Kodiak Fifty Doublegun

[paulvallandigham]

Yes, You REMOVE the nipples to clean the flash channel. You don't attempt to try to clean them from inside the barrel. Nipples should be removed to be cleaned after every shoot. The oriface in the nipple is very small, and it needs to be protected from any corrosion that will enlarge it. You do that by removing the nipple, putting it in a glass of water with soap in it to soak, while you clean the barrel, and action. When you are putting everything back together, you use an old toothbrush to clean the nipple so it looks like its new. Blow air through the hole to dry it, then oil the threads, put another drop of oil in the bolster, or patent breech, and gently screw the nipple back in place. Use a vegetable oil on the threads, rather than a petroleum based oil. Don't try to run the nipple down with a crush fit. Just snug it down firmly.

When the muscles in my index finger and thumb begin to tighten, I stop putting pressure on the handle of my nipple wrench. I am done.

Crud will get into the threads of the nipple, because of the pressure in the chamber, and make the nipple harder to break loose and remove, than it is to screw in. Don't worry about that. As long as the nipple is removed and thoroughly cleaned after every outing, the nipple is fine.

I use stainless steel nipples, but the Uncle Mike HotShot nipples, and the " sureshot(?)" nipples, made of berylium copper, are also very good products. All need to be cleaned just like the high carbon ones you see sold in the guns, that come blued.

 

[Cosmoline]

I used rubbing alch. this afternoon with excellent results. Got a lot of black crud off the nipples.

One interesting thing I found out. This Kodiak .50, unlike the current ones, has a 1:48 twist! That explains alot about my results. It also makes me doubt that my conicals would have sufficient spin to be effective killers.

 

[paulvallandigham]

The 1:48 Twist will shoot short conicals fairly well. Try the Lee R.E.A.L.slug, which resembles a .38 wadcutter. Buffalo Bullets also makes a short slug like that which gets good reports for accuracy. I don't know if these conicals will give you the penetration you desire, but they weigh more than the RB in your caliber, and therefore should give you greater penetration than the RB.

 

[CoyoteJoe]

The T/C maxi balls were designed for T/C rifles with a 48" twist and generally shoot very well from such bores. Most of the precast maxis I've seen were poorly cast and any flaw in the bullet will ruin the grouping. If I were into shooting conicals I would certainly buy a mould and cast my own. I once had a T/C Hawken which would keep the 370 grain maxis in three inches at 100 yards and later a .54 Renegade which would hold an inch and a half for five shots at 100 with the 410 grain maxis but the key is they must be perfectly cast.