Paper Patching and PRB Grooves

Can one successfully shoot paper patched projectiles in a barrel intended for PRBs if a hard felt wad is used?

Assuming the land diameter is 0.502” what would one want their projectile diameter to be?

IMO, no. Paper patched bullets like shallow rifling grooves. They don't like deep rifling grooves like a patched ball rifle has.
The bullet's often won't expand enough to seal the rifling grooves with just a thin paper patch so the paper will burn off of the bullet almost immediately after the powder ignites. Without the paper, accuracy goes down the tube fast.

The felt wad would seal the grooves and keep the paper from burning, no?

It might or it might not.

Give it a try and let us know what happens.

I am curious but a bit doubtful. As is I just use REALs. As I have nothing else .50 cal I wouldn’t buy a mold just to see. But if it did work I might. Do the Great Plains and Maxis work in deep grooves?

Been playing with the Green Mountain barrel .40 Renegade off and on for over ten years.
Even when using a mold design that engraved on the rifling I never have obtained reliable accuracy. The group might be looking great and then (boink) flyer opens it up. But I haven't given up. Today's experiment is determining how much powder it takes to expand a micro-minie into the rifling and perhaps how much to rupture the skirt.

rodwha said:

Can one successfully shoot paper patched projectiles in a barrel intended for PRBs if a hard felt wad is used?

Assuming the land diameter is 0.502” what would one want their projectile diameter to be?

Click to expand...

Maybe in the neighborhood of .502”/.503” over the paperpatch?

I shoot the bullet pictured below in 1-30 GM LRH 45 caliber barrels and find it very accurate. The ~410~ grain bullet starts out about .433”-.434 “ diameter, has two wraps of 9# onion skin paper (.002” thickness) and ends up .451”-.452 before sizing for a barrel that gauges at .450”. Loads with light finger pressure. Over an 1/8” thick .50” diameter felt wad it is very accurate. Has been tried in a couple of roundball barrels just because of opportunity. Felt good loading in both barrels, unfortunately, keyholed out of both at 25 yards.

Don’t know until you try. Suggest large target at close range to start. That way if whatever slug you try flys wild you will at least soon know where it is hitting. When above experiment was tried with the 45s we weren’t hitting a 24” square target at 50 yards.

If you want to explore more, check out posts by IdahoRon and his hot rod Hawken. I’m just working from suggestions he provided a few years back.