Is the "P" word OK?

[armoredman]

Meaning Pyrodex and specifically, has anyone used the 30 grain Pyrodex pellets for revolvers? It LOOKS easy and fast...but is it? Anyone use them?
Thanks for any reply that doesn't include "Burn him at the stake!"

 

[Old-Duckman]

I just ordered some of those pellets and look forward to trying them out. I am new to the BP scene so I am not beholden to any tradition or preconceived notions of what ML enthusiasts should or must think. Adding such restrictions takes the enjoyment out of the endeavor. There are enough people and institutions that try to tell me what to think I won’t let that happen to ruin my enjoyment of this sport.

Do what you want, try what you want. Surely get advice from those here who have the experience that we lack but hear their advice/suggestions and do what you think makes sense to you and enjoy the ride!

 

[Notchy Bob]

I would be interested, just out of curiosity. I have shot loose Pyrodex in a revolver, but prefer black powder.

I think the Pyrodex pellets ought to work in a revolver. It is my understanding that these require a pretty hot flame to ignite, but cap and ball revolvers are essentially inlines, with the primer flash going straight into the main charge.

I'm sure somebody here has tried it.

Notchy Bob

 

[Justin.44]

I bought a box when I first started with revolvers. They actually work pretty good, no problems with ignition with any caps I used. The problem for me was that being 30 grains, you can't adjust your load at all. It's fine for plinking but if you want to find the most accurate charge, you'll want to try a variety of loads. Like I said, they do work, but out of that box I bought I have more than half left just sitting in my safe.

 

[user 49399]

Armoredman,

I shoot several types of muzzleloaders, but my favorite thing is flintlocks with real black powder and homemade accoutrements. I occasionally shoot Pyrodex in percussion guns including black powder revolvers.

I haven’t tried pellets in a revolver but have in rifles. The big drawback I found with pellets is the inability to adjust loads. If I’m going to shoot, even just plinking, I want to be able to shoot as accurately as possible.

As far as pellets being easy and fast, they are easy. But, I don’t need or want to be fast when shooting black powder guns. The slow, methodical process of loading and shooting is part of what makes this hobby so enjoyable.

Let us know what you come up with. Good shooting and have fun!

Banjoman

 

[TrapperDude]

Meaning Pyrodex and specifically, has anyone used the 30 grain Pyrodex pellets for revolvers? It LOOKS easy and fast...but is it? Anyone use them?
Thanks for any reply that doesn't include "Burn him at the stake!"

I'm just a 30 grains of loose Pyrodex guy, so I would be very curious to hear about how the pellets work.

It may just require doing the experimentation to see how it turns out. Quite frankly, it seems like it should work, given that the pellets are designed to work with a percussion cap flame initiating the rear of the pellet, and that's pretty much how a revolver would send it.

 

[maillemaker]

I used Pyrodex powder when I first got into black powder revolvers. It works fine, but you will want to clean your gun immediately after shooting as I found if you let it sit a couple of days you will get corrosion rather quickly.

 

[TDM]

“Burn Him at the Stake !!!!”

Just kidding. Only one way to find out if you like it and that’s to give it a try. I’m assuming you have a .44. If you have any ignition problems try some magnum caps. And as said, clean early and often.

Never used them myself.

 

[vintovka]

Have seen several partial boxes of pellets for sale at shows. None had real good things to say about them.

 

[Stantheman86]

I used them years ago in my old Armi San Marco 1860 Army before I really knew what I was doing, and they worked well

I didn't know they were making the .44/45 pellets again, I guess ammo prices really are reviving the cap and ballers

I'm not a huge Pyrodex fan but I still use it, just because I don't want to waste blackpowder on blasting stuff at the range . Once Goex starts production again I'll probably never use it again.

 

[TrapperDude]

I used them years ago in my old Armi San Marco 1860 Army before I really knew what I was doing, and they worked well

^^^^^^^^^^This^^^^^^ seems to be the exact answer the OP is looking for. It's hard data from actual use.

 

[Stantheman86]

^^^^^^^^^^This^^^^^^ seems to be the exact answer the OP is looking for. It's hard data from actual use.

Back in the early 2000s the instructions were to drop them down the barrel , but a guy on YouTube was putting them in the chambers. Mine didn't fit in the chambers because they were too long but they were made for percussion revolvers. They could have changed the new ones .

They are handy and I'd use them again. I haven't seen them for sale . They're quick and fun for range blasting. If you want to adjust your charges, you can't but the convenience is worth it if you just want to shoot without pouring powder.

