The Anti-Tactical .44-40 Bunny Gun

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  • Last Post 01 June 2015
Ed Harris posted this 26 March 2015

My “Anti-Tactical” .44-40 single-shot, backpack gun just got back from John Taylor. The tiny pre-war H&R .410 and 28-ga. shotgun frame has served as my “Bunny Gun and backpack rifle” platform for about 20 years.  The first barrel John Taylor fabricated for me was a .32 S&W Long.  I briefly experimented with it being rechambered to .32 H&R Magnum and it is now a .32/.38 Special (Short Blackout Rimmed Rook, aka SBRR) necked down with cutoff .300 AAC Blackout dies.  

The next barrel was a .32 ACP, made from an M1 Garand pull-off, 18” long with ten-inch twist.  That was wonderful, but after having Andy Evans convert a Remington 580 boltgun to .32 ACP for me, I rechambered the shorty .32 to .32 S&W Long, having a correct rifle throat.

I then added to the Bunny Battery a second small H&R frame, a 28-ga. with deeply pitted barrel obtained from Ric Bowman, which I had John set up first in .38 Special and later added to it a .45 ACP, these all being in in addition to the original .410 barrel, which started life as a 2-1/2” chamber with 26” full choke, and is now a 20” cylinder bore with 3-inch chamber.  I was very lucky that the .410 barrel fit OK and functioned well on either frame, because the 28-ga. barrel was too deeply pitted to polish the bore out useably and I really didn't want to get into another shotgun gage, so I let John have the 28-ga. barrel for parts to do a stub-conversion for somebody. How my .410 came to become a cylinder bore goes back to my practice of firing roundballs in it.  This worked well until one day I probably got a ball cast of something other than pure pead, which probably ge-hardened one,  instead of a dead soft one.  Upon firing the gun actually recoiled FORWARDS, the muzzle splitting about 3 inches behind the front bead, at the choke constriction, spreading like the hood of a cobra! 

I  the best Frank Marshall tradition, the muzzle was lopped off with a tubing cutter, then recrowned with a .50 BMG deburring tool.  My buddy Jimbo installed a new bead sight and punched the chamber out  to 3 inches. The bore now that all the original choke was gone is a true .427 cylinder from end to end.  I felt proud of my self and could well imagine the spirit of Frank Marshal speaking to me using his best Robert Newton impersonation as Long John Silver in Treasure Island saying, 

"Aye Laddie, now ye have a proper shot and ball blunderbuss, just the medicine for shooting pelicans or parrots so you can use their guts for fishbait, and dry their flesh for jerky or being filleted into the lifeboat stewpot, 'tis so dandy for repelling any nasty sharks or Spanish pirates which come to close, says I...."

Returning to current reality.....Numrich had brand new, unused Marlin 1894S .44-40 Microgroove 20” barrels in stock. The temptation was simply too great, so I bought one, and sent it to John. He cut off the threads, made and fitted an underlug and extractor, then rechambered the barrel in using the same same reamer he used to clean up my “too tight” Ruger Vaquero, so both of my .44-40 revolvers and now  both .44-40 rifles would all interchange ammo.  

While John did bush the shotgun firing pin, to avoid piercing primers, the tiny iron action isn't strong enough for a high intensity cartridge like the .44 Magnum, which operates at about 38,000 psi.  Factory .44-40s don't exceed 13,700 psi. Handloads suitable for the Winchester 92 and Ruger Vaquero generally don't exceed about 22,000 psi, similar to 3” .410 rounds and the .45 ACP, which we already knew from experience, are happy in this small action.  

Another factor favoring  the .44-40 chambering over a .44 Magnum was the very light weight of the gun. My project goal was 4 pounds, maybe 2 kilograms as absolute maximum.  Having shot a 4-1/2 pound .44 Magnum Cadet Martini, owned by Ken Warner, I had no desire to repeat the experience.  The .44-40 made more sense.

