My first .44 Special

B

Bob Wright

New member
In the late summer of 1954 I had earned the $32.95 to order my Colt .45 New Service by mail order. My gun was a commercial New Service, once a .455 Eley from the Royal Northwest Mounted Police. I began building it into a custom .44 Special:

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I had a new cylinder installed, along with a .44-40 barrel I scraped up. I couldn't find a local gunsmith to install the S&W rear sight, so took it to a local machine shop along with a drawing I had made. I ordered a Micro ramp and a Patridge blade and had a 'smith install this. Then had the gun blued, added an Ace trigger shoe, and whittled out a pair of walnut grips. By the time I had done all of this, the .44 Magnum was introduced. But I kept the gun until 1971, when it was among several stolen from a gunshop.

Bob Wright
 
Mike,

I no longer have that gun, but I've installed vinyl siding, so painting is out for me. Besides my wife will no longer let me climb.

Bob Wright
 
Bob, sounds like you’re as crazzzy as I am for the 44 special.
This was a 28 turned into a 44 special with a 3 inch Douglass barrel back in 1974.
One sad point of your story,,, 1954 was the year I was born, and I am still an old FART
 
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I love the gun. I'm one of those crazy 44 people too. But Ozzieman is making me feel old. Suffice it to say I was ALREADY around when He was born.
 
For whatever its worth, I had a very nice M1917 Colt that I had planned on making into a similar conversion, but a 4" heavy barrel with maybe a full length rib, but a military collector talked me out of that.

Bob Wright
 
I'd love to find an old New Service that I could convert into a 3 inch snub. Saw one at a show a couple years back and have been kicking myself ever since for not buying it. Beautiful gun in 45 acp. Barrel was shortened to 3 inches, front sight had been skillfully replaced, handsome wood stocks and nickeled. SIGH.....................!
 
That's a nice piece of work Bob,most folks now are merely content to pay their money and be happy with whatever the wizards at the factories and gun writers tell them to be happy with and next year we'll think up some new whizbang to part you from some more of your hard earned frog hides.Sorry some unused bullet trap stole your shooter,maybe someone on here will see it at a gunshow and let you know,stranger things have happened.Michael:cool:
 
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