Black powder in 45lc lube and wad questions.

[Dadswickedammo]

Hey fellas.
Well here's my deal I got a 45lc converson for my1851 army repo.
I have been loading smokeless powder all is good. But I really want to shoot bp and pyrodex came across 10 lb of pydrox.
I came across a deal on speer 200gr lswc $26.00 for 500 these are hard cast with no lube in the groove.
My first question is with out a lube sizer what to and best to lube with.
Second. Wad or card or pack bullet to powder if a wad or card was thinking a 410 shot wad.

Third. ..Can I over powder? I mean sure if the bullet sticks past the cylinder.
But will a 45lc with black or pyrodex filled as to be packed once the bullet seated cause over pressure or bad things to happen.
Safety is job 1 really would like use these bullets but if it is a bad idea we can turn em into round balls.
Its been a while since I hsve been here but you guys really got me going with the black powder and casting my own round balls my next buy is a lube sizer.
Thanx.

[Desertbuck]

Welcome back
I have found that black powder lubercant can be applied with the fingers to a boolits lube grooves if you're willing to get your fingers little messy, then use a lee sizer if you have one. Also a small grease cookie can be used in the 45 colt So no problem there. Now for the powder, holy black is going to be the best! Pyrodex in my experience of trying to use in the two black powder cartridges I own 45/120 and 45 colt has caused me nothing but a headache the powder is just too picky if you over compress it it gives very erratic results. In my 45/120 some kind of sudden over pressure spike being one of them. And in my 45 colt hardly any accuracy. And you have to worry of under compressing it just like black powder over time the powder will settle in the case leaving an empty space that's bad juju in the black powder Cartridge World. However this stuff works great in cap and ball revolver and muzzle loaders. It can be made to work in cartridges but it takes a lot of work. Save yourself the time and heartache hold out save up some cash to get the real stuff for cartridge shooting. And just for the time being burn up the Pyrodex in your 1851 as you got it from the box.

[bigted]

welcome !!!

here is the first thing i want to stress and stress very loudly ... did i read it rite that you have shot smokeless powder in your '51' army? this is a no no and to repeat this ... DONT USE ANY SMOKELESS IN YOUR CAP N BALL REVOLVER !!! no matter what you have done to it ... this is STILL a blackpowder only revolver.

so on to the blackpowder advise ... you can load what ever amount of real blackpowder in that case and load it behind any weight boolit and never have a problem. there is no amount that you can use in a colt case that will exceed any safe limits.

pyrodex ... my understanding ... never compress this powder and if you do then only compress it a very slight bit.

just to repeat my bit about the smokeless ... PLEASE DONT USE IT IN YOUR OPENTOP BLACKPOWDER REVOLVER.

[Grapeshot]

OK. Here it is. Modern conversion cylinders are proofed for smokeless, however, that 1851 frame isn't. So let caution be your guide. Pyrodex works best when compressed. Wads can be bought from Circle Fly or Buffalo Brothers in .45 Cal.
You can also get a punch from BB in .45 and use soda can cartons for your wad material. Soda can or bottle cartons are moisture resistant and work real well at keeping BP lube from migrating to the powder.
A "cake cutter" can be made from a .45-70 case to remove boolits from hardened lube that you had standing in a pie pan that you poured melted lube in. This can be done until you get your lube sizer.
Use a 1.9cc Lee Dipper to measure your powder. This will give you enough powder in the case that will compress as you seat your boolits. On a side note. You should use soft cast boolits as these will obdurate and seal the bore better than hard cast boolits. Hard cast always seem to lead my barrels up badly. This being because the hot gases will shoot around the boolit and melt some of the base and leave a trail of solder up and down the barrel regardless of the lubricant you use.
You can get away with hardcast boolits if they are .454 +/- .001 inch. You might want to invest in a compression die in .45 caliber because if you try using soft cast boolits to compress the powder, you might deform the boolit.
Good luck.