As for cleaning, I just remover the cylinder of my Remington, remove the wood grip panels, wash everything in hot soapy water (dish soap), scrub, rince under the tap with hot water (dish gloves are nice!) and then wipe the revolver as much as possible before putting it in the oven at the lowest possible temperature until it gets hot and dry! Then I remove it, spray some wd40 on it while still hot (do that outside the house!) let it cool down and then apply CLP... put back the panels and your gun is like new...
Civil War Revolver. New to cap and ball.
- Thread starter 251251
- Start date
On cleaning I used to let them soak in some hot lightly soaped water for a while. Now I tend to dunk n' brush a few times until no more black comes out then rinse with hot water and dry right away. When I let the cylinder or barrel soak while drying and oiling the other part I found I was getting little bits of flash rusting in some corners around the forcing cone or brownish stains of rust on the patches coming out of the cylinder chambers. Now that I dunk n' brush until clean then immediately dry each part on it's own this isn't an issue.
I also started off rinsing in hot water then putting the parts on a try in a toaster oven to dry them more fully. Again this began to produce some initial brown bits of flash rust on the subsequent oil swabbings with an oily patch. So now I dry with rags and patches and then oil right away with Ballistol. If you've got compressed air available it isn't a bad option for the tighter nooks and crannies. The oil is applied with a combination of a small cheap stiff hair brush and a patch of paper towel. The brush gets into the tight spots and the paper towel leaves just the right amount on the metal.
Shrapnel, you may want to get some Ballistol. I've read reports about CLP oils forming hard to clean tar like deposits of fouling. The bottom line is that you want to avoid oils that are petroleum based or that are not specifically intended for black powder. Ballistol is one such oil. I'm sure there's others too but CLP oils are generally not among them since they are meant for use on guns using smokeless powders.
I also started off rinsing in hot water then putting the parts on a try in a toaster oven to dry them more fully. Again this began to produce some initial brown bits of flash rust on the subsequent oil swabbings with an oily patch. So now I dry with rags and patches and then oil right away with Ballistol. If you've got compressed air available it isn't a bad option for the tighter nooks and crannies. The oil is applied with a combination of a small cheap stiff hair brush and a patch of paper towel. The brush gets into the tight spots and the paper towel leaves just the right amount on the metal.
Shrapnel, you may want to get some Ballistol. I've read reports about CLP oils forming hard to clean tar like deposits of fouling. The bottom line is that you want to avoid oils that are petroleum based or that are not specifically intended for black powder. Ballistol is one such oil. I'm sure there's others too but CLP oils are generally not among them since they are meant for use on guns using smokeless powders.
That is probably why I like Colt open tops; knock the wedge out & the BBL assembly is separated from the basic mechanism. Pour boiling water through the BBL and on the cylinder( better with nipples out), swab a little bore butter through the BBL and each chamber in the cylinder.
Pretty much good. I'll do a complete tear-down every 70-80 shots. Still way easier than the R.O.A.
IMO.
Stay safe
Tokguy
Pretty much good. I'll do a complete tear-down every 70-80 shots. Still way easier than the R.O.A.
IMO.
Stay safe
Tokguy
Cap and ball revolver...well, there are a couple of things you should know.
People tend to put a wad of lard or similar in front of the bullets when loaded, to cut down on the risk of chainfires. Yes, people have had the whole thing go off at once.
Thus, loading it is a multi-stage process that involves more than a few steps.
Also, the couple I've fired, the bp builds up into such a mess throughout everything, that the gun actually seizes up after like 5 rounds! Yep, actually can't #### it anymore.
I've also seen the cylinder wedge on the Armi San Marco Colt 1860 open top repros bend into a U shape, such was the craptastic metallurgy.
Thus, in my limited experience, they're not the easiest things to operate. There's a reason why they invented cartridges and smokeless powder.
If you enjoy high maintenance items they are the thing for you!
Hey, if everyone who read your post was as impressed as you were, then nobody would take up BP handgun shooting!
My experience, needless to say, is somewhat different to yours, but as I've only been shooting BP handguns since around 1965, for fun and competition, I'm more than ready to bow to your greater experience in the subject.
But before I humble myself, lemme get a few things straight -
1. Sure they are messy - having to load them by hand and use an over- bullet sealer [something the old guys hardly, if ever, did, BTW].
2. Chain-fires are usually cause by worn-out nipples and bad-fitting caps, flashing around the back of the chamber not flashing forward as many suppose. The ball is a perfect seal in the chamber, else how did you shave off that ring of lead on loading it? And incidentally, I've only seen one such event in forty-six years, when an original Navy got shot with its worn out nipples and too big caps. First shot fired, and off it went - pretty exciting, too.
3. Some coke up pretty fast, that also can be a fact, but I shoot my Ruger Old Army [a kind of modern-day Remington 1858 revision] literally all day long on our guest days, and usually clear 250-300 shots - without fully cleaning it more than once. I simply wipe it over after each cylinder-full and start over. Because of the problems of storage of BP here I shoot Pyrodex P, BTW.
4. Plus - remember the old adage - you get what you pay for. My second series Colt Walker was made in 1978, and has had many thousands of top loads down it - six times 50gr at a time from a generous BP-doning pal - without missing a trick.
So I say to the possible noob - go find a range where there are a few being fired, by enthusiasts rather than detractors, and see how you get on.
tac
