Leaving C&B loaded

[paradork]

What are some tricks to getting away with leaving a C&B loaded. Could you just make sure the guns really clean, load and cap... seal the caps with nail polish etc...

 

[Wes/Tex]

"IF" the revolver is genuinely clean, there's no reason it can't be kept loaded for some time. I've had a couple loaded for over a year without problems. Black powder isn't corrosive itself...it's the chemical product produced when fired that's hydroscopic and draws moisture, the real culprit that causes rust. Have never used the nail polish thing either. Good, tight fitting caps have done the trick and I'm talking about central and south Texas where humidity is a daily event!

 

[paradork]

I'm trying to come up with every excuse I can to get myself to purchase a cap and ball. I didn't buy a protection handgun yet. Sleep with modern long guns for that. Trapping revolver when i'm out and about in the big city. Have a hard time spending the money on a gun that I'll hardly shoot IF I can find ammo for it. Sounds stupid using a C&B for protection but its an excuse lol. The day is coming when that's all we'll have. Figure I can buy an extra cylinder and leave it loaded.

 

[Wes/Tex]

don't think the percussion can 't do the job of home protection either. A very thorough study done some years ago found the .44 cap & ball revolver's ability to give a 'one-stop-shot' to be on the order of modern .44 Special and .45 Long Colt cartridges. Everybody was pretty well amazed. One other advantage is the 'shock' factor of having a big flash and bang with smoke! A friend who was a cop here in Texas accidently got a black powder round mixed in his duty ammo. When he had to use it, the friendly felon literally wet himself and was marginally unintelligible from the surprise! Can't ask for much more than that! :thumbsup:

 

[paradork]

I work EMS, I have no doubts about stopping power. I love reading people putting down the .380 saying it aint a stopper. It don't take much to change a situation. For as much as I carry, I think it'd be a decent investment that I can enjoy shooting.

 

[necchi]

I'm trying to come up with every excuse I can to get myself to purchase a cap and ball.
------------------------------------------------

The day is coming when that's all we'll have.

Seem's you've just asked and answered your own question right there.

It's good to have something that'll work, when that day comes.

 

[robertmcw]

I bought an Old Army in the mid 1980’s and I shot a bunch of times and then put in the safe for about 10 years. The nipples was stuck and I needed to send it to Strum and they gave a new cylinder for free. Put some Anti-Seize stuff on the nipples every time you put it away and you are good to go (and don’t just use oil ”“ anti seize stuff from the auto parts store).

 

[MSW]

I work EMS, I have no doubts about stopping power. I love reading people putting down the .380 saying it aint a stopper. It don't take much to change a situation. For as much as I carry, I think it'd be a decent investment that I can enjoy shooting.

back in the late seventies I worked as a security guard in an 'inner city' ER ... talk about a cultural eye- opener for a kid who'd grown up in the protected upper middle class suburbs ... seems a fellow had driven up to his Philadelphia row house with his girlfriend in plain view and the top of his convertible down ... his wife took violent exception to this and secured his .380. as he opened his front door, she opened up on his adulterous a$$, missing him with the first shot, taking off a finger with the second, but then improving the group dramatically and getting the remaining five into 'center of mass.' Now, this was a very large (like 6'5" 275 lb) fellow, and only one of the bullets produced an exit wound. The shots drew the attention of one of Rizzo's Raiders, who grabbed the furious wife and called for an ambulance, which arrived just after a 'paddy wagon' (police van) ...

the fellow was raising quite a fuss about his plans for their impending divorce, which he proposed to settle by means of blunt force trauma and edged weaponry ... the police (rightly so) thought it might be a good idea if he sought medical attention, but were unable to convince him to go with the EMS crew, so they trundled him into the van.

by the time he arrived at our doorstep, the night ER nurse (a great guy- 'Nam vet medic) had figured out by way of the scanner what was about to happen, so he had 'cleared the decks,' which turned out to have been a very good idea. when the cops arrived, he was strapped to a gurney, screaming bloody murder (hers, hot his own) and a 'range walk' they rolled him into the surgery... there was a quarter sized drop of blood about every eighteen inches, there was blood all over the cops, there was blood all over the inside of the van, and he was shouting that they'd better let him die or he'd kill "that ni... BITC... 'cause ain't nobody gotta git away wid shooting ME ... "

well, he didn't get his wish, and about five or six days later he was discharged. a few weeks after that he proved good for his word. his wife (who had inexplicably been released on her own recognizance after being charged with the unlicensed possession and discharge of a handgun)was found beaten to death.

wouldn't want to sit on his jury, but I'd suspect he might have had something to do with it.


moral of the story: .380 can get you into a whole lot more trouble than it can get you out of.

I'd stick with my ROA (which I do keep loaded) ... every Independence Day I fire it off and clean and reload it ... the anti- seize advice is good by the way ...

aim your shots. hit center of mass. stop shooting when the bad guys fall over.

just one guy's advice - free and no doubt well worth the price!

 

[paradork]

What I'm really looking for is a gun to have on my hip when I'm out stump shooting with my recurve in the summer. Switching out a cylinder would be nice. If I don't have to shoot just a quick wipe down and on my way I go.

 

[cynthialee]

Yes you can leave them loaded.

As to worrying about them being effective....

