.410 flint smoothbore pistol

[newtothis]

ok i wasnt sure if this should go here or in pistols, admin, move if ya need to or whatever. ok so i traded a guy for a squirrel rifle, and just as a bonus he threw in a .410 smoothbore flintlock pistol. it used to be a .40 cal rifled pistol, but bore got bad so the maker bored it out to be a smoothie. now i have never owned a flintlock, nor a smoothbore, so i cant wait to get this thing. i suppose my quesition is how do you load a smoothie with shot? i know its gotta have a wad, but thats about all i know.
P.S i HATE buying anything that im just gunna blow out the barrel anyway, so anything i coul make or scavange myself instead of factory made stuff would be cool. thanks guys. :grin:

 

[CoyoteJoe]

Easy enough, I'd suggest about 35 grains of powder and an equal volume of small birdshot. After making sure the bore and vent are clear and free of oil, drop your powder charge. crumple up a 3" square of newspaper and ram that wad down atop the powder. Pack it down good and tight. Drop your shot from the same measure and pack a smaller wad of paper over the shot. Don't pack the overshot wad so tightly, just firm enough to prevent the shot from falling out. When ready to fire, pick the vent clear, prime the pan and blaze away. Try it on a piece of cardboard at about 15 paces to see what sort of pattern spread you get. Try it on a steel, not aluminum, can. If the pellets will penetrate a steel can you have enough penetration to kill small birds, maybe a cottontail. Have Fun!

 

[ohio ramrod]

I personally would not go over 25 grains FFF in a pistol . I suggest starting at 20 grain FFF, two 1/4 inch wads, 1/2 ounce shot in a newspaper rolled cartridge. ( I make mine rolling three thicknesses of newsprint around a dowel rod and tie them off with kile string. A 3/8 dowel rod should work about right for a 410. ). You will just have to play around which can be a lot of fun in itself.

 

[newtothis]

cool. it came in today, but i cant play with it yet cuz i dont have any real bp. its impossible to find around here and i dont need twenty five pounds of the manure. thanks guys!!

 

[trent/OH]

You should consider the possibility of rifling the barrel again. You'd loose the capacity of shooting tiny shot charges, but you might get an accurate pistol instead.

 

[Congress Own Regiment]

cool. it came in today, but i cant play with it yet cuz i dont have any real bp. its impossible to find around here and i dont need twenty five pounds of the manure. thanks guys!!

Try calling around there is bound to be a place that carries it or some one that has a can they will sell you. Bass Pro carries it in some locations, but they get a marked up price for it. about $24.00 a pound.
Went I lived in Vermont we Bought it from a fuel distributor that carried Black powder for the quarries in the area. How would think you could get it from a place that sold heating oil

 

[newtothis]

You should consider the possibility of rifling the barrel again. You'd loose the capacity of shooting tiny shot charges, but you might get an accurate pistol instead.

didnt think about that. wonder how expensive that would be?

we have a bass pro and a cabellas here close, but their online things dont mention real bp. i'll have to try calling them. and the markup sucks, but i wouldnt mind. a pound of it, useing only about 25 grains per shot, will last a while. oh, and i found a half pound of it here that my pawpaw had for his .36 revolver. i proceded to take it. lol. so i shot it today with the only thing i had to launch out of it, which was 7 1/2 shot i cut out of some twelve guage shells. at 5 yards patterns about two foot across lol. :haha:

 

[DavidAmes344]

cool. it came in today, but i cant play with it yet cuz i dont have any real bp. its impossible to find around here and i dont need twenty five pounds of the manure. thanks guys!!

Powder Inc. will sell you as little as 5 pounds