BP load info for smokeless cartridges?

[awp101]

OK, I'm on meds for a sinus infection and this goofy question popped into my head.

What kind of load info would one use if they were thinking of loading .357M or .44M with BP? 2F or 3F?

Questions like this are the only thing I like about getting sick...

[Chuck 100 yd]

3F , I have shot BP in almost every pistol cartridge I have ever owned even the .45 ACP (just for fun) Does better than one would think. Give it a try!

[O.S.O.K.]

Yes, fffg. And this is really easy. You just fill the case to the point that the bullet/wad will compress the powder about 1/16" or so.

[Ysabel Kid]

Huh... why?

I feel for you. I usually get 5 or 6 sinus infections every year. No fun. I woke up last night shortly after 1:00am, having got the stomach flu that ripped through our family last week. I thought I had escaped without getting it, but no such luck. Was up the rest of the night either sitting on the can or throwing up into it.

A lot of strange questions popped into my head too!

[O.S.O.K.]

Sinus infections - yeah, me too - but only about every other year now. If I get a full blown head cold, the sinus infection is bound to follow...

[awp101]

I'm good for at least one bout of sinusitus a year. Smoking doesn't help... Worked hard 23DEC to get the 24th off instead of working a half day 24DEC and woke up the morning of the 24th with this crud.

YK, why? Why not? I believe Phil Spangenberger loaded some .45ACP back in the 70s to run through a TMSG and I am aware of another guy who did CW and WWII reenacting that loaded up some 9mm BP loads to run through an MP40. I just wish there had been video (and smell-o-vision ) of either/both range sessions!

[w30wcf]

Back in the day, 3F was used in the .38 Special and 2F in the .44's.

In the .357 Mag case, 23 grs. of Swiss 3F gives good accuracy and a 160 gr. bullet close to 1,300 f.p.s. in a 24" barrel.

In the .44-40, 40 grs. of Swiss FFG pushes a 200 gr bullet to 1,330 f.p.s. (24").


What fun it is......
w30wcf

[gary rice]

Huh... why?

I feel for you. I usually get 5 or 6 sinus infections every year. No fun. I woke up last night shortly after 1:00am, having got the stomach flu that ripped through our family last week. I thought I had escaped without getting it, but no such luck. Was up the rest of the night either sitting on the can or throwing up into it.

A lot of strange questions popped into my head too!

Try a product called "sineupret" it's the only thing that has ever worked for me and it's natural. cant get in stores that i know of but on the internet. about $12 for 15 tabs or so.

[Nath]

Yk my friend, tis cos it's fun and shooter satisfying

Try a grease cookie in place of a card wad, makes cleaning easier and if you can not clean soon helps protect the bore if any salts mix with humidity. Candle wax/olive oil poored onto baking paper then punched, you will have to experiment on the exact mix because I have no idea really. I'm only going of what I have seen
Apparently it is important to see a wet lube star at the muzzle for good accuracy, this way you know the lube is lasting all the barrel length.

Nath

[perry owens]

Grease cookies are fine but they take up a lot of space in a small case like a .357. Also they will stick to the base of the bullet unless you use a milk carton wad between cookie and bullet. I find a 0.030 thick l.d.p.e. wad works fine if the bullets are lubed with 50:50 beeswax/olive oil mixture. If loading into a revolver and you want extra lube you can always dip the heads into Udderly Smooth or the wife's moisturizer cream. When you have finished shooting black send a few smokeless rounds through the bore to blow out the worst of the crud.
Perry Owens

[JimT]

The biggest problem you will encounter is the lube.

Smokeless power lube will cake up with the black residue, get hard and plug your bore. I was shooting black in my Blackhawk 357. After 6 or 8 shots I could not keep them on an 8 1/2 X 11 sheet of paper at 15 yards. The bullets that hit the paper did so sideways left funnly-looking oblong narrow holes.

I recovered one of the bullets and it was about 25 caliber and very long. Looking down the bore I found it to be nearly plugged with gunky black stuff. Took quite a bit of work to clean it out.

Now .. if you use lube that's for black powder you will do fine ...

Just a "Heads Up"..

[Chuck 100 yd]

SPG....nuf said!

[awp101]

Thanks! I just happen to have two sticks of SPG around here...

[Nath]

Grease cookies are fine but they take up a lot of space in a small case like a .357. Also they will stick to the base of the bullet unless you use a milk carton wad between cookie and bullet. I find a 0.030 thick l.d.p.e. wad works fine if the bullets are lubed with 50:50 beeswax/olive oil mixture. If loading into a revolver and you want extra lube you can always dip the heads into Udderly Smooth or the wife's moisturizer cream. When you have finished shooting black send a few smokeless rounds through the bore to blow out the worst of the crud.
Perry Owens

There you go, someone who does it

Nath.

[Don McDowell]

If all you have is smokeless lubed bullets , just put a few in a pan of boiling water and let that hard smokeless lube boil out. Remove the pan from the heat and when the water cools enough the lube will be a hard wax floating on top . You can carefully pick that lube off and use it in place of wads under the bullet, just push the case mouth thru the wafer after the powder has been put in, and seat your now bp lubed bullet.
Make sure that the bullet and powder are in firm contact and you're good to go.
If you don't want to mess with relubing bulllets, you can simply load your bp , and when the cylinder is full, just squeeze the mouth of each cylinder full of something like t/c borebutter, or Crisco from the wifes bakin supplies.
Be sure and clean the empty cases when you're thru. Just put them in a jug some simple green and slosh em around untill the liquid in the jug is mostly black, then rinse, and let the cases dry. When they're dry run them thru the tumbler , and you're good to do it all over again.

[awp101]

just squeeze the mouth of each cylinder full of something like t/c borebutter, or Crisco from the wifes bakin supplies.

You've obviously never met my wife. Her idea of making dinner is making reservations... I do 99.9% of the cooking around here.

What's a l.d.p.e wad?

[Don McDowell]

Okdoky then just make sure its the white fakey lard stuff, and not the oil

Low Density Poly Ethelene (plastic) They've been associated with some rung bpcr chambers in the last year or so.

[Nath]

Plastic in a BP load,,,, disgusting!

Same here on the cooking awp101

Nath.

[Doc Hudson]

I'd use the same rule of thumb as for percussion firearms. FFFg for calibers below .40 and FFg for calibers above .40.

Not saying it is THE WAY, just saying it is the way I'd do it.