Any of ya had any

[Rebel]

luck shooting rd balls out of a T/C New Englander .12 ga. I just picked up a .12 ga barrel with screw in chokes and was wondering if it would be worth messing with it with rd balls. If so, what choke, Imp Cyl or Mod. worked best? Thanks for any help.
Also, do any of you make your own Felt wads for a .12 ga. Getting even an overshot wad past that Full Choke tube is a pain. How do the felt wads work? I may have to see about making a punch for them if they work good. What size punch do you use, a 3/4"?

 

[Grizzled Roberts]

Round balls will not shoot well out of a shotgun type choke. It must be cylinder bore to shoot a round ball.

 

[slowpokebr549]

I beg to differ, my single barrel with a modified works quite well with round ball.That being said, I wouldnt go any tighter. I have pretty good luck with .680 or 90 depending on how tight they are patched.Felt wads work great in a choked gun. They seal well even after deforming for the choke.

 

Yer Improved Cylinder should work fine. One thing to keep in mind, is to use a smaller ball size than you would with a rifled barrel, and use a heavier patch with it. This will help nullify the choke, when loading and not put undo stress on the choke tubes. Not a twelve but in my Tulle 20 guage .608 I use a .585 ball with heavy denim patch, and found it improved my accuracy, and was much easier to load, ans was cleaner.

Bill

 

[Rebel]

Thanks guys. i knew they would work in the choked bore just wasn't sure how well. I have experience with smoothbores and rd balls, but they were cyl. bored. I may have to see if i can locate some .690 rd balls and felt wads to try out.

 

[slowpokebr549]

My CVA likes a .680 in a plastic shot cup loaded over a lubed felt wad and 65gr. of 3f. Its pretty accurate at about 40 yards.

 

[Rebel]

Thanks. My old Navy Arms double barrel shot good with 90-100 grs and a .690 rd ball in either a cut down AA shot cup or patched with ticking. Do you make your own felt wads or buy them?

 

[slowpokebr549]

I buy em, I found a deal on them at a local dealer that was closing its doors.I picked up a couple of hundred for a little bit o nothin.They were dry but I melt lube into them.A couple of guys on here make their own. If you had a source of sheet felt I suppose it would be cheaper. I do wish that the ones I had were just a smudge bigger.

 

[Rebel]

I was thinking 3/4" should be good for a .12 ga? I will have to keep my eyes open for some wads or some felt to make some. Just want to try a few first to see how they work through the full choke tube with shot.

 

[Runner]

I load thru the choke on mine and I use a short starter ball to start the thick over powder wad I use. I have not tried roundball yet since my gun is the one with the very thin light barrel and choke tubes. I have considered the Lyman slug designed to be used in a standard trap wad because I have the choke tubes to contend with.

 

[Rebel]

When you load the thick overpowder wad through the full choke tube do you think it is still doing a good job of sealing the bore?

 

[Runner]

I shoot better patterns with the heavy loads than I used to with a modern full choke shotgun. I very seldom use the full choke tube because it shoots too tight with a lot of loads for anything but turkeys. I use the Modified tube most of the time. I would guess that means it is working fine after being loaded thru the choke.

 

[xxgrampa]

hi ho reb,

they should work good in either choke.. if i had 12gauge round balls, would send you some to try out.. but unfortunatly, don't cast for 12ga.

..ttfn..grampa..

 

[Rebel]

Runner, the only thing i would use the full choke tube for is turkey. If i had to i could load it first then install the choke tube. Its on;y going to be one shot so no need for a speedy reload. I figured the modified or imp cyl chokes would get the most use, with the nod going to imp. cyl probably. I always had real good luck with the cyl. bores on my double barrel. Thanks for the info.

 

[Rebel]

Hidee ho, Grampa, thanks for the offer. I may just buy a .690 Lee mould and cast some to try. The Lee moulds don't cost but about $20 so no big deal. And if they work i already have the mould.

 

[Trkdriver99]

In the discussion of felt wads, I have a roll of automobile felt carpet backing. I have about 30 or 40 yard roll that is 60" wide and about 1/4 thick. Do y'all think that would make a good wad? I need to try it out, just don't have the time. Anyone wantsto try it send me name and address and I will send first 4 a big piece of it for free. Enough to experiment and use.

Ronnie

 

[lizz]

Rebel; There is also a company called Duro-Felt products. They have different thickness and densaty [thats not spelled right] and free shipping. Doc

 

[paulvallandigham]

that 1/4" felt should make fine OP wads, when lubed with wonderlube, or Stumpy's Moose Snot. Of round ball, you might want to use two of the wads together to make sure that powder gases are sealed behind the PRB, and that there is enough lube to grease the entire length of the barrel.

 

[slowpokebr549]

Yeah, you can go thick with wads and roundball. With shot I find that thick overpowder wads blow doughnut holes in my pattern.The better the seal the less powder you have to use. I backed off of my powder on roundball loads. Paul here rightly pointed out that a nearly 500 grain roundball doesnt need tons of velocity to penetrate. I only use about 65 grains and my flinch has improved greatly.