Range report, MVT Brown Bess.

[mr.fudd]

Well, I finally got out to the range with the Indian Bess. I shot .690 and .735 balls, since the muzzleloading store near me was out of .715. I started out with 60 grains of FFG but after seeing no problems, quickly moved up to 80 grains. I used FFG in the pan as well and a 1" flint. For patching material I used cleaning patches that I use for my .30" rifles. Those probably weren't ideal, but they seemed to do a tolerable job of surrounding the ball and taking up the slack in the bore. I found that one surrounding a .735 ball gave a nice snug fit that required some effort to get down the bore. Two of them around a .690 ball was quite a bit looser. For lube I used olive oil.

First the good, the gun sparked well and I had no misfires at all until about 20 shots into the session. The misfire was due to the flint having lost it's edge. Now, I'd probably dry fired it a dozen times before getting to the range, so the flint actually went for about 32 shots before quitting. After about 12 shots I ran a swab soaked with CLP down the barrel a few times. I wasn't having any trouble loading or anything, but just figured it was a good idea.

I found it to be a fairly pleasant gun to shoot. Recoil was minimal even with the .735 balls and 80 grains of powder. The gun shot somewhat low and to the right, but I just adjusted my "sight picture" by holding high with the bayonet lug and lining the rear up on the left edge of the rear screw. That seemed to get me into the 6" circle at 25 yards. I didn't have the same luck at 50, but I'm guessing that some of that has to do with my loads and patches.

When ramming a ball down the barrel, it became fairly obvious that the bottom 12-15 inches is a few thousandths of an inch wider than the top. The ball would slide down with fairly uniform resistance until the last 14 inches or so and then it would suddenly become much easier to push. I'm not sure what effect this will have on accuracy, but I'm guessing it's better to have the barrel wider at the breech than at the muzzle and it would probably be better still to have a completely uniform barrel.

The trigger is still atrocious. I tweaked it a little bit more when I had the lock out for cleaning, but it's still not there yet. Right now it's smooth and HEAVY. I've reworked a lot of triggers in the past, so I'm pretty sure I can get this one to where I'll be happy with it. Between 5 and 10 pounds of pull will be fine.

So all in all, not a bad range session. Next time I'll get some 7.15 balls and some better patching material. I'm guessing that the gun is capable of much better accuracy than I achieved today. I might even rig up some temporary sights for testing purposes just in case my sighting technique is the problem. I'm normally quite good with iron sights, but a bayonet lug and a screw just don't allow for precision shooting.

 

[Many Klatch]

Try cutting a narrow reference groove in the center of the tang at the breech with a Dremel tool or file. That will eliminate the need to use the tang screw. You can also put a small groove in the top of the bayonet lug to help with the sighting. My Pedersoli Bess carbine likes 90 grains of 2F, a .715 ball and .010 spit patching.

Good luck with the trigger pull, mine was fixed by someone else so I didn't have to do it, but it can be done with patience. Some reenactment units want to see you be able to cock the gun and then suspend the gun by the trigger and not go off, so be careful of getting too light a trigger pull if you are going to reenact.

Many Klatch

 

[trent/OH]

Instead of grooving the bayonet lug, I use the top left corner of the lug as a more precise aiming point than that wide lug.
My Bess (Japanese-made) was my "come-along gun" before I had the lock re-worked, so-named because it required the use of a come-along to trip the trigger.

 

[mr.fudd]

Some reenactment units want to see you be able to cock the gun and then suspend the gun by the trigger and not go off, so be careful of getting too light a trigger pull if you are going to reenact.

Many Klatch

That's not a problem yet. After reading your post, I went in and weighed the gun; 9.25 lbs. I was able to suspend it by the trigger then add a 5 lb weight to the top then press down on it with perhaps another 4-5 pounds of force before the trigger released.

I've got no plans to reenact anyway, but that did get me thinking.

 

[renovato]

Just thought I'd toss out a quick warning about the CLP. I haven't used it in a muzzleloader so I don't know for sure, but many petroleum products will turn into the most unpleasant and hard to clean tar when used with black powder. Might be wise to swap with plain ol' water, or windex or something, just to be on the safe side.

 

[mr.fudd]

I did not know that. Next time I'll bring some soapy water to the range with me. It doesn't seem to have done any harm though. I cleaned the gun when I got home and the only difficulty I had was with some residue at the bottom of the barrel. There's still a little left down there in the corners where the breech plug ends, but I'm guessing that it's next to impossible to get that area spotless.

 

[paulvallandigham]

If you soak the barrel with soap and water over night, the soap will dissolve the stuff in the corners. In a pinch, you can get a plug scraper( available from many suppliers) to fit on the end of your cleaning rod, to scrape the corners and get it all out. The stuff back there IS from the CLP you use to clean the gun during your range work. Pour alcohol down the barrel, now, to dissolve the tars, and oils, and get them out. Then soak in soap and water over night to get the barrel really clean. Plug the touch hole, then pour the alcohol down, and shake the barrel up and down to work it into the corners. Then let it sit. You can plug the muzzle with a cleaning patch to slow evaporation of the alcohol, while you do something else for 15 minutes or so. That should be enough time to dissolve that " gunk" in the barrel.

