load question

cynthialee said:

4f shouldn't be loaded in your Patriot
pan charging and small caliber pistols only

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Ask Brismoothie

tenngun said:

Ask Brismoothie

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yeah but he is smart
we say yes you can use it and some idiot is going to load a full charge of 4f and when bad stuff happens, blame us

20gaugecalvary said:

What do you recommend for my rifle? I have the 2F pyrodex powder for rifles... I was thinking 60 grains. Why do you use FFFG, isn't that more for pistols?

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Personally I use fffg because it ignites more readily in cold damp weather conditions which is normal for my hunting conditions. I have little use for a gun that doesn't reliably go boom when asked.

cynthialee said:

yeah but he is smart
we say yes you can use it and some idiot is going to load a full charge of 4f and when bad stuff happens, blame us

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And far more current experience than most of us, plus he seems to be a pretty good guy.

I was looking for information as to what size ball and patch for a 45 caliber. Seen this post, OP posted a .440 ball and .001 patch. Would that be correct?

Jappo said:

I was looking for information as to what size ball and patch for a 45 caliber. Seen this post, OP posted a .440 ball and .001 patch. Would that be correct?

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Might have been a typo. Probably meant 0.010 for the patch. Using a 0.440 ball I'd think you'd need a thicker patch to engage the rifling. But depends on the rifle. I use a 0.445 ball and a 0.010 patch for my .45 cal rifle.

I would really want a bit more information on @Jappo's rifle before I start making recommendations for ball and patch.

I do recommend using a digital Vernier caliper to measure the land-to-land diameter of the barrel and the groove to groove diameter. Use the difference of the groove diameter and the land-to-land diameter and divide by 2 to get a start on patch thickness. Knowing the land to land dimension, subtract 0.010 for a reasonable to start ball and a patch slightly thicker than the starting diameter calculated above. Use a smaller ball and thicker patch for an easier to start ball and patch. Patch lubricant to start can be spit or for the more fastidious a mix of water and liquid dish soap.

We need specific measurements. Anything else is pure speculation and may not be of any help.

Grenadier1758 said:

I would really want a bit more information on @Jappo's rifle before I start making recommendations for ball and patch.

I do recommend using a digital Vernier caliper to measure the land-to-land diameter of the barrel and the groove to groove diameter. Use the difference of the groove diameter and the land-to-land diameter and divide by 2 to get a start on patch thickness. Knowing the land to land dimension, subtract 0.010 for a reasonable to start ball and a patch slightly thicker than the starting diameter calculated above. Use a smaller ball and thicker patch for an easier to start ball and patch. Patch lubricant to start can be spit or for the more fastidious a mix of water and liquid dish soap.

We need specific measurements. Anything else is pure speculation and may not be of any help.

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Well I thought about that, but all I have are .440 balls and plenty of em. I guess I could just try different sizes of patches. But the .440 is the most common for 45 caliber right?

@Jappo, get a good short starter and start loading to see how your ball and patch combinations work.

Jappo said:

I was looking for information as to what size ball and patch for a 45 caliber. Seen this post, OP posted a .440 ball and .001 patch. Would that be correct?

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It can vary depending on the actual bore diameter and how deep the rifling is. It is not just simply getting a RB and patch thickness that add up to the bore diameter.
For example, my .54 TC needs a much thicker patch than just a .010" with a .530 ball. They tend to be a bit over advertised bore diameter plus they have shallow grooves. Seems to take a pretty tight combo for them to shoot well IME.
When I tried a .010 cotton patch it shot horrible groups and recovered patches were burnt to a crisp. When I bumped to a .015" cotton patch, groups were still poor and recovered patches still showed being burned through quite often. So, then I tried some .018" pillow ticking patches. Groups were really good and recovered patches had no holes, just the normal fraying around the edges.

For load development in a new to you rifle, it is a good idea to have a few different patch thickness with you to see what the rifle will prefer.

And a couple of ball sizes.

Loyalist Dave said:

So before you go down a rabbit hole, use the brass, adjustable measure.

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Yes!

Slightly over fill the measure and strike it level using a finger.

Chunk the Lee powder measure kit and disregard the powder weight.