I've shot mine a lot.

CDD

[Phat Man Mike]

I own 1 it's a true hand cannon! love to shoot it! owned it for many years.. I'd think that price is a steal!:bigsmyl2:

[Maven]

About 10 years ago, when Numrich Arms changed it name to Gun Parts of the World, they had a bucket full of Va. Dragoons with their hammers welded to the frame. Someone handy with machine tools could have purchased one (or more) for a song.

[fixit]

well, i got it, and found it has a wart! the headspace is .015 to .025, soooo....does anyone think it would be a problem to glue spacers in the rim recesses to correct the issue? judgeing by the appearance, i think the cylinder was improperly manufactured. someone on another site suggestested it may have come from the latter days of manufacturing, as their production was winding down!

[StarMetal]

How much fore and aft play is in the cylinder? I forget but off the top my head to check headspace in the revolver you put an empty case in the cylinder, then you put the proper headspace thickness feeler gauge in behind the case and push the cylinder forward and see how much more gap you have left if any. It there is lots of play in the cylinder fore and aft I think a gunsmith may be able to remove the barrel, cut the shoulder back enough to get the barrel to index the sight at 12 o'clock after the barrel was screwed in more, then make a shim bushing for the front of the cylinder to keep it permanently back. I think if I remembered now you put a proper feeler gage thicknes sin the barrel cylinder gap too when checking the headspace. Been a while since I fulled with revolvers.

Joe

[fixit]

the cylinder play is well within norm, less than .005(machinists eyeball measurement). i would have rejected it before buying if it had to much there. what i see when i look at the cylinder in the gun is enough gap to suggest a non counterbored rim, even the cylinder is counterbored for the rim! the lockwork is tight, the cylinder play is norm, and nothing is obvious untull you chamber som ammo and look from the side and see the gap between the ammo heads and the recoil face.

[StarMetal]

the cylinder play is well within norm, less than .005(machinists eyeball measurement). i would have rejected it before buying if it had to much there. what i see when i look at the cylinder in the gun is enough gap to suggest a non counterbored rim, even the cylinder is counterbored for the rim! the lockwork is tight, the cylinder play is norm, and nothing is obvious untull you chamber som ammo and look from the side and see the gap between the ammo heads and the recoil face.

fixit,

You explained it very well. How about this. Is there enough material ratchet star on the rear of the cylinder to have a gunsmith take a few needed thousands off it to do as I explained in my other post? I know this can cost a lot, but as it is it's not safe. I don't think it will blow up, but I don't like the case slamming back to take up that big head space. If you have a lathe you can do this all yourself.

I'm not sure gluing those spacers you spoke of would hold. Let me ask you this...If there were no recesses in the cylinder, would the cartridge load and cylinder rotate?

Joe

[fixit]

i am not suggesting to eliminate the recesses, simply to shim the recesses enough to bring headspace into saami specification. since theless supported portion of the case would be less than .030, i dont expect there would be an issue with case rupture. most high power rifles have considerably larger unsupported portions when the cartridge is in battery.(p.s i do have a lathe, just trying to avoid going that route)

[StarMetal]

i am not suggesting to eliminate the recesses, simply to shim the recesses enough to bring headspace into saami specification. since theless supported portion of the case would be less than .030, i dont expect there would be an issue with case rupture. most high power rifles have considerably larger unsupported portions when the cartridge is in battery.(p.s i do have a lathe, just trying to avoid going that route)

I was just thinking the blast of the cartridge going off would jar any glue loose. Don't know.

Joe

[S.R.Custom]

Shoot it and see... Depending upon how much the firing pin protrudes, the excessive headspace may be irrelevant.

If it misfires, it needs to be fixed, and at a minimum, you're looking at someone's time with a tig welder and a reamer...

[leftiye]

Make some steel rings that press into the recesses?

[fixit]

Make some steel rings that press into the recesses?

good idea!

[wallenba]

well, i got it, and found it has a wart! the headspace is .015 to .025, soooo....does anyone think it would be a problem to glue spacers in the rim recesses to correct the issue? judgeing by the appearance, i think the cylinder was improperly manufactured. someone on another site suggestested it may have come from the latter days of manufacturing, as their production was winding down!

I had one too, the cylinder chambers had such deep machine cutting grooves in them that when fired the brass flowed into them and I could not remove the spent cartridges without dismantling the gun. Also when cocked the hammer spur dug deep into the web of my hand. Hated mine.

[Uncle R.]

I had a buddy who bought one. With high anticipation we tried it out with my standard silhouette load which was 21.0 grs. of 2400 under a 240 gr Hornady JHP. Stiff load, especially by today's standards - but my Super Blackhawk had digested that same load without a problem for years. We fired one cylinder full through the Virginia Dragoon and then spent a few minutes pounding the empties out with a brass rod and a hammer. I was singularly unimpressed.
Uncle R.

[fixit]

chamber finish is good... the problem is primarily in the headspace, which i determined to be between .016 and .018 in the excess. with that, does anyone know the specs for go/no-go gauges for this caliber? being a rimmed cartridge, anyone could build a set on something as simple as a bench mount hand drill! (did i mention, i am a monumental cheapskate?!)

[lead-1]

fixit, (did i mention, i am a monumental cheapskate?!)


I think when you have the ability to make what you need its called "Thrifty".
Absolutly nothing wrong with saving a buck or two.

[leftiye]

"chamber finish is good... the problem is primarily in the headspace, which i determined to be between .016 and .018 in the excess. with that, does anyone know the specs for go/no-go gauges for this caliber? being a rimmed cartridge, anyone could build a set on something as simple as a bench mount hand drill! (did i mention, i am a monumental cheapskate?!)" Fixit

I used SAAMI rim thickness. Compared it to my brass' rim thickness, and altered the SAAMI headspace dimension accordingly and simply measured with a feeler gauge as you have already done. Frankly, you could use the SAAMI rim measurement, and use as little as .005" extra clearance (less would even work, but why take chances), as you'll probly never see rims that thick (as the SAAMI dimension).