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Thread: My homemade black powder

  1. #2101
    Boolit Master
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    I'll probably just make a new batch of Carolina Willow, after all it does just grow on trees. Already have a 2 inch diameter branch, I'll debark it and split it down to small pieces before cooking it. Looks like I'm finally getting to the range this week, got a flintlock postal match I'm entering just for giggles.
    Martini Henry, had to look that one up and wow it's a nice one.

  2. #2102
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fly View Post
    WOW Bob a Martini Henry I,m envoys. I have never ever seen one in person. Those are cool rifles. Is it original or reproduction? Ether
    way that is cool.

    Fly
    I got it from the Nepal Cache back in 2005 when they came on the market. I worked in South Africa for a couple years and sort of fell in love them. Here is a group at 100yd from it as well as a couple of small frame Martinis that I acquired after getting the bug. Love those actions.

    Bob
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Pics General 010.jpg   75 Sharps.jpg   357 Martini 003.jpg   Small frame Martini 001.jpg  
    GUNFIRE! The sound of Freedom!

  3. #2103
    Boolit Master
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    That is one gorgeous rifle my friend.

    Fly

  4. #2104
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    Just got back from a day out at the range and it looks like my home grown works just fine. I did a weight by volume comparison with Geox 2F and found that my powders come in at 2/3 density of the commercial brand. I set my powder measure at 90 grains for the home made which is equivalent to 60 grains of commercial.
    I used a CVA Frontier cap lock in .50 caliber with a 24 inch barrel, picked the rifle up at a pawn shop for 55 dollars and it appeared to be unfired and I wanted to get some range time on it. Once I got used to the fat front sight all my batches grouped about the same in a 5 inch pattern and by the end of the day the grouping had tightened up to about two inches, guess I was getting used to the rifle and maybe the bore was breaking in. I was shooting a .490 PRB with pillow ticking which loaded easily with no hard pounding on the ram rod.
    I had some noticeable fouling at the beginning but then started to use a patch sloppy wet with Bore Butter and the fouling stopped. So far I'm calling making my own black powder a success.
    Thanks everybody for the help.

  5. #2105
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    Here's a picture of the results of my shoot about a month ago. I was using the $55.00 Pawn Shop CVA Frontier cap lock in .50 caliber for the testing. All shots were at 25 yards with 90 grains by volume which was about 60 grains equivalent by weight. Click image for larger version. 

Name:	Home Made BP Targets.jpg 
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    Some of the off target shots were due to getting used to the gun, It was the first time I had shot it. Batch 3 seemed to be the most accurate. I'm probably going to combine all three batches, screen the fines out and reprocess the fines into a more consistent size.

  6. #2106
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    Eddie that last target you have three touching. Shooting a bit high but raising rear sight some will fix that.

    Fly

  7. #2107
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    Fly, it was the first time out with that gun and I was still learning the sight pattern, those three shots were a nice surprise and shows the gun has potential. The rear sight is a fixed buckhorn with no adjustment so I just need to learn where she hits. Need to drift the front sight over just a tad. As far as I could tell the gun had never been fired, when I first cleaned it I pulled little pieces of metal out of the barrel that looked like it was left over from when it was machined.

  8. #2108
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    Well I had that back words anyway the rear sight is lowered to lower your group or the front sight raised. As many years I have
    been shooting these things I still get the back words from time to time. You could always get a taller front sight.

    Fly

  9. #2109
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    Fly, I'm planning to file the notch in the rear sight down a little and open it up into a wider "V" to match the wide front sight. Need to shoot at 50yds first, with shots hitting about 2 inches high at 25yds she might be right on POA at 50 yards. It was a good test of both the gun and my home made powder.
    Indian Joe, it looks like your powder is pretty much as good as Goex if measured by weight. Nice going. I do't have any way to measure bullet speed so I'm just going by seat of the pants for my testing.
    Last edited by Eddie2002; 07-12-2018 at 08:59 AM.

  10. #2110
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    Joe I started making black powder for fireworks in my beginning. I have loved & shot black powder guns most of
    my life. So I guess it was interveinal I would try it in my muzzle loaders. It was a journey for sure. I spent hours
    on hours testing charcoals & such, before I had good shooting BP. Anyway in the beginning I only made screened.

    Fireworks don,t require corned.The fastest powder I ever chrono was screened. The main reasons I went to corning
    was cap & ball revolver capacity with corned over screened. The number two reason was corned shot much cleaner.
    Also I found over time screen powder with binders, grains seemed to brake down in a flask or powder horn being
    transporting after a time. Thanks for the data my friend, very interesting.

