Looking for a couple components Dacron and tin

fingers284 said:
Yes the Dacron will melt, but that is the beauty of using it in reduced smokeless loads...it vaporizes in the heat & leaves no residue. any carbon that remains is easily wiped out.
But I have a question for you, as this is a .500 "BPE" round, are you loading with BP or smokeless...if you are loading with BP I would seriously reconsider not using Dacron as a case filler. When that Dacron vaporizes on ignition of the powder it won't act as a case filler for black the same as a veg wad or cornmeal will....essentially you will have a reduced BP round with no case filler that history shows it will absolutely result in a bulged or burst barrel.
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When I bought this rifle, my intention was to use BP since I have over 50 pounds of it and have been an avid BP (muzzleloader) shooter for decades. However, from what I have been able to glean from my research into best loading practices for this, it appears that a smokeless load with filler is more forgiving and easier to get shooting straight than black. If I was to use black (and I will likely play with that as well) it would be the standard 138 grains or thereabouts so no need (or room) for filler. Problem seems to be that GOEX (what I have) is considered too low grade for these cartridges which is why they can be cantankerous to get shooting well and that Swiss is the better choice of currently available black and I don't have any of that. As far as the filler "melting", Pretty much any synthetic filler will "melt" but there is a difference between something like Dacron melting and plastic bread bags melting (for example). Almost everyone gets that. I have been looking into alternatives to Dacron and have been made aware of some alternatives such as Kapok, toilet paper, foam backing rods and foam ear plugs. Apparently, the "loose" fillers like Dacron and toilet paper increase the pressure considerably compared to something like foam backing rod so I will probably start with that. besides, the backing rod can be bought in 1/2" diameter so I should be able to determine the correct length required and cut to length and the little cylinders should slip right into the case lime they belong there. IMO, sounds lime a better way to get consistency from case t case than something like Dacron or TP or the like. Regardless of what I settle on, if I use anything g synthetic I will likely use a thin card wad between the powder and filler just to make me feel better. I WONT try anything that hasn't been used successfully by others. Im not interested in re-inventing the wheel. I'll, leave the experimenting to others.
 
Licensed to kill said:
Makes me nervous when they can't say WHAT exactly it is. I agree that what they carry is likely Dacron but the results if it turns out to be a plastic based substitute that melts would be devastating.
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I’ve shot it in many bigger calibers and it doesn’t melt a bag will last you many years.
 
Licensed to kill said:
When I bought this rifle, my intention was to use BP since I have over 50 pounds of it and have been an avid BP (muzzleloader) shooter for decades. However, from what I have been able to glean from my research into best loading practices for this, it appears that a smokeless load with filler is more forgiving and easier to get shooting straight than black. If I was to use black (and I will likely play with that as well) it would be the standard 138 grains or thereabouts so no need (or room) for filler. Problem seems to be that GOEX (what I have) is considered too low grade for these cartridges which is why they can be cantankerous to get shooting well and that Swiss is the better choice of currently available black and I don't have any of that. As far as the filler "melting", Pretty much any synthetic filler will "melt" but there is a difference between something like Dacron melting and plastic bread bags melting (for example). Almost everyone gets that. I have been looking into alternatives to Dacron and have been made aware of some alternatives such as Kapok, toilet paper, foam backing rods and foam ear plugs. Apparently, the "loose" fillers like Dacron and toilet paper increase the pressure considerably compared to something like foam backing rod so I will probably start with that. besides, the backing rod can be bought in 1/2" diameter so I should be able to determine the correct length required and cut to length and the little cylinders should slip right into the case lime they belong there. IMO, sounds lime a better way to get consistency from case t case than something like Dacron or TP or the like. Regardless of what I settle on, if I use anything g synthetic I will likely use a thin card wad between the powder and filler just to make me feel better. I WONT try anything that hasn't been used successfully by others. Im not interested in re-inventing the wheel. I'll, leave the experimenting to others.
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Now you are very much in a Barrel bulge likely area. Card wad with a space between it and the bullet makes the bullet a barrel obstruction same as a snow plug.
 
Yes. If you leave a space between the card wad & your slug you will run the probability that your barrel will be bulged in the chamber...doesnt mater if you have Dacron between them, it is useless after you introduce a card.
 
Licensed to kill said:
Try reading my entire post, ".........plastic substitute THAT MELTS" (emphasis added since it apparently got missed when in lower case). Yes, I am aware of what Dacron" is (I looked it up before searching for it online), that is why I stated "that melts". Some plastics will melt, some won't. Dacron obviously won't since it is used all the time for the application that I am interested in. Others might (will) melt and I am not interested in "experimenting" with my Alex Henry double rifle.
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Dacron melts, or more precisely it it burns up. Never found any after the shot.
 
fingers284 said:
Yes. If you leave a space between the card wad & your slug you will run the probability that your barrel will be bulged in the chamber...doesnt mater if you have Dacron between them, it is useless after you introduce a card.
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You are going to have to walk me through that. If I understand what you wrote correctly, I don't understand what you're saying. Why, exactly would adding a card wad change the dynamics of the powder/filler combination??.
 
jethunter said:
I'm curious - has anyone found any unburnt Dacron filler after shooting it?
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I've shot tens of thousands of rounds using Dacron without an issue of fouling in the barrel or any unburned filler on the snow in front of shooting area.

One other thing I've tried for filler was those ''green fibre" abrasive pads, used for cleaning pots and pans. I put a thin wad, made from playing cards over the powder, then the ''green fibre'' wad on top of that, to fill the space up to the base of the bullet, for light 45/70 black and smokeless powder loads.

I never found even a bit of residue from those green fibre wads and they seemed to keep the BP residue down.

Black powder needs to be compressed to be safe and give consistent pressures.

I knew a fellow that had a special tamping rod made up for his Lyman 50cal muzzle loader. This rod had a brass ball on the end and he would raise the rod about a foot off the seated ball and let it drop down onto the ball a few times to make sure his tamping was consistent, which in his humble opinion made for more consistently accurate shots. I was never able to find a flaw with his opinion and he won a lot of matches.
 
Quality hallmarked pewter items can often be found in the baggies of odds & ends sold at thrift stores. Depending on the price and what else is in the bag it may be a good price, or not. Another place to look is in the picture frame pile.
 
I thought Dacron burnt up when shot too. BUT the only time I've used Dacron fillers in my .450-400 3" Nitro Express with cast bullets and smokeless powder, the Dacron filler just ejected without burning up. I found a bunch of it halfway down range after a shooting session.
 
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