Patiently waiting to shoot my blue Ridge.54

[WAswingingfly]

I bought a blue Ridge .54 caliber flintlock the other day to use this coming fall for elk and deer, I've been shooting percussion muzzleloaderso for a while now and have always wanted to take game with a flintlock. And after going and getting all the patches and Flints and round ball and lubes I was stumped on finding powder, which I thought was odd considering I live in Washington state where you have to hunt with iron sights and exposed ignition non 209 guns. I figured with the law leaning towards the more traditional end of the spectrum black powder would be pretty easy to find. But what I found was nothing but fancy 209 powder and pyrodex and all the supplies for guns that aren't legal for hunting in this state. So I'm going to spend my day calling up smaller shops til I find some good old black powder. Any one else have a similar dilemma?

 

[Eddie Southgate]

To be honest I don't know what the local powder supply is like . I been hoarding powder since you could still buy Dupont and Curtis & Harvey so I ain't looked . If I need new supplies I usually get them shipped to me by the case from Graf & sons in Mexico Missouri . Their price is usually good by todays standards and they usually have several options .

Eddie

 

[rdstrain49]

Graff is my choice for powder.

 

[Rick Boylan]

I've found Goex at the local Bass Pro. That's the only place close that I've had any luck. It's about $30 a lb.

 

[hanshi]

Welcome, WAswingingfly. While BP use to be sold even at the local hardware store, it's rare to find it now. I order by the case so it's much cheaper per pound than the one-at-a-time stores. I've been ordering regular Goex and Jack's Rifle Powder (a Goex product) for years and am quite satisfied. Regardless who you order from it's the cheapest way to get it.

 

[rdstrain49]

Next time your'e short let me know. We can always split an order, much cheaper than Bass Pro in Altoona.

 

[TerryK]

Usually 25/pound for Goex around here. Grice in Clearfield PA is usually well stocked. 8 local shops that I can think of quick sell it around here.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Part of the problem is the shipping, and part of the problem are the regulations for storage. It was the storage regs that caused the creation of original Pyrodex, which does not need the same secure container when stored in bulk.

Powder here is $25 a pound OTC, or if I do a road trip, I can get basic Goex for $17 a pound.

LD

 

[WAswingingfly]

Found some BP athe 30 bucks a pound at bass pro shops out 2 hours from where I live

 

[Turtle Dave]

Try powder inc. on the net. They will ship to your door. No fuss.

 

[Critter Getter]

Let us know how it shoots. Be prepared to file the sights after finding your best load. My Pedersoli Frontiers/Blue Ridge shot 12" low as so many others that I have read about here on this forum. Btw.........you can check with Deer Creek for powder. Greg.

 

[uno676]

Is that at 100yds I've only shot mine out to 25yds and it's dead on. Just curious.

 

[Critter Getter]

No that was off hand at 30 yards. I have read about a lot of these shooting low on this and other boards. Greg

 

[bigted]

low is a very goot place to be. just a few swipes with a file up front and you can dial it rite in.

 

[G.smith]

Got mine about a year ago. I like it. 100gr ffg goex .530 rb, .015 patch Dutch Schultz method (6:1 water to Balistol) 1"high at 50yd from a rest. Ready to hunt.

 

[nwtradegun]

get 3 f powder. it can be used to prime a flintlock. Before all the coming comments I have only used 3f on 12 flintlocks I have owned and for the main charge.

 

[Dr5x]

.ibnid
You say you are using my System. You are using just the patch lubrication part of the System.

By coincidence the patching you are using is working well for you. I suggest you get a compressed measurement of its thickness so when you run out you can duplicate it it.

Nag nag nag

Dutch

 

[G.smith]

Dutch I did a compressed check on the patches when I lubed them. Th6e one that works best for me is .006 compressed from a .015 calipered stock. I bought a bunch of it once I found what worked best for me. Thanks for your input and your work on the system.

 

[bigted]

3 F ??? OH MY ... :stir: :grin: :v

 

[Dr5x]

Ibnid,
People continually say they are using my System and then go on to show that they are not by mentioning they are using .015 or .018 patching. The only measurement that means anything is the thickness when measured in a compressed manner
I learned to my surprise many (many) years ago that a number of .015 cloths will compress to a number of different thicknesses. I have found some .018 fabrics that compressed more than some .05 fabrics.. I bought some pre cut patches , all of which, measured in the correct way using a micrometer compressed to three different amounts out of the same bag..
My experiments, (weeks of fussy around) have indicated that getting the précis thickness of patching for the ball you are using for the barrel of your rifle.
That a difference of .005 makes a whole heck (it's Sunday) of a lot of difference on target
Most people who say they are following my suggestions are talking about the Dry Patch Lube System. which I think is dandy for preventing vertical strings of hit but the whole central ore of my preaching is concerned with patch selection.
Had it not been for that rather startling discovery I would have written NOTHING.
All the rest of it is peripheral stuff I picked up along the way

Big controversy about wiping between shots is a simple application of logic.If you fire a number of shots without wiping it gets harder to load shot after shot because something is making the bore smaller.
Why go to all that trouble about getting the right size ball and patch if you are shooting out of what is a different sized barrel each time?
The wipe keeps the barrel the same size each time and that is one variable controlled. People will still argue about that. and end up using some variety of hammer to pound the ball down the barrel for shot #4 or #5.
Then stop and do a fairly thorough cleanup and start the five shot dance all over again

I get posts from good folks thanking me which is lovely but they usually indicate that they are not paying much attention to patch selection and I realize they are both happy and missing the boat

Inag so much I bet you bachelor out there are beginning to know what it's like to be married,

Dutch Schoultz

Excuse the typos , I can barely read this