Too much fouling?

[rjmelehan]

You could always dry brush the chamber to help in loading another round. Speaking of, if you shoot wet I'd think you'd at least want to dry that chamber.

Excellent point.. One which I was going to make until I read it first.
A wet chamber will not grab the cartridge and subsequently seal the chamber.
Consequently pressures will be inconsistent and accuracy will suffer.
The same holds true if your bullet is undersized or alloy too hard for BP to obturate the bullet base if at groove or smaller.

Paul Matthews wrote 4 small books on BPCR.
They are the best place to start before you load another round.

"Loading the Black Powder Rifle Cartridge"
"Cast Bullets for the Black Powder Cartridge Rifle"
"Shooting the Black Powder Cartridge Rifle"
"How -To's for the Black Powder Cartridge Rifle"

These books cover everything from lube formulas, bullet design / fit, blow tube techniques etc., etc, etc.
Great reading.

Because, as you know, there are so many variables it is difficult to know which
common denominators should be adhered to, to serve as a baseline.
And to make matters more complicated everyone has their own experiences which they believe
is the holy grail.

I have a friend who has a collection of actual antiques and or period correct rifles that could start a museum.
He does not have the time or inclination to do load development so he sends me a rifle now and then to work up a load. A practice I truly enjoy.

After determining things like twist and chamber dimensions from a chamber cast I have a good starting point.
I've ordered custom moulds from a few quality mould makers like Steve Brooks to match the specific rifle.
Even after doing this, sometimes without success mind you, I've turned to other moulds I have in inventory which I didn't think would work and to my surprise they turned out to be 1 MOA combinations.

I mention this because there is no reason to be discouraged. One Mould may work in one 45-70 and not another. It's best to mess with only one variable at a time, otherwise you will never know what it working and what doesn't help improve accuracy.

BTW, I have and enjoy a Uberti Hi Wall in 45-70.
The first thing I did to it 20 plus years ago was to change the butt stock. For me that crescent shape was a punisher. It now has a shotgun style stock with a recoil friendly pad.

Consistency is probably more important in BPCR reloading and shooting than in high velocity shooting disciplines, although benchrest, long range guys will beg to differ.

The following is the MOST Important part of the sport;
Have fun, keep good notes, have more fun...

Bob

[rjmelehan]

As I see it, the boolit’s grease groves have enough grease to lube the boolit and most of the grease cookie is left behind to soften burnt powder residue to make it easier to load the next round and may help improving accuracy a bit. If others disagree, please let me know your opinion.

Greg,
That's my take...
The lube on a bullet is to keep that bullet from leading the barrel.
A lube cookie is to keep the fowling soft so the next bullet doesn't get scored by hardened crud.
Together with a blow tube, a lube cookie works for me. After 20 rounds I can still push a damp patch wrapped around a nylon brush down the bore with ease.

Of course wiping between shots is probably the best way to get consistent barrel conditions.

[rjmelehan]

This makes three of us on the lube thing
mine is real simple -------Beeswax and neatsfoot oil 50/50 for summer 40/60 for winter, or some variation of that theme, just so its firm enough to stay put but greasy enough to do the job - you want to be able to smear it in the lube grooves with your finger and have it stay there.

That is a formula that Paul Matthews suggests. I've used it for years.

[rjmelehan]

it's a wealth of information and a fix for my problem. After all, isn't that what forums are all about?

YES...