R,b size

[preston cook]

What size round ball would you use in a 16gusagesmooth bore?

 

[deerstalkert]

.660
i think to late to go measure and my brain is shutting down for the night.

gauge	pounds	mm	inches
1 Pound / gauge = weight of lead sphere	Diameter of bore is then measured
0.25	4	67.34	2.651
0.5	2	53.45	2.103
0.75	1+1/3	46.70	1.838
1	1	42.42	1.669
1.5	2/3	37.05	1.459
2	1/2	33.67	1.326
3	1/3	29.41	1.158
4	1/4	26.72	1.052
5	1/5	24.80	0.976
6	1/6	23.35	0.919
6.278	1/6.278	23.00	0.906
7	1/7	22.18	0.873
8	1/8	21.21	0.835
9	1/9	20.39	0.803
10	1/10	19.69	0.775
11	1/11	19.07	0.751
12	1/12	18.53	0.729
13	1/13	18.04	0.710
14	1/14	17.60	0.693
15	1/15	17.21	0.677
16	1/16	16.83	0.663
17	1/17	16.50	0.650
18	1/18	16.19	0.637
19	1/19	15.90	0.626
20	1/20	15.63	0.615
21	1/21	15.37	0.605
22	1/22	15.13	0.596
23	1/23	14.91	0.587
24	1/24	14.70	0.579
25	1/25	14.50	0.571
26	1/26	14.31	0.564
27	1/27	14.12	0.556
28	1/28	13.97	0.550
29	1/29	13.79	0.543
30	1/30	13.64	0.537
31	1/31	13.49	0.531
32	1/32	13.36	0.526
33	1/33	13.20	0.520
34	1/34	13.08	0.515
35	1/35	12.95	0.510
36	1/36	12.85	0.506

 

[Grenadier1758]

Since there is a tolerance range associated with the diameter of smoothbores, one could go by the table posted by @deerstalkert that shows the 16 gauge diameter to be 0.663. Since I lean toward a patched ball in a smoothbore that is easy to load, I would select a 0,650" or 0.648" diameter ball and a 0.020" to 0.017" patch. The 0.660 ball is nearly bore sized and should be loaded over a wad or card, no patching, and an overshot card to hold the pall in place. It is always best to measure the bore of your firearm to determine a starting diameter for the ball. It's good to know that for the time when preparing to load for shot, so the correct gauge components can be ordered. Fairly accurate digital calipers can be found for less than $30.

 

[preston cook]

Thank you for the help