Range report, first time out (long)

[Kadmos]

Thought since you guys helped me get my stuff together I should at least let you know how my first time out went.

I'll admit I was a bit nervous, never having handled black powder before.

First up was the .45 Philly Derringer. 7 grains of black powder, capped it, pointed in the general direction of the target (no sights) 7 yards away and pulled the trigger...with a mighty flinch I am sure.

poomph.

???

No mighty explosion, no searing pain, no one running screaming in panic...just poomph.

Keeping it in the direction of the target I inserted the rod to try to make sure what was supposed to happen actually happened....sure enough the ball was gone.

I looked dead center of the target and sure enough the ball had not struck dead center, nor had it struck the target anywhere I could tell.

I assume it went downrange missing the target and not mysteriously sucked into another dimension.

So I reloaded...12 grains this time

Poomph.

At least this time it got capitalized. Sadly no mark showed up on the target.

Time for a different gun

The twister 36 caliber sitting on 10 grains of Bp loaded up both barrels. Shot both off, went off fine...and this time I swear the target got scared and moved out of the way....nothing....grrr

Reloaded it..same thing, worked fine, no hits

Time for another gun

50 cal CVA mountain pistol. 20 grains of BP capped it and raised what is the biggest handgun I have ever shot at the target, I am determined, I will not flinch, I pull the trigger and this time there is a fairly mighty POOMPH!!

Now we are talking! Wasn't a bad kick, just a good solid POOMPH.

And right there just a half inch to the right of where I was aiming was a nice hole in the paper.

A truly beautiful hole, a minute later it was a pair of holes barely an inch apart.

Ok now I'm grinning.

Cease fire was called, go down and marvel at the two holes I made out of 8 shots.

Actually feeling pretty good, the other two don't have sights, 7 yards is far for derringers, the excuses start popping into my head right nice.

Change the target, thinking of the waste of paper to do this for two holes, but lets start with a clean sheet.

And another gun

the 51 navy short barrel.

Loaded in one shot (yeah I'm still nervous).

Found an interesting problem, the ball wants to come up with the loading lever??

15 grains then a lubed wad (cabelas) then a .375 ball which takes a little force to get in and the ball wants to pop out?

any thoughts?

anyway, cap it, fire, and 4 inches high and to the right.

So I load 2 chambers, right next to each other, cap and both go fine, both go high and to the right by a couple inches, grouping nicely though.

I'm a lefty, might be me, might be the gun, might be the load.

Anyway lets do a full load and move up to 20 grains.

Here the troubles start, caps don't want to stay on, popped caps fall into the gun or jam it, balls move forward and stop the cylinder from turning, not every time, but too often.

On the plus side I'm really grouping well, probably better than I have with any pistol with perhaps the exception of a .22 I used to own years ago.

Load up again, yeah I'm having some problems but this is fun. Fresh target. More careful with my loading, push the balls down with a bit of dowel before capping. 6 shots, 1 stoppage and really shooting well.

Realize I have a bit of an audience at the range.

I hear "thats an old cap and ball, not really enough power to kill someone, loud though"

Can't help thinking a lot of men went to their graves from this model, but I don't say anything

Cease fire, and over the intercom I hear "sorry but there is a wait so we need to limit shooting to 1 hour, booth 17 (thats me) that was your last round"

Grrr.

Put up a fresh target for the next guy, pack up and head out”¦.already thinking of next time.





Cleaning them was a whole nother story, I’m usually very thorough and leave a heap of patches”¦with black powder I’m now thinking I should buy stock in a patch company just to get some of my money back.

Picked up new nipples at bass pro for the navy, an 11 fits very snugly, looks like I will need yet another tool for de-capping, oh and a loading stand for that revolver...either that or work on growing a third arm, and some sort of boxes for the patches, and a bigger range bag, or maybe a wagon...definitely need to work on the organizing and bring less guns, maybe one less derringer, maybe :surrender:

 

[mykeal]

How to shoot a derringer.

Find a large, (preferably red) at least two story barn. Pace off the long dimension and determine the halfway point. Standing at the halfway point, walk 10 paces directly away from the barn and turn around. Using both hands, carefully point (notice the lack of the word 'aim') the barrel at the side of the barn generally about head high. Squeeze the trigger until the round discharges.

If you're unable to find where the round strikes the side of the barn, go inside the barn and repeat the above.

Derringers were meant for disputes across poker tables. It's generally less than 3 feet across a poker table.

J. W. Booth, however, was able to do somewhat better.

1851 Navy - .375 is occasionally too small for some .36 revolvers. Unfortunately the more correct size, .380 is difficult to find. Did you get a good complete ring of lead when you loaded the balls? If not, you'll need to find some .380's. It's also possible the plunger has a sharp edge - you might dress that down a bit with a file. Sounds like it's grouping well so it's not you missing the bull. Colt's open tops have a reputation for shooting high out to 75 yards, so try a low hold.

Caps are a manure shoot. Try them all until you find some that fit.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

Sounds to me like you sure kept yourself busy for that magic hour!

Derringers I know nothing about, so I won't even go there, as mykeal covered the red barn idea!

As to the .36, if you had to use a dowel to push the balls down after the recoil from a shot, your balls are too small(sorry, but I just had to say it :rotf: ).

The .50 cal will eventually be able to handle 30-35 grains of 3Fg Goex, no problem, once you're ready for a real boom!

