I have 2 of the snub 325 alloy 45 acps. My carry has a titanium cylinder and the second a steel cylinder. I have been considering making the 2nd into a 45 colt. But, because they are hard to find I didn't want to modify the frame. They have an integral frame lug and rimmed cartridges need less lug length than clip held rimless. Then an old thread where someone fit a colt extractor to an acp cylinder and lengthened the chambers to colt length popped up. The colt round head spaces correctly because the extractor star holds them off the cylinder face the correct amount. He could change back to the acp star and fire acp.
My take was to fit a colt new style ratchet and ream a new style acp cylinder in my parts stash to colt depth and save the original cylinder as it came from the factory. I could only find a new style 44 mag ratchet, but that was not a problem as while I worked I simply reamed it to 45 colt. Really just removing .0125 from the inside of the curve. Now I had a cylinder that accepted and head spaced 45 colts and worked perfectly with the 325's unmodified frame lug. But there was no way to use 45 acp in it without changing back to the original cylinder. So, I milled the outer ends of the extractor arms flush with the cylinder face so they were the normal thickness of an acp ratchet. Bingo, now 45 acp in the original military style 1/2 moon clips work in it. I carry my spare ammo for my 325 carry gun in 1/2 moons as they are far less bulky. Plus, now I can actually load 3 45 colts and 3 acps if for some odd reason I wanted to.
The gun with modified cylinder full of colt brass
The cylinder full of colt brass. Notice how the rims sit off the cylinder face about .037?
loaded with 45 acp. You can see the outside edge of the 1/2 moon clips
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1/2 colt and 1/2 acp
I can simply remove the yoke's side plate screw remove yoke slide modified cylinder off of yoke and original back on and reinstall yoke and cylinder in the gun
This is the normal way I make a 45acp/colt cylinder where the colt rim headspaces on the outer ledge and the acps work as the full moon sits in recessed center portion. 1/2 will not work in these of course. I also have a couple of the shorter acp length cylinders done this way in my parts pile. But, again they need a rimmed length lug.
You can machine a clearance cut for the frame lug on the rear OD of a normal colt cylinder to use it in an acp frame, with an unmodified frame lug, but on a colt cylinder modified for acp in full moon clips you would hardly have anything left to head space the colt rims on.
I have made guns that run 2 separate cylinders, one in colt one in acp. Ones that run a single cylinder with the center recessed for full moons. Now an acp cylinder with a ratchet that will headspace the rimmed colt.
A cylinder full of colt rounds with heavy slugs, a refill in a speed loader and a hand full of half moons and your ready for about anything.
My take was to fit a colt new style ratchet and ream a new style acp cylinder in my parts stash to colt depth and save the original cylinder as it came from the factory. I could only find a new style 44 mag ratchet, but that was not a problem as while I worked I simply reamed it to 45 colt. Really just removing .0125 from the inside of the curve. Now I had a cylinder that accepted and head spaced 45 colts and worked perfectly with the 325's unmodified frame lug. But there was no way to use 45 acp in it without changing back to the original cylinder. So, I milled the outer ends of the extractor arms flush with the cylinder face so they were the normal thickness of an acp ratchet. Bingo, now 45 acp in the original military style 1/2 moon clips work in it. I carry my spare ammo for my 325 carry gun in 1/2 moons as they are far less bulky. Plus, now I can actually load 3 45 colts and 3 acps if for some odd reason I wanted to.
The gun with modified cylinder full of colt brass
The cylinder full of colt brass. Notice how the rims sit off the cylinder face about .037?
loaded with 45 acp. You can see the outside edge of the 1/2 moon clips
1/2 colt and 1/2 acp
I can simply remove the yoke's side plate screw remove yoke slide modified cylinder off of yoke and original back on and reinstall yoke and cylinder in the gun
This is the normal way I make a 45acp/colt cylinder where the colt rim headspaces on the outer ledge and the acps work as the full moon sits in recessed center portion. 1/2 will not work in these of course. I also have a couple of the shorter acp length cylinders done this way in my parts pile. But, again they need a rimmed length lug.
You can machine a clearance cut for the frame lug on the rear OD of a normal colt cylinder to use it in an acp frame, with an unmodified frame lug, but on a colt cylinder modified for acp in full moon clips you would hardly have anything left to head space the colt rims on.
I have made guns that run 2 separate cylinders, one in colt one in acp. Ones that run a single cylinder with the center recessed for full moons. Now an acp cylinder with a ratchet that will headspace the rimmed colt.
A cylinder full of colt rounds with heavy slugs, a refill in a speed loader and a hand full of half moons and your ready for about anything.
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