Advice needed

[omgb]

If you decide that you want to fire-lap that barrel to help clean up some of the pitted roughness, let me know. For the cost of postage and a little to off-set the lapping paste, I will fix you up with 20 lapping rounds. All you need to do is clean and dry the barrel. Then shoot these using a light 30 grain charge, cleaning and drying between shots and it should clean up very nicely. You would be amazed at the difference it can make in a mass-produced barrel, esp. one that has had some rust damage. The target I posted was post-fire lapping. Prior to that if I hit a pie pan at 50 yards I was doing well.

[44man]

Don't use any smokeless solvent in the BP barrel. Clean with plain water, Birchwood-Casey BP solvent, Simple Green mixed 50-50 with water, Anti Freeze mixed 50-50 or any other type made for BP. Once clean it will rust fast so run hot water through it, dry it and coat the bore good with something that will prevent rust. (The anti freeze mix is the best to keep rust down, but make sure you still oil.) LPS-3 works good as does Birchwood Sheath, Ballistol, M-Pro 7 CLP or even a good gun oil. Some guys use patch lube but some will dry out hard and some can absorb moisture.
One of the better cleaners to remove fouling and carbon is M-Pro 7 solvent. It will clean it out of the pores of the steel. Use a bronze brush with it.
Pyrocrap can rust a barrel faster then BP! Make sure you get it CLEAN.

[waksupi]

Joe, I don't know as how blowing down the barrel would have any benefit with Pyroducks. As far as I know, it is a smokeless powder, and I can't see the moisture being a benefit.

[chuebner]

There's no place to get BP or a good variety of accessories in the Miami Ft. Lauderdale area, or at least I can't find it.
Thanks for the help;
joe b.

Hey Joe,

Have you tried the Outdoor World in Dania for blackpowder? I know they carry GOEX in real blackpowder plus the Hodgdons line of 777 and Pyrodex. Their selection of muzzleloading accessories is not too bad either. Generally I get all my supplies from Thunder Ridge or Track of the Wolf.

Charlie

[joeb33050]

I'd like to try that. Please tell me where to send how much money, and I'll send it.
Thanks;
joe b.

If you decide that you want to fire-lap that barrel to help clean up some of the pitted roughness, let me know. For the cost of postage and a little to off-set the lapping paste, I will fix you up with 20 lapping rounds. All you need to do is clean and dry the barrel. Then shoot these using a light 30 grain charge, cleaning and drying between shots and it should clean up very nicely. You would be amazed at the difference it can make in a mass-produced barrel, esp. one that has had some rust damage. The target I posted was post-fire lapping. Prior to that if I hit a pie pan at 50 yards I was doing well.

[joeb33050]

If water is a solvent for the residue, and it is, then I think tha blowing through the barrel puts some water in the residue and softens it. I could be wrong, it's got to happen some day.
joe b.

Joe, I don't know as how blowing down the barrel would have any benefit with Pyroducks. As far as I know, it is a smokeless powder, and I can't see the moisture being a benefit.

[joeb33050]

Yes, that's where I got my stuff. I didn't see BP there, but there are a lot of BP things, patches and balls and little tools and caps. I'll go again.
Thanks;
joe b.

Hey Joe,

Have you tried the Outdoor World in Dania for blackpowder? I know they carry GOEX in real blackpowder plus the Hodgdons line of 777 and Pyrodex. Their selection of muzzleloading accessories is not too bad either. Generally I get all my supplies from Thunder Ridge or Track of the Wolf.

Charlie

[joeb33050]

It is becoming obvious that between you there's almost enough on this thread to write the article. Now I've asked for one of you to write the article and got no response. If nobody steps forward, I'm going to write it myself. Yes I will. Then you'll be sorry when you see the mistakes! Avoid the agony, volunteer now and keep me from making a fool of myself!!
joe b.

[omgb]

Joe, I'll cast up the slugs this weekend and get them loaded up with the paste. Then I'll find out about the postage. If you don't hear from me by Monday evening, PM me ok?

[waksupi]

Joe, I would have took a stab at it, but I am an old time traditional shooter. I would have zero imput on the inlines, that are the hot item du jour. And even we traditional shooters, approach things in different ways. So, you can write it up, take the heat, and the glory, all in one fell swoop!

[44man]

Pyrocrap has most of the components of black powder and is NOT a smokeless powder. It is only a smokeless substitute. It is water soluble and can rust steel FAST, even faster then black, but it leaves less fouling.

[StarMetal]

44man is right. It's not a smokeless. I think one of the key ingredients it contains to put it into the BP class is sulfur, I'm not positive about that though. It is very corrosive like 44man said, but one other attribute my friends and I have noticed is it must be pretty hot when turned into a gas because it has cut a line on my stainless Ruger Old Army on the topstrap by the cylinder gap. Other friends said it eats out the nipples real fast too. Does leave alot less fouling and does clean out with water. I think 777 is even better because it's more potent then Pyrodex and leaves even a little less fouling. I've gotten some very good results out my Ruger using it and impresse velocities.

