TK Custom moonclips

[S&W1006]

I have a 686+ on layaway. I am seriously considerinng sending the cylinder to TK Custom to be cut for moonclips. I know I will have to sort my brass. I have more Federal and Remington than anything. The TK moonclips are pretty expensive are there any others that work well? Has anybody had their 7 shot cut for moonclips? If so what moonclips work best. It looks like Winchester has the smallest groove. I don't have many Winchester so I would rather buy the thicker clips. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Rpg]

Moonclips are a great innovation - dating back almost 100 years.

I'd be more likely to look for one of the 'pro' series already set up for them than to modify an existing revolver.

Best of all, find a 1917 .45 acp. The moon clips can be had for less than $1 each (often $.33 each), the revolver is ready made for moon clips and its a great sd load , very pleasant to shoot.

Besides, 45acp works great in the best pistol ever - Colt 1911!

 

[S&W1006]

Moonclips are a great innovation - dating back almost 100 years.

I'd be more likely to look for one of the 'pro' series already set up for them than to modify an existing revolver.

Best of all, find a 1917 .45 acp. The moon clips can be had for less than $1 each (often $.33 each), the revolver is ready made for moon clips and its a great sd load , very pleasant to shoot.

Besides, 45acp works great in the best pistol ever - Colt 1911!

I don't load for the 45 acp right now. I might buy a 625 JM or performance center 625 sometime later. I already load for 38\357 and I compete with a 66 S&W now. I got a good deal on the 686. I saw a guy at a match once that had his 686 plus cut for moonclips and it really helped with the reloads. Plus I am just ringing steel so a 125 grain lead bullet does the job just fine for less money than a 45 acp. I would like to have a 627 8 shot but the 686 is costing me half what the 627 costs.

 

[rwsmith]

Too bad they don't...

I guess it made sense to drop the moonclip counterbores since not everybody used them, but I'd like to get mine cut too.

 

[RottyJohn]

Very pleased with TK Customs moon clips and cyc work. Quick turn around on cutting of cyclinder and return for small price.
RJ

 

[S&W1006]

Very pleased with TK Customs moon clips and cyc work. Quick turn around on cutting of cyclinder and return for small price.
RJ

Should I get their moonclip tool or are the clips easy enough to load without it? The guy I saw at the match didn't use the tool for loading. He did use the unload tool though.

 

[wantmoresmiths]

If you are only using your revolver for shooting steel, where reloads are not "on the clock", the Ranch products moonclips will work just fine. The TK moonclips are usually ordered to fit a specific brand of brass. The tight fit of the moonclip when used with the specific brand of brass holds the rounds tight enough so they align perfectly with the chambers. This makes for faster reloads in ICORE and USPSA competitions, where the reloads are on the clock. I currently use the Ranch Products moonclips for my 627. They are much cheaper than the TK clips. When shooting steel I use them with mixed headstamp brass since reloads are off the clock. The mixed headstamp brass has some wobble, but if I shake the loaded moonclip, the loaded rounds fall nicely into the chamber. When I'm shooting ICORE I use them with Winchester brass which I found to have the tightest fit. I'm just not fast enough so that a few tenths of a second on my reloads is going to make that much of a difference in my score. So for now the Ranch Products / Winchester combination works just fine. One of the top local revolver shooters uses the TK / Starline brass combination and is lightning fast with it.

You can get away with loading the Ranch Products clips without a tool, but I would suspect that the tight fit of the TK clips would require a loading tool. You can make the unloading tool from a piece of copper tubing or an old golf club. Since the Ranch products clips are cheap enough, I bought 100 right off. This allows me to load enough clips for an entire steel match, and once you start loading that many clips at one time you will want to buy a loading tool. I bought the BMT loading tool. BMT Equipped, Inc. Once you use this tool no other will ever be good enough. It is a little on the expensive side but it loads and unloads the moonclips, and does it in short order.

 

[RottyJohn]

Totally agree with wantmoresmiths. BMT moonclip tool is the best I have found and I have tried most that are on the market.I use moonclips for both range and SD.
RJ

 

[S&WIowegan]

I highly recommend TK Custom work and moonclips. All you do is mail Tom the cylinder to be milled to accept clips. The revolver will also still work just fine if you don't use the clips.

TK and Hearthco both manufacture moonclips with EDM machinery. They buy steel of various thicknesses to customize clips to a certain brand of brass.

Ranch Products stamps their clips out of spring steel and make clips by the bazillions. Ranch moonclips are perfectly good to use, especially with .45ACP. If you use Ranch clips, you just sort your brass and use what fits the best.

This ain't rocket science...have fun and good shootin'!