I knew a man who was killed with a BP .44 revolver.

Just this winter I had to shoot a mountain lion with a BP .44 and that cat is no longer with us.

These BP revolvers will do their job if you do yours.

 

[Tinker2]

I knew a man who was killed with a BP .44 revolver.

So, why did you shoot him?

:blah:
William Alexander

 

[azmntman]

Had a murder here 10-15 hears ago using bp .44. Per reports the guy went down fast but didn't die right away, maybe 5-10 minutes alive. Like disabled but not DOA. Two homeless guys in the woods if I recall correctly.

 

[robinsroost]

Black powder pistols are certainly lethal. When I worked homicide, we had a murder, committed with a .50 cal flintlock. Seems that man and his bride were both into the rendezvous scene. She had placed a film of lube around the pan, under the frizen. She also placed a film of lube between the edges of her mold, filled it with water, and put it in the freezer. When she heard him pull up, out front, she charged the pistol with powder, filled the pan with 4F, and put the frozen ice ball into the barrel. Apparently the ball stuck to the powder charge. when he opened the door, she shot him through the heart. There was no exit wound, and of course, his body heat melted the projectile

 

[Zonie]

Sounds like she had been watching too many Alfred Hitchcock shows.

As I recall, the wife killed her husband by pounding on his head with a frozen leg of lamb.

She then cooked it and fed it to the police when they came to investigate the death. :rotf:

 

[smoothshooter]

For long-term loading, make sure chambers are clean and dry, (no oil), and load as normal without any wads or grease.
Be very careful with loaded and capped extra cylinders that may fire if dropped or bumped on a hard surface.For general use I think the safety risk outweighs any perceived advantages except maybe in certain controlled environments (CAS, etc.) With 5 or 6 full-powered .44 loads immediately available, in the gun, used properly, a speed reload shouldn't be necessary.

 

[MSW]

Deputy, that's got to be the strangest story I've heard in many years ... sort of thing MythBusters would do ...

why go to all that trouble?

Do I assume correctly that when the cops arrived she pretty much 'fessed up?

does kinda leave you scratching your head...

:hmm:

 

Paradork.
If you want a nice all around reliable BP revolver
that is reasonably easy to conceal, my suggestion would be the 1858 Remington with the 5.5" barrel.
3" shorter, even sitting high on the hip, under the coat is still easy to draw.
For most practical ranges is still quite accurate.
I clean my BP guns different than most everybody else. 35+ years now, still have my originals.
New or used. Completely strip the gun.
If while cocking and pulling trigger, noticed any roughness. Polish the innards.
Thoroughly clean the whole gun with rubbing alcohol. Re-assemble the innards. If you can get CVA grease patch (no longer made) or similar, completely fill the innards then install the trigger guard(do not oil the innards).
This prevents smoke residue from getting inside thus eliminates the need to clean inside everytime you shoot. For me it does not seem to affect trigger pull.
_________
remember story "The Demolished man"? he used Rock candy ifin a cartrifge gun I remember right to kill
Bore butter seems to be too thin and drippy in hot weather.
You could try wonder lube or such in the jar, or your own mix of Beeswax and tallow(lard). Mix so it stays soft. Like Vaseline.
Now cock hammer and fill bottom of slot. Plus a very fine film in the upper slot and face and sides of hammer. q-tip(etc) with alcohol will remove residue there after firing.
Lube the cylinder pin and hole same way. Although these will be thoroughly cleaned after firing.
I use the CVA grease on nipple threads too. No problems removing them once a year or 2 years.
Only reason they need to be removed is if they get damaged.
Clean the chambers but if reloading do not oil.
Reloading: I make paper cartridges they're quick and easy. Paper insulates powder from the metal.
If I expect the gun to be loaded several months, hot / cold or if I will be in inclement weather I use a small dab of CVA grease or my mix on nipples to seal moisture out.
I use primarily conical bullets these days that have lube grooves. Loaded properly no real reason to use overball lube.
I have several so I rotate shooting them. But they have been left loaded as long as a year and still go boom.
So go ahead and get one. Besides they are fun to shoot and a little less costly than modern ammo.
Another thing many every day oils will gum up over time. Use a synthetic or sewing machine oil.
3 in 1 will gum up over time making action stiff.
---------
Remember the story "The Demolished Man"?
If I remember right he used Rock Candy in a cartridge gun to kill a guy. It was set in the future where these types of weapons no longer existed. Had the cops scratching their heads.
Wondering what type of weapon had been used and where was the projectile, they assumed he had been sucking on the candy.

 

dang thing won't let me edit the post.
It got corrupted during writing it so part of "The Story" is mixed in with the subject of post.
Please read around the mixed part.

 

[paradork]

I guess this has turned into a BP as a protection thread. I have no doubts about its capabilities, just was wondering about having a cylinder I can put in it and go for a walk in the woods. If I manage not to shoot cause they sound like so much fun I can just wipe the gun down and not have to worry a lot about it. Its still one I'd have to keep a close eye on I understand. The thought of using a gun for protection makes me uneasy. I think I'd get a lot more use outa one of these than a pocket sized revolver. Thanks for the advice and input. Now I just gotta find one on sale.

 

[smoothshooter]

Just curious: why would using a gun for protection make you "uneasy"?