38/44 HD 45 Colt conversion

[SouthNarc]

I picked up a curious revolver from GB the other day and am trying to figure some things out about it.

It’s a 38/44 converted to 45 Colt. It’s definitely not a Bowen conversion. It has a pinned front sight and the “45 Long Colt” marking on the right side of the barrel appears to be laser etched or at least really shallow. The action is super slick.

Outside of Bowen who else did conversions on these revolvers like this? Certainly not more than a handful of ‘smiths?

Any help on ID’ing the work would be appreciated. Regardless looking forward to getting this to the range.

 

[JohnRippert]

Nice, but the Goodyear's gotta go.

 

[SouthNarc]

Nice, but the Goodyear's gotta go.

Agreed. Just got it today.

 

[Truckman]

It has a pinned front sight and the “45 Long Colt” marking on the right side of the barrel appears to be laser etched or at least really shallow..

It may just be the camera angle, but is there some slight evidence of factory engraving having been removed but not completely just forward of the new engraving?...Is there any stamping inside the ejector rod housing?......Ben

 

[Doug M.]

I suspect it was not an uncommon conversion, and while I would not be a good candidate to do the work, my understanding is that it is not a super hard job. Converting M28s was a big deal 50-odd years ago.

 

[AJ]

Nice looking piece. I just looked at a Colt Model 1917 that has been converted to .45 Colt.

 

[Kansasgunner]

Neat old gun! Any marks on the grip frame?

 

[The Kid]

The caliber marking was done using an acid etch setup. I marked hundreds of guns with one from Marking Methods, a company in California.

 

[StrawHat]

Andy Horvath still makes a living doing conversions. Dick Nichol (deceased) was another one. There were undoubtedly many others that could do the work. The hardest part would be finding someone to bore and rifle the barrel. The cylinder is easy to ream from 38 S&W Special to 45 long Colt. Same with an action job.,

Heck, I converted a Model 28-2 to 45 ACP.

Kevin

 

[gjamison]

Don’t mean to be a stickler, but it’s actually.45 Colt not long Colt.

 

[rct269]

Don’t mean to be a stickler, but it’s actually.45 Colt not long Colt.

Yeah, that's one of those "It ain't right, but everybody says it." deals----kind'a makes your teeth hurt, but there's no mystery involved.

Ralph Tremaine

 

[StrawHat]

I don’t remember where I found this but it should be easy to locate the source, if you are interested.

Elmer Keith also wrote of a similar cartridge.

Kevin

 

[murphydog]

One of the other listings from the same seller mentioned the gunsmith shop as Clement's Custom Guns. Don't know if all the conversions were done by them, however.

 

[gwpercle]

Don’t mean to be a stickler, but it’s actually.45 Colt not long Colt.

Go ahead and be a stickler ... you tell a miss-conception long enough and it becomes a fact .
It is 45 Colt ... there never existed that other name ...
I'm not going to repeat the wrong name ... it bothers me every time I see it .
Sorry about the rant ... it's a pet peeve !
Gary

 

[Truckman]

Sorry about the rant ... it's a pet peeve !

We all have 'em, mine includes "pre-anything"......Ben

 

[Jim Watson]

Skeeter Skelton seems to have led the way in reaming HDs and Magnums out to .44 and .45. I don't recall who worked on his but it was 40 years or more ago so the gunsmith is likely retired by now anyhow.

I used to like the notion, actually had a Highway Patrolman to .44 Special conversion in the works when the gunsmith got killed in a car wreck. There is a barrel blank sitting around somewhere that never got used.
Now I would just load up some Keith .38s to spare the gun and save the cost.

 

[Kansasgunner]

Clement Custom Guns are usually marked with their trademark logo. This is a 28-2 converted to .44 Special by David Clements.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[SouthNarc]

It may just be the camera angle, but is there some slight evidence of factory engraving having been removed but not completely just forward of the new engraving?...Is there any stamping inside the ejector rod housing?......Ben

I don’t see anything on the barrel.

Here’s the inside of the ejector rod housing.

 

[SouthNarc]

Took the Goodyears off and it looks like there was some pretty severe pitting.

 

[SouthNarc]

I had some wood from a 27 no dash laying around so it looks way better with real grips.