Loaded BP Revolver

[lonewolf172]

Question. How long have you left your BP Revolver loaded?

 

[bpflint2007]

Question. How long have you left your BP Revolver loaded?

One time I left one loaded with tight caps and bore butter sealing the front of the cylinder for six months before I wanted to shoot it. Kind of was an experiment in seeing how well it all would hold up. All five fired just fine. I left one chamber unloaded. I can’t remember the revolver it was but there was no way to comfortably keep a hammer down in between nipples and I wasn’t going to cock a loaded revolver in my house and guide the hammer down to rest on a nipple.

Only other thing I remember was it also being a lesson in how dry bore butter gets and now I rarely use the stuff unless I need a patch lube, which is already rare as it is.

 

[lonewolf172]

One time I left one loaded with tight caps and bore butter sealing the front of the cylinder for six months before I wanted to shoot it. Kind of was an experiment in seeing how well it all would hold up. All five fired just fine. I left one chamber unloaded. I can’t remember the revolver it was but there was no way to comfortably keep a hammer down in between nipples and I wasn’t going to cock a loaded revolver in my house and guide the hammer down to rest on a nipple.

Only other thing I remember was it also being a lesson in how dry bore butter gets and now I rarely use the stuff unless I need a patch lube, which is already rare as it is.

First off I use Triple 7 which really shouldn't make any difference. With my Traditions 1858 I could load all six chambers since there is a place between chambers to lower the hammer.

 

[bpflint2007]

First off I use Triple 7 which really shouldn't make any difference. With my Traditions 1858 I could load all six chambers since there is a place between chambers to lower the hammer.

I think at the time I was using GOEX exclusively. I think I had an 1858 but it was some old Pietta or ASM if so. I just remember I couldn’t safely have all the chambers loaded on that gun so I left one unloaded for the test. Triple 7 shouldn’t become unstable or draw moisture if the caps are tight and at minimum you get a good lead ring when you load the chambers.

At the time I used bore butter to seal chambers to protect against chain firing so that’s how I set it up. Like I said, after about six months the bore butter got fairly hard and dried out being exposed to the open. Still fired, no chain fires, no rust in the chambers.

 

[lonewolf172]

I think at the time I was using GOEX exclusively. I think I had an 1858 but it was some old Pietta or ASM if so. I just remember I couldn’t safely have all the chambers loaded on that gun so I left one unloaded for the test. Triple 7 shouldn’t become unstable or draw moisture if the caps are tight and at minimum you get a good lead ring when you load the chambers.

At the time I used bore butter to seal chambers to protect against chain firing so that’s how I set it up. Like I said, after about six months the bore butter got fairly hard and dried out being exposed to the open. Still fired, no chain fires, no rust in the chambers.

Well I plan on using 30gr T7 FFF, dry over powder wad and a .452 RB and then a little of my beeswax/olive oil mix over ball

 

[bpflint2007]

Well I plan on using 30gr T7 FFF, dry over powder wad and a .452 RB and then a little of my beeswax/olive oil mix over ball

Sounds like a plan to me. As long as the powder is dry you’ll have no problems.

 

[Johnny Tremain]

Two you tubers I watch said one had a rifle in the safe for 4 years and it fired. Another said his six shooter stays loaded for a month at a time.

 

[cynthialee]

I have had my revolvers loaded for years at a time and they go bang every time I pull them out.

Thing is, black powder has no shelf life. So long as it stays dry it will bang when called on.

 

[.36Rooster]

Question. How long have you left your BP Revolver loaded?

Mine stays loaded. And always fires. Never had an issue, have brought it in and out of the house at -20 degrees and had the metal dripping with condensation, hot and humid summer time weather, you name it...

Just make sure its clean before you load it, unless you like growing crystals...

 

[No second place]

5 Rem. Army cylinders loaded uncapped in plastic zip bags for over 3mo. ...All 30 shots match worthy at 25yds...c

 

[Eutycus]

Wasn't Robert E. Lee's 1851 Navy in it's holster and loaded for several years?

 

[B P Arn]

Wasn't Robert E. Lee's 1851 Navy in it's holster and loaded for several years?

I remember hearing the same thing. I think it was about 100 years later when someone fired the gun.

If this apocryphal story is not true, it should be!

 

[B P Arn]

None of the talk about black powder longevity would necessarily hold true for the substitutes. They might last for a long time too, but maybe not. Still, I would think they would stay fresh for at least 10 or 20 years, but who knows.

 

[Eutycus]

The black powder, Pyrodex, or whatever just may last longer than some of us shooters. Us shooters have a "shelf life" too you know?

 

[Red Owl]

Yes Lee's gun was fired 7 years after his death but it could have been loaded years before his death. The chamber ends had been filled with sealing wax- not sure about the caps on the nipples. All six chambers fired. Also, note all six chambers had been loaded, not five. In another event, at Andrew Jackson's home, behind the Hermitage Mansion, is a small log cabin Jackson lived in before building the big house. About 30 years ago someone found a flintlock pistol up in the rafters, took it out into the yard, pointed at the ground and pulled the trigger and it fired.
I am told that the cordite type powder used in the British army (.303) could solidify with the passage of years and possibly cause problems- the point being, nothing wrong with black powder.

 

[Blackpowderwarrior]

I always leave mine loaded and they always fire. I had one 1860 army loaded for 2 years with my homeade lube over each chamber and all six chambers fired with authority.

 

[Granville]

I have a brass frame 1858 Remington (think its a Pietta). I load it in October before deer season. Many years I never fire it until spring and never had a problem with ignition. It usually hangs in my unheated shop all season long. So long as it was dry and clean before you loaded it, I don't think theirs much of an issue with things.

 

[user 33697]

I have had BP revolvers loaded for up to a year using an unlubed wad and wrapped in a sealed plastic bag with a couple of small desiccant bags to prevent any possible moisture to the revolver. Always shot perfectly with no misfires every time.

 

[TFoley]

Question. How long have you left your BP Revolver loaded?

About two minutes, max. After it gets loaded, it never leaves my hand until it's empty.

 

[Auldjin]

This was still loaded in the 30's. Every shot fired.