Margain of Safety

[RetPara]

I have a Pedersoli .50 cal percussion Pennsylvania.

The 'manual' stated the max powder charge is 110 grains. I have been firing 90 without issue. When the manufacturer lists a max charge, what is the safest margin under the max to be used?

 

[Little Wattsy]

In the letigious society that we live in I would bet that they undersetimate thier "safty margin" by a fair percentage to make sure they are not sued over any "accidents"; So I bet that 110 grains is perfectly "ok".
That said accuracy is more important then velocity and a 80 to 100 grain load is usually right in the sweet spot...

 

[Sperit de bois]

110 grains!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
safest under that,, is what ever your rifle likes and the projectile agrees with..and how /what you are hunting.
How's the 90 working for you??If it is where you aim and with in the limits you set for yourself,,,all is good..
Thing with BP it isn't science,,it's more search,,to see what works for you and the rifle,there is the reason to shoot BP.It's not the destination,,, but the journey.

 

[cynthialee]

like was already said, the best load for your rifle will be well within the tolerances of the gun

if your barrel survived the proofing process, it should handle whatever reasonable loads you develop for it

 

[rafterob]

The max load listed by the mfg. is the maximum safe load recommended by them, not the maximum load the rifle will handle before it blows up.

 

[crockett]

There is a little more to it than that. Generally speaking if you switch from a PRB to a conical the pressure increases. The heavier the conical, the more pressure. SO...the maximum powder charge with a long heavy conical will be less than a short conical and the maximum charge with the short conical will in turn be less than with a patched round ball.
Not to pry....but...it might help a lot if you tell what your are trying to accomplish. What type game, what distance, etc.

 

[DOUBLEDEUCE 1]

Para,
My .50 cal likes anything from 45-70 gr FFFG black powder,.490 ball and simple pillow ticking with a good lube. All depends on the distance and target you shoot. In years past I have shot conical bullets. Those require a heavier load than the patched round ball.

A lot of the powder combination boils down to distance, target, accuracy, and last, what is comfortable for you to shoot. Each rifle has a favorite load. Too much powder, the accuracy drops off, and you waste the powder. Try starting with 50 gr FFFG black powder, and a given target distance. Then adjust your charges up or down 5 gr at a time. You might as well be comfortable while doing that and shoot from a sand bagged rest. Once you find what the rifle likes, stick with it.

That is half the fun. Most of all enjoy yourself. :thumbsup:

 

[Loyalist Dave]

There is a little more to it than that. Generally speaking if you switch from a PRB to a conical the pressure increases. The heavier the conical, the more pressure.

Very true, and since Pedersoli does not have any idea what projectile you will use, unless they specify "round ball only", you can operate under the premise that they expect you to use a conical and that 110 grain load..., which means with a patched round ball your 90 grain load should be fine. Also considering that Pedersoli knows that the majority of adjustable black powder powder measures sold retail, go up to 120 grains..., they probably reduced the "recommended max". Pedersoli has their barrels proofed, and proofing does test them well above what they list as their max load. For various reason they won't tell you what the proofing load was..., somebody would have to do their own "test" and couldn't resist if they gave out that data... :shocked2:

LD

 

[Okie Hog]

Modern conventional muzzleloaders are very well built and very strong. They are very safe when loaded as recommended.

Many years ago i saw a muzzleloader, a CVA Bobcat, that was blown up. The guy loaded the gun with a large volume charge of smokeless powder, think it was IMR 3031. The barrel did not split, it simply blew out at the tenon dovetail. There was a hole about 5/16" inch in the dovetail. It blew the fore stock off the gun and slightly injured the shooter.

 

[Zonie]

That guy was lucky.

There was a post on the MLF that linked to a video showing three muzzleloading rifles that were intentionally loaded with a slow burning smokeless powder.

All three rifles were literally blown to hell with pieces of the barrels and stocks flying in all directions.

Unfortunately for our members the post and link were removed because the guns shown in the video were not "Traditional" guns.

Anyway, getting back to the original topic, as was said, the gun maker doesn't know what kind of projectile is going to be shot so they assume it is the one that can produce the most pressure.
That would be a elongated bullet.

As far as patched roundballs go, most muzzleloaders shoot these best with powder loads quite a bit lower than the recommended "Max".

With muzzleloaders, accuracy is far more important than velocity or muzzle energy and powder loads of 70-90 grains will kill just about anything in the US.

 

[George T.]

I think that it is a safe bet that their suggested max is a conservative number. In todays world no one would sue crazy people they would be crazy to give a real max number.

That being said you are right in the ball park with your 90 grain load. I would be suprised if a load of 110 grains would not show a fair amount of unburned powder in shot over snow ot a white sheet. I would depend on your barrel length. ! Geo. T.

 

[crockett]

RetPara: not to pry, but why are you asking the question? If you are thinking that a heavier charge will make for a better hunting load, as has been said, you can often just burn more powder without pushing the projectile to any appreciable increase in speed- in other words, you're just wasting powder.

 

[nkbj]

I just go with what the manufacturer said, if it hasn't been altered from how it was first built.

People drilling and tapping for scope mounts back where the powder charge produces the maximum pressure just rattles me. Yeah, I know they don't blow up but it still gives me a case of the shimmies.

 

[M. De Land]

Ninety grains of 2F is the best load for my .54 Douglas barrel cap lock rifle. I use 110 in it for steel shooting though. MD