I have been thinking about making black powder for a few years and too the first step
- Thread starter silvercorvette
- Start date
It kinda surprises me that people are having such knee-jerk reactions to the idea of running a couple ounces of charcoal & sulfur in a ball mill. I took a spoonful of ball-milled charcoal/sulfur mix and tried to ignite it with an open flame. Not very exciting. It smoldered & smoked a little where the flame hit it. Smelled like sulfur.
Hey, guess what, it's not blackpowder without the potassium nitrate!
In the few weeks I've been experimenting with it, I've tried three different preparation methods. Some are better than others. I chronographed a couple of shots with each batch, comparing them to Goex 3Fg. The best homemade powder was right up there with the Goex, on a "weight" basis (eg, 20 gr of homemade vs. 20 gr of Goex).
The biggest difference I can see is that the homemade powder is less dense than the Goex. A powder measure designed for 40 gr of factory BP will only throw 30 gr of the homebrew stuff. In firearms like percussion revolvers and breechloading rifles (eg, Sharps, Smith) where chamber volumes are constrained, the reduced density of homemade BP might be an issue.... in this respect, I would agree that factory-made powder is superior.... however, I can still pour 30 gr of homebrew into the chamber of my Uberti .44 Remington's cylinder, and the "fluffy" homebrew powder compresses easily.
I don't know anything about loading blackpowder into rocket engines. It sounds like it might be a lot more complex than firearms powder. Just for the record, the last blackpowder I purchased from Graf & Sons came packaged in plastic containers.
Hey, guess what, it's not blackpowder without the potassium nitrate!
In the few weeks I've been experimenting with it, I've tried three different preparation methods. Some are better than others. I chronographed a couple of shots with each batch, comparing them to Goex 3Fg. The best homemade powder was right up there with the Goex, on a "weight" basis (eg, 20 gr of homemade vs. 20 gr of Goex).
The biggest difference I can see is that the homemade powder is less dense than the Goex. A powder measure designed for 40 gr of factory BP will only throw 30 gr of the homebrew stuff. In firearms like percussion revolvers and breechloading rifles (eg, Sharps, Smith) where chamber volumes are constrained, the reduced density of homemade BP might be an issue.... in this respect, I would agree that factory-made powder is superior.... however, I can still pour 30 gr of homebrew into the chamber of my Uberti .44 Remington's cylinder, and the "fluffy" homebrew powder compresses easily.
I don't know anything about loading blackpowder into rocket engines. It sounds like it might be a lot more complex than firearms powder. Just for the record, the last blackpowder I purchased from Graf & Sons came packaged in plastic containers.
silvercorvette and mrappe - yes, you guys, and me too, survived what many would today howl about being unsafe. Unfortunately, others didn't survive, and they aren't here to tell about it. Your survival, and mine, doesn't by any stretch of logic mean that it's actually ok to continue to intentionally pursue unsafe practices.
That being said, it's certainly possible to manufacture black powder safely. Understand the physics of the materials and the process and there's no reason why it can't be done safely and efficiently.
That being said, it's certainly possible to manufacture black powder safely. Understand the physics of the materials and the process and there's no reason why it can't be done safely and efficiently.
I made 2 half-pound batches of BP a couple of years ago. Used a rubber-drum rock tumbler and a bunch of .46 balls that I cast from hard lead for the ball mill. I used crude garden chemicals for the KNO3 and the sulfur, and I cooked my own charcoal using white cedar. I mixed it all up (including the saltpeter) and milled it for about 24 hours, then dampened the powder with some watered-down rubbing alcohol and pressed it thru a metal kitchen sieve.
When it was thoroughly dried, it worked pretty well in .45 Colt cartridges. The first test was less than spectacular (but it worked) because the powder was still too damp.
I think the limiting factor for my powder was the stump remover that I used for saltpeter. The sulfur is the least important ingredient, so 90% S from the garden center should be fine.
The charcoal is the most important ingredient.
I thought there was a sticky thread around here somewhere about homemade BP.
When it was thoroughly dried, it worked pretty well in .45 Colt cartridges. The first test was less than spectacular (but it worked) because the powder was still too damp.
I think the limiting factor for my powder was the stump remover that I used for saltpeter. The sulfur is the least important ingredient, so 90% S from the garden center should be fine.
The charcoal is the most important ingredient.
I thought there was a sticky thread around here somewhere about homemade BP.
HisSoldier
New member
It's just not politically correct. 
I feel sorry for people who figure out every possible reason why they can't do what our ancestors did as a matter of course.
Is it possible that people are worried about getting sued by saying anything other than "Don't do it!"?
I feel sorry for people who figure out every possible reason why they can't do what our ancestors did as a matter of course.
Is it possible that people are worried about getting sued by saying anything other than "Don't do it!"?
olmontanaboy
New member
I survived riding in cars before seat belts were invented and back when they had metal non-padded dashboards. My parents did not smoke but the smoke in my friends house was so thick you could cut it wit a knife. Believe it or not we rode bicycles without helmets and we put old lawnmower engines on bicycles that had brakes that barely worked and used to ride our motorbikes behind the trucks that were spraying a DDT fog for Misquitos. So if I made it this long I guess a few ounces of chemicals in a ball mill won't get me.
Well said, were being turned into a nation of frightened sheep by an ever growing number of bureacrats.
Well said, were being turned into a nation of frightened sheep by an ever growing number of bureacrats.
silvercorvette
New member
it reminds me of this quote
A coward dies many times before his death. The valiant never taste of death but once
Julius Caesar (William Shakespeare)
A coward dies many times before his death. The valiant never taste of death but once
Julius Caesar (William Shakespeare)
I would never say that making BP is as safe as gardening. Just, that it is probably not as risky, if you understand how to handle it with some education of the subject and common sense. I would read up as much as possible on the subject first. I am assuming that we are not talking about a teenager stuffing BP into a metal pipe or other truly risky things. If you do it right I don't see how it would be any more dangerous to mix small batches than it would be to handle a 1 pound can of Goex. You can certainaly hurt yourself with a can of commercial BP if you are not carefull. Lets put the risk into a reasonable perspective.
Interesting Now, it has been 40+ years ago but I remember doing something then not knowing exactly what I was doing. I took 2 concrete blocks and separated them about a 1/4 inch apart. I laid charcoal on top of them and ground them with a brick and let the particles fall within the 1/4 inch separation into a pan. I mixed it w salt peter and sulfer from the World Book encyclopedia on ratio. IT WORKED in my home made cannon. I think scraping the charcoal across the rough blocks made them kinda prism like and that helped. Never tried it again but might now since I'm 58. Tell me no
Now, it has been 40+ years ago but I remember doing something then not knowing exactly what I was doing. I took 2 concrete blocks and separated them about a 1/4 inch apart. I laid charcoal on top of them and ground them with a brick and let the particles fall within the 1/4 inch separation into a pan. I mixed it w salt peter and sulfer from the World Book encyclopedia on ratio. IT WORKED in my home made cannon. I think scraping the charcoal across the rough blocks made them kinda prism like and that helped. Never tried it again but might now since I'm 58. Tell me no