Heartcho Moonclips ?

[pmd]

Ok,

So I need more Moonclips for my 627-4 38super 8shot revolver.

I tried the ones from Brownells and they work so/so with my Starline brass. If I had no other options I could make them work (try other brass, etc..).

I have heard very good things about the Heartcho clips and plan to order a pile this week.

However they are exspensive ($7-$8 per clip).

What's your experience been ?

Are they worth the investment?

Thanks.

Paul

[underlug]

Yes, they are worth it. David is a good man who will answer your questions.

[hopalong]

Paul,

I don't have a 627 so I am giving you my experiences with 625,610, and 646 moons.

I like most others got my first moons from Brownells, good price they do a good enough job.....I think they are Ranch Products but I have been wrong before.

I want my rounds to fit tight in the moon clip to keep the bullet end from wobbling so much that they have to wobble around and then go in the cylinder holes, the Hearthco Moons are the tightest ones I have tried, they do allow a little wiggle but are way ahead of the "punched" out ones.

If you get enough you can get them at 7 bucks apiece.....pretty salty if I should say so myself..... compared to Brownells.

a standard S_I mag holds 18 rounds and runs you about 100 bucks.......

3 hearthco moons holding 18 rounds will run you 21 bucks

Dave machines his they are not punch press made like some of the other moons that are also cheaper to buy. Hearthco moonclips will be IDENTICAL to each other (until you step on them) the only variable will be brass mfg tolerances.

Hearthco moons come in two materials, Stainless steel and Spring steel... I have both and suggest the spring steel, it seems to be a little more durable.

I still have a large handfull of Brownells moonclips, I use them to practice and at local matches to avoid stepping on the Hearthco clips, Like I said they do work and some poeple would rather have the wobble... to each his own.

For me the Hearthco moonclips just help make reloading the revolver more consistant and that is what we are after, consitant reloads.

FWIW

Hopalng

[spook]

Thanks for the info Hop! Seems like I need to get myself a couple of these Hearthco clips.

[Carmoney]

I'm sorry but I can't see charging people $7 or $8 for any moonclip.

Plus, in my experience, tight moonclips are exactly what you don't want in a 627. With those long rounds, you need a little wobble or you will really be struggling halfway through the match as the gun starts to get dirty.

Mike

[Randy Lee]

Here's another plug from the Hearthco fanclub-

Dave is making some 38 short colt moonclips for me. The 38/357 clips are a little loose with Starline brass, but even more severe with the Starline SC's. Unfortunately, R-P nor Federal make short colt.

For those of you that don't know it, Dave is also the exclusive manufacturer of my hammers. His attention to dimension and detail is why my hammer has met with so much success. Like his moonclips, I know that each hammer is identical and will perform exactly as I have designed it.

As to the issue of price- you get what you pay for IMO.

I took an average of 10 reload runs with some odd brand clips and then with new Hearthco clips. The Hearthco clips with new R-P brass averaged about a .25 decrease in time over the other brand. It may not sound like much, but over the course of a match, those little bits add up.

Here is another testimonial for Dave's clips. At this years IRC on the Far and Near Standards- On the 10 yard string where you have the six shots/reload and six more within 10 seconds and have to hit x's of 6 Bianchi tombstone targets, the reload will kill you if you bobble it. I drew and indexed onto the first target, couldn't find my dot then realized that I had turned it off while I was waiting for my turn(yeah, pretty dumb I know). I figure it took me roughly 3-3.5 seconds to draw and realize what was wrong and turn my scope back on. That left 6.5-7 seconds to squeeze off 12 rounds plus a reload. I made the time limit with no mikes- not many x's on that run, but no mikes.

The point of the story isn't my stupidity or my ability to recover amidst disaster. The point is that under extreme stress, Dave's moonclip allowed me to do a sub-2 second reload and finish the string. Hearthco moonclips had once again proven their worth. I cannot say enough about Dave's ability to make high quality precision parts. In my mind, what you are paying for is not only the high performance moonclip, but all the years of knowledge and experience which went into it's development.

If it were easy, everyone would be making moonclips of Hearthco's quality.

Randy

[AzShooter]

I agree that the Hearthco moons are the way to go. Ranch Products is the OEM for Smith & Wesson and makes a good moon, especially his .45 moons. But I like the way the brass is held in the Hearthco clips better.

I have about 50 clips... some have gotten stepped on and had to be thrown away. I like to load all my ammo in the clips before a match and when you shoot the Steel Challange stages like we do here every month, you need a minimum of 37 moons.

