Just curious how many grains of powder other people use in their traditional blackpowders. Do you always use the same amount or do you bump it up a little for hunting something specific? I've never heard of any hard rule about how many grains to use so I am assuming your answers will be all over the board.
Grains?
- Thread starter stuckon308
- Start date
- Location
- vancouver island
grains
greetings-old rule of thumb is/was shoot your caliber. in other words 45 grains for .45 cal then go up or down to experiment for that sweet spot load. for pistols is usually half the caliber to start.
greetings-old rule of thumb is/was shoot your caliber. in other words 45 grains for .45 cal then go up or down to experiment for that sweet spot load. for pistols is usually half the caliber to start.
vagrantviking
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Southern Alberta
The crudest method that I've heard of was to place the ball in the plam of your hand and see how much powder it takes to cover it.
Another old one was to start with 60% (or maybe it was 2/3) of the ball weight. This actually seems to be pretty good in some guns.
The type of bullet that you are using and the twist of the rifling can have a lot of effect on the load also. Most of the .50's that I've shot had 1-66 twists and liked around 80gr for round balls. Had a .45 with 1-48 and it liked fairly light loads with RB but was happy with quite heavy loads when using Maxi's.
Some people believe in jacking up the powder for longer shots or for hunting but I've always thought that accuracy trumps power. If your gun isn't too picky then go with what makes sense to you just test the sight picture before you head to the bush.
Another old one was to start with 60% (or maybe it was 2/3) of the ball weight. This actually seems to be pretty good in some guns.
The type of bullet that you are using and the twist of the rifling can have a lot of effect on the load also. Most of the .50's that I've shot had 1-66 twists and liked around 80gr for round balls. Had a .45 with 1-48 and it liked fairly light loads with RB but was happy with quite heavy loads when using Maxi's.
Some people believe in jacking up the powder for longer shots or for hunting but I've always thought that accuracy trumps power. If your gun isn't too picky then go with what makes sense to you just test the sight picture before you head to the bush.
tactical870
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Buckhorn, Ontario
I used to shoot 90-100 grains in my .50 Hawken rifle with a patched round ball.
I do this with my percussion shotguns by volume. Works very well in a shotgun application.
I do this with my percussion shotguns by volume. Works very well in a shotgun application.
For patched round balls, I start with a charge 1 1/2 times bore diameter and then vary it in 5 grain increments up and down looking for best accuracy. One charge fits all - go for best accuracy. I use 70 gr FFFg in my 45 cal, 80 gr FFg in the 50 cal and 90 gr FFg in the 54 cal barrels that are 42". In the 32" 54 cal I found 95 gr FFg is best. Good luck.
