Callshot Brass?
You remember Callshot, he’s my one-eyed, short-legged, missing trigger-finger buddy from Idaho. Here are a few previously written stories to get you caught up, if the name draws a blank for you:
At one point, Callshot got caught in a brass avalanche as he counted them out.
In a nutshell, Callshot had to retire early in order to take care of his wife, Betty, who had MS. She was bedridden for 11 years and Steve was her sole support. It was a full-time job taking care of Betty, but Steve did it without complaint. In honor of his dedication, the Callshot Fan Club was formed, made up by his friends.
We all chipped in and got Callshot his very own 5.5″ Ruger Bisley Flat Top in .44 Special. What came next is the amazing story of how Callshot brass came about. After all, a Callshot gun needs appropriate Callshot brass.
Here’s another of the Callshot headstamp.
Betty was taking a turn for the worse and we didn’t know how much longer she would be with us. Steve was shooting his “Callshot Bisley” every chance he could, but due to Betty’s needs, it was becoming a rare occurrence.
Callshot had special reloading labels made up, joining in the fun.
The Plan — Or Joke?
We needed a plan to distract Steve during these trying times. Fighting cabin fever, frustration, sadness and just shear exhaustion, the wheels of several computer friends’ minds was set in motion. We joked about getting some custom “Callshot brass” made by Starline Brass on one of the gun forums. Someone jokingly said they’d be proud to buy 500 brass .44 Special cases of specially marked “Callshot Brass.”
Then another person posted the same, followed by another and before you knew it, we had a genuine Callshot Brass avalanche of orders.
That’s a lot of brass!
The Details…
Starline Brass informed us we needed a minimum order of 100,000 pieces of brass, plus a set-up fee for a custom die. Ouch.
After weeks of order taking, I think we had over 42,000 pieces on order. We had a design made up with Callshot CFC, for Callshot Fan Club .44 Spc. Although we were short 58,000, Steve was able to convince Starline to produce the brass.
Callshot even got Elmer’s approval on the project!
Here’s the long awaited day, the delivery of 42,000 Callshot .44 Spc. Brass!
Waiting…
So we have Starlines word production will take place for the special order. During this time, Betty continues to get weaker, losing more functionality of her arms and ability to talk. Steve is pretty much stuck at home, taking care of her, being the sole source of care.
One day a big truck pulls up and unloads two huge bins full of brass. Steve will have his work cut out for him, as he needs to hand count batches of 500 to 1,000 pieces of brass to ship out the orders for those who partook in this special project.
Callshot said it was a great distraction counting out the brass during this particularly tough time. Betty died before Steve shipped out the last of the brass, but he got it done.
Close-up of the infamous Callshot brass headstamp.
Sentimental Saps
So if you’re ever at the range, scrounging brass, as we do from time to time, and stumble across the “Callshot CFC .44 Spc.” head stamp, you’ll know the story behind the custom cartridge brass. It’s a story about a buncha’ knuckle-headed sixgunners helping a brother in need, all while having a little bit of fun along the way.
Callshot has since remarried to Christine, who ironically went through the same ordeal as Steve. Her husband had MS. Today they travel frequently together and are living happily ever after.
For more info: https://www.starline/
