FFg or FFFg for .50 cal?

[cynthialee]

I didn't want to doubt the gentleman at the shop but didn't know him either so, being new to this I wanted to ask.

Yeah, it's good you didn't trust that guy in the store, since you don't know him anywhere near as good as you know us here on the internet! :haha:

This is a good source of information regarding BP firearms and all related topics. As a forum that is focused on a specific topic one can be relatively sure of good information being shared once a handful or more of posts have been made.
The guy in the store may or may not be educated. If he is full of it there is no one to gainsay him in the moment. If one of us posts eronious information you can bet it will be called out in short order.

Would I trust this group for information on potery and ceramics? No. I would go to a potery forum and get good information there.

Point being that these specialty interest forums we find online tend to be a good solid source of information in regards to their focus topic.

 

[Wes/Tex]

Would I trust this group for information on potery and ceramics? No. I would go to a potery forum and get good information there.

For a split second I read "poetry" and felt hurt about not being able to help thee with verse! :wink:

 

[Zonie]

I had the same thoughts Wes.

Why, I got pretty good in High School at reciting the opening lines of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales in middle-english!

"WHAN that Aprille with his shoures soote
The droghte of Marche hath perced to the roote,
And bathed every veyne in swich licour,
Of which vertu engendred is the flour;
Whan Zephirus eek with his swete breeth
Inspired hath in every holt and heeth
The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne
Hath in the Ram his halfe cours y-ronne,
And smale fowles maken melodye,
That slepen al the night with open ye,
(So priketh hem nature in hir corages:
Than longen folk to goon on pilgrimages..."

Translation:
When April with its showers sooth
The drought of March that has pierced to the root
And bathed every vine in...

Oh, OK. OK.
I know you guys don't want to actually know what ole Geoff said but if you get a chance, read the translated Millers tale. It's a real eye opener. :grin:

Back to the powder issues.

 

[Wes/Tex]

Had to memorize that for English lit. back in high school...still haunts me sometimes!

Might just as well know some old English, in case you ever meet an old Englishman! :wink: :rotf:

 

[MSW]

not to denigrate the sales folks at wherever you get your powder, but they may or might nor know what they're talking about ...

I regard the advice I get here in high regard for the reasons CynthiaLee lays out, and the experience that most of the advice I see here squares with my own experience, or (when I follow it) I get good results.

as regards the FFFg vs. FFg question, I would recommend that you get a can of each and see which provides the better result in your particular rifle ... you might see a significant difference, or no difference at all, but you won't know until you try it.

Also, if you don't already have a copy, you should check this out:
http://www.blackpowderrifleaccuracy.com/

Dutch Schoultz is not only a fine gentleman, but an excellent coach, and money spent on his method is a very wise investment. if you follow his instructions, your groups will shrink.

I've tried both 4F and 3F as priming powder, and I can't tell the difference. theory has it that 4F is faster, but I'm not a good enough shot to see any improvement, so you may want to use whatever you shoot with as primer ... your results may vary, so test this out.

good luck with your project, and

make good smoke!

 

[Col. Batguano]

We tried 2F in our wheelie as a priming powder and it wouldn't light, despite a good spark. When we went to 4F, it did. Wheelies don't spark as reliably as flinters.

 

[cynthialee]

We tried 2F in our wheelie as a priming powder and it wouldn't light, despite a good spark. When we went to 4F, it did. Wheelies don't spark as reliably as flinters.

I did not know that. But I have never had the opportunity to shoot a wheel lock. Never even seen one other than in a museum or a picture.

 

[Wes/Tex]

It might not be a total product of spark temperature. Some wheel locks tend to spray sparks above and not directly into the priming pan. All depends on wheel/**** set-up and alignment. Sometimes it takes some finagling to get things aimed right. Finer powder granules may make a difference in a wheel lock, certainly. Intensity of sparks also depends on whether you are using pyrite or another of the sparking materials some folks are now using. Another trick is to use Null-B powder for priming which isn't glazed like normal versions. While easier to ignite, the lack of glazing also makes it more likely to pick up humidity and other moisture...it's always something! :wink: :haha:

 

[hanshi]

For any and all calibers I've found 3F to give better results. It's used in everything from the tiny .32 up to the huge .62. So far I've not found any use for 2F that improves on 3F.

