Cowboy mounted shooting?

I have been wanting to do mounted shooting for YEARS. There aren't any clubs around this area that do it, I'm hoping when we move we will be able to find a club. I don't think my mare could handle the sport though, we've beeing working on her lameness issues but who knows if she will ever be sound enough for more than trail riding

See my other post regarding reloading live ammo brass as blanks. You should either get blank brass (Starline sells it) or make sure to drill out the primer hole.


Thanks for the info. I don't know if Hubby knows this or not! He has done alot of research, but I will mention it to him!

I'm really looking into starting this as well, I'm not sure if it's taken off in MI, but I may even just do it for fun on my own property, but as far as the gun goes, regulation is you have to use a .45 revolver??

Yes, all three organizations have standardized on single action, .45LC revolvers. They also use black powder blanks.

Even if you plan to load your own blanks, I would suggest purchasing some 1/2 loads and full loads from a "certified" source. This will give you a consistent and safe load for training. It can also be used as a reference point for creating your own.

Note that .45s and the black powder both make for a unique sound. It is a low "boom." Some people have access to a .22 starter pistol (or even firecrackers!) and think those make a good training tool. While it can work, I disagree. Smaller calibers and smokeless powder both provide a much higher pitched "crack" sound. This, IMO, is more likely to irritate the horse.

When I shoot my .22 starter pistol, my ears ring. It is very uncomfortable. Horses have better hearing and I can only imagine how uncomfortable it is for them. Not the way you want to start training.

By contrast, my .45 with a full black powder load doesn't bother my ears at all. The low "boom" is much easier to tolerate.

If you have a SASS club in your area, they can often be a great source of information on black powder and reloads.

Hope this helps.

There is shooting all the time around here. I shoot and my neighbor is a Reserve Sniper and is always shooting. I use to hunt of my stallion when I lived in Tn. Non of my horses care about the noise. Plus the people I know around here who do mounted shooting uses ear plugs for themselves and their horses.

It would be fun in a way to give it a go. Just not sure I want to buy 2 .45s

Do you use ear plugs when hunting off their back?

I would be interested in giving it a shot but I am with NRHAreiner, I don't really want to go out and buy such expensive guns just for that. For normal use, a .45 is waaay to big for me. Dobe would take to it like a hog to slop though. I have shot off him before and he doesn't mind it at all. Too bad my aim with pistols isn't that great unless I am standing on my own 2 feet or a still horse LOL.

At times I do and at others I did not. Just really depending on what I was hunting the gun I was using. When I shoot here at the house I personally use ear plugs and of course the horses do not and they are all with in about 50 yards of where I am shooting.

What I find when shooting off their backs is since I am using a real gun with real ammo that you have to condition then to the ejection of the shell and the crap that flies out of the breach. Especially when shooting revolvers which I have done for fun off my stallion. He loves it however it did take a bit to get him use to stuff hitting him.

I think my next ride I'm going to bring my 20 gauge through the woods and try to get dinner and see how Nova reacts to a gun. She's not spooky at all, and I don't anticipate any problems though. She's very level headed, but still green as far as training goes.

I would get her use too it at home first. I shoot a lot and the horses are use to it just from me skeet shooting and target shooting over the years. Not sure I would have just climed on and when out to go hunting off of Te with out shooting around the house like I did.

Also check your local laws regarding hinting horse back. Some areas you can and others you may not.