We fit TechSights adjustable front and rear post and peep, which resemble the issue sights on the M16A1 rifle. Both practical AND Tactical  I reamed the aperture of the short range leg to “ghost ring” and will set up a basic 50 yard, woods, snap shooting zero. Then we will see how much elevation change I get by flipping over to the “long range” leg on the peep, hoping that it is close at 100 yards.

After cutting off the receiver threads and refitting, the finished barrel is 19-1/2” and the gun with sights exactly 4 pounds and is only 34-1/2” long!  This is a full 3 pounds lighter than my .44 Magnum levergun  Trijicon sight and but cuff holding 8 rounds.  The objective is as a backpacking companion to be teamed with my sturdy, fixed sight Ruger 5-1/2” .44-40 Vaquero. Full charge Winchester 92 and Ruger style .44-40 loads give about 950 fps with a 230-grain bullet from the revolver and 1250 fps from a 20 inch rifle.  Quite Enough.

Of course, if I choose to carry some other revolver, I have the other handgun-caliber barrels to choose from. The tiny shotgun with .410 barrel combined with ONE handgun- caliber barrel to match whatever handgun I carry is the basic plan. The takedown shotgun package with two barrels and a Ruger revolver together weigh less than my 1894S Marlin lever-action, providing great flexibility and practical 100 yard reach in a compact package!   Two guns are always better than one. Being able to choose a shotgun, rifle and a revolver is the dog's bollocks!

Range report to follow soon!

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Ken Campbell Iowa posted this 26 March 2015

that just seems right, somehow . i know art when i see it ...


a guy near me has a 16 ga. win. 37 pre-64 ( ie, the good ones ) for sale ...i was thinking i could get a fat enough barrel in there to shoot a 357 mag with medium loads ... and your sights are purely inspirational !!

m1 carbine .. or heck garand ... and a hooded crosshair front ...

ken

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Ed Harris posted this 26 March 2015

Here are some closeup details of the sights.

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

Ed Harris posted this 26 March 2015

The software will only let me upload one picture per post, so here is the front sight.

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Ed Harris posted this 26 March 2015

And this gives you a good idea of the Bunny Gun Proportions compared to my 1894S Marlin with 20” barrel.

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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steveco posted this 27 March 2015

That IS a work of art! I'm curious to know what model TechSight you used.

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Ed Harris posted this 27 March 2015

http://www.tech-sights.com/>http://www.tech-sights.com/

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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tturner53 posted this 27 March 2015

Nice project! I'm looking forward to the range report.

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tturner53 posted this 28 March 2015

It dawned on me the popular term for 'antitactical' is practical. Seems like 'practical' is due for a come-back.

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JeffinNZ posted this 28 March 2015

Careful Ed. Those sights just about classify it as a assault rifle. :P

Cheers from New Zealand

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delmarskid1 posted this 29 March 2015

All that and you couldn't fix the stock? Cool rifle, I can see one in .44 Russian.

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Ed Harris posted this 30 March 2015

delmarskid1 wrote: All that and you couldn't fix the stock? Cool rifle, I can see one in .44 Russian. The wrist crack is filled with Acraglas and hasn't opened back up.  Ain't pretty, but functional.

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Dale53 posted this 31 March 2015

I'm too old and feeble for extended back pack trips these days but I can sure “remember when". I am truly impressed with the concept and I hope you won't mind me “borrowing” your idea to kind of lean back, close my eyes and visulize having a similar outfit “back in the day". Let's see - a .38 Special rifle to go along with my 60-4 (3” barrel “J” frame with adjustable sights and GREAT shootibility!)