There's a hole in the middle of them to help ignition .

If I recall people were gluing balls to the ends to make "cartridges "

I remember like it was yesterday, I took a box of pellets and my ASM Army and found some remote woods, parked my Bronco and blasted at trees for a few cylinders. I bought them at a Cabelas. They all went off just fine, no misfires, I seem to have hit all the trees I shot at.

 

[TrapperDude]

Back in the early 2000s the instructions were to drop them down the barrel , but a guy on YouTube was putting them in the chambers. Mine didn't fit in the chambers because they were too long but they were made for percussion revolvers. They could have changed the new ones .

They are handy and I'd use them again. I haven't seen them for sale . They're quick and fun for range blasting. If you want to adjust your charges, you can't but the convenience is worth it if you just want to shoot without pouring powder.

There's a hole in the middle of them to help ignition .

If I recall people were gluing balls to the ends to make "cartridges "

I remember like it was yesterday, I took a box of pellets and my ASM Army and found some remote woods, parked my Bronco and blasted at trees for a few cylinders. I bought them at a Cabelas. They all went off just fine, no misfires, I seem to have hit all the trees I shot at.

Well, since 30 grains is what I use, those would be perfect for me. I don't have a chrono, so all I can do to get an idea of the energy is observe how much 10" plates move at 25 yards, and 30 grains will push a ball hard enough to make a plate move like it's been hit by something close to a .45 unmentionable. Since I consider my BP revolvers to be worst-case scenario contingency weapons, I train using that load, only. They wouldn't be quite as lethal running much less than that, and maximizing lethality is what I look for.

 

[Stantheman86]

Well, since 30 grains is what I use, those would be perfect for me. I don't have a chrono, so all I can do to get an idea of the energy is observe how much 10" plates move at 25 yards, and 30 grains will push a ball hard enough to make a plate move like it's been hit by something close to a .45 unmentionable. Since I consider my BP revolvers to be worst-case scenario contingency weapons, I train using that load, only. They wouldn't be quite as lethal running much less than that, and maximizing lethality is what I look for.

If I'm loading up my repro BP revolvers to use for defense then something really really bad is going down

Given that my contingency weapon is a .357 Vaquero in a shoulder holster with looped rounds on the strap as a "grab and go" gun I can hide under something. I figure there's not much that can happen to make a Ruger stop working

 

[cynthialee]

they come up with a 17-20 grain pellet I might try it, but at 30 grains that is just too much powder for optimum shots from my .44

now if they had a 17.5 grain pellet I would be stoked as that is the ideal Pyrodex P load for my .44

 

[Stantheman86]

30 gr of Pyro is about ideal for plinking with something like a Dragoon as long as the loading lever can seat the ball far enough

 

[SDSmlf]

Meaning Pyrodex and specifically, has anyone used the 30 grain Pyrodex pellets for revolvers? It LOOKS easy and fast...but is it? Anyone use them?
Thanks for any reply that doesn't include "Burn him at the stake!"

The 30 grain by volume Pyrodex Pellets work, and some like the convenience of using them, but as others have mentioned, no way to adjust the charge. One other consideration is the rising cost of powder that many complain about. The cheapest I have recently seen these pellets priced at is a little over $30 per 100 (before tax, shipping and hazmat). That’s over $0.30 a shot. Or over $70 for a by volume equivalent of a pound of powder. If you think it’s worth the convenience and 30 grains is your preferred load, they do work.

 

[TrapperDude]

If I'm loading up my repro BP revolvers to use for defense then something really really bad is going down

Given that my contingency weapon is a .357 Vaquero in a shoulder holster with looped rounds on the strap as a "grab and go" gun I can hide under something. I figure there's not much that can happen to make a Ruger stop working

The worst-case scenario for which I imagine a BP revolver being the only thing available is one where I am somewhere away from home if a WROL situation arises, and I'm forced to use whatever can be grabbed. I have several different unmentionable platforms I run, just so I can maintain a working level of proficiency with as many types as I can, too, along with various bladed and blunt melee weapons with which I train. I don't ever want to be in a situation where I have to use a weapon of a type I haven't touched before and have to figure it out on the fly.

Of course, I have my primaries that get the bulk of the range time, still. I hone my skills with those.

 

[nhmoose]

No they cost way more than worth of using IMHO

 

[vintovka]

Would add seen plenty of both full and partial boxes of pellets at shows but no BP in cans at all. Seems some show owners dislike the cans but overlooked the pellets in packaging.