Quote Originally Posted by Ron3 View Post
Moon clips are kind of a hassle.

You have to match up cases with clip brand because some cases just wont fit. (And you damage the clip) or they fall out. Or they just flop too much. So you have to find ones that work right with your brass or vice versa.

Then you have to remove the brass when empty trying not to hurt your clips. I know they make tools for this but I haven't used one. I'd definitely try a speciality tool if I ever tried moon clips again.

You'll want moon clips enough for the maximum you may shoot in a day. Unless that clip-loading tool really works well. 300 rds? You'll need 50 clips for you 6-shooter.

And you have to get ones that arent too thick or too thin.
Most of these problems you describe are related to 38/357Mag.
The clips are thinner and are more susceptible to being bent. Also since the cartridges are long they provide more clip-bending leverage.
I made a de-mooning tool from a broken camp chair. 8" of small diameter steel tubing that I cut a lip on one end for twisting the edge of the clip off the brass. In one of his videos, Jerry M. says he made a tool from a golf club handle that looks very similar.

Some of the sizing nuance has shown up with 9mm also but its less of an issue. The clips are thicker and the cartridges don't get as much leverage so bending is less of an issue.

45s have heavy clips and are not picky about brands for the most part. I have modified a set of range clips that allow me to reload them easily without a tool. Filing each clip in six places took some patience but its a one time test of concentration that makes life much easier going forward. Now, anytime I use someone else's gear for a Model 25/625, I'm reminded why sat down with a file and stack of clips one afternoon.