"Old Army" first post

R

ROAnutz

Bearcat
Joined
Dec 19, 2010
Messages
35
This is my first post here and I guess I need to admit that I am a Ruger Old Army fanatic.

I've gone over and above decking out my ROA. One of the last nice to haves would be a thumb friendly hammer...like a Bisley. It seems that Clement Custom Guns is trying to get enough orders (20) to make a limited run of Bisley hammers for the ROA.

I sure hope this works out as I deserve a nice Christmas present...I swear, I've been good. :)

http://www.clementscustomguns.com/itemsforsale.html
 
Welcome to Ruger Forum!

I've solved my needs for Bisley hammers by a bit of cutting and welding.....
Not as nice as Clements stuff, though....

flatgate
 
Welcome to the Forum!
We'll keep this up towards the top to help you & all the folks who might like to have a hammer or two like that.
 
Excellent! There is no finer gunsmith than Clements. I've had him do more than a few things. Quality is top notch and delivery time is just what he said. Cheap? No, but worth it? Absolutely.

I have a acquired a list of 2 gunsmiths and grip maker that I have used and can recommend without hesitation.

David Clement
Lee's Gunsmithing
Paul Persinger grips.

As far as parts go:
Power Custom (grip frame and most anything else)
Belt Mountain (cylinder pin)
Banana River Outfitters (ram)
Treso Nipples
Blomquist nipples
Kirst Cylinder Konverters

All of these folks I've dealt with and can vouch for as having excellent products and best service. Have no fear or hesitation on doing business with any of these folks.
 
Ok...here are some photos in no particular order.

Lee's gunsmithing did the action job, trued up the barrel face, opened up the forcing cone and replaced the springs.

I have several Classicbalistx cylinders, one with flutes. I also have a Kirst conversion with a Belt Mountain cylinder pin.

I also use Treso and Blomquist nipples. I like them much better than Uncle Mike's or stock.

Clement's deepened the stock cylinder as well as beveled the chambers a bit.

He also fit the Power Custom billet stainless Colt grip frame and serrated and beveled the front sight. The quality of the P/C grip frame is excellent.

Paul Persinger did the grips...and while the pictures just suck. The grips are incredible. They have a blind screw and fit perfect...and I mean perfect. No gaps, or oversized anywhere.

I also have a couple of Banana River outfitters brass tipped short rams.

The bullet you see is a Dick Dastardly BigLube and shoots extremely well. The one shown has a hollow point drilled in it. I got a jig that perfectly centers the hole. It works very well and isn't too slow to do.

The last thing I do will be the the Bisey hammer from Clement. I hope he gets enough orders to do it. The Bisley hammer on my Ruger Bisley allows me to cock the hammer without changing my grip. The ROA, like most SA's, requires me to alter my grip to cock the hammer.


I shoot this pistol allot...and I mean allot. I usually just take the grips off and put it in the dishwasher. Tripple 7 and just about all the other Black Powder substitutes present no problems when faced with Ballistol and dishwasher soap.





ROA-Power-Custom.jpg


ROA-3.jpg


ROA-all2.jpg


ROA-front-site.jpg


biglubehp2-a.jpg


ROA-6.jpg



ROA-9.jpg
 
Nice! It's a bit uncommon to see "fixed up" Old Armys. I have a few O.A.'s but they are in my collection and aren't on my "shooter" list.....

301689907.jpg

322638196.jpg


flatgate
 
ROAnutz- Looks very nice, especially for one that gets shot a lot. Mine's exactly like flatgates with the factory brassie. I tend to shoot it more with the conversion cylinder than anything else, I've yet to try any of the BP substitutes and the "Holy Black" tends to irritate folks at the indoor range. :D
 
ROAnutz,

Welcome, and thank you for adding to my wish list. Simply BEAUTIFUL!

I hope you get your hammer.
 
I'm curious as to the purpose of the screw at the grip frame base. I make and install stainless lanyard rings on my SA Rugers, but they are centered. Thanks, Don
 
Tallbald said:
I'm curious as to the purpose of the screw at the grip frame base. Don
Click to expand...