I can count on my reloads to be the same each time and faster with Hearthco than with any other moons. I also have more confidence that if I need to go to an extra moon it will fall right in instead of wiggle it's way in.

[hopalong]

Spook, good to hear from you !!!! waiting on the world shoot to see how it all comes out !!!

Carmoney, Like I said.... I don't have a 627........

a quicky on Randy's .25 average.

we had 327 shots at the USPSA Nationals.....so we will go with a good number of 50 reloads in the match (likely a little less).

50 x .25 = 12.5 seconds

If you took 12.5 seconds off your match score where would you have ended up?

I think you (Carmoney) might have been 3rd but am only going by memory.

I know D. Carden would have finished ahead of Cliff Walsh if he had 12.5 seconds removed from his score.

I am not saying that Hearthco moonclips are the ONLY way to go, what I am saying is......If you don't mind spending the extra money they are another option out there that needs to be looked at.

I personally will not be caught at a major match without them.

Hopalong

[Carmoney]

Maybe I'm the only one this has happened to, but when I try to use moonclips that have rounds fitting tightly, I will periodically have one that doesn't quite want to drop down against the cylinder face--turn it around a different way and maybe it will go in OK, maybe not.

I have especially experienced this with the 627. Even with nice flat moonclips and good ammo, if the rounds fit so tightly they cannot be readily turned by hand while in the moonclip, they will occasionally bind. In a drastic case, the clip won't bottom, and the gun won't close, or if it does, it takes a 50-pound pull to turn the cylinder.

I don't want them too sloppy and floppy, but I definitely want them loose enough you can snap the rounds in by hand, sans tools, and then spin them around in place. Tighter than that and I get downright claustrophobic.

My only problem at Nationals was not bobbling reloads, or anything else related to gun-handling speed--it was having misses on several stages, i.e. pulling the trigger when the front sight was not where it should have been! Fortunately it didn't happen too terribly often, but I've decided that even one miss in a match is one miss too many.

[pmd]

My decision is made - I am gonna send David/ Hearthco - Master of the Universe some samples of my brass and get the order going.

Thanks for all your replys...

Paul

[Buff87]

My decision is made - I am gonna send David/ Hearthco - Master of the Universe some samples of my brass and get the order going.

absolutelly the only way to go with either 38super or 357 revolvers; Dave's clips are clearly worth the money (just ask me, I got more than anyone). BTW his hammers and Randy's triggers jobs are terrific also.

[hearthco]

Hi Guys,

Thanks to you ALL for the kind words. I do my best to keep the clips up to your expectations.

I dont expect to win you ALL over (after all, I really am IPSC trash), but just give me a chance by sending you a trial sample at no cost to you and I will let YOU decide what you want to use at the match. I do have a few notable folks using my products, so you can just ask around. Dave

[Carmoney]

OK, Dave, I received the sample moonclip you sent me, and I'm still not quite convinced......in order to make an intelligent determination as to whether these things are any good, I'm going to need to try a few more.

Please send 50 additional free samples to me at your earliest convenience.

Mike

[Randy Lee]

Hey Dave,

I'm going to get t-shirts made that say " Taking over USPSA one cylinder at a time!"

Here's to the Master of the Universe!

[Tom Mainus]

Dave made my moons for my 38 super. I sent him 100 rounds of my new starline 38 super brass and he made the moons to fit. Pricey , maybe. But I can reload that super with his moons just as fast as my 625. For the super I would highly recommend him. Great service, great guy to do business with. I don't even know where I got my moons for the 625, but whatever they are they work fine.

Tom.

[Guninhand]

Aren't Hearthco moon clips made of spring steel, so you could bend them somewhat without ruining them. I've got 12 but I'm not willing to risk one finding out.

[hopalong]

he uses two different materials:

Spring steel, and Stainless:

The spring steel is a darker grey than the stainless which is a shinny silver color.

Quick way to find out is put them on a magnet, the stainless should not stick if they are make from good low carbon stainless material.

If no magnet and you have some cold blueing the spring steel will take the blueing, the stainless won't.

Give it a whirl.

Hopalong

[hearthco]

OK, Dave, I received the sample moonclip you sent me, and I'm still not quite convinced......in order to make an intelligent determination as to whether these things are any good, I'm going to need to try a few more. 

Please send 50 additional free samples to me at your earliest convenience.

Mike

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Guess this thread dropped down to quick for me to have caught Carmoney's reply.I guess Mikey likes em enough to consider further eval. Dave