16 ga

[edwin41]

hi,
i recently bought me an antique [1908] doublebarrel , centerfire , blackpowder
shotgun in the caliber 16 ga.
the guns turns out to be in exellent shape , so i might give it a go in the near future.

i dont have any experience in blackpowderguns nor in shotguns , but from what ive read is that one measures the powder by volume , and the shot with the same volume as the powder.
i do have some loading tables for bp 12 ga , but not for the 16 ga.

so , what would be a good startingpoint for a load for this nice husqvarna double?
also , what would be the size of shot , as i intend to make me a shotmaker.

thanks!

[Nobade]

I would direct you to the sticky above by V.M Starr. That man knew shotguns, and since I started following his advice have been enjoying my shotguns far more than before and getting much better performance from them.

[Old Ironsights]

I would direct you to the sticky above by V.M Starr. That man knew shotguns, and since I started following his advice have been enjoying my shotguns far more than before and getting much better performance from them.

+1.

Outside of that, unless the gun is Damascus, I would look at the "vintager" loads by PolyWad.

These are what I use in my 100 y/o+ Short-chambered Drilling...

http://www.polywad.com/vintager.html

[edwin41]

thanks , i will read through the sticky .
did some resaerch about the gun , its a model 20 husqvarna , build in sept 1908
lefaucheux underlever in the caliber 16-65.

[Nobade]

Oops, my mistake - I thought you were talking about a muzzleloader.

BPI has hulls, Circle Fly has wads, ammo should be easy to prepare. Keep in mind most 16ga. shotguns had 2 9/16" chambers so you will have to trim your hulls shorter than normal 2 3/4" modern ones. And if (likely) it is throated for card wads they will pattern a lot better than modern plastic wads.

[gmsharps]

http://www.westleyrichards.com/gun/ammo_shot.php here is a link for westly richards that sell 2.5 in 16ga shells just in case you want to shoot some and then reload them.

gmsharps

[elk hunter]

The standard load for a black powder 16 bore was 68 grains of 2 FG powder and 1 ounce of shot.

If you're serious about shooting it a lot you may want to join the "16 Gauge Society". In that group is a sub group called "The Low Pressure Group" that has developed many low pressure smokeless powder loads for the older shotguns that work quite well.

http://www.16ga.com/

[edwin41]

wow , thats a lot of info there !
thanks for posting this link , elk hunter !

[Abert Rim]

Edwin, I've had very similar Huskies in 16 gauge in both Damascus and fluid steel barrels. Keep in mind the 2 9/16s chamber is unsafe with 2 3/4-inch shells (that's the length after the crimp has opened).
I recently ordered a box of Magtech all-brass 16 gauge shells for my old Belgian hammer double. They are durable, traditional and easy to load safely without serious tools. If you go this route, you will want 14-gauge over-powder and fiber wads and 13-gauge overshot wads -- all available from Circle Fly Wads. Circle Fly also has a page on loading for these old shotties.
http://www.circlefly.com/html/welcome.html

[edwin41]

thanks for posting this albert !
i am really getting some good info and ideas here !