How long can you leave a cylinder loaded?
- Thread starter secondeagle
- Start date
Lee McNelly
Moderator
blasphemy no
way to quit worrying YES
less worry less cleaning less equipment to buy
way to quit worrying YES less worry less cleaning less equipment to buy
Bill Akins
New member
Not sure of Daniel Defoe's knowledge or veracity regarding black powder of his day, but in my Robinson Crusoe book, Defoe has Crusoe salvaging kegs of black powder from his partially sunken ship, then spreading the powder out to dry it in the sun and re-using it for his guns on the island. Now I realize the story is a fiction based upon a compilation of supposedly true stories of other real shipwrecked survivors. But if there is any truth to what Defoe wrote about the drying out of the powder, then it would seem that although if black powder gets soaked it likely will not ignite, but if it is dried out it will ignite again.....and that when dried out it would still work even in the high humidity of Crusoe's tropical island. And remember, Defoe's Crusoe was using flintlock rifles and pistols with barrel touchholes and priming pans. Which would be much more susceptible to moisture ingress to the powder than a better sealed percussion revolver.
If that is true, then one would think that if a percussion revolver with a good seal against the powder by lead ring shaved projectiles, and a tight cap fitted....that it should have even less hygroscopic proclivities.
I live in Florida where the humidity is so high both in the winter, spring and summer, that you can almost cut it with a knife. People from the northern states (of aggression
) always think it's so wonderful to come and live in Florida. Well let this Florida born and raised ole cracker tell ya, in the winter even if our temperatures don't get as low as some other states, it feels colder than it should because of the humidity cutting at you like ice. Then in the spring it's not quite as bad, but still the humidity is always high, then in the summer.....it's like an unbelievable sauna here. If you step outside during the summer from your air conditioning, the humidity and heat hit you like a brick wall.
If black powder would wick moisture from the humidity in the air when sealed behind a ball in a cylinder even with a cap on the nipple, surely if anywhere....it would do it in Florida since the humidity here is so high. I have four cans left of my old stash of black powder that I've had for about 20 years or so. (I recently bought some new cans too.) First the older cans were stored in an old metal lawn shed when I lived in St Petersburg, Florida. Plenty of moisture could have gotten to them there but it didn't. Then they were moved into my garage when I moved to Lutz Florida. Plenty of humidity in that garage too. No hygroscopic problems. Then they were moved to my shop where I reside in Hudson, Florida. I shoot today from those cans to use them up before I go to my newer cans, and have never had any dampness problems or failures with the black powder. Of course being in the cans with the caps on tight, is not the same as being loaded in a chamber with perhaps a loose fitting percussion cap. So the analogy is not exactly the same. Still, 20+ years of Florida humidity and no problems for my cans of BP.
Which makes me wonder if the early Florida settlers ever had any hygroscopic problems with their powder being loaded. And if they did, how did they deal with that? Since I have cartridge guns for self defense, I have no need to keep my BP revolvers loaded until I am ready to shoot them right away. But back in the 1850's/'60's, Florida settlers did not have that luxury and had to keep their BP revolvers loaded, ready for any emergency. I haven't looked for any historical data on whether or not they had problems with their powder getting damp being loaded in their revolvers. But perhaps there is some historical documentation out there if they had problems with it.
We had a civil war naval battle just up the road from me at Bayport, where a Union gunboat came in and sank several Confederate blockade runners, one of which is still under the Bayport pier. I've scuba dived close to that area but never checked out the wreck since it is likely under silt under the pier and no doubt hundreds of lost fish hooks and line are down on top of it making it too dangerous to dive. Plus it's very shallow and mushy there. Just a few feet deep and the blockade runner burned to the waterline anyway. Nothing really to see even if it wasn't all silted under.
Anyway....the Union gunboat was fired on by Confederate shore cannon batteries and rifle pits (the locations of which still exist and I'd like to run my metal detector over them cause the reports said the Union gunboat's fire was so accurate the Confederates had to abandon their batteries for a short time before coming back to fire again, which means there should be some projectiles there in the ground). But I digress again.....
I wonder if those fellas on either side had any damp powder problems? I also wonder if standard black powder is supposed to be so hygroscopic, then why wouldn't it get damp from the humidity on the ships at sea? We also had a Seminole indian/army battle a few miles northeast of me.
Surely back in those days they kept their weapons loaded all the time. Wonder if there is any documentation about hygroscopic damp powder problems from that battle or any other written historical incident of powder failure while loaded back in those days in Florida. Anyone know?
.
If that is true, then one would think that if a percussion revolver with a good seal against the powder by lead ring shaved projectiles, and a tight cap fitted....that it should have even less hygroscopic proclivities.