    Fly

  11. #2111
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    What is the procedure for screening? I made one batch using pressing into pucks (I believe that's corning). I had a lot of problems with the die getting stuck and scoring. I think I should try screening as an alternative. Do you use a particular mesh for screening? Do you screen it dry, or do you wet it slightly first, as with corning? I think screening requires a binder to be added; dextrin, I believe. What is a good source of dextrin? How much of that and do you add it to what's being ball milled, or do you add it after milling?

  12. #2112
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    Brian it in this long long thread so let me help you out some. First screened powder is meal powder that comes out of the ball mill. It has
    about 5% of binder added. You wet it a little more than corned so it sticks together good when you put it in your hand & make a fist. I roll
    it into a ball & push it threw the screen you used for grain size onto news paper & let dry.

    Remember not to get to wet. When you squeeze you do not want water coming out. Binder can be made from corn starch. Just bake corn
    starch in a oven at 420 degrees till it turns golden. If I remember right about one hour, been a while since I made any so if I,m wrong some
    one will correct me. You can mill your binder with the meal powder or after milling just mix it in read good . I mix it after, (just me). Remember
    it is much lighter than corned so weigh it because it takes much more than corned, because it is not as dense.

    Hope I answered it all. Fly

  13. #2113
    Boolit Master
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    Brian, I have been using a Walmart over the counter Equate laxative that is 100% dextrin powder which is the binder you end up with when cooking starch. If you don't want to cook your own dextrin it is easy just to buy a jar and have enough for a long time.
    I add 2% by weight into the ball mill with the other ingredients and after a good mix dampen it and then screen it. The more dextrin you add to the mix the harder the powder grains will get. I do the drying by spreading the damp screened mix on a cookie sheet lined with newspaper and then putting it out in the sun with a piece of glass covering everything.
    I'm using #8 screen and am getting a mix of mostly 2F and some 1F. My powder weighs about 60% of the commercial brands but seems to shoot just fine in my .50 caliber rifles. I started with a finer kitchen strainer for a screen but was getting too much fine powder. Had some #8 in my shop from another project and decided to give it a try.
    To figure out how dense your powder is set a powder measure at 100 grains and weigh a commercial brand like Geox then do the same for your home made.
    Beside that Fly and Joe are the ones to listen to, I'm still new at rolling my own am trying not to give bad advice.

  14. #2114
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    Joe, thanks for the confirmation that I'm doing something right. LOL. Buying the dextrin was easier than cooking it and gives a consistent result. It also allows me to keep under my wife's radar with this project. I'd be in the dog house if she found out I'm making black powder out in my shop .

  15. #2115
    Boolit Man brian1's Avatar
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    Thank you guys for the tips on screening!

  16. #2116
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    Eddie YOUR WIFE does not know your making black powder???????? Geeeeezzzzzzzzzzzzzz?
    Haaaaaaaaaaaaa Haaaaaaaaaaaaa! you got to love that!

    Fly

  17. #2117
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    If you are making your own black powder, And your wife doesn't, know, then you must not be grinding your charcoal fine enough.
    That has been the dead give away with my wife.
    How else do you explain when you come in the house all covered in Black Dust ????

  18. #2118
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    I checked the links and through this thread and haven't seen Dogwood mentioned for BP making. I have a dead standing non-rotten decent sized Dogwood I cut down recently. It is some super hard wood. I turned some on the mini lathe and it is rock hard.

    I was doing research into what I could make with it (mallets, mold handle replacements etc.) I ran across a few articles saying it was really good for making BP. Just wanted some intel from the pros here. I tried mesquite and it was bad. Did not work well at. I just want to know if this is a good option. I am going to char some and try it one of these days, but wanted to know from anyone's experience. Thanks folks.
    You can miss fast & you can miss a lot, but only hits count.

  19. #2119
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    Making BP fast powder requires Soft wood types, which is why folks like Willow. Harder the wood, the slower the powder in my experience, your mileage may vary.
    Any technology not understood, can seem like Magic!!!

    I will love the Lord with all my heart, all my soul, and all my mind.

  20. #2120
    Boolit Master




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    Quote Originally Posted by Markopolo View Post
    Making BP fast powder requires Soft wood types, which is why folks like Willow. Harder the wood, the slower the powder in my experience, your mileage may vary.
    I was thinking this as well.
    You can miss fast & you can miss a lot, but only hits count.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check