Gun Dog Forum

Looking at getting a new blank pistol in the near future, my old cheapo is ready for the garbage can and looking to upgrade. Was wondering which I should get between 209 primer vs .22/.32, what do you prefer and why? I reload and shoot muzzle loader so have a large supply of 209 primers not sure how loud they are coming out of a starter pistol. Thanks

I replaced my 22 blank pistol with a 209 primer pistol because as you noted, the availability of 209 primers is simple and easy. I find the 209 primers much cleaner and more reliable as well. I think the 209s are loud enough for the purpose but have not compared them to a 32 blank.

Garrison -

Here is the deal.
Forget the .32. The blanks cost about a buck a shot.

The only real reason for the .32 was because it was required for high end field trials. Not so anymore. A 209 primer pistol is fine for just about any field trial except a couple that neither you nor me will be attending anyway. And YES the 209 is loud but not as sharp a report as a .22.

A GOOD .22 pistol is probably all you will need. If you can get hold of an old NEF in .22 caliber , it will handle everything from the 22 baby crimps, which are about as loud as a capgun...to black powder blanks which are louder than most 32's.
I typically use #2 ramset loads in my 22, when I use it , which is not often. The .22 has one huge advantage over the 209. The 22 holds 9 shots, the 209 holds 6. FWIW the.32 holds 5.

I use, almost exclusively, a 209 primer pistol these days. I've bought a few of them and one I would avoid is the Traditions pistol. it is about $80 these days and I have had three of them. Each lasted in the neighborhood of a thousand shots and the striker mechanism broke on each of them. I bought a GunX which I loved... but I lost it. I replaced it with and ALFA pistol which is still going strong.

A word of caution. Not all primers work flawlessly in all guns. Winchester primers are very soft copper and have been known to rupture(and Jam). Cheddite primers are kinda flat and don't always fire. Remington 209's worked fine, most of the time but I had a few that didn't fire the first time the firing pin struck them. I have had the best luck with CCI primers. Can't recall a failure when using them am I've gone through a couple of bricks of 5000.

I will back track a bit here... If you are going to train just one dog, and then pretty much put it away... the Traditions does make a lot of sense, since it works fine and costs less than half what an ALFA does. You will train several bird dogs before you burn a thousand training shots.

If you have, or can get an older NEF .32 for a good price, there is a gunsmith who will convert it to a 6 shot 209. I had one done and he charged me $100 plus shipping. The neat thing is that I can use the original cylinder and still shoot 32's if I so desire. An NEF will last several lifetimes.

RayG

Thank you, quandary no longer. Looks like I will be shrinking my CCI 209 stockpile.

I used the alpha.22 blank pistol for training purposes. Very happy with it.

https://www.gundogsupply.com/blanpisandho.html

Sharon wrote:I used the alpha.22 blank pistol for training purposes. Very happy with it.

https://www.gundogsupply.com/blanpisandho.html

Thanks Sharon, I was looking at the Alphas.

Garrison, I have an old NEF .22 that works like the day I bought it - which was MANY years ago.
I am currently looking for a primer blank gun because of the volume of rounds I use on a regular basis. The primers are much cheaper when you are dealing with volume.
This is something I found attractive for a multitude of reasons.
https://www.lcsupply.com/Charter-Arms-2 ... /CAPRO209/

I recently bought a Charter Arms Pro 209. My Training partner has used his for the past year, it is a cut above.

I had a H&R. I hated loading and unloading that thing. Especially in the field. You end up with a lot of small parts in your hands to load it. I gave it away.

I bought a Gun X stainless steel 209 gun. It's been flawless and the swing out cylinder is much more convenient.