I live in Florida where the humidity is so high both in the winter, spring and summer, that you can almost cut it with a knife. People from the northern states (of aggression
) always think it's so wonderful to come and live in Florida. Well let this Florida born and raised ole cracker tell ya, in the winter even if our temperatures don't get as low as some other states, it feels colder than it should because of the humidity cutting at you like ice. Then in the spring it's not quite as bad, but still the humidity is always high, then in the summer.....it's like an unbelievable sauna here. If you step outside during the summer from your air conditioning, the humidity and heat hit you like a brick wall. If black powder would wick moisture from the humidity in the air when sealed behind a ball in a cylinder even with a cap on the nipple, surely if anywhere....it would do it in Florida since the humidity here is so high. I have four cans left of my old stash of black powder that I've had for about 20 years or so. (I recently bought some new cans too.) First the older cans were stored in an old metal lawn shed when I lived in St Petersburg, Florida. Plenty of moisture could have gotten to them there but it didn't. Then they were moved into my garage when I moved to Lutz Florida. Plenty of humidity in that garage too. No hygroscopic problems. Then they were moved to my shop where I reside in Hudson, Florida. I shoot today from those cans to use them up before I go to my newer cans, and have never had any dampness problems or failures with the black powder. Of course being in the cans with the caps on tight, is not the same as being loaded in a chamber with perhaps a loose fitting percussion cap. So the analogy is not exactly the same. Still, 20+ years of Florida humidity and no problems for my cans of BP.
Which makes me wonder if the early Florida settlers ever had any hygroscopic problems with their powder being loaded. And if they did, how did they deal with that? Since I have cartridge guns for self defense, I have no need to keep my BP revolvers loaded until I am ready to shoot them right away. But back in the 1850's/'60's, Florida settlers did not have that luxury and had to keep their BP revolvers loaded, ready for any emergency. I haven't looked for any historical data on whether or not they had problems with their powder getting damp being loaded in their revolvers. But perhaps there is some historical documentation out there if they had problems with it.
We had a civil war naval battle just up the road from me at Bayport, where a Union gunboat came in and sank several Confederate blockade runners, one of which is still under the Bayport pier. I've scuba dived close to that area but never checked out the wreck since it is likely under silt under the pier and no doubt hundreds of lost fish hooks and line are down on top of it making it too dangerous to dive. Plus it's very shallow and mushy there. Just a few feet deep and the blockade runner burned to the waterline anyway. Nothing really to see even if it wasn't all silted under.
Anyway....the Union gunboat was fired on by Confederate shore cannon batteries and rifle pits (the locations of which still exist and I'd like to run my metal detector over them cause the reports said the Union gunboat's fire was so accurate the Confederates had to abandon their batteries for a short time before coming back to fire again, which means there should be some projectiles there in the ground). But I digress again.....
I wonder if those fellas on either side had any damp powder problems? I also wonder if standard black powder is supposed to be so hygroscopic, then why wouldn't it get damp from the humidity on the ships at sea? We also had a Seminole indian/army battle a few miles northeast of me.
Surely back in those days they kept their weapons loaded all the time. Wonder if there is any documentation about hygroscopic damp powder problems from that battle or any other written historical incident of powder failure while loaded back in those days in Florida. Anyone know?
.
Last edited:
OutlawJoseyWales
New member
Thanks for the info Bill, been wondering what would happen to my powder here in the garage in Central Florida. Being a newbie with BP, there's alot to learn. But that's one of the things that makes this hobby so much more fun than ca'tridge shootin'.
I found this website after I bought my 1st revolver from Cabela's.
It was on sale for $119, and I couldn't pass it up. Must have been a typo or something. Anyway, I bought it, and have not stopped since.
It's like an infection or something.
The history aspect of BP shooting is also a fun part of this. I just hadn't taken the time to look into BP shooting, but once I did, I realized what awesome a time I was missing. I guess it's not for everybody, but I got my brother involved recently and he is...get this, a Civil War historian. I guess there's just some of us who are just plain slow. I'm so jealous of the guys who tell how they've been shooting these wonderful revolvers since the 60's...well, some longer than that. But still, wish I'd started years ago.
Bill, I've also studied Florida's contribution to "The War" for a number of years.
If anyone has to ask "which War?" well, I just know what to think about that.
OJW
I found this website after I bought my 1st revolver from Cabela's.
It was on sale for $119, and I couldn't pass it up. Must have been a typo or something. Anyway, I bought it, and have not stopped since.
It's like an infection or something.
The history aspect of BP shooting is also a fun part of this. I just hadn't taken the time to look into BP shooting, but once I did, I realized what awesome a time I was missing. I guess it's not for everybody, but I got my brother involved recently and he is...get this, a Civil War historian. I guess there's just some of us who are just plain slow. I'm so jealous of the guys who tell how they've been shooting these wonderful revolvers since the 60's...well, some longer than that. But still, wish I'd started years ago.
Bill, I've also studied Florida's contribution to "The War" for a number of years.
If anyone has to ask "which War?" well, I just know what to think about that.
OJW
There are many accounts of soldiers drying their powder after rains, river crossings, etc. so that it would be usable in battle.
I have left my repro Remington loaded with BP or Pyrodex for 6-10 years at a time and never had a failure to fire. It wasn't left in the weather and the caps were waterproofed with melted wax.
As to the Pyrodex etching or corroding metal, I haven't seen any evidence of that.
I have left my repro Remington loaded with BP or Pyrodex for 6-10 years at a time and never had a failure to fire. It wasn't left in the weather and the caps were waterproofed with melted wax.
As to the Pyrodex etching or corroding metal, I haven't seen any evidence of that.
Lee McNelly
Moderator
leave loaded
as long as Gen Lee or how many licks does it take for a totsie pop
as long as Gen Lee or how many licks does it take for a totsie pop