Loaded Cap and Ball Revolver

[jbullard1]

I just got a cap and ball revolver for my birthday Its an 1851 44 cal reproduction.
How long will I be safe to leave the clean chambers loaded without firing.I really don't want to cause a rust problem and ruin this revolver
tnx
jerry

 

[gooddw]

I've left one of mine loaded with BP for six months with no ill effects. Pyrodex is different. It will corrode more quickly. I once left some loose Pyrodex in an aluminum can for a couple months and it ate the bottom out of it.

 

[Blizzard of '93]

if kept inside in the dry and tightly capped it won't be a problem for quite awhile. 2-3 months maybe. you will likely target practice with it more often than that.

 

[longfowler]

I'v carried a loaded 1860 army under the seat of my truck for several months, and had no missfires. And that's certainly not a clean & dry environment. I use brakleen in the clyinders before loading, and only use 3f goex. rub a little parrafin wax on the nipple before capping to keep condensation out. the outside of my guns rust before before the insides do!

 

[mykeal]

It might be a good idea to make a distinction here, between leaving a clean gun loaded and an "unclean" gun loaded.

The corrosive effects of black powder are from the fouling, or combustion products residue that's present after firing the gun. The powder itself is time stable and will not cause corrosion. It is hygroscopic and will absorb some moisture, which in time could result in rust, hence the caution to seal or cover the nipples. However, once the gun has been fired the rules change - the bp fouling is much more hygroscopic than the powder itself and will start to corrode the metal right away.

So clean it first, then load it according to the previous posts and you'll be ok.

 

[faw3]

The same as you but with a 51 navy. Works great! Last shot it had been loadd for 7 months and one cap didnt work. :thumbsup: Fred :hatsoff:

 

[jbullard1]

Thanks
The gun is clean, loaded and capped. The capps have been pressed tight with thumb pressure on the hammer. Do I need to do something else to the caps
jerry

 

[Robert an saa fan]

You could trickle melted candle wax over the caps/nipples after again insuring the caps are fully seated down on the nipples.

Be sure to do this with the revolver pointed down in a safe manner.

Years ago author, Sam Fadala did this with a loaded stainless Ruger Old Army and then put Ruger in a freezer for a couple months if memory serves. He fired and chronographed the loads and they were still pretty good.

Of course your results may vary.

 

[mykeal]

Thanks
The gun is clean, loaded and capped. The capps have been pressed tight with thumb pressure on the hammer. Do I need to do something else to the caps
jerry

Need to? No, not if the caps are the right size and fit tight - point the gun up and try to shake the caps loose.

You COULD add the candle wax, as described by Robert an SAA fan, for extra protection. Not a bad idea. That pretty much guarantees no sneaky leaks, and depending on how much you have invested in the gun, and how much you intend to count on it firing later, it's pretty cheap insurance.

 

[Zonie]

As Robert an SAA fan said, if your pouring melted wax on the nipples keep the barrel pointed in a safe direction.
The heat from the wax could cause the priming compound to ignite.
zonie

 

[peashooterJoe]

Last year bought a rusty remington for testing and left it loaded for a year for testing.Fired it in back in July no problem all 6 chambers went off( Didn't want the 6th chamber to rust). Was out side in locked in tool shed, I did seal the caps and put lube over ball. The lube was beeswax/mutton tallow(same formula I use for lube pills) with beeswax over caps. All fired no problems, really didn't expect any.PeashooterJoe..

 

[Homesteader]

FWIW, I've left a '60 Colt and '58 Rem loaded for extremely long periods. (Accidentally in the first case, on purpose in the second.) And I mean LONG periods. The Colt was loaded almost a year, with nothing special done to it. When I took it out it fired right away, all five, and on full strip-down cleaning it showed no signs of corrosion or other damage. And this is in very humid South Carolina.

I claim nothing in particular, but that is my experience.

 

[Ohio Joe]

I left one of my '58 .44 Remington's loaded and locked away for two years (as of September 9, 2007 when I took it out and shot it). I loaded it on September 5th, 2005. I had put a little note with the revolver with the date loaded and notes about the loads.

Anyway, I never intended to leave it loaded that long, but month after month passed and I never even thought about it until I came back from this years state ML shoot and was putting away a pistol. Anyway, I thought to myself that I should take that revolver out and fire it, which I did the following weekend.

All five loads went off without a problem. I didn't notice anything unusual, the powder seemed sound, the caps seemed as strong as any others I've shot recently.

When I loaded this revolver it was clean and free of any oil. On looking the revolver over before firing it I did not notice any rust or anything at all out of the norm that would indicate anything but a clean revolver. After firing it I cleaned it and inspected the cylinder chambers and they look normal. :thumbsup:

 

[FV Rago]

I have an elcheapo Pietta brass Navy in 44 that I had cleaned and loaded and left for close to a year.

Finally got off my lazy butt and pulled the cyclinder and cleaned. Checked cyclinders with a q tip and everything was just fine.

I always load a clean gun. If it gets shot, it gets cleaned.