I have seen a comment (probably the blue forum) that someone was told to use Euro brass in an MR73 that had noticeable end shake, and it would effectively act as a spacer to take up the shake clearance. Don't remember whether he thought it was plausible, or actually tried it and found it to be the case. In any case, I would say that that relying on rims vs. headspace to take up end shake is likely to eventually go poorly, and is the kind of strategy that is basically a b.s. excuse for something not being right in the first place. Can't say I've seen anything discussed in that realm in terms of actual headspace measurements. Hard to imagine that Euro brass would be systematically greater than SAAMI/CIP max specs, or that Chapuis/Manurhin would intentionally build guns greater than SAAMI/CIP max specs. Generally, brass on the high end but not over and guns on the low end but not under would be the best situation.
The people most knowledgeable who are posting on the internet seem to be long on the history and specs and stuff in the brochure. Some even shoot them, though only a handful (single digits) at anywhere near a level that would be considered heavy use on this forum. They are relatively shorter on actually (at least discussing) things like measurements, etc.
It's kinda frustrating to not be able to put my hands on one. With S&Ws and Rugers, the depth and detail of what I learn by getting into one very quickly exceeds what can be read in any number of hours surfing the web, and I fairly often and quickly figure out stuff that I have never seen mentioned anywhere, by anybody, in years of reading. In my recent journey through a J frame, I discovered and addressed a potential problem area that's not even mentioned in Kuhnhausen.
I feel like with the MR/Mongoose questions, I've basically read all there is to read on the web (at least in English). The threads are getting to where even the people who know what they are talking about (also those who clearly don't) are just saying the same things over and over, and I don't have answers to my questions. Like this post, where two of us who are both doing our diligence before likely shelling out find ourselves repeating what we've read elsewhere but haven't actually measured anything.
Ultimately, I have internalized Trust No One at a level so deep that I should perhaps think about whether it's healthy. I don't have any good way of knowing that the durability and other quality aspects observed forty years ago and discussed ever since will actually be present in a recent production gun I might buy today. That's ultimately what's holding me back. I'm getting close to just buying one, because there seems to be no substitute for doing so. If I am disappointed and sell it, I could probably get my money back, if not make a profit in a few months or years. If I lose a few hundred, that's getting to be less and less bad a deal compared to the time I'm going in circles not being able to find any more reliable information.
Buy the ticket, take the ride. F around and find out.
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Not another dime.
On my MR73, the throats all took a .358 minus pin gauge. Slugging the barrel got me roughly .356, maybe a touch less. I need to make a form so I can press some lead sinkers into more cylindrical shapes to make sure about the slug sizes. There wasn’t quite enough bearing surface for me to be completely sure of groove diameter using the lubricated lead sinkers tapped into the barrel with a brass punch. Assuming that I didn’t screw up the slug measurements, that is right in line with a 9.04mm (.3559”) groove diameter published by Zeleny.
I have been dealing with leaks in my workshop, but I can take better measurements and check BC gap and cylinder to breechface gap in about week once the dust settles.
OlongJohnson - I truly understand and sympathize.
If you are ever near Texas, you are will to come and shoot mine when it arrives in my grubby mitts.
Those look really, really cool.
Fortunately, as I started thinking about how cool they are and how I have enough slush/fun money to buy one stocked up, I pulled the 6” 28-2 out of the safe, said, “well, crap, this one’s pretty cool, paid for, and hasn’t been shot but once or twice in the last year.”
Hope someone I know gets one so I can try it out, but I will quietly sit back and not. At least, not this month.
Last edited by Duelist; 05-09-2021 at 06:40 PM.
You can get an extra 9x19 luger cylinder for the MR73... with those thight throat and groove diameters I bet the 9x19 shoots just fine too in this revolver.
Especially if you run the Hornady HAP .356 125gr bullet.
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Not another dime.