Shooting The Blunderbuss

[Zoar]

This weekend I just wanted to make some smoke and big boom so I took my four bore blunderbuss out to the woods and played with various loads on a big rotted stump. The fourteen 50 caliber round balls and 2 ounces of number 6 birdshot over 130 grains of 3F black powder was mighty impressive destruction!!! a major KaBoom.

I also liked the 18 40 caliber round balls with 2 and 1/2 ounces of number 8 bird shot.

But the whale was the 1.015" solid round ball weighing it at a bit over a quarter pound over 140 grains of 3F black powder.

That stump was hurting after 12 or so assault volleys with this 4 bore... I felt it on my shoulder too. At 8 pounds and a 20 inch barrel it is a handful loaded up with all that lead!

And, boy, did I have FUN!!! And not one misfire or ignition issue... just how I like it.

 

[blacksmithman64]

:shocked2: :shocked2: :shocked2: :hmm: might hafta git me one of those!

 

[Many Klatch]

Did you figure out these loads before you loaded or did you just drop in a handful of this and that and then figure out what you had done after you shot? Next time you haul this beast out, I'd be interested to know how it performs at 25 yards.

Sounds like a lot of fun.

Many Klatch

 

[Capt. Jas.]

How is that reversed trigger guard on your hand when shooting those stout loads?

 

[CoyoteJoe]

That stump was hurting after 12 or so assault volleys with this 4 bore... I felt it on my shoulder too. At 8 pounds and a 20 inch barrel it is a handful loaded up with all that lead!

Well I should think so! I calculate that 14 .490" round balls would weigh 5.7 ounces, already exceeding the 4 ounces the gun was intended for, and am I to understand you then added two ounces of birdshot on top of that?
Good Grief!!! :haha:

 

[Dirty Steve]

:shocked2:

Is that what all the ruckus was down there this weekend. :rotf:

(I live about 20 minutes North)

Steve

 

[Zoar]

Yes a 4 bore blunderbuss is alot of black powder fun.

Buck and ball loads also significantly exceeded what "guns were intended for" but no harm to gun or man. This stout 4 bore can certainly handle six ounces of payload with 130 grains of black and so can I.

The reverse trigger guard is awesome. No problem at all. I like it better.

I worked up bird shot loads by cutting the corners off of envelopes and filling those with 2 oz, 2.5 oz, or 4 oz loads. Scotch taped them closed.

I also re-weighed 36 caliber, 40 caliber, 50 caliber round balls just to recheck what they weighed before I loaded them up. Most of my shooting was at 4 ounce combinations, but I exceeded that payload just on those 2 cases I mentioned above. I must note that the solid round ball, weighing about 4 ounces displayed more kick than the heavier shot loads, as I expected. I would describe shooting a quarter pound round ball as..............stout.

From my studies into the Blunderbuss, they were used to shoot nails, glass, etc., as well as lead balls and shot, and heavy payloads were common.

I do have more respect for this gun and its capabilities as a defender/attacker weapon against humans (or animal) after my experiment. It is no wonder George Washington and some others petitioned for the Blunderbuss to become the first official US military weapon. Eventually they lost, however the fact it was seriously considered is noteworthy. I can say that if I was walking at night or if I was sleeping in a carriage and was attacked, this would be the gun to reach for. The pattern at 25 yards is between about 36 inches and 8 feet depending on the composition of the load. I really like mixing the round balls and birdshot for "massive area devastation success". 36 inches was the pattern when I just shot loads such as---twenty thirty six caliber round balls and NO birdshot. I will be doing more patterning. And just for historical record normally (99% of the time) I keep the payloads at 4.5 ounces or less. Yet the most significant factor is the charge amount. I have only gone up to 160 grains of 2F once shooting 4 ounces of birdshot. Impressive! I would bet 100 bucks it could get more than one turkey! hahaha

 

[Zoar]

Might have been although I heard alot of shooting too and think it came from the range on the other hill!!!

 

[CoyoteJoe]

What sort of wad are you using in that thing? I ask because the load of 14 .50 caliber balls plus two ounces of birdshot would weigh about twice as much as the round ball and yet you say the ball has noticeably more recoil. That leads me to believe you must not be getting much of a seal behind the other loads, twice the lead should produce more than twice the recoil, all other things being equal.

 

[Leonredbeard]

I have too much spinal damage. I cannot imagine shouldering that thing and touching it off.
More power to you, man. :bow: :surrender: :shocked2: I'll try to always stand behind you. Hee, Hee! :grin: :hmm: :thumbsup:
volatpluvia

 

[Tinker2]

volatpluvia

Me too, I hurt just thinking about it.




