Lee PrecisionWidenersLoad DataMidSouth Shooters Supply
Titan ReloadingRepackboxRotoMetals2Inline Fabrication
Reloading Everything
Page 3 of 6 FirstFirst 123456 LastLast
Results 41 to 60 of 108

Thread: My Indian Musket

  1. #41
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Dec 2020
    Posts
    113
    Thundermaker,
    Have you tested anymore ?, .600RB , 7/8 oz shot, 1oz shot, it is a 20 gauge right

  2. #42
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Cordele, GA
    Posts
    470
    I've been playing around with 100gr and 1 1/2 oz. I bought it intending to use it as a budget fowler. I bought several different molds from a member here. I can't do much until they get here.

  3. #43
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Posts
    1,606
    what do you think?.

  4. #44
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Posts
    1,606
    if you buy an INDIAN MUSKET then that is what you bought. what did you think it is going to be? one knows ahead of time before purchasing it what it is.

  5. #45
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Cordele, GA
    Posts
    470
    Quote Originally Posted by toot View Post
    if you buy an INDIAN MUSKET then that is what you bought. what did you think it is going to be? one knows ahead of time before purchasing it what it is.
    Okay. Not sure what you mean by that. A lot of people must not know, because the questions of "are they safe?" and "do they work?" come up all the time.
    Last edited by Thundermaker; 01-10-2021 at 10:26 AM.

  6. #46
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Dec 2020
    Posts
    113
    Quote Originally Posted by Thundermaker View Post
    I've been playing around with 100gr and 1 1/2 oz. I bought it intending to use it as a budget fowler. I bought several different molds from a member here. I can't do much until they get here.
    Have to ask, why not go for the following http://www.militaryheritage.com/musket28.htm or http://www.militaryheritage.com/musket22.htm

    I'm not sure what Toot is trying to say.
    Last edited by Caswell Ranch; 01-10-2021 at 03:47 PM.

  7. #47
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Cordele, GA
    Posts
    470
    I went with this one because it has sights. I'm going to fire round balls in it occasionally, and even smoothbores are more accurate with sights. It also has a steel ramrod, which I saw as a plus.

  8. #48
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Posts
    1,606
    I own several of them for years and shoot them on a regular basis. all I can say is I have had not one problem with them!

  9. #49
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Dec 2020
    Posts
    113
    To me, any way you look at it the steel used in the Indian guns has to be better, or at least equal to the original guns they replicate. I found reference to PSI limit for this steel and barrel wall thickness of 30,000.
    Below is steel industry reference to the type of steel used.



    1. EN8 Steel is Steel Grade in BS 970 1955 Specification

    EN8 steel grade belongs to the standard of BS 970-1955, which is a standard for wrought steel for mechanical and allied engineering purpose. In BS 970 standards, there are some other common steel grades, like EN9, EN19, EN24, EN36 etc. And the most equivalent is grade 080M40 steel in BS 970-1991.

    2. EN8 Carbon Steel is Available in Following Shape:

    We could supply EN8 steel in bright round bar in drawn/turned condition or round hot rolled, hexagon, square, steel flats and plate.

    EN8 Steel Round Bar: 8mm-1600mm
    EN8 Steel Cold Drawn Bar: 5mm-70mm
    EN8 Carbon Steel Flat & Plate: 10-1500mm x 200-3000mm
    Sizes of other shapes are available, please send emails to us for specific checking.

    3. EN8 Carbon Steel Grade Equivalents

    Other steel grades in ASTM, DIN, JIS standards are similar and equivalent to EN8 steel, as follows:

    BS 970-1991:080M40
    AISI/ASTM A29:1038, 1040, 1045
    DIN Werkstoff No.: 1.0511, 1.1186, 1.1189
    BS & DIN European: C40, CK40, C45, CK45
    JIS G4051: S40C, S45C
    4. EN8 Carbon Steel Properties

    4.1 Carbon Steel EN8 Chemical Composition

    Standard Grade C Mn P S Si
    BS 970 EN8/080M40 0.36-0.44 0.60-1.00 0.05 0.005 0.10-0.40
    4.2 EN8 Medium Carbon Steel Mechanical Properties and Hardness

    Heat Treatment Tensile Strength Rm Yield Strength
    Rm Rp 0.2 A min on Impact Hardness
    5.65√So Izod Ft.lb KCV J
    MPa MPa MPa HB
    N 550 280 – 16 15 16 152/207
    510 245 – 17 – – 146/197
    Q 625/775 385 355 16 25 28 179/229
    R 700/850 465 450 16 25 28 201/255


    RFQ OF EN8 STEEL
    5. Forging of Carbon Steel Grade EN8/080M40

    Preheat the EN8 steel carefully, then raise temperature to 1050°C for forging. Do not forge below 850°C. After forging cool en8 steel slowly, preferably in a furnace.

    6. Heat Treatment of EN8 Carbon Steel

    EN8 steel is usually supplied untreated but also be able to be supplied to order in the normalized or finally heat treated, which is adequate for a wide range of applications.

