An excellent paper for making revolver paper cartridges

[user 33697]

Hi guys,

A friend of mine suggested the best paper to use for making paper cartridges is called Raw rolling papers. I bought some and made some paper cartridges for my Uberti 1858, 1860 and ROA and the paper burns clean with no perceptible residue in the cylinder chambers. As an experiment, I lit one of the rolling papers and it burns up completely fairly instantly like flash paper. This particular rolling paper is made from hemp. Gee....I wonder what kind of cigarette can be rolled using a hemp rolling paper? I bought this rolling paper at a local smoke shop that has gobs of different sizes and package quantities made by this manufacturer. The young gal at the smoke shop asked if I was interested in their tobaccos to go with the rolling papers I purchased. I explained to her that I was not a smoker and gave her some historical education about civil war paper cartridges that she found to be fascinating. No one had ever visited the smoke shop before to purchase rolling papers for making paper cartridges. You might want to try Raw rolling papers (no, I'm not an advertiser or employee of the company) for your next batch of paper cartridges. The Raw version I purchased is their Classic 1-1/4 size which is available in 50, 300 or 500 packaging. I paid $4.95 for the 300 quantity package. I cut a single paper in half, cut off a 1/2" square piece from one of the two pieces that I just cut for gluing to the bottom of the cartridge. I then take the remaining piece, roll it and glue on my .44 cal. tapered wood dowel cartridge former. I glue the 1/2" square piece to the bottom of the paper cone. I use a glue stick for the adhesive. My favorite loading is 25 gr. of Hodgdon 777, .454 ball for my 1858 and 1860 and a .457 ball for my ROA. Interestingly, this brown rolling paper makes the finished cartridge look similar to an original 19th century paper cartridge. The finished cartridge using this rolling paper is fairly strong from breakage and easily slips into each cylinder chamber of my revolvers. I'll be making some more cartridges using J&D 217 gr. conical bullets that I just casted. The larger sized Raw rolling papers that are available may possibly be used for rifle paper cartridges. Below is a snap shot of some cartridges that I have made.

 

[TFoley]

Not being in any way familiar with hallucinatory tobaccos from other sources, I just use regular Rizla roll-em-up papers of a size compatible with my need to produce a .44cal cartrdige.,

 

[user 33697]

Checking out the Rizla Natura brand rolling paper, this particular product is also a hemp based rolling paper distinct from their other rolling paper offerings and would most probably burn just as clean. No mention on the Rizla website , or for that matter the Raw website, as to what binder material that either manufacturer uses to manufacture hemp based rolling papers. It makes me wonder if both manufacturers use a small amount of potassium nitrate or similar chemical compound as the Raw paper really burned up fast when lighting it with a match. Try lighting one of your Rizla papers and observing what happens.

 

[J dirt]

Hi guys,

A friend of mine suggested the best paper to use for making paper cartridges is called Raw rolling papers. I bought some and made some paper cartridges for my Uberti 1858, 1860 and ROA and the paper burns clean with no perceptible residue in the cylinder chambers. As an experiment, I lit one of the rolling papers and it burns up completely fairly instantly like flash paper. This particular rolling paper is made from hemp. Gee....I wonder what kind of cigarette can be rolled using a hemp rolling paper? I bought this rolling paper at a local smoke shop that has gobs of different sizes and package quantities made by this manufacturer. The young gal at the smoke shop asked if I was interested in their tobaccos to go with the rolling papers I purchased. I explained to her that I was not a smoker and gave her some historical education about civil war paper cartridges that she found to be fascinating. No one had ever visited the smoke shop before to purchase rolling papers for making paper cartridges. You might want to try Raw rolling papers (no, I'm not an advertiser or employee of the company) for your next batch of paper cartridges. The Raw version I purchased is their Classic 1-1/4 size which is available in 50, 300 or 500 packaging. I paid $4.95 for the 300 quantity package. I cut a single paper in half, cut off a 1/2" square piece from one of the two pieces that I just cut for gluing to the bottom of the cartridge. I then take the remaining piece, roll it and glue on my .44 cal. tapered wood dowel cartridge former. I glue the 1/2" square piece to the bottom of the paper cone. I use a glue stick for the adhesive. My favorite loading is 25 gr. of Hodgdon 777, .454 ball for my 1858 and 1860 and a .457 ball for my ROA. Interestingly, this brown rolling paper makes the finished cartridge look similar to an original 19th century paper cartridge. The finished cartridge using this rolling paper is fairly strong from breakage and easily slips into each cylinder chamber of my revolvers. I'll be making some more cartridges using J&D 217 gr. conical bullets that I just casted. The larger sized Raw rolling papers that are available may possibly be used for rifle paper cartridges. Below is a snap shot of some cartridges that I have made.

View attachment 61365

I like those. Do you use a lot to form them?

Thanks, Jdirt.

 

[J dirt]

That should be kit.

 

[wb78963]

I use beauty shop curling papers and they burn completely. Very thin but very strong.
These are cut in squares and used for the end cap on Hahn tubes in my Sharps carbine.
Bunk

 

[FlyingMountainBoomer]

Careful, the smell might attract hippies to your range. Nothing kills the mood like an impromptu drum circle.

 

[user 33697]

I like those. Do you use a lot to form them?

Thanks, Jdirt.

Hi Jdirt,

Several years ago when I was at a local gun show there was a fella selling all sorts of black powder rifles, pistols and many accessories and he was selling a wooden .44 cal. paper cartridge kit that consisted of a former, block and cartridge pattern for $10.00. Below is the kit that I use to make the paper cartridges as described in my post. I found that it's a lot easier and faster to make the paper cone by not using the the small cartridge pattern piece and simply wrappings the rolling paper around the former, gluing it and trimming the bottom and top of the paper cone with a razor blade while still on the former. I then take the small 1/2" square paper, center it on the hole on the block, glue around the cone bottom while on the former and then pushing it into the hole. Withdraw it, slip it off the former and I've got a nice shaped paper cone. There is a nice instruction on YouTube for making your own paper cartridge kit at

 

[William Lincoln]

Would nitrating the papers make them more combustible??
Faster ignition?

 

[Eutycus]

It was mentioned how the brown paper resembles the 19th century cartridges.I use coffee filter paper (nitered) to make my cones. It's stained a brownish color from the coffee,I use the filters for their intended purpose first(to make coffee). Then rinse them off, niter them and you got brownish paper for cartridge making.

 

[user 33697]

Would nitrating the papers make them more combustible??
Faster ignition?

Hi William,

I started using the hemp based rolling paper was that it burns really good with no perceptible residue in cylinder chambers from results observed after firing several cylinder loadings at my shooting range. Nitrating the hemp rolling paper could be done, but I don't know if it would contribute to making it more combustible or for a faster ignition. I have experimentally nitrated both curling paper and coffee filter paper as other shooters have done that resulted in very small if no residue left in the cylinder chambers but nitrating paper does involve some extra labor and effort. What I described in my post for using the hemp rolling paper appears best for me. If your interest in trying nitrating paper, the link below has an excellent way to do it as described by the guy that sells the Johnston & Dow conical bullet molds. He uses coffee filter paper but can be applied to curling paper, rolling paper, etc. As a footnote, as I am not a black powder shooting competitor or hunter, I just like to shoot my revolvers on a shooting range for fun. I usually load my revolver cylinder using a bench mount cylinder loader rather than using the revolver loading arm. A bench loader is especially great for conical bullets.

 

[William Lincoln]

Thanks for info.