The fact that you're grouping is what matters. Now you need to concentrate on the sight picture and the point of aim, keeping as much the same as is possible each time you shoot. For the .50 with that 20 grain load at the distance you were shooting, I'd try to hold at 6 o'clock (bottom of the black bullseye) if it shot high the first time. Ditto for the .36 revolver, since that will shoot high out of the box! The .36 may even need to be held just below the bullseye, into the white rings a smidge to hit the 10-X ring.

If I were you I'd leave the derringer at home and concentrate on hitting with the two guns that put holes in the target for you the first time :wink: .

Congrats on getting hooked and welcome to the "Dark Side" :grin: :haha: .

Dave

 

[GBG]

Mykeal, now that the coffee is cleaned off my computer screen, may I suggest two additional steps to your execellent deringer instructions. Remove all livestock and close the barn doors before firing a shot from inside.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

Mykeal, now that the coffee is cleaned off my computer screen, may I suggest two additional steps to your execellent deringer instructions. Remove all livestock and close the barn doors before firing a shot from inside.

:shocked2: I love the "close the barn doors line!" I laughed so hard with your two posts, I almost cra$$ed myself! :rotf: :surrender: :bow:

Dave

 

[Kadmos]

The barn thing had me rolling, glad to hear it wasn't just me. I think though I will bring that derringer with me every time and take at least one shot until I hit paper once or run out of ammo for it...lord knows which will happen first

I may have to change my tactic though...perhaps if I yell "Sic semper tyrannis" I'll have better luck :hmm:

 

[Leatherbark]

Make sure you locate the "Broad side of the barn" to shoot at!

 

[Don]

Welcome to the often frustrating world of black powder shooting. As far as the Derringer goes, don't give up. Bump your powder charge up to 20 grains,don't worry its safe, and take a few steps closer to the target and maybe get one of those bad guy size targets.You will find that that little Derringer can hit targets smaller than a barn but as mentioned by others it is a close range tool.

As with the Derringer you can put more powder into the Twister. I think 15 grains is well within the safety margin. It too is an up close and personal weapon so 10 feet max should be your range with the same bad guy target. You'll get more that a wimpy pooph out of it too.

The mountain pistol can easily shoot 30 grains of powder. A range of 10 yards is good until you figure out where its hittting and you have a chance to adjust your sights. Then you can increas your range to 15 to 20 yards and still hit the target.

51 Navy- .380 balls can be gotten through Dixie Gunworks. Some revolvers ingest different size balls thats just one of the many quirks of cap and ball revolvers. Follow the same procedure as the Mountain for improving accuracy.

The smaller pistols tend to be more frustrating because they arn't built as serious shooting reproductions but as novelties and conversation pieces. That doesn't mean that tinkering with them will be completly unproductive. Keep at it and you'll end up more gratified and less frustrated.

Don

 

[GBG]

Don, humor aside I agree and like Derringers, wouldn't be without one or two. Saw Bob Munden make some amazing shots with a 2"-3" barrel cartridge version on video. I'll bet he would do well with a RB and loose powder too, just wish he could give me some "pointers".

 

[mykeal]

Mykeal, now that the coffee is cleaned off my computer screen, may I suggest two additional steps to your execellent deringer instructions. Remove all livestock and close the barn doors before firing a shot from inside.

Good points. Gotta move the livestock to the next county, even if you stay inside with the door closed. With my luck the ball would find a knothole someplace and Bessie would be one PO'd cow. She wasn't real thrilled with the bass fiddle thing, either - I think she took exception to being mistaken for a bull, but then my city-raised cousin was never too smart. He took my comments about his shooting ability literally and tried to prove me wrong. Should have known better. Bessie made short work of the fiddle and then learned Tom a few things about how fast a cow can move in a short footrace.

 

[GBG]

Mykeal, IIRC 20 odd years ago two would be armed robbers burst into a Birmingham, Al barber shop. The elderly barber drew his 22LR Derringer, aimed and ordered them out. Ignoring the tiny double barrel they stood their ground repeating their threats. The old man's first shot glanced off the side of Thug#1's forhead and entered Thug#2's temple dropping him. Stunned and unable to return fire, Thug#1 then received a frontal brain shot with equal results. A long investigation ruled the barber acted in self defense. I think Unpredictability (with some shooters at least) helped the little gun be a big deterrent back then and today.

 

[torn moc]

is that known as a Banked shot?? :rotf:

 

[BullRunBear]

Great range repport. My first black powder experience was with a papperbox built from a kit. With that first shot I didn't know if I was firing a gun or pulling the pin on a hand grenade. I have no idea where that ball went but I like your interdimensional theory. (I have since graduated to a black hole that pops up just in front of the target now and then. It couldn't possibly be me!) :shake:

Consider getting 100% cotton cloth from a fabric store, wash it, and cut your own patches. It's a lot cheaper.I'm a bit compulsive about cleaning my guns and go through a LOT of patches.

Jeff

 

[Blizzard of '93]

welcome to a fascinating type of BP gun shooting.
you might try buying a jug of windsheild wiper fluid - get the winter mix for more alky - and pour into a spray bottle to douse your pistols with, let soak then repeat it will wash off lots of fouling. I use a small paint brush to scrub with useing more fluid. spray the bore very well then brush, rinse with hot water dry than patch and lube.
make absolutely sure your caps are the correct size for the revolver nipples.
a .38spcl caseing full of 3F is a good 'target' powder measure for any .44 bp revolver.

 

[Kadmos]

Thanks for all the advice, sadly the range I go to has its closest target at 7 yards, so we'll just have to see if I can make it.

It was a ton of fun and I really can't wait to go back.