Paper-patching for a .577cal Pritchett rifle

T

tacfoley

CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
1   0   0
Location
UK, Ontario and Oregon
As the title. I know that Brett Gibbons of papercartridges on Youtube is away right now and won't be back until late Fall, but meantime I'd like to start making PP bullets to shoot in this here new-to-me rifle.

It has taken a deal of trouble to get it on to my Firearms Certificate here UK and it would be great to be able to shoot it with the degree of accuracy mentioned in Captain Gibbons book 'The English cartridge' - if possible.

I understand that I need to find a mould that throws a .550 smooth-sided bullet, and THAT's going to be hard enough here in UK. Just need a starting hand up. PM me if you can offer advice to save cluttering up the site.

TIA.
 
I don't have a magic answer, except to say Pritchett molds are available in the US. You just have to throw money at it. What I did, but haven't fired them yet, was to buy ready made .575 Enfield cartridges from the US, ready in all respects except no powder. You get a paper patched smooth sided pritchett minie, the wood cone that nestles into the hollow base, and the cartridge tube. I took one apart to see how it was made, and was going to shoot it from my Parker Hale 1853 enfield to see its accuracy.
I believe this was the place https://www.papercartridges.com/enfield-paper-cartridges.html
 
I don’t paper patch. I have been using the Lee 0.578 minie. On firing it slugs up to fit the bore. I have taken my snider to a few of our black powder cartridge shoots and normally place 5 or 6th out of about 30 people. Most of the others are shooting modern reproduction Buffalo guns. Took me awhile to figure out how to make the snider shoot well. I use my own homemade lub. Black powder only 1F.
Currently experimenting with a solid base bullet of 470 grs and 0.586 diameter. Powder charge needs to be adjusted and amount of compression. I expect four inch groups from my snider and I get them. Paper patching is more work than I want to do. I have not modified the rifle in anyway except to make a front site that clamps to the barrel, I no longer have to aim 18 inches low to hit the target.
 
Tac: No need to go all the way to .55". I use a .563" mold exactly like the one Rob (Britishmuzzleloaders) uses. I assemble original style paper cartridges with the bullet wrapped in 0.002" paper and dipped in beeswax based lube. In my original P53 the 20th round loads as easily as the first which is the whole idea. The .55 bullet was an extreme solution to difficult loading encountered in India with the .568" minie. Much of the service life of the P53 was with the .568 bullet which was not a "Pritchett" which was the original P53 bullet and lacks the big base hollow and plug. It didn't last long in service and the minie type bullets are just referred to as the "government bullet". One of the best ways to make contacts with mold suppliers is to join British Militaria Forums.

milsurpo
 
Yup, that I know already, thanks - papercartridges IS Brett Gibbons. Sending stuff from the US to UK right now is like opening your front door and throwing fifty-dollar bills out. And many businesses flat-out refuse to ship ANYTHING to UK.

I'm all ears in this subject, since what I know about PP bullets can be writ large on an angel's eyelash. I am, however, a fast learner.
 
Last edited:
:) Your comments on Snider shooting are well-received - I have two nice Canadian Sniders to shoot, and around a hundred cases from both the now-defunct NDFS and Bertram Brass in Australia to use in them. Here in UK we have Malcolm Seller - BES bullets - who makes 'zackly that size Snider bullets - they are already ordered and today I'm fire-forming the first of the cases ready to load.
 
Last edited:
tacfoley said:
@milsurpo - I wonder where Rob got his .563 mould? Martyn, maybe?
Click to expand...

Tac: He had the original made by Steve Brooks in the USA. They are iron and work extremely well. The depth of the base plug is adjustable which allows you to fine-tune your bullet weight and he can also provide a second base plug which casts "Pritchett" replicas (only very shallow base cavity with no plug required). I haven't tied the "Pritchett" version yet but the minie type bullets work very well in my original P53's. I make paper cartridges more or less as shown by Rob in his Youtube videos and find it to be a very enjoyable way to shoot. Regards,

milsurpo
 
I thankee kindly, Sir. I'll have to take a look at Mr Brooks' products, always supposing that he hasn't joined the ever-increasing number of American businesses refusing to ship to UK.
 
I have a question about the Pritchett round. I notice everyone that shoots the minie ball just puts lube on it and sends it down the muzzle. So I was wondering, is it possible to do that with the Pritchett as well? I enjoy making the paper patch cartridge but sometimes I find myself wanting to shoot and have nothing made. Is the paper needed like the patch and round ball?

Thanks in advance!
 
Edburns117 said:
I have a question about the Pritchett round. I notice everyone that shoots the minie ball just puts lube on it and sends it down the muzzle. So I was wondering, is it possible to do that with the Pritchett as well? I enjoy making the paper patch cartridge but sometimes I find myself wanting to shoot and have nothing made. Is the paper needed like the patch and round ball?

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...

The muzzle-loading minie ball used by the US had grease grooves and are designed to be loaded naked. The British Enfield cartridge used a smooth-sided bullet with all the lubrication taken care of by the wax soaked paper wrapper. The bullet dimensions were set assuming paper of a certain thickness would be wrapped around it, reducing the windage greatly but still allowing the bullet to be loaded with ease after dozens of shots. So yes, the paper wrapping is absolutely necessary. The Lee molds for the Burton type bullet are pretty cheap so maybe you need to get one of those to have a few grease groove bullets around for occasional use in your P53.

milsurpo
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom