No patches/wads for revolvers?

Bad Karma · Jan 22, 2023

Crow Choker said:
I have tried conicals in both my 44 and 36 caliber calibers but find balls faster to load and don't have to mess around pan/sizer lubing. Alot of guys like em though, no problem with em in that respect. I do cast and shoot a 200 grain bullet similar to the bullet on the left of your picture. Load those in and for 44 Colt conversion Colts, also one of similar design for 45 Colt shooting black powder.

It’s been a while since I’ve pan lubed anything. I run them through a lubrisizer and they load as easily as balls do. The Kerr bullets might load easier than ball.

Crow Choker · Jan 22, 2023

I'll agree with ya on that Magungo. I started using felt back in the time when greasing over the balls was the requirement and needed Rx to prevent chain fires besides tight caps. Also provided needed lubrication in the bore. Still do it, not so much for chain fire prevention, but for the bore lube help and keeping fowling soft. I use .454 balls in my 44's and .380's in my 36 cap guns, get a nice ring of lead-very tight fit.

The wads in the Dragoon and Walker help also to fill the chambers, bring the ball closer to the forcing cone for less ball jump within the chamber. Have tried the cream of wheat routine as a filler, but too much of a pain, just another loading step not needed for me at least. Have tried .457's in my Dragoons and Walker but seems a bit much. Read that Uberti uses the same cylinder reamers for all of their 44's no matter the model. I do use .457's in my Ruger Old Army.

Magungo1066 · Jan 22, 2023

Crow Choker, for me you hit it on the head with the part about greasy hands. My earliest blackpowder memory is being covered in gunk after shooting my Dad's walker when I was little. Not something I miss. I feel that the more you shoot these things the more you figure out what steps you can omit and still have a properly maintained/functioning/shiny gun.

Stantheman86 · Jan 22, 2023

Magungo1066 said:
Crow Choker, for me you hit it on the head with the part about greasy hands. My earliest blackpowder memory is being covered in gunk after shooting my Dad's walker when I was little. Not something I miss. I feel that the more you shoot these things the more you figure out what steps you can omit and still have a properly maintained/functioning/shiny gun.

I've honestly had my hands get just as messy with the Wonder Wads as with finger dabs of Crisco .

I shot a lot of "bare ball" this summer , with real Black, Pyro and 777 and found that real Black cakes the bore up quickly and the gun gums up fairly quickly . With 777 and a slightly less degree, Pyrodex, shooting with no lube will work for many cylinders before the gun gets gummy. I recall getting 12 cylinders through a .44 Pietta Brasser Navy this summer with Pyrodex P, and bare balls. I never field stripped or wiped out. I only stopped at 12 because the hammer got gummy , a 2 second wipe off fixed that.

If you find something that works, go with it

Comfortably_Numb · Jan 23, 2023

Crow Choker said:
I don't know Comfort-Numb, I never grease over the balls, haven't since sometime in the 90's when I started using lubed wads and never have a problem with my cylinder spinning on my C&B arbor. Back in the early days I used a lot of forgotten concoctions for arbor lubrication. Later I used some red grease that came in a small plunger that was a synthetic of some type. Switched over to white lithium grease around 30 some years ago that I could obtain locally and was cheaper. After a day of shooting the cylinder never binds, taking the barrel/cylinder off, the grease is still the same color as I applied. Only exception is the first 1/8" by the chamber mouths or so that has become a brownish color from residue. I add a very small dad on the cylinder ratchets also for lube, never a problem with any buildup. General consensus by most is to avoid petroleum based grease as it and black powder residue don't mix well.

Ref grease over the balls, I don't miss the days of greasy hands, greasy revolvers, or the extra step of greasing the balls. If a shooter has properly lubed his firearm, he doesn't need all of that liquid grease that previously was a semi-solid spread over the balls but was melted by the firing, heat and blow of the first couple of shots for lubrication and proper functioning of his revolver. There's no need for all that grease spread all over the front half of the revolver. A rag back in the early days of my percussion shooting necessitated one hanging from my belt to constantly wipe all the grease that got on my hands and all over everything. Forget to bring one and ya made sure the next time you went out it was there. Still do carry a rag, but it doesn't get the use it once did.

Clean up is clean up, I use hot water (if possible, but not scalding), Ballistol, and rags and brushes. Not any harder to clean from back in the day I greased the balls. The only pain is the chamber deep in the nipple area and the exterior nipple recesses of the cylinder. I take the nipples off, only way to really get them and the recesses clean. It's a pain doing so, but do it as its the only way to really get things clean. Out in the field I never do strip, if the bore does get any buildup, I carry a small wooden dowel I cut a slot in one end for a cleaning patch and give it a few swipes with a water/Ballistol mix.

I settled on my method when I was shooting cowboy action. I shot "gunfighter", that's one gun in each hand, alternating guns. So, I had to have something that was 100% dependable. I couldn't have a cylinder getting so sticky that I'd have to give it help rotating, because I had both hands full. I only had one mishap in three years. I had a cap fall between hammer and frame....I had to beat the revolver against the shooting table untill the cap fell out and then I went on with the stage.
I also grease over the cylinders of my S&W model 3's when shooting black powder. They run all day. Otherwise, I can't shoot five shoots without a seize up.
I do get greasy hands to some extent, but it doesn't bother me. I ain't no sissy.

Crow Choker · Jan 23, 2023

I've shot the same way 'Comf' using wads, well greased arbor, arbor length corrected, no grease over the balls, and have good running. Guess both ways work, one greasy and the other non-greasy. Sissiness has nothing to do with it. I don't shoot any firearms going in with a 'he-man' attitude!

Comfortably_Numb · Jan 23, 2023

'he-man' attitude!

