Fillers

Z

ZVP

New member
It's driving me nuts!
Why do some guns need the ball right up to the forcing cone (with filler) and other guns don't even need a filler, just seat the ball fully.
There is no dimensional difference in the forcing cones of my '58Piettia Remington's yet one needs filler, the other shoots fine without it.
I am after accuracy so I try to do everything I can to get it but this filler stuff is weird!
BTW, I use Cream Of Wheat as filler,
Thanks for the help,
ZVP
 
filler

Easy solution.
Stop underloading the revolver.
You really aren't saving any money by doing so
The ball should be no more than roughly 1/16" below the cylinder face when loaded.
It only needs to be seated flush. Just enough clearance for the cylinder to turn freely.
 
Why do some guns need the ball right up to the forcing cone (with filler) and other guns don't even need a filler, just seat the ball fully.
Click to expand...
It's all about variables in tolerances and vibrations
Every gun is slightly different, even if they are made on consecutively on the same machines
 
I don't see the need for filler. As long as I can nail pop cans more often than not from 25 yards I'm happy.
 
I ran some tests and posted a thread here a while back.

I determined the minimum charge that the revolvers would take by seating a ball on an empty chamber, then removing the nipple and filling the chamber with powder through the threaded opening. Then I dumped it out and weighed the charge and pushed the ball out with a rod.

This enabled me to determine the minimum non-compressed charge that could be put into the revolvers without resulting in an air gap.

I then worked up loads from there to the maximum in 5-grain increments, and I tried them both with and without cream of wheat filler. Without the filler, I simply pushed the ball until it seated on the powder. With the filler, I used enough filler so that the ball loaded just flush with the cylinder face.

In no case was a no-filler load more accurate than a filler load.

From this I conclude that for best accuracy it is beneficial to seat the ball flush with the cylinder face.

Here is the thread:
http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=549051&highlight=filler

Steve
 
Every Rem. NMA I have or have had did very good with 30grs. Real Black FFFg lubed felt wad then seat the ball. No filler no grease over the ball, and all six chambers loaded. With some good fitting #10 caps. Works for me.
 
It depends on how serious you are, just ringing steel or tin cans.
You sure don't get the bullet right next to the barrel with a cartridge revolver. If I load less powder than can be compressed I have added filler, but my 11 year old daughter can handle better loads than that.
 
Well at 30 or 35 gr I am NOT undercharging the NMA.
Fillers do help with accurcy on some revolvers, you have to test em all!
Building out with wads would cost way more than COW so it's cheap.
The quest for accuracy will continue...
BTW as a side note:
Over the ball lubes just melt off with the first shot and consecutive shots lessen the coating even more, so actual softening of powder residue decreases with each shot too.
ZVP
 
Why wimp it with a black powder revolver? You are not saving enough powder you will have a different point of impact if you ever fill the cyllinders and shoot it right and lastly most fiver year olds can handle the recoil of a ROA.

Brass framed revolvers have to be down loaded to preven fram streatching but other wise.......

If you think 30 grains of FFF gives recoil then you must be scared to ever get a dragoon or walker but a five year old could handle one of them too if the used a shooting stick to hold it up.
 
Recoil of the Walker is totally manageable even with a full 60 grain load because the darn thing weighs 5 pounds.

But, if you're a competition shooter, you'll load down because optimal group size almost never happens at the maximum load.

With my Walker, the optimal group size happens at 45 grains 3F Goex. Less or more than this opens up the group. So, for N-SSA competition, I have the gun sited in for 45 grain loads.

Steve
 
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