black powder pellets

[GOOMAN]

Hi, I recently "rediscovered" my .50cal. T/C Renegade in my closet. Haven't shot it in at least 25yrs. Will the new powder pellets work in this gun, or do I need to stick with the regular powder?

 

[123.DieselBenz]

The pellets are designed for the inlines . . . don't waste your money!

Yeah the black powder will still work :wink:

 

[Bill Hall]

I'll second that. Those pellets may, or may not work in a sidelock. Besides, they come in 50 grain sizes, so if you find your renegade shoots best with 87 grains, you're going to need to whittle down one of the pellets :rotf: .

Pellets were invented for the guys who need the words "FRONT" and "REAR" stamped on their underwear, so they don't get get it wrong. Bill

 

[mtmshieldshotmail.com]

Go loose, my friend. I don't even use the pellets in my *cough* inline.

 

[BrownBear]

I've never lived in Missouri, but I'm still a "show me" kinda guy. I tried the pellets in sidelocks just cuzz.

Worthless used straight, with ignition only about 1 time in 10. Tried a little loose powder under them, and sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. A couple of times the pellet ignited, but only well down the bore and exited like a roman candle. Wahoo! But I was getting REALLY worried about the potential for the pellet to think the ball in front of it was an obstruction.

Bad deal. Even if they worked, I find in our damp climate that after opening a box you have about a month to use it all up before misfires take over.

 

[necchi]

You should take those pellets, lube'm up real good with some BoreButter and put'm right up,,,
well, don't use'm in your side lock.
:nono:

 

[Pete Gaimari]

Deer manure out pellets.

Use powder. :wink:

 

[hoochiepapa]

Or "left and right" on their socks.

 

[GOOMAN]

:thumbsup: thanks for all the great replies. also, my lead balls have a white powdery look. are they still good to use? can remember that far back. what kind of powder do you guys use now? thanks again

 

[BullRunBear]

I found some round balls in the garage from 20 years ago and they shot fine. My Renegade 50 cal. is your vintage although it's been in regular use. I've used Pyrodex RS in the past but much prefer 3F Goex.

Jeff

 

[gearheart]

That white powder is lead oxide. A friend got a box of balls that had enough of it on them to increase the size to where they couldn't be loaded. We put them in a plastic coffee can with water and swirled them around until the coating came off. good as new. The water was to keep the oxide from turning to dust. (toxic)

 

[paulvallandigham]

If you simply spray the lead balls, with the white oxide in place, with WD40, the balls will turn black, but they will no longer oxidize, and the white oxide will become part of the ball again. The WD40 has dryers that evaporate the oil, leaving a film coating the metal( lead) which protect them from further corrosion.

I suffered a flooded basement 10 years ago, when snow on the roof worked its way down between the exterior walls of the apartment building where I lived. I didn't see the water, because it ran into a carpeted clothes closet, where I kept my range box on the carpet. Everything in the box corroded, and I spent considerable time removing mold, mildew, rust, and oxides from all the surfaces. The WD40 helped deal with several of the problems, better than all the cleaners I tried.

 

[William O.]

:thumbsup: thanks for all the great replies. also, my lead balls have a white powdery look. are they still good to use?
Yes.
What kind of powder do you guys use now? thanks again

I use Goex, and both my 50 cals prefer 3f granulation for best accuracy.

 

[BrownBear]

All of my 50's sure seem to prefer 3f too, whether Goex or Pyrodex P. The Goex is sure a lot easier to deal with, but the P works fine if you can't get near Goex as soon or easy as you'd like. Just be sure to REALLY clean up after you use it.

BTW- I don't know if it's magic or coincidence, but both my 1:66 and 1:48 rifles, flinters and cappers, really come into their own right at 80 grains of powder. I'm sure other rifles are different, but it's kinda nice to use the same measure for all of them. It's so consistent, that's where I start with an unfamiliar 50's now.

I should rephrase that. Accuracy starts to deteriorate with larger charges, but is best right there. They're all really good with 35 or 60 grains too for small game and plinking, but for a deer load I go 80.

 

[bangfxr]

Pitch the pellets and go loose which is best. I know a couple guys who buy them (pellets) and attempt to use them at shoots. They will cuss the stuff but still buy it anyway :idunno: I use loose and have no problems in any muskets, rifles or pistols.

 

[GOOMAN]

I was trying to remember what load I used to shoot, and 80 kept coming up in my head. I talked to a few inline shooters, and they told me 150 was what they used. That seemed kinda much to me. I was toying with the idea of shooting woodchucks with it next spring. Also, it's been so long since I shot it. Is it necessary to clean it every shot? I think I got "CRS" syndrome. :idunno:

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

Some say yes, some say no. Depends upon bore condition (pitting, rust, lubrication) issues and whether or not you want to get cloverleafs at the range or be good for the boiler room of a deer at 60 yards. I spit-patch every 6-7 shots and have found that doing so prior to the point where too much fouling causes groups to open-up is good enough for me :wink: .

Welcome to the Forum!

Dave

 

[rawhide]

bless me loard I sined my work sells inlines and pellets. and we sell side locks. anyway I'm the guy who test this stuff for my work. I found in some side locks it works ok. (even in a flinter!) my personal .54 it will go bang every time but I think I can hit the target maybe if I throw the ball at it. my pistol .50 likes them. so see? they make the pellets in 50/50 .50 cal 50 grains 50/30 .50 cal 30 grains. 54/60 .54 cal 60 grains. 45/50 .45 cal 50 grains and 44/30 .44 cal 30 grains for the pistols. even in a inline I had them go bang or not. alot of new to mler. like the convence of the pellets just drop 2-3 in the bore then load your bullet. then they wine think the guns a P.O.S. cause it only when off 1 out of 3 shots or they can't hit the in side of a barn. then I introduce them to rs or 777 powder and teach them to work up a load for that gun. they come back smiling.

 

[Herb]

Sherman, there is a lot of tested experience in your post. Thanks.

 

[rawhide]

your welcome!