Wet Tumbling and BH 209

When BH 209 came out years ago, I was given a factory sample 8 lb. bottle. I used it in my inline MLs with excellent results. I could shoot all day without cleaning and velocities were phenomenal. So, I figured, why not try it in my 45-90 and 45-70. Again, I could shoot all day without cleaning and velocities were great. The trouble came with clean up. The company said do not use water, it will not work, and it will leave a gummy mess. So, I used their product, Ed's red, Hoppe's #9 etc. and the bore cleaned up really nice. The trouble came when I cleaned cases. I waited a few days to wet tumble the cases and when they finished their cycle, the cases were covered with a black, oily/sticky spooge that also grimed up my hands. I cleaned the tumbler, cleaned the media, use more soap and retumbled the cases. It took several cycles of this before the cases came out clean. I blamed the delay, not the BH 209. This went on for many years. It was intermittent because most of the time, I loaded BP and sometimes, I mixed BP fouled cases with BH 209 fouled cases. It just never occurred to me what was causing it. It didn't until Sunday last. I had a bunch of .45 Colt cases I had loaded with BH 209 to try in my new Schofield revolver. Without a pause, I dumped the dirty cases in my tumbler and added a dozen or so brass 12 ga hulls that had been fired using Longshot. Three hours later I opened the case to find the ugly black spooge coating everything. This is when the light came on. It was the reaction of the BH 209 residue with the water that made the mess. Duh! So, from now on, if I use BH 209, I'll clean the cases in mineral spirits first. Then wet tumble them. Figured I'd pass on this tidbit JIC anyone else was as slow as I am.

That's good to know. I never tried that stuff in cartridges, only muzzleloaders. I wonder if a tumble with mineral spirits and SS pins would work well?

I was given a can of BH 209 several years ago at the Quigley match door prize and just never used it. I just load black powder and none of the subs.
I been seeing a lot of posts on this powder so I loaded a few rounds, (25) to see just how this powder shoots. I know a couple shooters that do well using this powder shooting the Gong and long range shoots so I loaded some test rounds a couple weeks ago and it shot very well but I don't think I will ever use it because I did not see any difference with the accuracy using it but I just shot 25 rounds.
When I was done I cleaned the brass in the Frankford Arsenal wet tumbler with some dish soap and a little semi shine like I do with all my black powder rounds and they came out just as clean as the black powder shells do. Those are the cases shot with BH-209.
I don't know why some are having this problem.


Attachment 319491

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Lead pot

I was given a can of BH 209 several years ago at the Quigley match door prize and just never used it. I just load black powder and none of the subs.
I been seeing a lot of posts on this powder so I loaded a few rounds, (25) to see just how this powder shoots. I know a couple shooters that do well using this powder shooting the Gong and long range shoots so I loaded some test rounds a couple weeks ago and it shot very well but I don't think I will ever use it because I did not see any difference with the accuracy using it but I just shot 25 rounds.
When I was done I cleaned the brass in the Frankford Arsenal wet tumbler with some dish soap and a little semi shine like I do with all my black powder rounds and they came out just as clean as the black powder shells do. Those are the cases shot with BH-209.
I don't know why some are having this problem.


Attachment 319491

---

lemishine!!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by indian joe

lemishine!!

---

Ja, mein Deutsch stört mich oft :D

I just shoot Black Powder, water , 409 , oil

I have used BH209 for years; just wet tumble with simple green and lemi shine; dry; then into the corn with brass polish; have not seen any of the problem you describe ?? Clean the gun with #9; Use BH209 because of the consistent villosity's;