good load for 1851 navy & 1862 pocket?

recently, i came into an uberti 1851 navy and an 1862 pocket police. both have steel frames. what are good loads for these revolvers? don't need thumpers... just hunting the elusive soda can, and the seldom seen x-ring.

thanks!

.36's usually like about 15 gr of 3F plus enough filler, corn meal, farina, etc. to bring the ball to the mouth of the chamber. My Leech and Rigdon likes 18 gr. and 9 gr (volume) of farina.

They don't have the sights for target shooting. I would say about 18 grains of 3fg, 36 caliber over powder wad and a ball that measures about 0.005" larger than the cylinder mouth diameter. You want to shave lead off the ball as you load to properly seal the chamber. Also you want caps that fit. This means trying number 10 or 11 caps.

I like a lube over the ball in the chamber to keep the fouling soft. Crisco is often recommended but it can become very messy. You want a soft lubricant that doesn't melt with heat.

i have used packing grease over .44 roundball in the past ... i assume that this will work OK ... my Crisco experience ... well, let's not go there... :cursing: :redface:

Thanks! ... now i can make good smoke :grin:

MSW said:

i have used packing grease over .44 roundball in the past ... i assume that this will work OK ... my Crisco experience ... well, let's not go there... :cursing: :redface:

Thanks! ... now i can make good smoke :grin:

Click to expand...

I have heard others that have used the packing grease to good effect but for me I would use a non-petroleum product for fear of the residue baking on inside the barrel and becoming hard to remove - not sure if this is a real concern or not?

Zug, thank you ... that hadn't occurred to me, but your point is well taken ... here in the cooler months, i should be able to get away with Crisco ... thanks for the post

Dont shoot it out the car window! Crisco will drip out of the nooks n crannys of year mirror for 3-4 months :redface:

eeewwwww.


maybe a can of mink oil is under the tree.

15 grains of 3-F has worked pretty good so far but lately I've made some 1/8 inch felt wads lubed with a bees wax lube and am trying these in leu of Crisco or filler, both in .44 and .36.
Couple of methods you may want to explore as well.
I think it a far better loading method for hunting and general field use.
I'm getting tired of the mess Crisco makes of the gun and me personally.

Try a recipe like the one below or just use some bees wax and olive oil mixed in a proportion to suit your seasonal ambient temperature ”“ and you’ll probably never use Crisco again.

All parts by weight: (Gatofeo No. 1 Lube)
1 part beeswax
2 parts paraffin wax
2 parts mutton tallow
http://percussionrevolvers.com/index.php?topic=907.msg1727#msg1727

I was going to use that recipe, but had no luck finding mutton tallow locally so used unsalted lard. It seems to work fine and in the jars for over a year without any problem with turning rancid. I used it to soak wads for my cap and ball revolvers.

I would have used mutton fat, but the other was available. I got the bees wax cheap from a local bee keeper.

Rendered lard is rendered lard...from what doesn't seem to matter! I always used Hodgdon's "Spit Ball"...besides coming in an easy to use plastic squeeze bottle, it had a nice odor and cute pink color! :rotf: Hey, it worked great and I carried the battle around in my back jean pocket!

The load depends basically in the rifling twist rate.

Some revolvers have faster twist rate than others.

In faster twists u need less powder.

For example, I have 2 navy piettas, with different twist rates. I have not measured them, but it is noticeable the difference.
I use Swiss 3f, and the faster twist one prefers 15gr and 17gr the slow twist one.

As wad I use felt wads, and Nivea as lube over the bullets.

I also have an Armi San Paolo sheriff navy with slow twist that loves 20gr Swiss 2f (!!!) without filler and Nivea as lube. This revolver needs .395 balls (.381-.384 chambers...)

Looks like a good recipe to try my rendered bear fat in!

For the '51 Navy - I like 23 or so grains of Swiss FFFG powder, an over-powder wad, and then the .380 ball rammed into place. This almost fills the chamber on the .36 caliber, but a good-quality reproduction with a steel frame will handle this just fine. The wads by soaking sheet felt in a home-made mix of tallow and hard wax from a spare yard candle.

I usually shoot Goex in my long arms, but in the revolvers I like the Swiss better because it seems to burn cleaner and reduce fouling of the cylinder turning.

I use 18 to 21 grains of 3F Swiss, a Gatofeo #1 lubed wad and a .380 ball in my 1851s. I use only 15 to 18 grains of the 3F Swiss under the same wad and ball in my Pocket Police and Pocket Navy revolvers.