 

[Staggerwing]

Just as CynthiaLee says, if someone were to post bad info here the rest of you would be all over it. I am so fortunate to have found this website several years ago.
Last week I finally finished my first build. Last night, I fired it for the first time. I was already hooked during the building process but last night sealed the deal! Wow.
I stayed with the same ball and patch and varied the powder. I have some other balls and patches to try. But the gun performed flawlessly and the 3F powder seemed to do the trick. Once I get a better handle on the proper ball and patch I may try some 2F to see how it performs.
Thanks again for all of your input and honesty. Even the poetry. I needed that today! :applause:

 

[Billnpatti]

fffG will work quite well in your .50 rifle. I shoot rifles ranging in caliber from .36 to .54 and I use fffG in all of them. I find it to be cleaner burning than ffG. fffG is almost a universal powder for all calibers. However, when you get into the .62 caliber and larger, you will likely have to reduce your load by about 10%. But, in your .50 caliber rifle, you can shoot the same amount of fffG as you would of ffG and encounter no problems. If you were to zero your rifle using one grade of powder and then change to the same volume of a different grade, you may notice a difference in your POI. But, if you zero with fffG and shoot fffG, everything will be just fine.

Let me make a recommendation to you. check out www.blackpowderrifleaccuracy.com. Buy it, follow it and you will be a happy man.

 

[Billnpatti]

Ouch! I, too, had to memorize such things as that but I had it on short memory and had dumped it as worthless nonsense. Although my old English Lit. prof would not agree. I already had enough useful Math and Science to remember to clog up my mind with such things.
BTW, the Nun's Priest Tale is a romp, too.

 

[Wes/Tex]

That's the way to do it Staggerwing...only change one thing at a time. have seen some change powder charge & ball size at the same time and get results varying from "why did it do that?" to "what'cha mean I didn't hit paper?" :thumbsup:

And if we're doing staggerwings, I'm going with this one!
http://www.pcaviator.com.au/store/images/D/Alabeo-D17-Staggerwing-Xplane-PCAviatorAustralia-Download-1.jpg

 

[Staggerwing]

Wes/Tex, Yes, one cannot change all the variables at once and expect to glean anything valuable from the results.
I went ahead and orderd the Black powder rifle accuracy information recommended by a few here. I'm sure it will be will worth the $20.
That is a beautiful Staggerwing, Wes/Tex. As you might guess, my favorite plane. One of my other hobbies is building and flying R/C airplanes. I have a staggerwing half finished waiting for some attention. Some day I hope to take a ride in a full scale Staggerwing!

 

[MSW]

Just as CynthiaLee says, if someone were to post bad info here the rest of you would be all over it. I am so fortunate to have found this website several years ago.
Last week I finally finished my first build. Last night, I fired it for the first time. I was already hooked during the building process but last night sealed the deal! Wow.
I stayed with the same ball and patch and varied the powder. I have some other balls and patches to try. But the gun performed flawlessly and the 3F powder seemed to do the trick. Once I get a better handle on the proper ball and patch I may try some 2F to see how it performs.
Thanks again for all of your input and honesty. Even the poetry. I needed that today! :applause:

congrats on your build ... pictures ... we want pictures!

 

[Staggerwing]

I'll try and post some pics tonight.

 

[hanshi]

There was a time decades ago when we were getting whatever powder that happened to be in stock. Sometimes it was 2F, sometimes it was 3F. Didn't matter, I simply shot what I had; no switching loads, no nothing. I preferred 3F even back then but beggars can't be choosers. The good news was that it was only $1.00 per lb.

 

[Staggerwing]

Posted pics of my new build in the Gun Builder's Bench section.