mmutarelli
32 Cal.
Just acquired a Pedersoli 2nd model, .75 caliber. What size ball and how thick of a patch should I use? I plan on running about 80 grains of 2F for the charge.
MM
MM
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Musket ball size and patch for Pedersoli Brown Bess
- Thread starter mmutarelli
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Don't use a patch.
If it's .75 (check) gets some .730" ball or .740".
Drop 100gn of your powder minimum.
80gn is the starting load for 3f.
Put about five OS cards on the powder, one with a suitable lubricant on it and one on the ball.
If it gets crusty add more lube to your cards. It's easier than swabbing and less hassle.
If it's .75 (check) gets some .730" ball or .740".
Drop 100gn of your powder minimum.
80gn is the starting load for 3f.
Put about five OS cards on the powder, one with a suitable lubricant on it and one on the ball.
If it gets crusty add more lube to your cards. It's easier than swabbing and less hassle.
Griz44Mag
70 Cal.
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I do that super simple.
I use 75gr 2f OE. A home cast .735 ball, an .010 mink well lubed patch. That sets the overall size .005 bigger than bore before compression. Makes a good tight seal.
I use a heavy brass range rod for patched ball shooting, the guns rod when shooting cartridges with .69 ball.
All that shot card stuff (5 cards under and 1 over???) adds to the cost and the time to reload. (Yes, I did try the cards)
No need to wipe, Drop in powder, set a patch and ball on the muzzle - ram it home. The next ball down wipes the bore quite nicely.
Accuracy is pretty darn good. 2" or better at 50 yards if I do my part. (I glued a rear buckhorn on my barrel for accuracy shooting)
I have shot strings of 20-30 rounds without cleaning or wiping. By then I am in need a flint knap or change so I take a break and clean it up.
I use 75gr 2f OE. A home cast .735 ball, an .010 mink well lubed patch. That sets the overall size .005 bigger than bore before compression. Makes a good tight seal.
I use a heavy brass range rod for patched ball shooting, the guns rod when shooting cartridges with .69 ball.
All that shot card stuff (5 cards under and 1 over???) adds to the cost and the time to reload. (Yes, I did try the cards)
No need to wipe, Drop in powder, set a patch and ball on the muzzle - ram it home. The next ball down wipes the bore quite nicely.
Accuracy is pretty darn good. 2" or better at 50 yards if I do my part. (I glued a rear buckhorn on my barrel for accuracy shooting)
I have shot strings of 20-30 rounds without cleaning or wiping. By then I am in need a flint knap or change so I take a break and clean it up.
Last edited:
I like to use a pair of lubed ¼" fiber wads, or even a single ½" lubed wad... and 95 grains of 2Fg (5 grains doesn't really matter with that big a bore) I like Tow on top, or just about anything even a paper wad will do.
LD
Those Pedersoli BBs, although good quality, can vary in bore size. In mine (ca.1976) it likes a .715" ball patched with lubed ticking. I'm not a proponent of heavy charges in it and stick with 50-70 gr. 2Fg.
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I purchased my Pedersoli Brown Bess Carbine about the same time Rifleman mentioned above. The bore size was .753. For an accuracy and hunting load, I used a .735 Ball (the largest available in those years) a thick ticking patch around .020" and 70 grains of FFG Black Powder. I could consistently hit a one gallon milk jug when firing offhand at 100 yards with this load and the hit ratio I got was 8-9 times out of 10. Had I used a rest of some sort, the hit ratio would have been much closer to 10 out of 10 times.
To give some idea of how effective my load was, my round balls weighed about 598 grains and compare that to an UnCivil War Minie' Ball of about 500 grains. The UnCivil War Powder Charge was 60 grains of Powder with that 500 grain Minie' Ball. IOW, my load mentioned above was more than capable of being effectively used for at least Deer sized game. I may have kicked the powder charge up a bit if I was hunting Elk or Bear, but I never hunted them with my Brown Bess, so I can't say for sure.
Gus
To give some idea of how effective my load was, my round balls weighed about 598 grains and compare that to an UnCivil War Minie' Ball of about 500 grains. The UnCivil War Powder Charge was 60 grains of Powder with that 500 grain Minie' Ball. IOW, my load mentioned above was more than capable of being effectively used for at least Deer sized game. I may have kicked the powder charge up a bit if I was hunting Elk or Bear, but I never hunted them with my Brown Bess, so I can't say for sure.
Gus
mmutarelli
32 Cal.
Thanks to all who replied. I do living history at a local Rev War site
( House In The Horseshoe, Carthage NC ) and some talks for local groups and schools. What are OS cards? I've shot mostly BP rifle. This smooth bore stuff is new to me. I acquired a 1777 Charleville in .69 cal. I still need to work on the trigger some, still heavy. I did install a white lightening touch hole liner and measured the out side and inside of the bore before and after shooting it with 100 gr of 2F. No ill effects and no signs of fatigue. Good accuracy and quality for an import by Veteran Arms. I'm running a .650 ball with a .010 greased patch. The thumbnail front sight makes a difference. I can see why many regard the Charleville as a slightly better weapon. For a military gun I think the steel bands holding the whole thing together are the way to go, given the choice.
MM
( House In The Horseshoe, Carthage NC ) and some talks for local groups and schools. What are OS cards? I've shot mostly BP rifle. This smooth bore stuff is new to me. I acquired a 1777 Charleville in .69 cal. I still need to work on the trigger some, still heavy. I did install a white lightening touch hole liner and measured the out side and inside of the bore before and after shooting it with 100 gr of 2F. No ill effects and no signs of fatigue. Good accuracy and quality for an import by Veteran Arms. I'm running a .650 ball with a .010 greased patch. The thumbnail front sight makes a difference. I can see why many regard the Charleville as a slightly better weapon. For a military gun I think the steel bands holding the whole thing together are the way to go, given the choice.
MM
OS is the acronym for Over Shot. These are the thin cards that hold the small shot in place. You can stack them up as Britsmoothie does as an over powder wad. For your Pedersoli Bess, you will need a 0.750" diameter wad punch. Pus a small slit along the edge so air can escape as you load. Most of us will pust the over powder cards or wad about 3/4" into the barrel and fill with shot. Then you insert the final over shot card and ram the shot load to the breech. Your Pedersoli Bess will use 11 gauge shotgun components,
Your living history group should be of help in refining your Rev War interpretation.
Your living history group should be of help in refining your Rev War interpretation.
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I use a .735 ball wrapped in cooking parchment and white coffee filters, and greased. The cooking parchment doesn’t stick to fouling, so it kind works like a swab for built up fowling. I’ve shot 20 rounds out of charleville and Bess without having to clean the barrel ever 3-5 rounds. Works very well, I picked the idea Dixon’s Muzzleloading fair.