Joe

[Bad luck Bill]

My experience with Pyrocrap ( I agree) is that it fouled a little more than holy black, but that's in a revolver, maybe in a rifle it's different? Triple 7 is what I use if I don't have to much Goex left and want to save it for last. It's cleaner than both BP and Pyrodex. I haven't tried Swiss yet, I think I'll need to mail order it cause I have yet to see it anywhere local. Wish it was available local. Same goes for VitahVori powder or however it is spelled.

BLB.

[joeb33050]

Joe, I'll cast up the slugs this weekend and get them loaded up with the paste. Then I'll find out about the postage. If you don't hear from me by Monday evening, PM me ok?

Just back from vacation.
Did I miss the message?
joe b.

[joeb33050]

I shot that CVA Hawken with the pitted barrel again yesterday.
70 grain equivalent of Pyrodex RS FFG
Rem cap
TC greased .015 patch
.490 bought ball
I load it and then run a wet water paper towel patch on a brush down and up a couple of times, leave the bore wet, and shoot it.
At 25 yards it shoots into ~3", with some strangers ans some series of shots touching.
I can't see the open sights very well and the gun is not at all comfortable to shoot from the bench and trifocal trouble.
Without the patching that several here recommended, it just gets harder and harder to push the ball down the bore.
It ain't great but I'm learning how to do this.
joe b.

[Maven]

joe, BP rifles need a consistent bore condition to shoot accurately. By wetting the bbl. and leaving it wet, you're destroying consistency. (3" @ 25yds. ain't good!) Instead of using a wet paper towel, use a slightly damp patch on the bore after firing and then a dry one after seating the patched RB. Also, is it possible that a thicker (or possibly a thinner) patch is needed? Have you examined the fired patches to determine whether they're "blown, " i.e., burned through?* One last question about accuracy: Is the Pyro. RS igniting instantaneously or is there a bit of a delay between the cap firing and the main charge going off? (I had this problem today with a sealed/new can of Pyro. P.) A delay is never good for accuracy.

Btw, the rifle shouldn't be increasingly difficult to load: Are you sure you're using .490" RB's? If so, maybe a .012" patch will help (maybe with another patch over the powder charge). I've been loading 80gr. Pyro. RS with Maxi's and RB's and haven't had any loading difficulties to speak of.


*You can cure blown patches by seating a piece of hornet's nest or another patch atop the powder charge.

[catboat]

Here's my recipe. Get a TC Renegade ($250), and then buy a Green mountain slow twist barrel for round ball ( ~ $130). I prefer .54 cal, but .50 is ok.

Shoot ~ 75-80 grains fffg witha .535 ball in the .54 or a .495 in the .50 cal.

You will be very competitive with this outfit, and have a great hunting rifle to boot.

[joeb33050]

Here's my recipe. Get a TC Renegade ($250), and then buy a Green mountain slow twist barrel for round ball ( ~ $130). I prefer .54 cal, but .50 is ok.

Shoot ~ 75-80 grains fffg witha .535 ball in the .54 or a .495 in the .50 cal.

You will be very competitive with this outfit, and have a great hunting rifle to boot.

I've got a bid in on a Renegade, 50 caliber. The G.M. barrels seem to cost ~$220, or is there a place where I could get one for less $$$.
Is it reasonable to look for a barrel in 40 or 45 caliber, fast twist for long range heavy bullets-can I make a Gibbs out of a Renegade?
Thanks;
joe b.

[joeb33050]

I've got a bid in on a Renegade, 50 caliber. The G.M. barrels seem to cost ~$220, or is there a place where I could get one for less $$$.
Is it reasonable to look for a barrel in 40 or 45 caliber, fast twist for long range heavy bullets-can I make a Gibbs out of a Renegade?
Thanks;
joe b.

The Renegade is on the way. First to get round balls to shoot. Again, can I make a Gibbs out of a Renegade? If GM will make the bbl., I can't see why not.
There's a device goes in the nipple hole that allows use of a primer, this seals the flash hole also. Gets you out of the platinum nipple hassle.Does anyone make these to fit a Renegade?
joe b.

[Maven]

joeb, The device was made by a few different manufacturers over the years and did indeed fit the T/C's (Hawkens & Renegades, probably other models as well). However, it is rather a chore to unscrew the device, remove the fired [small rifle] primer, add a new one, screw the top back on, etc. Since I didn't chronograph the before v. after vels., I don't really know what effect it had. Accuracy was unaffected though. The inconvenience of it was a mark against it coupled with the fact that I had NO ignition problems using standard #11 caps in any of my Hawken's bbls.

Btw, good luck with your new Renegade! You'll find T/C's are of much better quality than the CVA + the ignition channel (nipple -> chamber) is such that reliable ignition is practically a given. Coincidentally, our blackpowder guru, whose name I sent you, found the same thing as did several of our club members.