    Tempering – Carbon steel EN8 or 080m40 can be tempered at a heat of between 550°C to 660°C (1022°F-1220°F), heating for about 1 hour for every inch of thickness, then cool in oil or water.
    Normalising of EN8 bright mild steel takes place at 830-860°C (1526°F-1580°F) then it is cooled in air.
    Quenching: in oil or water after heating to this temperature will harden the steel.
    7. Applications of EN8 Carbon Steel

    EN8 steel material is suitable for the all general engineering applications requiring a higher strength than mild steel such as:

    general-purpose axles
    shafts,
    gears,
    bolts and studs.
    spindles,
    automotive and general engineering components,
    other general engineering parts etc.
    Last edited by Caswell Ranch; 01-11-2021 at 11:40 AM. Reason: correct info

  10. #50
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Cordele, GA
    Posts
    470
    The originals were wrought iron. Furthermore they had a forge-welded seam down the length of the barrel. I would think that, all else being equal, a barrel made out of any kind of steel would be stronger than one made of wrought iron. I have made that argument in the past, and was informed that originals were superior because iron is "ductile". He then qualified it with, "this is coming from a machinist of 30 years". To which I replied that "machinist" and "metallurgist" were two different words.

    Regardless, my proof load was far in excess of C.I.P. standards, and the gun held fine. I'm not saying that my test definitively answers anything. I am, after all, a sample size of 1, but I'm satisfied for my purposes.

  11. #51
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Cordele, GA
    Posts
    470
    Since shooting updates were requested, here you go.

    Took it out to the range today to test various loads. 75gr of 1f and 1oz of 7.5 shot seems like it will do the job on birds and other small critters. 100gr and 10 pellets of 00 buck do well out to 15 yards (it has no choke after all).

    Round balls didn't do so well. I tried a .600 ball patched with pillow ticking over 75gr 1f with crisco for patch lube. The first one went right where I was aiming. The next 5 went god knows where. The one patch I recovered was charred and smoking. I've had this problem in a rifle before. Going to a smaller grain powder solved it. I'll try the 2f next time.

  12. #52
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Dec 2020
    Posts
    113
    Try an over powder card followed by cushion wad with the patched .600 ball.

    I found the link below about a week ago, this guys load info is exactly the same as what shoots well in two of my fowlers.

    http://home.insightbb.com/~bspen/SmoothboreLoads.html
    Last edited by Caswell Ranch; 01-23-2021 at 08:04 PM.

  13. #53
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Dec 2020
    Posts
    113

  14. #54
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Dec 2020
    Posts
    113
    Thundermaker,
    Must be of interest as the view count is high

  15. #55
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Cordele, GA
    Posts
    470
    Probably is. I don't think anybody else has documented such a test on one of these.

  16. #56
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Dec 2020
    Posts
    113
    Keep it up.
    Last edited by Caswell Ranch; 01-27-2021 at 06:16 PM.

  17. #57
    Boolit Buddy
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Cordele, GA
    Posts
    470
    I mean, that stuff isn't about the musket itself. That's just load development.

    I will say, it's going to need some more lock work to get it to 100%. I still think the work is worth the money saved.

  18. #58
    Boolit Master Maven's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Posts
    4,946
    Thunder...., Here is some advice I gave to a SB shooter on another site. Maybe it will help you as well::

    You've got at least 6 variables to juggle: powder granulation; powder charge; ball diameter; how the RB is loaded, i.e. patched? card stock wads fore and aft, card stock wad over RB, tow wads fore and aft; tow wad atop RB; lube type and whether you mop the bore after each shot or not; and sight picture/cheek weld. If it were me (trust me I've been there), I'd select one RB diameter and powder granulation and charge, e.g., 70gr. FFg, and manipulate the others for a minimum of five shots each. I also would start @ 25 yd. (or meters), at least at first. Btw, I think barrel quality, which we can't [easily] change is another variable to ponder. Happy testing!


    P.S. I've found patch thickness, barring extremes, makes less difference in a SB than it does in a rifle.

  19. #59
    Boolit Master taco650's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2013
    Location
    OR->LaGrange GA
    Posts
    1,543
    Duelist1954 on You Tube has a few videos showing how he worked through these same issues with his Fowler, might be worth watching before burning more powder.

  20. #60
    Banned


    Join Date
    Feb 2013
    Location
    NJ via TX
    Posts
    3,876
    Any muzzleloader is as close to a pipe bomb as one will be, igniting and deploying within inches of one's cranium and digits, as my avatar depicts.

    I could do a dozen repeated conscientious bbl proofings and still would never trust a muzzleloader built of dubious materials in a third world manufacturing environment. How many double load proofs will any bbl survive before fracturing? With a good bbl, that would never. Could an offshore bbl survive 100 or 1000 proofings?

    The material errors of such offshore firearms are going to be far greater than with a firearm built with American manufactured materials of the highest order.

    This is one instance where the gamble of life is lots lower with an onshore built gun of quality components. Yes, this is where I believe money is well spent.

    But of course, to each their own.

    I wish the OP the best of luck with his newly acquired Indian muzzleloader.

Page 3 of 6 FirstFirst 123456 LastLast

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
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