Pietta .36 Navy

[Rat]

Nor do we deserve to be Grand Poobahs I fear. I would love to stand corrected, I wish we could get the news, but I fear that after questioning the wisdom of the Grand Poobah, the OP might not let us in on the final determination. If it is a standard Pieta .36 Navy, then the Poobah was wrong. ?? So come on FishDFly, cough it up. Spill the beans. Let us in on it. Don't be such a grouch. !!!! Like Gren says, we will take fifty lashes, and apologise profusely!

 

[Powderburn]

Okay so I thought I might chime in here, being I just purchased a Euroarms 36 cal navy model and am trying/searching on what to load it with. What I can tell from my inter web searches, the revolver is a 1972 model. It has a 7 1/2 inch barrel and brass frame. From what I have read in this thread, I should begin with .375 balls and go from there, yes? I do wonder if any type wad or patch is to be used between charge and ball? And from research done 12 to 17 grain charge? Thanks for any advise y'all might be willing to share. Maybe this will break a bit of the tension, geee.....

 

[Grenadier1758]

@Powderburn, if you have a dial or Vernier caliper for inside measurements, take a reading of the cylinder mouth, a little deeper in the chamber and the groove to groove diameter of the barrel. Ideally the chamber diameter should be within 0.001" of the groove to groove diameter. You want a ball that properly fits the chamber and provides a seal between the powder and the ball. Some Euroarms revolvers have a rebated or stepped chamber with the mouth slight larger than than the chamber. Sometimes that will mean that a 0.380" ball is the right choice. Most of us strive for a ball slightly larger than the chamber mouth so that a ring of lead is shaved off in loading. That doesn't happen with a rebated chamber.

Since you do have a brass framed revolver, do keep the powder charges on the light side. Use Cream of Wheat (COW) or corn meal over the powder to fill the chamber to within about 3/8" from the mouth Powder can fillers do crush down so a bit more can be used.

Do get a good nipple wrench for revolvers as the clearance and nipple size are smaller than on rifles. Before going to the range, remove the nipples and use a grease such as RIG or a Never Seize grease so the nipples can be easily removed for cleaning. Take a look at the tip to see it the pistol has bee dry fired. Mushroomed nipples mean poor performance on the firing line. Needing two hammer falls is an indication of a mushroomed nipple. A mushroomed nipple can be filed down at the tip so caps can be loaded.

 

[Powderburn]

Thanks so much! Never would have dreamed of COW! I have a 45 flinter but this is my first BP revolver. Looking forward to blowing' some smoke. I will measure the chamber and grove to grove and go from there. Really do appreciate the help. Thanks again

 

[Treestalker]

FishDfly, since you are not loading on the gun, you ought to try some 0000# buck (.380 dia). I've been playing with a tub of them bought here:

Super Buck Lead #0000 (8 lb/jar) .380-ballisticproducts.com

Price per ball is one of the cheapest around. I've been loading it on the gun and it is a little harder than pure lead but not much so. I'm able to shave a nice ring on my 2018 Pietta 1851 Navy. Haven't bent the loading lever yet...

Thanks for the 0000 info, Drobs, I have a .380 Lee mould, but a source like that can be a blessing. I also own 3 BP smoothbores and an older suppository 12 ga that must use lead. I used to use 3/0 buck for hogs in my misspent youth, LOL! Thanks for your generous help, Geo.

I've been looking for a cheap steel frame 36 Navy 51 for some time that needs an overhaul but no luck so far. Cabella's had a sail on them earlier this year for $149.00 but in .44 which was never an original offering.
Looked at them again today in steel frame and they wanted $249.00 for them so it looks like if I want one I'm going to have to dig down into the lint in my pockets and see if I can find the rest of the scratch. Life is harder when your a tight wad!

M, the 'Penurious State' Henry Thoreau referenced makes tightwads of a lot of us, LOL! My extracurricular activities on a working class budget with a family has sharpened my skills in grabbing a deal when I can. Patience, they say, is a virtue. Cash is too. I learned that if there is something I want offered at a great price, move on it NOW. It will be gone when you come back to it later. You can always sell something else later to make up the budget, and rob old Peter to pay Paul if you have to for a while, do without, etc. Good luck in the Hunt, and put out plenty of feelers for what you want. The Forum is a good place to start.

 

[nkbj]

In terms of vague generalities, .375 for Pietta and .380 for others.

 

[wb78963]

For the .36 Navy I cast a .375" pure lead ball. For the .44's my choice is a cast .451" ball. These are cast in Lee molds. with pure lead.
Both make a nice tight fit with a small ring of shaving. In the past I cast some .454" balls but they were hard to load so it was back to .451" had never have has a chain fire with them.
Your chamber may vary but this works for me.
Bunk

 

[wb78963]

P.S. Both the .36 and one of the 1860 Army .44 revolver is Pietta. The other .44 1860 Army is Uberti
Bunk

 

[Pemmican]

Just get a dial caliper and measure the chamber mouths.
Quite likely a .375" ball will work fine.

Jeez, what a tempest in a teapot.

 

[Powderburn]

Just get a dial caliper and measure the chamber mouths.
Quite likely a .375" ball will work fine.

Thanks have done just that and I do believe the .375 is for me. Thanks agin for the help
Powderburn