FF in a 45?

[Nor Cal Mikie]

Got 2 45 cals. Started out with 50-55gr. of FFF BP. Got a couple of cans of FF.
Who uses FF in their 45 cal?
I'am thinking maybe 55 to 60 FF & PRB should work?
50 to 55 FFF was so nice. Low recoil. Good accuracy. But what about FF? Opinions please and thanks in advance. Mike.

 

[roundball]

Got 2 45 cals. Started out with 50-55gr. of FFF BP. Got a couple of cans of FF.
Who uses FF in their 45 cal?
I'am thinking maybe 55 to 60 FF & PRB should work?
50 to 55 FFF was so nice. Low recoil. Good accuracy. But what about FF? Opinions please and thanks in advance. Mike.

It'll work of course...I happen to prefer 3F in most calibers as it's faster and cleaner for me than 2F...

 

[John Taylor]

I found that 2F give better accuracy in my ROA. No harm in trying in your rifle, you might like it.

 

[cowpoke1955]

I use FFg in my .54's. In my .45 I only use FFFg. Like roundball said, FFg will work, but will foul the barrel a lot faster in the smaller calibers. Maybe you can trade someone for some FFFg.

 

[Russianblood]

50 to 55 FFF was so nice. Low recoil. Good accuracy. But what about FF?

You can try it but "If it ain't broke, don't fix it".

 

[PreglerD]

Hello from Germany,

have a .45 GPR and use 90 grs WANO PP with wad. works pretty well.

Kirrmeister

 

I know of several target shooters who prefer ffg in all their rifles, even small bores. I personally have always shot fffg in my .45. I switch to ffg at .54.

 

[Larry Pletcher]

I have a .45 with a 1 in 48 twist that I usually use fffg. Recently I started using Swiss and decided to see if the rifle liked Swiss ffg. It shoots very well with Swiss ffg. I didn't try Goex ffg so I can't say whether its the Swiss or the ffg that made the difference.

As in any rifle it is usually worth the effort to see what the rifle likes. In my case 40 gr of Swiss ffg worked better than fffg. Your mileage may vary.
Regards,
Pletch

 

[Old Salt]

I use Goex 2f in my .45 with a 38" Rice barrel. I've been using about 45 grains for targets with good results. I'm going to experiment with less powder to see how it works.

I know the thoery that 3f burns cleaner but I believe smaller powder charges also burn cleaner with less fouling.

Old Salt

 

[Johnny Tremain]

Saw no reason to use FF.

I use 50gr FFF and can ring the 100 yard gong

 

[410-er]

I'm playing with 2 45's now.One TC and one Lyman.Trying FFg and FFFg along with patch thickness and ball size.Will post results when finished.I will say that I think accuracy in FFg covers a broader range where FFFg seems to settle in then right back out on a particular charge.As far a cleaner,if you are using a tight patch,FFg burnes clean.Just my thoughts.

 

[Ohio Joe]

I know of several target shooters who prefer ffg in all their rifles, even small bores. I personally have always shot fffg in my .45. I switch to ffg at .54.

I shoot both 2fg & 3fg Goex, but for different reasons and purposes.

I consider myself a target shooter simply because I shoot a lot of competitions as we head towards our hunting seasons where I live, so yes, I'm a target shooter and I do prefer using 2fg Goex in all my calibers from .40 to .54 for serious target work...

Why? IMHO, 2fg is a slower more even burning powder for target work. Also, one fouling shot of 2fg and your set to start your five shot 20 minute relay, swabbing between shots. I feel the use of 2fg gives you more uniformity in the bore, and the group size of five shots will tell the tale.

Where I use 3fg is during hunting season, and at Rendezvous shooting matches simply because I don't swab between shots while taking part in these enjoyments.

So IMHO, if you're going to shoot tough 'Club' line matches, or on a State or National level where you're up against some mighty fine shooters, I feel 2fg is the way to go.

I'm sure some will have differing opinions on this, but this is what works for me. :v

 

[Kentuckywindage]

For hunting i have to use a conical in my .45 for is to meet the required bullet weight so i use a 225 gn powerbelt driven by 80 grains triple 7 ffg. For normal PRB shooting i use Pyrodex RS ffg.