Two piece grip frame! A Colt design from the early 1800's or so.

ROA-Power-Custom.jpg


Notice the "seam" a bit below the grip locator pin?

flatgate
 
Maybe it's like when I worked on sports cars or motorcycles. You put a lot of time and money into the project it just had to be better. It had to have more horsepower. Overtime, the horses got smaller or reality set it. Or maybe all the improvements were mental...yee.

I just took the ROA out today but wasn't able to use it as a muzzle loader, no bench, no pace to sit and get organized.

Before I left the house, I loaded up some Kirst 45LC, using 5.5 grains of Trail Boss. and a 210 grain straight lead BigLube bullet.

So what am I saying? Add a Power Custom Colt grip frame and custom Paul Persinger grips with a blind sided screw and try and figure out if things have been improved.

I was worried that if someone snatched my hostler and swapped out a stock ROA for my gunsmithed ROA, that i wouldn't notice a difference, unless I looked it over.

But that absolutely dint happen! As soon as my fingers curled around the grip and drew the pistol, I knew it different. The balance was different. It pointed differently. The trigger was much better.

When I fired the pistol, with the Kirst or the Black powder cylinder, the recoil and how it treated my hand was better.
 
Yep...that kind of hammer would be most welcome on my ROA. I'm hoping/praying that David Clement gets enough orders for him to make a run.

Since Clements will make his from scratch, I'm not sure exactly what they'll look like. I'm sure they'll be tremendous, as is all his work.

Where did you get those hammers? Have any more? They really are beautiful. Would you mind sending me the contact info of the 'smith that made them so I can bug him a bit?

Thanks again.....those really put a nice touch on some nice ROA's
 
$120.00 doesn't sound bad at all. Do you recall if that is total cost? Or must I add into that the cost of a stainless Bisely hammer?
 
Greetings, All,

Back in 1996, I got a chance to buy a couple of blackpowder firearms from a fellow that I'd known for a good many years. He was offering a Navy Arms 12 gauge side-by-side shotgun, for $150, and a Ruger Old Army, stainless steel .45 for $200. I bought both firearms on that wonderful day, and have never regretted it!! Lots of fun shooting in the years since then!

I'd put the Old Army in the safe and forgotten it, until I read this thread! Now, I may just have to get it out, load it up, and have some fun with it! Thanks for "reminding" me that this neat pistol lives here with us! It will be fun to see and use it again. Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc
 
ROAnutz said:
This is my first post here and I guess I need to admit that I am a Ruger Old Army fanatic.

I've gone over and above decking out my ROA. One of the last nice to haves would be a thumb friendly hammer...like a Bisley. It seems that Clement Custom Guns is trying to get enough orders (20) to make a limited run of Bisley hammers for the ROA.

I sure hope this works out as I deserve a nice Christmas present...I swear, I've been good. :)

http://www.clementscustomguns.com/itemsforsale.html
Click to expand...

I'd go for a Bisley-style hammer for my blued ROA... but it would have to be a color case-hardened style, not a S-S.
 
How good do the fixed sight old army's shoot? I really like the short bbl vs. the longer adjustable sighted bbl's but..... wonder if they shoot as well.

You might call me a liar but I have easily hit 1 lb coffee cans at 100 yards... with the adjustable sighted Old Army's.... they shoot awesome!

I almost bought one recenlty but..... if a guy reloads, I am thinking i can shoot my 44 specials for very close to the same money as an old army. Does that sound right with you guys too?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

BryanJ
New Member & First Post - Help?
2
Replies
39
Views
932
neilin
N
W
Ruger Old Army
Replies
12
Views
628
black1970
black1970
S
Blued old army 5.5 value
Replies
12
Views
408
Wvfarrier
Wvfarrier
A
Loading round ball into a Kirst Konverter 45LC Ruger Old Army
Replies
27
Views
627
Actnbill
A
ArizonaTea123
Question about grips on an Old Army
Replies
7
Views
338
Hondo44
H

Latest posts

Back
Top