New Old Army

Yes, but too much grease can get messy.
Another way would be to simply load the powder, wad and ball.
Or powder, filler, wad, ball.
Or powder, wad, filler, ball.
Or powder, filler, ball, grease.
Or powder, ball, grease.
See there's a lot of different ways to load and they all work.
Did I mention powder, filler, ball?

777 powder doesn't usually require much grease because it burns cleaner.
Some folks will only put a little grease in one chamber or two, but not all.
Or just grease the cylinder pin.
 
thanks im kind of looking for the cheapest way to shoot it im not looking for any of that fancy city boy stuff like wads but when i got it he had this 777 so i just took it. eventually it would be cool to make my own balls aswell
 
Watch this ROA loading video.
He only uses a small bead of Vaseline around the ball whereas some folks load the entire top of the chamber with grease.
Just powder, ball and a little lube.
The filler and wads are optional.
He probably loads with about 30 grains equivalent of 777 powder.
Make sure to use .457 balls.
Always keep your hands away from anywhere near the front of the cylinder during firing.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJ9LgfNcqJk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkkThYWJpRE
 
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For the least of a greasy mess, just load your black powder, then fill over the powder with at least 1/4 inch of corn meal filler. Take care to make sure the corn meal is level and completely more than covers the powder charge. This acts as a fire break to prevent a chain fire from the cylinder's front. Then seat the ball on top of the LEVEL corn meal without using a lubed wad under the ball nor grease over the ball.

No grease nor greasy mess at all to have to deal with.

Unfortunately grease mixed with BP fouling makes a mess and will get all over your fingers and hands when you reload and also grabs grains of powder as you reload a chamber and you will wind up with some powder grains NOT in the chamber but stuck to the forcing cone and cylinder face that you will constantly have to wipe off on reloading. If you use that method you will have to carry a rag with you and use it constantly and your rag, revolver and hands will be black grease/fouling sticky and dirty and you will have a greasy handgrip hold too.

I used to use lubed wads and also as an alternative just greased over the ball. But after shooting a few times with just the corn meal as a filler/fire break (to prevent cylinder front chainfires) I never use grease anymore. Each to their own method, but my way is MUCH cleaner with no greasy mess and no cost for expensive lubed felt wads either. I was always taught and believed that lubed wads and or grease helped soften black powder fouling and kept your cylinder's arbor lubed and longer from binding due to fouling.

But my experience has found the opposite to be the case. Not only was the grease a royal mess but it caught and held the black powder fouling and quickly became a black greasy mess that after a cylinder or two of firing seemed to actually INCREASE the fouling gum up problem on the cylinder arbor shaft. Although my cylinder may sometimes bind up a tad quicker without using grease, it isn't worth the mess to me since I can easily remove my cylinder and wipe off the non greasy fouling from the arbor shaft and be back in business very quickly. With my '58 Remy quick removable cylinder just a few seconds actually. Just a little longer with my Colts.

So yes, I and everyone else shooting BP usually does carry a rag, but with my way, my rag may get a little dirty relatively dry fouling on it from wiping off the arbor shaft to unbind the cylinder after firing a cylinder or two, but at least my rag doesn't get all greasy....and neither do my hands nor my revolver. Much cleaner way to shoot.....in my opinion.

As long as I have cornmeal in my possibles bag, I never use grease. (But I do carry a tin of grease with me just in case I DO run out of cornmeal while shooting, which hasn't ever happened yet).

Plus when you get finished shooting, you can use the corn meal to fry up some corn dodgers or batter your game for the pan :D


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As you are finding out, there are a LOT of "Right" ways to do this. I am surprised that nobody has yet mentioned compression and T7, as in DON'T. I don't use the stuff but a lot of folks swear by it and from what I've read it doesn't not like to be compressed, just make sure the airspace is removed between ball and powder.

As stated earlier, most Black Powder shooters will have a rag (usually more than one) with them. I will add that I found a wonderful invention a year or so ago, "Baby Wipes". Just the cheap ones that if they dry out you can just pour a little water in the box and rejuninate them. They're a great way to keep your hands relatively clean so you don't have to take a bottle of 409 to your steering wheel before your wife gets in the car.
 
Neater way

See, doing black powder shooting is messy... maybe you should sell it to someone else ;).

It's really not that bad. Cabela's sells lubed wads that (IMHO) eliminate the need for messy greases and odd fillers (like cream of wheat, or whatever). Simply pour in powder, pop on a wad, seat the wad, seat a ball, add a cap, and you're ready to go.
 
ok so i shot it this morning using the #2 measurement and not much bang then i decided to step it up to #4 and BOOM so much fun and smoke! so here the next noobie question... best ways to clean it? im hearing 409 and boiling water any good videos on cleaning?
 
Take off the grips & use a bucket of hot soapy water & bore & toothbrushes, no need for anything fancier than that as BP cleans up more easily than smokeless does. Use the bucket!!! It will trap nipples that can escape down the drain if you just use the sink.:eek:

I remove the cylinder from the pistol, & the nipples from the cylinder as it makes cleaning the nooks & crannies easier.

I rinse in hot water to remove soap traces, but that's kind of optional.
Once scrubbed & rinsed, dry with a hair dryer to remove remaining water, oil & you're done.

I always use a small amount of grease (or bore butter) on the nipple threads when reassembling & grease the cylinder axis pin also. (It fouls more slowly that way then with oil).

Ignore the no petrochemical-based lube stuff too, use whatever you like, just swab the bore & chambers with a patch & alcohol before firing to remove oil residue & you're fine.
 
you guys are awesome with everyones help ive successfully ****** off my neighbors for yet another day.... maybe i should pull out my mac 11 and do some test firing (just to make sure it still works after the winter) :)
 
Zenjoki said:

See, doing black powder shooting is messy... maybe you should sell it to someone else.
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Are you raising me by another dime? :mad:

If you are, I'll match your dime and throw in two real copper pennies (not wheat stalks though).
 
sorry im just really only into bow hunting where i live so ive never even gotten into gun hunting but i would assume u could take down a whitetail with a 45 as long as its in bow range :)
 
ok i think i posted a link to cabelas and it was deleted or something maybe by a mod lol so my question is my partner from work is considering a black powder revolver and looking to spend 300 or so wondering if theres anything worth it at that price. he saw a few for 169 on that site
 
so does anyone know if u can legally hunt with this gun?
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I think that is going to vary state-to-state. I know some states have power limitations, sometimes in FPS, sometimes in Ft/Lbs & some in caliber & powder charge. Some states have special BP only seasons as well.

Check the local fish & game folks publications for info. I mean published info too, not word of mouth from "Ranger Smith" as he has a pretty good chance of making something up.:D
 
My personal recommendation for a pistol would be the 1860 Army. Beautiful gun and easy to feed and maintain.

I would recommend staying away from brass frame guns until you've got some more time under your belt. Some folks love 'em (me included) and some hate 'em. They do take a little more consideration when loading simply because the brass isn't as durable as steel.
 
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