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SHOOT! Magazine's Guide to
GETTING STARTED in Western-action Shooting
Ammunition - Various events and organizations require different types of
ammunition. For
example, cowboy fast draw and regular fast draw do not use live
ammunition. Depending
upon the type of event you are interested in and category
selected, either black powder or smokeless powder
cartridges are allowed. The
ammunition required for various types of events is briefly described
below.
Cowboy Action Main Match Ground
Shooting: Calibers
are what are commonly referred to as revolver calibers and are
generally from .32 to .45 and encompass such authentic calibers as
.32-20, .38 Long Colt, 38-.40, .44-40, .44 Colt, and .45 Colt, as
well as more modern calibers such as the .38 Special, .357 Magnum,
.44 Special, and .44 Magnum. However, there are limitations as to the type of bullets
that can be used and the velocities at which they can be fired.
Revolver ammunition cannot exceed 1,000 fps, while rifle
ammunition must have a velocity less than 1,400 fps. It is recommended that the minimum revolver velocity is 650
fps. We personally
recommend using an average cowboy load of between 720-800 fps.
Bullets must be lead and rifle bullets must be flat-pointed
to be loaded safely in a tubular magazine. Jacketed bullets, hollow points, plated, gas checked, and
copper washed bullets are not allowed. Commercial factory ammunition for almost all calibers is
readily available in both smokeless and black powder versions.
Cowboy Mounted Shooting:
Ammunition for cowboy mounted shooting is provided for the
contestant at the event. Bullets
are not loaded into the cartridge case. Rather, black powder is used which will usually break the
balloons up to a maximum of 15 feet away. Usually a 3-in-one or 4-in-one load is used that fits .45
Colt, .44/40, and .44 Special firearms. Some events may only allow the .45 Colt to be used.
Cowboy Action Side Matches:
Ammunition for side matches vary based upon the side match. However, those side matches using revolvers and
lever-action rifles for pistol calibers have the identical
requirements as the main match. Lever-action rifles using a rifle caliber are generally
limited to those calibers available up to 1898, including the
.30-30. Again, lead, flat-nosed bullets must be used. Some events will have a separate category for smokeless and
black powder. The
single-shot long range or buffalo side match is also limited to
pre-1898 calibers, with the most common being the .45-70. There are also side matches using derringers and pocket
pistols with appropriate ammunition from .22 up to .45 Colt.
Many events have incorporated .22 side matches for both
revolver and lever-action rifles.
Black Powder Cartridge Rifle
Silhouette (BPCRS) and Buffalo Matches: Calibers range from .38-55 (which is considered a minimum
load) up to .50-90 for BPCRS, while buffalo matches usually allow
.50 caliber and higher. Check out SHOOT! Magazine's book Black
Powder & the Old West for more information on black powder
ammunition and reloading.
Cowboy Silhouette:
This event
includes 50-yard chickens, 100-yard pigs, 150- yard turkeys, and
200-yard rams, all shot off-hand, and the game is shot with three
different classes of rifles. Matches are focused towards shooters who enjoy shooting
hunting arms rather than having to invest a lot of money in
specialized firearms. All
of these matches require metallic sights - either open, receiver,
or tang mounted. Front
sights must be post or bead and may include a hood. Stocks must be of original configuration and ammunition
must he loaded through a tubular magazine. Ammunition may be loaded with either smokeless or black
powder, using jacketed or cast flat-nosed bullets.
World Fast Draw:
Ammunition used is normally black powder blanks in .45
caliber, shot at
balloons or silhouette targets.
Cowboy Fast Draw:
.45 cal wax bullets, with shotgun primers or
powder behind wax with a standard pistol primer. Blank
ammunition is not used. Ammunition is normally supplied by
the contest host.
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