Loading technique critique requested

R

RemTim

Moderator
I found this article a while back Preventing Chain Fires and followed the advice given and chamfered my cylinders. The .454 has less lead shaved off of it than before. The shaved ring is not uniform. I am not sure, since used a cotton swab to seal it up which crisco, (after wiping the cylinder wall with a different swab to remove any powder) so I can't be certain but I believe the shaved ring was thicker near the outer edge of the cylinder and the center. I was considering trying a .457 ball since the chambers now accommodate a larger ball than before. Should I go back to a .451 ball? I am seeking a perfect seal in order to have a rounder ball in order to increase accuracy. I do not want to sacrifice safety in order to achieve more accuracy. I wipe crisco on the edge of the chamber as the article suggests. I do not use wads or fill in the chamber in front of the ball. It seem logical that the lube should be behind the ball as any in front will be pushed out.
What do you guys think about this technique?
This guy suggests putting 10 grains of corn meal between the powder and ball to reduce fouling. I haven't bothered to do that as I usually don't shoot more than one cylinder at a time. I would brush and lube the bore in between cylinders.
I know much of you use wonder wads and the like, but if I can achieve the same results without them, I will take the cheaper route. I have never used the wads before.
This technique works pretty well for me, but I would appreciate your imput on this technique.
 
As a Bullseye target shooter only, Me and my buddys use "Creme-of-Wheat"
as a filler. The ball sweges in the chamber without shaving any lead. A mixture
of beeswax and motor oil goes over the ball. The mixture is stiff like Crisco.
We wipe the chambers and barrel after every 5 shots.
 
Why 5 shots instead of 6? I assume it is because of thew empty cylinder under the hammer. Threw me off; it is six for me as the remmy has the safety notches between the nipples.
 
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The range officers will not let you load all six in a match. Plus all pistol matches are 10 shots. It's easier to keep track just loading five.
 
My bad. Never been to a fancy shootin ange. I have a shooter's paradise in my back yard. 20 acres or so of open field, then a pond, woods then an old mill pond, then more woods; plenty of places to shoot and no one to give me any rules to follow.:D,,,and my inlaws own the land.:D:D:D
IMG_0191.jpg
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Oh by the way, you wouldn't believe the deer out in the clearing early in the morning. I could sit on the toilet and shoot out the window.:D
 
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I've always used straight Crisco lard, after every chamber was charged - packing what little room atop the ball was left, wiping the Crisco off flush with the chamber mouth(s).

Besides providing double insurance against any chainfiring/crossfiring, Crisco postioned ahead of the ball has zero chance of fouling the powder on hot days, or in a cylinder hot from frequent shooting - and is pushed ahead of the ball, lubricating it during it's travel downbore.

I've always used the same .457" ball in both my .45 capguns (an Italian M1860 & a stainless ROA), shaving off a nice little ring all around each chamber mouth at seating.

CapnBall.jpg
 
packing what little room atop the ball was left, wiping the Crisco off flush with the chamber mouth(s).
Click to expand...
I tried that for a while, the crisco blew out of the remaining cylinders ofter the first shot. I thought about wax, or mixing the crisco with a hardener.
 
[the crisco blew out of the remaining cylinders ofter the first shot]

Wow - In over 35 years of cap 'n ball revolver shooting, I've never seen that occur - either with my guns, or other guns I or my friends were shooting.

The only thing I would even hazzard a WAG as to the cause, would be that yer balls weren't big enough ! ;) :D

BUT............. "Maybe" a revolver with cylinder/chamber(s) slightly out of alignment with the bore at full cock/firing, could have sufficient side spitting, or spitback, to clean out the Crisco the way you've related.

I would definitely try .457" RB's - but also check each empty chamber for bore alignment @ full cock, in case something's amiss.

The .457"'s would give a better seal/shaving, and the 2nd insurance of Crisco "should" remain in place until that chamber was fired.
 
I punch out wax board wads made from juice containers that can be doubled or tripled up if necessary.

http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=359444&highlight=wax+board

And Cabela's sells vegetable fiber wads by the 1000 for a very reasonable price that can eliminate the need for any lube.

http://thefiringline.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3606991&postcount=16

I'm aware that the heat from the flames can cause most of the Crisco over ball lube to melt after the first shot. But using only a very tiny bit of Bore Butter lube over the ball in only one or two chambers doesn't really cause any mess but still helps to lube the bore if desired.

One issue with lubing the chamber walls is if the balls have a loose fit then the lube can actually cause them to creep forward during firing. Someone else complained that their loaded balls kept creeping up in their chambers until they realized that they needed to keep their chamber walls free of any lube before loading.
But every chamber and loading situation is different depending on ball size.

RemTim, what method & tools did you use to chamfer your chambers with?
 
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Most of the crisco blows out, never noticed it until after I read the article I provided. I checked the bore to chamber alignment on both my remmies, it was true and the crisco blows out of the remaining chambers (not all of it but most of it). So I just wipe the crisco around the ball seat...
 
So far so good on the ball creep, it hasn't happened since switching to .454. I did have that problem with .451 w/o pre lubing the chamber entrance.
 
Nice range! I don't even know where the nearest shooting range is around here and in my backyard there is no travel required, no rules, never closes and I am a bit of a loner at that...:). Howeve, my brother in law keeps talking about putting a shooting range in portion of the spot shown in the pic. I hope he leaves it like it is.
 
Articap, I did not use a chambering tool, just my finger and 400 sandpaper and a cone shaped grinding bit for my drill. I don't know what you call it and I wrapped the paper around it and gently worked it by hand. I took my time and the edge seems to be uniformly shaped. I kind of suspect, it could stand a little more working. I have checked and went over it a few times. Perhaps, I haven't chamfered it enough. I figured if I take too little off I can correct it, if I take too much off ,I can not correct it.
 
so a burning piece of powder can reverse, go into another chamber, past the crisco, past the ball, past the wad, past the corn meal and into the powder and ignite another cylinder that wasnt fired? am i the only one that this seems extremely unlikely to happen or am i missing something? i dont even see it getting past the ball...
 
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