Thread: 44-40 Powder choices

Thats annoying if it's true. If I could have found some Unique I would have got it before AP70, which always seemed to be available. Never seen any Unique in a shop. Black powder is s problem too, and was even before the shortage we're dealing with now.
Well, AR2207 does everything a .44/40 will require. It's about the only powder you CAN find.

I'm tempted by the black powder idea. I know I can get BP unlike all the smokeless alternatives listed - except AR2207.

The 44-40 would definitely be a perfect case to try. Seals chamber well with such a thin brass.

@JohnDuxbury why do you not size the case when loading black powder, just crimp?

Also if I was to shoot lubed cast bullets what's the firing/cleaning regime? Do you need to swab the bore occasionally or is the fouling kept soft, just clean at the end? I target shoot with it rather than hunting and have no desire to hunt with it, I have plenty of other rifles for that. So I could be firing 50+ rounds a session.

Not that I shoot it these days but my '92 gets fed bulk 200gr jacketed projs crimped ahead of 11.5grs of W540, MV 1150. Can't tell you the actual group average but in its day, it was good enough to win local AA shoots.

Originally Posted by Makros

I'm tempted by the black powder idea. I know I can get BP unlike all the smokeless alternatives listed - except AR2207.

The 44-40 would definitely be a perfect case to try. Seals chamber well with such a thin brass.

@JohnDuxbury why do you not size the case when loading black powder, just crimp?

Also if I was to shoot lubed cast bullets what's the firing/cleaning regime? Do you need to swab the bore occasionally or is the fouling kept soft, just clean at the end? I target shoot with it rather than hunting and have no desire to hunt with it, I have plenty of other rifles for that. So I could be firing 50+ rounds a session.

With black powder, you should be using pure lead bullets, or a lead mixture with only 1 or 2 % tin. (From solder) Loading with unsized cases stops deforming the bullet. YOu will need to compress the powder - but you cant compress it with a bullet, because you will squash your bullet, so you need to pre compress your powder (I do it with jacketed bullet, and then pull it out, and put a lead bullet in.)

You lube with soft stuff, not the commercial products, you can google what people use for lube but just fat or lard works. (I use chefade and beeswax mixture) The lube keeps the fouling soft, so it is blown out of the bore by the next bullet. (Unlubed Bp fouling otherwise gets hard and caked.)

You have to test your lube and see how well it is keeping the fouling down. You will find that you can shoot a number of shots and then groups open up considerably - your lube has been overhelmed. Then you run a wet patch through the bore to get all the fouling out, and then keep shooting.

Keep fouling down so you can shoot a long string like 30 or 50 rounds is dependant and using a a good soft lube, a bullet that has a groove that carries enough lube, and most of all, good quality black powder. Swiss is the best - most power, burns cleanest. Goex is no longer made. Locally made Nz BP called Holy Smoke, is about the same as Goex. (Lucky for us)

I do not do a lot of target shooting, I am mostly hunting, so I make my bullet and lube so that I can shoot a five round group with no fouling. Thats all I need, then I run a patch between each five round group. If you want to shoot 50 without cleaning you will need high quality powder and a bullet that carries a good amount of lube. (Again - commercial lubes are useless for BP)
Or you can do what I do and just swab out the bore in between every group.
The world of Bp shooting is a bit different than jacketed and smokeless loads and shooting. THere is more to think about, - fouling, and also the composition of your lead mixture, how much tin to use, how much compression of the powder to use. A good load might be a combination of a certain lead mixture, a certain lube and a certain amount of compression. All can affect accuracy.

Dont buy your bullets off Trademe. Commercial bullets are too hard for black powder, they are made from wheelweights or some other horrible thing that has antimony in it. You need soft lead. You do no t need to worry so much about bullet diameter then - pure lead or 1:50 mix bump up even if quite undersized. People make a big deal about bullet casting sizes because they are using hard bullets and shooting them with smokelss. F you do that and the bullet is too small, you get blowby and you will lead your bore. This is not a concern with black powder loads and the proper soft lead bullets.

If you can only get commercial cast bullets, then stick with smokeless loads and use the right size, a thou or two over bore diameter. If you can get pure lead or lead with 1-2% tin, then do the black powder loading. You should try casting yourself if you dont already.

Or use jacketed bullets and BP, as I describe in the earlier post - but you will need to swab the barrel more often. To an extent the hard jacketed bullet will scrape the fouling out with it, but after a few shots you will need to run a damp patch through. Some rifles five shots. Some twenty.

I know it's a bit of a long shot but is the Trail Boss still available?

Thanks.