Thank you for sharing, Ed!:)

Dale53

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Ed Harris posted this 01 April 2015

Dale53 wrote: I'm too old and feeble for extended back pack trips these days but I can sure “remember when". I am truly impressed with the concept and I hope you won't mind me “borrowing” your idea to kind of lean back, close my eyes and visulize having a similar outfit “back in the day".....Let's see - a .38 Special rifle to go along with my 60-4 (3” barrel “J” frame with adjustable sights and GREAT shootibility!)....Thank you for sharing, Ed!:)....Dale53 I am now 66, so my trips are mostly weekend jaunts, not more than a few miles from home. I am fortunate to live within walking distance of state game lands and private farms where I am allowed to hunt, so as long as the pack burden is modest and the weather reasonable I may disappear for a weekend or a few days during the week if during hunting season and I do enjoy a meal of freshly killed game or fish caught today and roasted over an open fire. Puts you in touch with your inner Cave Man!  Giorgio knows!  In no way wilderness, but Heartland America farm country!  Agree with you Dale, that .38 Special will do the work, but not a legal deer rifle in WV, so the .44-40....

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Ed Harris posted this 01 April 2015

Another pic of the AO nearby.... Just across the state line into VA, on the way to the range.

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Ed Harris posted this 01 April 2015

tturner53 wrote: Nice project! I'm looking forward to the range report. Range report has been sent to Glenn for The Fouling Shot, will probably not see print until after Part 2 of the Back Creek Diary .44-40 Saga appears.... So stay tuned.

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Ed Harris posted this 07 April 2015

UPDATE 6 APR 2015

Filing some off the front post wasn't quite enough, so I swapped the front sight out, substituting a 0.500” high XS Systems post. This places point of impact slightly high at 100 yards, but in the bull with a 6'oclock hold.  Perfect for making “gong music” for for a fast snap-shot at the famous Monty Python Attack Rabbit before he devours you!

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The “long range” leg of the peep puts the group 8 inches high at 50 yards and over the top of the silhouette at 100, so I guess that setting is for Steve McQueen to knock the Bandito off his horse before he disappears over the next ridge.

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Ed Harris posted this 15 April 2015

Range report after front sight replacement and re-zeroing.

Two-inch, 5-shot iron sight groups at 50-yards with full power hunting loads, no “mouse fart” stuff. May I add that a 4-lb. gun is difficult to shoot groups with off the bag and that with a 230-grain bullet at 1350 fps it lets you know when it goes off!

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Ed Harris posted this 28 May 2015

Table 1

Side-by-Side comparisons fired the same day with representative .44-40 (Group 2 +P) loads fired in two Vaqueros using the same .44-40 cylinder, with 19.5” H&R Single Shot rifle for comparison:

Ammunition all assembled in fireformed and resized Starline brass with Remington 2-1/2 primers.

Load Description__Ruger 5-1/2"Ruger 7-1/2"_H&R 19.5"Backpack Bunny Gun”

-------------------------------Cyl.Gap 0.003"-----Cyl.Gap 0.002"---------Solid barrel

43-230G 1:30Sn/Pb 7.2 BE997, 10 Sd__1052, 9 Sd_1199, 6 Sd_ 1.60” OAL crimped top groove

200 LFN WW .430” 18#24001215, 57Sd1373, 41Sd_1577, 22Sd__Magma Engineering design.

43-230EB 1:30 24.5 RL7_1127, 28Sd_1252, 32 Sd_1439, 25Sd_Modified John Kort Design

ColMeanV (gain) FPS----------1113-(REF)-----1226 (+113 over 5-1/2")-1405 ( +179 over 7-1/2")

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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Tech posted this 31 May 2015

<size="3">Nice work Ed. Great platform for a project or two. The sight upgrade fixes its weakest link. I made a 12ga. adventure gun to throw in the trunk for those days when I find myself doing something stupid.  <url=http://s755.photobucket.com/user/hansen_acura/media/trunkgun3_zpsdf09aa2a.jpg.html>http://i755.photobucket.com/albums/xx196/hansen_acura/trunkgun3_zpsdf09aa2a.jpg <url=http://s755.photobucket.com/user/hansen_acura/media/trunkgun4_zpsdc6ebeba.jpg.html>http://i755.photobucket.com/albums/xx196/hansen_acura/trunkgun4_zpsdc6ebeba.jpg

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Ed Harris posted this 31 May 2015

Who made your 9mm adapter?   How close is it to point of aim does it shoot?  BTW, Nice outfit!

73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia

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