trapdoor alloys

[Mark Daiute]

I'm interested in what others are successfully using in their trapdoors for alloys. Anyone using straight wheelweights? straight lead?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

[13Echo]

The Trapdoor does best with soft alloys with 30:1 lead to tin being commonly used. With the generous bore and groove diameters of the barrels the alloy does best if it is soft enough to "bump up" to fill the grooves. I think you will find wheel weight alloy far to hard to work well in one of the old soldiers,

Jerry Liles

[25ring]

I've been using a Lyman postell.Comes out of the mold @.459,cast out of wheelweights.Shoots great out of an original 1884 Trapdoor.There is only one authority on what alloy to use. The gun itself! FWIW --Mike.

[bob208]

one time i got to clean out and indoor range that only use .22 rf. i have found that the recovered .22 work great i nmy trapdoors and sharps loaded with b-p.

[Larry Gibson]

Milder trapdoor loads do well with 30-1 or 40-1 alloys with BP and smokeless, especially if you are depending on the bullet "bumping up". I don't with either type of powder. I use a 16-1 allo for my service level loads with either the 405 gr bullet or the 500 gr bullet. I size both at .4615. I also use WWs + 2% tin and range lead concoctions for plinking bullets (210HB and 275 gr FN) with smokeles powders.

Larry Gibson

[curator]

Air-cooled wheel weight alloy has always shot well in my trapdoors providing they were at least groove diameter. Both of mine have .461+ groove diameters but the Lee .459/405HB mould I have drops slugs at .463 diameter cast from WW+2% tin. If not loading 62 grains of FFg Goex, I use 23 grains of SR4759. This boolit holds a lot of lube. I like a 50/50 mix of bee's wax and lard or crisco for either smokeless or black powder loads.

[25ring]

I'm sort of reluctant to post loads,especially for trapdoors,but here goes. 4grs RL-7 under 53 grs WC872,.030 card wad and a Lyman postell bullet.Runs right @ 1300fps.This load is accurate and stable all the way to 1000yds.I was rather surprised that a bullet that measures .459 out of WW would shoot so well out of a Trapdoor,but the proofs in the shooting.FWIW---Mike.

[Mark Daiute]

Air-cooled wheel weight alloy has always shot well in my trapdoors providing they were at least groove diameter. Both of mine have .461+ groove diameters but the Lee .459/405HB mould I have drops slugs at .463 diameter cast from WW+2% tin. If not loading 62 grains of FFg Goex, I use 23 grains of SR4759. This boolit holds a lot of lube. I like a 50/50 mix of bee's wax and lard of crisco for either smokeless or black powder loads.

what are you sizing to?

Thanks,

Mark

[curator]

Mark,

Not sizing at all, simply lubing and shooting as cast. As I said, the Lee .459/405HB casts slightly over groove diameter on my trapdoors. Also, when using smokeless powder this is a plus since the bullet will not need to obturate to prevent "new" gas leakage as the bullet is driven into the bore. No leading, good accuracy, what's not to like?

[Idaho Sharpshooter]

I have been running 25:1 for about thirty-four years now in several TD's. Mine come out about .459-460". I honed a die to not touch them unless they are a bit out of round. Those usually go in the plinker box.

Rich
Sua Sponte

[MtGun44]

Depends on the rifle. One TD is fine with soft cast RCBS 405s as cast ~.459 IIRC, not sure.
The other was hopeless with that. Until I got the Lee 405 HB and cast it soft, everything
was very inaccurate with that gun - it has a very worn bore, and I thought that maybe
it was just not going to be able to be shootable. With the soft 405 HB Lee boolits and
12 gr Unique to whack it hard enough to grip the remains of the rifling, it will shoot about
4" at 100 yds, not too bad at all.

Bill

[Mark Daiute]

Mark,

Not sizing at all, simply lubing and shooting as cast. As I said, the Lee .459/405HB casts slightly over groove diameter on my trapdoors. Also, when using smokeless powder this is a plus since the bullet will not need to obturate to prevent "new" gas leakage as the bullet is driven into the bore. No leading, good accuracy, what's not to like?

ok- at the risk of seeming dense, are you lubing them by running them through an oversized die or are you tumble lubing them with mule-snot?

THANKS!