Some more smokeless in a percussion revolver

[Hickory]

These are the people who keep gun companies and Dr. In business.

[arcticap]

I am in no way condoning what this guy is doing.
However, I do recall reading something about when NAA first came out with their mini .22 cap & ball revolver, they supposedly put in the manual
that it could be loaded with Bullseye smokeless powder.
Then the Feds stepped in and said that if they didn't stop it that they would classify the gun the same as a firearm.
So NAA dropped the notion of advertising that it could be loaded with Bullseye.

But it's widely known that many current NAA C&B owners do in fact load their NAA's with Bullseye powder because otherwise its velocity is rather anemic.
People have reported that to some extent, their tiny Bullseye loads do mimic .22LR & .22WMR rimfire rounds when fired from such a short barreled revolver,
and chronograph results have been mentioned too.
They use a very small CC measuring scoop which the amount of the charge can also be verified by weighing the Bullseye powder on a scale.
So only regarding the NAA .22 C&B revolver, loading it with a tiny amount of smokeless is not a new idea or practice.

I personally don't know if the pressures and repeated loading of the smokeless powder is safe or not for the quality of the steel that any C&B revolver is made with,
especially taking its design into account over a lifetime of such use.
I don't think that any corporations really want that liability, or any Federal intervention.
If there were safe, legal conversions available that allowed for loading C&B's with smokeless like there is in the UK, then it wouldn't be such a big deal.
But because there aren't any readily available, people end up experimenting on their own while risking their own life and limb and those of others as a result.

[JoeJames]

I agree that you could pour a proper amount of some smokeless powders and have a perfectly suitable load for a modern CB revolver. I would even venture that a .44 special load might be just about right.

BUT...there are so many who would ignore all common sense when trying smokeless. It is not limited to black powder firearms. A cop in a small town around here brought in his Dan Wesson .357 and said it didn't shoot well. Gunsmith took some factory rounds and dropped them in the cylinder. They literally 'rattled' around (yes, I was there when he did it). When asked, the cop said he shot reloads using Bullseye. When asked how much he said, "I don't know, I just put in what it would hold."

Gunsmith took the rest of his ammo, told him to never reload anything again, and then sent the pistol back to DW. DW sent the guy a letter saying the pistol was not repairable and they would be happy to refund his purchase cost. When asked they refused to sell him another gun.

That is the kind of guy who will take a CB revolver and fill it with whatever powder they have and expect it to fire safely.

Almost the same thing occurred here about 30 years ago. Local S.O. got in some reloading gear, and two deputies decided to try it out. S&W Model 66's were issue at the time. They called another deputy who reloaded and asked him how much Bullseye to use for their 357 loads. He thought they were joking around; so he told them "just fill 'er up, but leave enough room for the bullet". They did, and then took their loads over across the levee to try them out.

Result: Six foot blue flame, and a lasting testament to the strength of a S&W Model 66.