I was not aware of Fred Smith's retirement from Bullberry. This is the end of an era. I have acquired more than a few Bullberry barrels over the years, mostly in rimfire and wildcat calibers. As a .22 Short fan, it was great to have a real .22 Short-chambered single-shot rifle. Bullberry also offered Lyman front aperture and Williams peep rear sights, allowing for a light and accurate small-game rifle.
I have a pile of 35cal j-word bullets of various weights and design and a 35cal 280gr mould (see previous post about 35Whelen). Also, 35cal cans are available and cheaper than cans that would work for 44cal. Those rifle bullets would, at least in theory, fly better than the 4x caliber bullets.
I could probably put 10-12gr of Trail Boss in the 35 Whelen case and get the same effect though.
Chris
So last Christmas, my wife bought me a Henry Single Shot in 45-70 with a custom serial number ( my last name, sort of an heirloom piece). It had beautiful wood and once I sorted out the stupid heavy trigger (swapping springs fixed it) I mounted a Redfield 2-7 on it, sighted it in and then cleaned it and hung it on the wall(heirloom piece, remember?). The problem is I had to have a surrogate that I could actually shoot and hunt with. Enter a Ruger #1 in 30-06. It has okay wood and shows some hunting scars, but that just meant I got a good price and I don't feel bad about actually using it. The only problem is that led to a Ruger #1 in 45-70, because I had to have an actual 45-70 to substitute for the one on the wall, right? Now I find myself trolling around funbroker looking for single shots and cool antique guns like a fat kid outside an ice cream shop.