The .45 Colt Army is the most powerful of all the revolver cartridges. It was formerly the United States army service ammunition. The charge was so heavy, and the recoil so excessive that it was almost impossible to shoot it without flinching. The smokeless powder charge of 5 grains of Bullseye makes it much more practical and very similar to the .44 S. & W. Special cartridge. Both of these are exceedingly powerful and accurate and suitable for military service.
Figure 46. Figure 47.
The caliber of the service ammunition for the revolver of the British army is .455. This is a very accurate cartridge, but not as powerful as the corresponding military cartridges used in this country. A special cylindrical bullet with a deep convex hollow point is furnished in the same shell and is known as the “man stopper.”
This form of bullet is used in the English .450 and .38 caliber cartridges also.
The .450 Welby is another English cartridge that is accurate, and pleasant to shoot. It is used largely at Bisley in the annual revolver competitions of the National Rifle Association of Great Britain.
In order to avoid excessive fouling with black powders a self-lubricating bullet has been invented and introduced by Smith & Wesson, which can be furnished in all calibers above .32. The bullet has a hollow core open in the rear. Lubricant is filled into the core, after which it is closed with a lead plunger. Four small ducts communicate from the forward end of the core to the exterior of the bullet just ahead of its bearing on the barrel. At the moment of discharge the plunger is driven forward, forcing the lubricant through the ducts into the barrel ahead of the bullet.
This bullet has given excellent results and will be found decidedly advantageous when black powder is used. With it a hundred or more shots may be fired with black powder without causing sufficient fouling to impair the accuracy.
Revolvers are sometimes chambered for the .44-40-200, the .38-40-180, and the .32-20-115 rifle cartridges. These charges in black powder load are not as accurate as the corresponding revolver cartridges in these calibers, but can be relied on to shoot inside a 5-inch circle at 50 yards. These cartridges are desirable for revolvers only when it is an advantage to use the same ammunition in the rifle and revolver, or in certain localities where only a few varieties of ammunition are to be had. The large powder charge makes the recoil of the first two cartridges named rather unpleasant. The .32-20-115 is the most accurate of these cartridges, and gives the best results in the pistol or revolver. All these cartridges having flat-pointed bullets are well adapted for game shooting. None of these rifle cartridges loaded with smokeless powder will give good results in revolvers because the brand of powder generally used in rifle ammunition requires a long barrel to consume the charge. Fired from a short barrel only part of the charge will be consumed and the rest will be expelled unburned, thus reducing the velocity and power of the charge and sometimes increasing the recoil. It is of course entirely practicable to adapt a charge of bullseye or similar smokeless powder to these shells which would make them much more satisfactory. Another disadvantage of using the rifle cartridge in revolvers is the possibility of inexperienced persons using the new high velocity rifle ammunition, which would prove not only most unsatisfactory but extremely dangerous in revolvers. There are no reduced or gallery loads supplied in these shells.