NO. YOU CAN get all the gunk out of the gun if you understand what it is, how its caused, and what to use to get it out.

 

[mark/wi]

Mr.Fudd, I noticed on my Bess when loading the last foot gets easier like yours.I hope to shoot mine on Sunday with ball. I used the Bess a couple weeks ago shooting trap. It does not handle as good as the shotgun, but it was fun. I had a liner put in to improve ignition, it went off all but 2 times out of 45 shots, flint needed knapping. I got mine from TOW a while back. Thanks for posting your results. I will try .690,.715, and .735 balls. Mark

 

[nkvd]

Hello All

And Mr.Fudd lives to tell the tale! :bow:
This actually in praise of Indian Besses.

Cheers,Rob

 

[Grenadier1758]

.

Some reenactment units want to see you be able to cock the gun and then suspend the gun by the trigger and not go off, so be careful of getting too light a trigger pull if you are going to reenact.

Many Klatch

Every time I have to do the trigger pull check the gun is set on half-cock and suspended by my thumb. Many Klatch, you've got a real harsh inspection process.

 

[Trkdriver99]

I agree, most places I go only half cock and suspend the musket. Not full cock.

Ronnie

 

[musketman]

Try cutting a narrow reference groove in the center of the tang at the breech with a Dremel tool or file. That will eliminate the need to use the tang screw. You can also put a small groove in the top of the bayonet lug to help with the sighting.

A trick I developed and pass on is to super glue a small pellet of shot top dead center of the barrel towards the breech end, this allows you to sight your Bess like a double bead shotgun.

This method is not permanent and can be removed without any traces of an alteration.

 

[Mike Brooks]

You might consider lightening up your sear spring. The India guns seem to have sear springs strong enough to be used for mainsprings. :haha:

 

[CoyoteJoe]

Mr.Fudd, I noticed on my Bess when loading the last foot gets easier like yours. Mark

I bought an Indian 12 gauge percussion single with a bore which was tightest in the middle and tapered larger both ways, but especially larger toward the breech. I hand reamed it to a uniform diameter and polished it out, leaving about .015" of choke at the muzzle. That was possible only because the bore was undersize at the widest point. I don't know how they bore them but it surely is not a very precise method. :grin:

 

[Musketeer]

You might consider lightening up your sear spring. The India guns seem to have sear springs strong enough to be used for mainsprings. :haha:

You noticed that too, eh? :haha: :thumbsup:

 

[JackAubrey]

I have a different method for sighting,not that the other gentlemen are wrong,mind you.Realize that your eye is the rear sight itself.The bayonet lug is a useful aim point.The trick is consistent sight picture.To that end,I borrowed the "anchor point" principle from archery.I held my Bess as if to shoot, drawing a pleasing and comfortable sight picture.I made a small mark where the corner of my mouth touched the stock.There I drilled a tiny hole ,placed some glue and tapped a brass tack into the hole.Now ,every time I bring my Bess to shoulder I have a relatively consistent sight picture.Best regards,J.A.

 

[mr.fudd]

You might consider lightening up your sear spring. The India guns seem to have sear springs strong enough to be used for mainsprings. :haha:

That did the trick. First though I disassembled the entire lock and modified the angle of the full cock notch on the hammer. They had ground it at a slight inward angle, a little like the half cock notch, so that every time I pulled the trigger I was fighting the mainspring to some degree. So after correcting that and the initial angle of the sear which had the same characteristic, the trigger pull came down to around 13 lbs. After lightening the sear spring, ( I bent it slightly past it's yield point), it's now down to around 5 or 6 pounds, which is perfect IMO.

And this from a trigger that started out with a pull that was easily over 30 lbs.

 

[bebloomster]

Hey Jack... I like that idea about the brass tack to get a more consistent face placement on the stock. I have always believed that consistency is 95% of the solution. Haven't used a patched ball in my Bess in well over 10 years... paper cartridges work just fine for me. In my mind, paper cartridges and the Brown Bess are just made for each other.

 

[Pigman]

Can you describe and/or give more details on how you use the paper cartridge?

Thanks,

 

[bingo1952]

Here is a pic of a cartridge. To use lube the ball end of the paper after manufacture. Don't lube more than you are going to shoot as the lube tends to migrate in hot weather. Teare off the tail with your teeth and if sans teeth your fingers may be used. Poure the powder down the barrel. Invert the cartridge and ram paper and all. Prime and shoot. The wind-stream is going to blow the paper off the ball. The original way to load called for a small portion of the main charge to be used for the priming powder. Do not do it this way because this will place your hand in front of a primed firearm and you will loose a few fingers if an accidental discharge were to occur. Prime Last.