 

[beefbone]

One of the major factors you should consider when deciding on FFFg or FFg is barrel length. FFg just may not develop a good-enough head of steam in a short barrel. My .45 and .50 barrels are only 22 inches long, overall, so the bores are even shorter than that. So I use FFFg in both calibers, to develop enough pressure. Accuracy is at least as good, and it burns cleaner, to boot. I prefer BP substitutes like Pyrodex, etc. I'm really pleased with Jim Shockey's Gold, which leaves much less fouling, and it's far less hygroscopic... reduces corrosion. :wink:

 

[shmrck1]

Mike,
I'm a hunter,deer&squirrel for the most part.I have calibers from .32 to .54 and for at least
the last 10 or 12 years have used nothing but
3fff Goex in them all.Even grind it up a little and use it a prime in my F/L and never had any
serious problems.If I were a serious target
shooter,I would most likely use 2,3 and 4ffff
Goex powders. But,for my needs 3fff serves me well.IMHO
snake-eyes:hmm:

 

[Nor Cal Mikie]

Myself and my shooting buddy have only got about 10 rounds each down range on both of our rifles.
We started off with 50-55 grains of FFF and a PRB.
We're working on ball/patch size to see what works best. We have a couple of cans of FF BP and thought I'de give it a try to see what difference it might make. Both rifles have 34" barrels. Patch/ball size is one problem we're working on.Trying to figure out what is "too tight". I figure the more it's fired, the smoother the barrel will get and make loading a little easier.
I appreciate all your input. The "been there, done that" sure makes a difference. Sure straightens out the learning curve. Thanks Mike.

 

[MikeHM]

Hi, Im Nor-Cal Mikies shooting buddy, another Mike. One thing mike didn't mention is our 45 cal rifles have a twist of 1 in 30" if that makes any difference. And I'm as new to BP shooting as mike is. However were not new to shooting or reloading, I started reloading back in 1965, and we both shoot and reload high power rifles 221FB,223,6BR, and 308, but this is our first taste of BP shooting, and were getting a real kick out of it, and yes I can see it will be addicting, like all the other shooting is.
Mikie seams to be asking all the questions, but I'm reading everything, so thanks for all the help.
Its just a good thing my wife has no idea how many rifles and other guns I have (about 46 and one 70 cal. BP Cannon), if she sees a new one, I just say, I just switched stocks, and its worked for me so far.
So thanks to all, for all the help, I'm sure will have more questions, were smart enough to know, if we dont know something will ask you guys, :bow: rather than do something stupid.
Thanks Mike.

 

[Zonie]

Mikehm: Although it doesn't change much of what was said on this post about using FF powder, the twist you mentioned does change the way your guns will shoot patched roundballs.

That 1:30 twist you mentioned is actually made for shooting moderately heavy conical bullets or sabot loads.
It will often shoot patched roundballs fairly well with a 45-55 grain powder load, but I think if you try bumping that load up to much over 60 grains you will see the group size open up.

Seeing as how your twist is made for long, heavy projectiles, if you try shooting bullets over 285 grains I will be the first to suggest that you avoid using FFF powder with them.
The Lyman "BLACK POWDER HANDBOOK" 2nd ed stops listing 3F powder for bullets over 245 grains and only shows 2F loads.
Many of the 2Fg loads they list for these heavier bullets exceed 22,000 PSI in the .45 cal guns.
zonie

I forgot to say WELCOME TO THE FORUM !
Keep on posting.
zonie

 

[MikeHM]

Zonie, Thanks for the heads up on the twist, Mikie didn't mention that, and I know how it works on high power stuff, so we (Mikie and myself) will reevaluate what were shooting, and ill make sure Mikie reads your post, I dont know what the ball we were shooting weigh, but I will weigh one, and we were using his 3F powder, I had 2 cans of 2F that I have had for 20 years, and had some concerns about using it, and still do, it did just sit sealed up, but had been opened years ago. So I guess its OK, you tell me. What we shot the first day, was relatively accurate, but we were not shooting for groups, just trying things out.
Thanks for the info. Mike.

 

[grant]

Being a newcomer to black powder shooting I looked at the instruction book that came with my CVA .45 and it said to use 2F(no mention of 3F). So I've been shooting 2F(about 55grains worth) and it's been working really well. From what I've learned on this forum and other books, I believe I could use 3F if I reduced the charge by 15% but I haven't tried it yet.