.635" round balls

[762shooter]

A friend just gave me a bag of about 15-20 lbs of round balls .635" +/- .002", weighing about 365 grains. They seem to be soft lead.

Can anyone tell me what firearm these are for? Also, do they have any value beyond the lead they're made from or should I just melt them down?

 

[vagrantviking]

That is a bit of an odd size. Little big for 20ga. if I remember right but maybe for a choked 16ga?

Would certainly be a good find for someone that had the right gun to use them.

 

[mooncoon]

maybe with a really heavy patch in a 16 guage fowler (bore or roughly .66)

cheers mooncoon

 

[green]

About the right size for a .69" smoothbore musket.

 

[762shooter]

About the right size for a .69" smoothbore musket.

Thanks.

After reading your note I did some research and it seems like the right diameter for a patched ball in a .69" smoothbore musket like the 1842 Springfield musket.

I doubt that there are many of those around and still being shot so I'm thinking that these balls are headed for the lead pot.

 

[mooncoon]

About the right size for a .69" smoothbore musket.

a .69 cal smoothbore would take a patched .680 ball. .635 would be grossly undersize unless you were using cartouches of two wraps of paper and containing ball and powder. A 16 guage fowler has a bore of roughly .660 and idealy would use a .650 ball but you could probably get by with a patch of .025 or so and a .635 ball

Since writing this, it occurs to me that I have a couple of original short barreled percussion hunting rifles; one german and one english. They are both in the 63 to 64 caliber range and it is possible that the balls were originally intended for a original hunting muzzle loader

cheers mooncoon

 

[antiqueguy]

maybe 18 or 17 ga fowler

 

[david doyle]

They were made for something, unless you are desperate for lead hold onto them and someday you will be a hero.

If your real curious maybe check some of the mold maker catalogues and see if you can find a mold that size.

 

[david doyle]

Just did half a seconds research and a
vintage IDEAL .635 mold recently sold on fleabay for 56 dollars and had a pile of bidders. Still does not answer your question but indicates that someone or someones out there would value the balls as is.