• This community needs YOUR help today. We rely 100% on Supporting Memberships to fund our efforts. With the ever increasing fees of everything, we need help. We need more Supporting Members, today. Please invest back into this community. I will ship a few decals too in addition to all the account perks you get.



    Sign up here: https://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/account/upgrades

Paper cartridge making kits

Muzzleloading Forum

Help Support Muzzleloading Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Joined
Dec 26, 2021
Messages
483
Reaction score
759
I am giving some thought to making paper cartridges for my1851 Navy using the Eras Gone .36 Colt Paper Cartridge Works bullet.
Guns of the West or Cap and Ball seem to be the only ones available.
Information, advice, and comments please
Yr' Obt' Svt'
James Lewis (Bunk) Stagner
 
I just ordered the guns of the west 44 kit last night. it seems very complete to get going.
 
My biggest gripe with any of the paper cartridge kits in .36 ( I've tried them all)is the limited powder capacity. The cone shaped finished cartridge , because of the taper, only allows maybe 16 grs if you intend to attach a heel bullet, and even that is a bit of a squeeze. That is why I finally started making a straight sided tube of paper on a pin gauge that allows me to increase the powder charge. I don't attach a bullet as I can use whatever projectile I want that day. Yes, that requires two steps for loading but it goes very quickly. This procedure has been described in detail several times, on another site, by a gentleman called The Outlaw Kid so I want to give credit where it is due.
 
I’ve rolled cigarette paper around dowels and glued a circle of paper on the end by pudding it through a pice of tubing just bigger than the dowel for a long time. Works great! Makes a pre charged cartridge then just slap in a ball or bullet.
 
My biggest gripe with any of the paper cartridge kits in .36 ( I've tried them all)is the limited powder capacity. The cone shaped finished cartridge , because of the taper, only allows maybe 16 grs if you intend to attach a heel bullet, and even that is a bit of a squeeze. That is why I finally started making a straight sided tube of paper on a pin gauge that allows me to increase the powder charge. I don't attach a bullet as I can use whatever projectile I want that day. Yes, that requires two steps for loading but it goes very quickly. This procedure has been described in detail several times, on another site, by a gentleman called The Outlaw Kid so I want to give credit where it is due.
According to the information I have the Colt Paper Cartridge Works made a cartridge with 17 grains of FFFg powder and a 125 grain bullet,
I have shot this load in my 1851 and it is not a wimpy load.
Not a bear load but sufficient for targets and fighting during the 1861 - 1865 civil disagreement.
Respectfully
Bunk
 
Bunk, the slight difference between 16 and 17 grs can be accounted for by the brand of powder. For instance, to get the same volume of powder in the cartridge requires 16grs of 3F Swiss or 17 grs of 3f Olde Enysford. Either way, that amount of powder left very little room at the top of the paper to attach a heel bullet and I was not comfortable going lower than that because I occasionally use the Navies at Cowboy matches where knock down targets are included. With the light round ball weight in the 36 I didn't want to take chances on the knock downs. After all, Bill Hickok is watching those Navies go to work!!
 
Bunk, the slight difference between 16 and 17 grs can be accounted for by the brand of powder. For instance, to get the same volume of powder in the cartridge requires 16grs of 3F Swiss or 17 grs of 3f Olde Enysford. Either way, that amount of powder left very little room at the top of the paper to attach a heel bullet and I was not comfortable going lower than that because I occasionally use the Navies at Cowboy matches where knock down targets are included. With the light round ball weight in the 36 I didn't want to take chances on the knock downs. After all, Bill Hickok is watching those Navies go to work!!
With Gunpowder I do every thing by volume . With that smokessomewhatless stiff I use the recommended weight.
 
I got that Guns of the West kit the other day and rolled about 15 rounds. At the range, I'd say maybe half were hang fires making accuracy very challenging. I kind of suspected that would happen. Maybe there's a certain hack you use in the process to prevent that.
 
I just ordered a 44 kit on Christmas, I found out the papers are $7 for 6 50 paper packs, and a 5/8 hole punch is $10. Now I can make all the circles I want.
Ive seen all the kits, and aluminum one I almost went for, but I watch all the dudes videos so I sent him the order.
 
Back
Top