That's the only thing that matters in my life. :ghostly:

Stantheman86 · Jan 23, 2023

Lots of people hate on 777 until they actually use it in competition or just for fun range banging

I know a lot of CAS guys and they love 777 for cartridges and shotgun shells.

Using it in cap and ballers almost feels like cheating because they run so clean

Crow Choker · Jan 23, 2023

Comfortably_Numb said:
That's the only thing that matters in my life.

I guess Stantheman86, you, and others who like to grease over the balls and I and others who prefer to use wads will just have to agree to disagree. Same with proper lubrication and arbor fixes. Alot of roads will lead to a common destination, choice of roads by all is optional, but most lead to the destination sooner or later.

You have a good day.

Comfortably_Numb · Jan 23, 2023

Crow Choker said:
I guess Stantheman86, you, and others who like to grease over the balls and I and others who prefer to use wads will just have to agree to disagree. Same with proper lubrication and arbor fixes. Alot of roads will lead to a common destination, choice of roads by all is optional, but most lead to the destination sooner or later. You have a good day.

I probably shot with you seeing you're from Iowa.

45D · Jan 23, 2023

Well guys, apparently I'm a bad guy. I've been censored ( a post removed for apparently saying bad things about others). This is a surprise to me ( but not unexpected). Yet, we have folks here that can tell other members that he doesn't care if they die or . . . and that's ok. They put down what you do, and show absolutely no respect for an individual ( unless you agree with him). But hey, life goes on. Those type folks seem to be a "protected" bunch so . . .
I'll try an make sure I don't "disturb" the "protected" or the "powers that be".
Let's see,

Regardless, posts such as post #23 telling a member they could live or die? Or grow mushrooms in your crack? I've never even seen anything close to that on any other forum so . . . this is a new experience for me !!
You folks have a really awesome forum here . . .

Crow Choker · Jan 23, 2023

Mike, I never saw any of your posts that were not to the point, off, were clear, to the truth of the matter, and/or "saying bad things about others"! Guess it's like some in this country get by with things when others are penalized. All the years I've read your posts on CAS and other forums never saw any of it. Crow Choker--also known as Chicken Choker I guess.

Siringo · Jan 24, 2023

Comfortably_Numb said:
I settled on my method when I was shooting cowboy action. I shot "gunfighter", that's one gun in each hand, alternating guns. So, I had to have something that was 100% dependable. I couldn't have a cylinder getting so sticky that I'd have to give it help rotating, because I had both hands full. I only had one mishap in three years. I had a cap fall between hammer and frame....I had to beat the revolver against the shooting table untill the cap fell out and then I went on with the stage.
I also grease over the cylinders of my S&W model 3's when shooting black powder. They run all day. Otherwise, I can't shoot five shoots without a seize up.
I do get greasy hands to some extent, but it doesn't bother me. I ain't no sissy.

Is that model 3 an orginal or repo?

Comfortably_Numb · Jan 24, 2023

Siringo said:
Is that model 3 an orginal or repo?

It's a repop. I have several and shoot only black powder out of them. I'm hunting an original, but they sell for a lot of money, but so do the repops!

Flintlock Whiskey · Jan 24, 2023

Stantheman86 said:
Lots of people hate on 777 until they actually use it in competition or just for fun range banging

I know a lot of CAS guys and they love 777 for cartridges and shotgun shells.

Using it in cap and ballers almost feels like cheating because they run so clean

777 in a revolver. That's something I will have to try.

Comfortably_Numb · Jan 24, 2023

Flintlock Whiskey said:
777 in a revolver. That's something I will have to try.

Pure evil.

Stantheman86 · Jan 24, 2023

Flintlock Whiskey said:
777 in a revolver. That's something I will have to try.

It has to be compressed well which is easy in a revolver , and it's very accurate

I can shoot a baseball sized group at 50 with my Pocket Navy with 15gr of 777 3f and round balls

CVA Enthusiast · Jul 22, 2023

I know old thread sometimes well like me just reviewing or new guy fishing for clarity. When I got into this over a decade ago chain fire all the rage from front. Now over the last few years it is the rear...When it happens TRUE chain fire is a mystical beast. All others well user error. Like I stated true chain fire is a mechanical issue. I have seen all the wads and grease and still chain fire. YES it is an added protection and sometimes fails. Does wad or grease hurt to use no. However grease proven time and time again gets soupy and runs off after the first round or two, so where does that leave added protection? I`d lean more towards the wads Added benefit of wads possibly to help stabilize pressures. But hey it aint none of my business

Griff093 · Jul 23, 2023

I've shot cowboy action with a .36 Navy since 1986... have always loaded with 3F, a lubed wad and a .375 ball, when we went to two revolvers in the mid 1990's I got another, this time a 2nd Gen Colt. Use the same loads, I've shot on many hot days, (defined as 100ºF + in both the deserts of CA & AZ, and in the humid South), plus more'n a few times in both rain & a couple of times in snow. All the same... pull hammer, trigger, get a bang, mostly a clang with lead on steel, if I do my part by loading correctly. I've always charged all six chambers at the beginning of the day, cap five and shot. Have never had a chainfire. I've had many folks tell me I'm doing it wrong... thanks for their concern, but I'll stick with what works for me... you (generic, all encompassing, not directed at any individual), if the shoe fits, stick with what works for you.

smoothshooter · Jul 23, 2023

sidpost said:
I was watching some YouTube black powder videos and they mentioned not needing patches or wads to shoot. They were loading balls so, I questioned this being a reasonable way to load. Or, perhaps they had some 'special' cylinder mod to support this?

Can you load without patches or wads in any revolver? Is this just a trick for plinking a lot of rounds?

TIA,
Sid

Wads, ( lubricated ) yes. Not absolutely necessary, but life is better if you use them under the ball.
Patches, no.

No patches/wads for revolvers?

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