Proofing a barrel

[wszumera]

I'm interested in comments on proofing a barrel. Do any of you do it and how?

Clutch

 

[BS]

Double max load, and double patched ball.....tie it too a tire.........and a short pc of cannon fuse in the nipple.

 

[gmww]

I think you forgot a few things. Isolated area and RUN LIKE HECK and behind something! :rotf:

 

[wszumera]

Double max load, and double patched ball.....tie it too a tire.........and a short pc of cannon fuse in the nipple.

That was what uncle was thinking. I was a bit alarmed and he said he was willing to do a single ball with a double load and buy me a new barrel if it blew.

The barrel in question is a Colerain .62 tapered.

As far as cannon fuse, I don't have any. I have some saltpeter for a project that Claude doesn't want discused on his web site so we won't.

You have a recipe for fuse? I was googling and saltpeter and sugar popped up.

Clutch

 

Being a modern barrel, they really don't need to be proofed if they have a proper modern breech plug. with at least a half inch of thread. the modern steels of today arent filled with imperfections that will cause a failure. not necessary with todays barrels. Save yer powder for sighting it in when finished. Bill

 

[Bountyhunter]

Why not just contact Colerain and ask them for their proofing information? No need to go blow up a perfectly good barrel just for sport.

 

[wszumera]

Why not just contact Colerain and ask them for their proofing information? No need to go blow up a perfectly good barrel just for sport.

I don't have any contact info on Colerain. Good idea though.

Clutch

 

[faw3]

Im going to go along with Bill of the.. with this, why do it? Ive been buying back iss of Muzz Blast back to 68 so far you can find really great stuff you wont see any other place, one is about Barrel Steels..its not just in one but was over a few months about loads and what happens...Feb of 86 , 62 cal,1 X 35 and 1 X 72 twist common load 124 2f, was tested up to 300grs of 2f no problems, it showed a bulge at 600grs!, (all ball have to be firmly on the powder) it goes on into slots for sights ect. Anyway it went back and forth for a few months, and you might want to read up on it, it also covers other cals( the one that gets me is the 54 with a 1X35" barrel shooting 6 balls and 600 grs2f and nothing messed up, I dont know of anyone that would even try this now days, still it shows the barrels are over built, one man that builds mine told me "use what ever you think you can and still hit something,your just wasteing powder as long as the ball is tight on the powder your not going to blow it" And 150 is about all I can stand in any rifle, I cant but wonder what the 6 ball grp looked like with 600grs of 2f :rotf: fred :hatsoff: a fuse can be made with string a little Elm white glue and drag it thru some black powder, time your burn rate when dry!

 

[Slowpoke]

I get my neighbor to do it.... just tell him I built a new gun and first thing out of his mouth is "can I shoot it". Well sure, let me just load it up for ya.

But, if I had any doubt about the quality or integrity of the barrel, I wouldn't shoot it in the first place.

 

[Bookie]

Clutch, I agree with the double the max load and double patched balls. I do use a barrel proofing devise instead of tires. :grin: I proof all the barrels that leave my shop, whether they are hand made or store bought. I'm not knocking Bill's statement or beliefs in any way, so hear me out....modern steel barrels are usually superior to old barrels, but I have had one original and one modern barrel fail proofing these past 8 years. In each case, the breech plug was never found. The old barrel failed due to a crack that ran next to the bottom of a rifling land for almost the length of the barrel. It failed with 160 grains of FFG. The new barrel failed with 200 grains of FFG, split at the breech end, pulling or bending 100% of the threads in a rearward motion, the top flat of the barrel departing on the midnight train to Georgia. In each case the balls were seated on the powder and no voids remained after loading. The barrels exhibit no rings to indicate blockage, so.......guess I'll keep on proofing barrels. Cheers, Bookie

 

It is doubtful if you can put enough powder into a Colrain barrel to blow it up unless you install a breechplug at both ends and ignite it thermally.

Dixie Gun Works did the plug at both ends and cannon fuse test about 50 years ago. The barrel did not blow, the 500 grain charge vented through the touch hole (it makes a neat whiltling sound), and steel has only improved since that time.

This thread comes up a couple of times a year and we go back and pull up all of the old test specs both modern and historic.

Most of the top barrel makers do not proof their individual barrels. They consider it a useless waste of time.

Don Getz claimed he stopped worrying about proof testing after he built a .50 cal 13/16" barrel for a client. 500 grains and a double prb did not blow the barrel. He shipped it and told the guy not to cut the dovetails too deep.