Tinker2

 

[CoyoteJoe]

The blunderbuss wasn't usually fired from the shoulder but from the hip. One could hardly take aim over a flared muzzle anyhow. I certainly agree that if you're going to have a blunderbuss it might as well be a BIG one! :haha:
Whenever the subject of the seven barreled gun comes up I always think it would have made a lot more sense to fire the same load from a single barrel. If one is to fire multiple .50 caliber balls a one inch bore is just the ticket. Here our hero is doubling the load of the seven barreled gun and then adding a 10 gauge magnum load to boot! That's nearly half a pound of lead!
The old rule for a comfortable shotgun holds that the gun should weigh about 100 times the shot load, which works out to 6 1/4 pounds for one ounce of shot. By that rule the gun would need to weigh 48 pounds! :haha:
I'd love to have a four bore but I doubt I'd fire more than 10 fifty caliber balls per bang, I think that would be impressive enough for me.
By all means have fun Zoar, that's just more fun than I could handle! :haha: :haha:

 

[Zoar]

I'm using cork wadding. 1/4 sometimes and 1/2 inch other times. I use an overshot card too always. Thin precut board I got from Mike Lea.

And regarding the recoil: Guys, I gotta tell ya', I am NOT into pain. As long as I keep the powder at or below 120-ish grains of 3F (or about 140ish of 2F) it is not that bad at all. The gun only weighs a bit over 8 pounds too. I did note that when I got to 130 grains of 3F and above, it was a hard recoil that I would characterize as "adult size" recoil.... (ha)

The more I think about this thread the more I am convinced it is the massive butt plate that spreads the "felt recoil" out over a broad area that makes this 4 bore Blunderbuss at the powder loads I'm working with so painless.... hmmmmmmm. By golly we might be on to something: The butt plate on this thing is wide and the area is a good 2X - 2.5X of my other rifles....

The absolute fun load though is 110 grains of 2F!
From the 4 ounce mini paper sacks of number 8 shot to the 1.025" round balls weighing in at over a quarter pound---any larger bore (50 cal and up) muzzleloader shooter can handle this Blunderbuss easily. I let my girlfriend shoot this thing with 2 and 1/2 ounces of shot and 80 grains 3f and she says it is FUN!

Regarding hip shots: For some reason though I prefer shooting from the shoulder and not the hip. It doesn't hurt me from the shoulder, but hip shots make me wince. Maybe I need a hip shooting technique lesson!

I have yet to shoot for accuracy and a round ball at distances yet. I do know that at 25 feet or less I can put a round ball exactly where I want to within an inch. And, when the round ball is an INCH in diameter---that takes care of precision accuracy at these distances! haha!

I can say that every muzzleloader luver needs one of these four bores.

 

[Britsmoothy]

Tell me please, what do you reason you could take a deer at with the BIG buck shot loads?
And the ball load?

Thanks and kudos :hatsoff:

Brit.

 

[Zoar]

In truth, "buckshot" is not legal for deer, only single projectile loads. Thus I would be forced to use a 1.025" diamater round ball on a deer...

If that was not the case, I would think 8 or more 50 caliber round balls would be a quite a deer taker in heavy brush or fairy close range shooting through branches / trees limbs.

IF, that is...

 

[DaveDaDeerslayer]

Zoar,

Buck is legal for deer hunting here in Virginia.

Please, where did you buy/build your 4 bore. :bow:

I'd luv to give it go. :thumbsup:

Dave

 

[Zoar]

I bought parts from different sources. Ed Rayle barrel. Although in truth I would prefer a blunderbuss with thicker metal at the muzzle, the Rayle's are thin. But I could NOT find another four bore blunderbuss barrel. I found the stock from Michael Lea. He also can sell you all the other hardware needed for a four bore.

Total price for all was about $700.

Then a couple of weeks of very part time labour. I put alot of time in the finish as well. I like when I make a gun that looks like it came from 1700-1800's.

Not bad for one of the coolest guns on the planet.

 

[Zoar]

The 4 bore blunderbuss can be loaded up or loaded down.

Really, my girlfriend shoots it with no problem. I usually load it up for her using 75 grains of 2F under a 3/8 thick cork wad and then 2 and 1/2 ounces of shot and then an overshot card.

And an FYI: A load I have been playing with for me to shoot because it gets me a tight devastating group is:

120-140 Grains of 3F
Over shot card
1/4 inch thick cork
2.5 ounces of shot (#2 to #6) with six 32 caliber round balls in a glued togther paper satchel (made by cutting corners off of plain envelops)
Over shot card to top it off.

It is a deadly, devastating load.

I use it to blow the smithereens out of objects and would consider it for calling in coyotes to within 40 yards or as a camp load.

 

[Darkgael]

Do you have a picture of the piece that you can post? Or is there one already posted?
Pete

 

[Zoar]

Pictures were posted at Builders Bench here a while back... here is the link I think:
http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/226000/tp/2/

"4 Bore Blunderbuss Update" was I think the thread I started last year when I built it.

I highly recommend one. They are a hoot and a half plus some.