Colt Woodsman Magazine substitution

S

Sevens

New member
Made a discovery when looking to trouble shoot a particular issue in a Second Series Colt Woodsman. I would never believe that I was the "first" to discover this, but I can say that I never looked in to it and never got a tip to it.

Bottom line is that a Ruger Mark II magazine is the same angle & dimensions (mostly) to run, and run perfectly well in a Second (& would assume Third) Series Colt Woodsman or variant if/when you are able to lock it in place at the correct height.

What you end up with here is access to a tremendous supply of magazines that are cheaper, easier to find, run as well/better than the original and/or as well as the genuine Colt replacements. FWIW, the actual proper replacement or additional magazines for these pistols are not the "stainless" silver magazines often found on Gunbroker or Ebay, though those *can* work. Those magazines were actually made for the much later "Colt .22 Auto" pistols of much more recent manufacture. Those pistols would never be confused for a genuine Woodsman or variant. And those silver magazines *ARE* different than the OEM or Colt replacement magazines of earlier generations. Different where it matters, in my experience.

And for me personally, it's immediate access to SIX magazines that I already own and don't have to purchase, chase down or have shipped.

The Ruger Mark II magazine doesn't look "right" hanging from the bottom of the pistol of course, and the magazine must be modified to work, but that modification doesn't interfere whatsoever with that magazine's ability to still work in the Ruger Mark II for which it was designed.

I'm a million miles from a gun smith and have enough respect for true craftsman to make note of the fact that I am not one. ;) But this "discovery" has been a great advantage to me, so I thought I would share.

Opinions and discussion is welcome.
 
I find it intriguing. I guess if you don't have a Woodsman, then the problem doesn't exist, or if you don't know what a Woodsman is, the problem doesn't exist.:rolleyes:
But, If you need a Colt Woodsman magazine this is very good news.
Thanks!
 
I agree with Bill, and I thank you for finding an interesting solution for a problem that does exist, finding magazines for a Colt Woodsman.

David
 
Our smarmy little friend apparently also struggles with reading comprehension, as the '55 Huntsman that I purchased has a non-standard mag catch that won't even work with -ALL- of the Woodsman magazines on this planet except for the "altered" one that it arrived with, so I find myself in the wholly unpredictable position of *GULP* needing a solution for a problem that ceases to exist everywhere in the history of the Universe EXCEPT right here & now for the pistol that I happen to own. :rolleyes:

And here I thought the participants in this area of the site would be of a certain, well, class. But I suppose that's merely wishful thinking.
 
Not only a neat answer to the shortage of Woodsman magazines, but also a way to shoot the gun while preserving the original magazine(s) for collectors.

Jim
 
In some of the switching, checking, looking and thinking that I did, it sure seemed like the one single Buck Mark magazine I tried in the Huntsman also fit well and would have ran well just as the Mark II magazines have.

S&W 22A Magazines? No go. Sig Mosquito? Not even close.
 
How did you modify the Ruger Mk II magazine ?

Could you please tell me how the Ruger Mk II magazine must be modified to work on a (third series) Colt Woodsman ?
 
How did you modify the Ruger Mk II magazine ?
Could you please tell me how the Ruger Mk II magazine must be modified to work on a (third series) Colt Woodsman
Click to expand...
As I don't have a picture I can upload right now, it's simply that you must use some kind of a file or Dremel tool to make a cut in the back side of the Mark II magazine so that the Woodsman's mag catch will lock in place. Obviously, getting that cut in the proper place is critical.

As I don't have a 3rd Series pistol, I can't be sure exactly how much the mag catch differs from my 2nd Series pistols. But on mine, you need to cut away some of the plastic magazine base as well as some metal from the bottom of the magazine body to get this to work.

The catch clips in right at the juncture of the magazine base and the magazine itself for the proper height.
 
Thank you Sevens for your help. I did as you suggested and cut away some plastic base and some metal at the bottom of the Ruger magazine. I can now lock the Ruger magazine in place, but the Ruger magazine is a little longer than my 3rd series Woodsman magazine, and the slide will stay back (open) when I try to load a cartridge into chamber.
Looks like I cannot use a Ruger magazine on my Woodsman Target Match.
 
Well, like I said... my 2nd Series pistol (and given the fact that it has some non-standard mag catch that had me experimenting in the first place...) may very well be at a slightly different height than your pistol.

I basically put the TOP of the magazine in a spot comparable to the included factory mag, paying attention to the height of the feed lips... when I chose where to carve in a notch in the Ruger mag.

The good thing is that the alteration doesn't affect how well the Ruger mag continues to work in my Mark II. You can always try again on another Ruger mag until you get the height correct.
 
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