Look at some of the paper thin shotgun barrels people shoot without a twitch. 100 grains 2f and 1 oz of shot, no problem!!

Besides, if you could blow the barrel, proofing only indicates that the barrel did not blow up THAT TIME! The proof load might actually cause the next "normal" load to remove your head!

 

[TANSTAAFL]

Lots of opines on the subject, sorta like those memories of younger days, some do, some don't.

With that said, I am one of those that do. I double charge as to powder and ball, tie the barrel off to a tire with a few inches of cannon fuse, light it off and then retreat to safe place.

Never had a bbl fail, but just feel better for having done it.

 

[paulvallandigham]

YOu can buy cannon fuse from a number of sources. Check with Dixie Gun Works. You might also find it in any hobby supply store that caters to the rocket builders. They use fuses to set off the rockets. They even sell an electric fuse, you set off with a couple of batteries, and some fine copper wire. I think one of those 9 nolt batteries will do the trick. I don't know if you can get the fuse portion into a touch hole, but it might be worth looking into.

 

[John Taylor]

Double max load and 2 balls is what I was tought many years ago but I don't proof any of my rifle or pistol barrels. I do proof canon barrels and have never had any indication of a problem. I did learn that you don't proof a canon barrel on the carriage. I did it once and had to make a new one. Dixie has fuse. you can make your own electric fuse with zip cord ( the type of electric cord on lamps and cheep extention cords ). Cut the insolation back about 1 inch and take all the strands of wire off one side except one. Twist that one around the others at the end. Tape it to the side of the barrel next to the flash hole and pour a little black powder over it. When you touch the other 2 ends to a battery the one wire will burn away setting the powder off.

 

[faw3]

The rocket igniters are about what John is saying a thin wire and a dab of black powder. Fred :hatsoff:

 

Proofing would offer a gun maker legal security, because if a proofed gun fails later on after the customer screwed it up then he is out of the woods.

Here in Germany as in the other European countries all ML barrels are proofed. The Munich proof department has a nice collection of burst guns, but the ML examples are the cheap replica type.Anyway, a nice poof stamp with the coat of arms and the proofers mark somehow is a nice last touch.

 

[Scota4570]

Do not try to make fuse. The unanticipated can happen.

When I was a kid I made some fuse with BP glued to string. It went fast but worked ok.........until the accident. A a foot long 2" diameter firecracker exploded in my hand. It consisted of lots of newspaper, string and about a quarter cup of flashpowder. Needless to say I was seriously injured. My jacket was blown to shreads, I had seriouos burns on my face and arms. My ears were damaged. Thank God my vision came out OK. It was nasty and painfull. I still have faint scars 30 years later.

Just buy some fuse!

 

[Bobby Cunningham]

I Proof all guns(Long and Short,NO MATTER WHO MADE THE STEEL). that I Build Regardless if I sell them or to keep and shoot, I usr the standard double charge and double ball describe be many of the Learned others, I do this for my own Piece of Mind,If some thing were to get past me and any one got hurt because I didnt do all I could now that would be hard to live with.

 

[jtmattison]

Why try to blow up a perfectly good barrel?

It's like jumping out of a perfectly good airplane.

Why do you want to know if it will hold up to double powder/double ball? If it doesn't you just turned a barrel into a tomato stake.

If it holds up to normal loads isn't that all you need?

If it does pass the proof test who's to say it won't fail under normal loads after the undue stress that has been put on it?

I just don't understand the logic behind it.

HD

 

[Zonie]

Some friendly advice to the new Muzzleloading Shooters who might read this post:

IMO, if you have a gun which was made within the last 40 years and it appears to be in good condition, do not proof test your barrel .
It will undoubtedly pass the test but you will be subjecting the barrels' material to extreme stresses which may weaken it.

When industry subjects parts to what is termed a "burst test" a very important part of the process is to throughly examine the part using NDT (Non Destructive Testing) to make sure that nothing has started to fail.
A Proof Test can cause cracks in the part and these cracks are so small you cannot see them with the naked eye. The NDT methods are the only way to determine if these cracks exist.

I strongly suggest to those who conduct these "Proof Tests" that they have the barrel and breech plug examined using Magnetic Particle Inspection, X-Ray inspection or at the very least, Fluorescent Penetrent Inspection.
Only after running one or more of these tests will you know you haven't made what was a safe barrel and breech plug, unsafe.