Ring lead, but the ball moves forward

[Homesteader]

This happens to me from time to time, and I'm not sure of the solution. I use mostly .44's, and generally load with .454 round balls. Always have a lead ring. Occasionally I notice that one or two balls in a cylinder will have crept forward, sometimes even before firing. Once I tried .457's, and all that seemed to do was make loading tougher. The one or two balls still crept forward..

Is it something I'm doing wrong? Is it just bad machining on the cylinders? Is there anything I can do to stop it, and is it dangerous if I don't?

As always, thanks for any input.

 

[Blizzard of '93]

could well be 'bad machining' possible due to a worn reamer used in the chambers.
you would have to find a machinist with i.d. gauges to mike the chambers to check for a 'taper'. that's my suspicion.
clue us in on make and model?
may be wise not to shoot it until remedied.

 

[Homesteader]

Thanks for the interest. It's a Pietta .44 percussion, made to look like a '73 Colt model P "Peacemaker". Only two of the six have the "creep" problem, but they seem to have it no matter what. .451, .454, or .457 round ball. Seems pretty odd to me.

 

[Zonie]

It will be interesting to see what the others say about my comments but I suggest that you visually inspect your cylinders chambers to see if there is anything different at the mouth of them with the two that have the problem.

I suspect that two of the chambers may have a very smooth finish. The balls in chambers that are very smooth don't have anything to "grab" onto.
A slightly rough chamber would give the lead something to "swage" into as they are rammed down on the powder charge.

 

[Homesteader]

Zonie, that makes a whole lotta sense to me. So what would the solution be? Could I rough 'em up a bit, perhaps with a dremel or sand paper? Any other way you can think of that would let the round balls grip a bit tighter in those holes?

 

[mykeal]

With respect, I disagree with Zonie about smooth/rough chamber walls being the cause. I rather think the tapered chamber is the more likely. Two chambers either have slightly smaller openings than the others or slightly wider throats than the others. This should be easy enough to verify and then remedy.

If it were my gun I would not shoot it again until the problem was corrected. An unseated ball is a dangerous condition.

 

[Poor Private]

I have a few questions. If he gets a ring doesn't that mean the mouth is the "right" size? How can the chamber get bigger than the opening? If it makes a ring going in, then how would the inside get bigger than the mouth, causing the ball to move forward?
I guess I may be confused also?

 

[renovato]

I also suspect worn reamers when they made the cylinder. On the positive side, most black powder revolvers have chambers that are a bit too small for the bore. Having them reamed to bore size increases accuracy and decreases leading. If you end up needing chamber honing done, you might consider getting them all matched to the bore and kill two birds with one stone.

 

[mykeal]

I can think of two ways to 'balloon' the chamber walls wider than the opening: improper honing with a tool shorter than the chamber depth - spending more time inside the chamber than at the opening, and cocking the reamer with respect to the chamber axis (although that normally produces an obvious oval at the chamber mouth). Just a theory, not that I've ever done either.

 

[Blizzard of '93]

some board/forum member that offered a chamber reaming service and forceing cone cutting could likely do well here with members problems as this one. :hmm:

 

[TANSTAAFL]

Thanks for the interest. It's a Pietta .44 percussion, made to look like a '73 Colt model P "Peacemaker". Only two of the six have the "creep" problem, but they seem to have it no matter what. .451, .454, or .457 round ball. Seems pretty odd to me.

Not sure when or where you purchased the Pietta, but if applicable, would return for replacement.

Another and cheap way if it will work in that particular model is to buy a cylinder from Cabela's, as they are less than 40 bucks last time I checked. (still are)
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/..._requestid=115566&Ntx=mode+matchall&N=0&Nty=1

When I got my Pietta .44 Remington from Cabela's, I also bought two interchangeable spare cylinders and could not be more pleased with them.

I am still rather amazed at the quality of the Pietta for such a low price and accuracy of the target model I have is absolutely outstanding.



Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups

 

[pondoro]

Remove the nipples, lever a ball into the suspect chamber until it is at the "equator" of the ball. Push it back out and measure the diameter. Be very careful, the micrometer is hard and will cut into the lead if you really crank on it. Now push a ball in to the "North Pole", push it out and measure it, to see if the chamber is tapered. Try the same thing with a few chambers.

 

[mykeal]

Remove the nipples, lever a ball into the suspect chamber until it is at the "equator" of the ball. Push it back out and measure the diameter. Be very careful, the micrometer is hard and will cut into the lead if you really crank on it. Now push a ball in to the "North Pole", push it out and measure it, to see if the chamber is tapered. Try the same thing with a few chambers.

That will work just fine if the chamber is tapered, but not if it's 'ballooned'. And his chambers are likely ballooned - the ball is loose after being swaged by the opening.

 

[Poor Private]

Just go out and buy a new cylinder for the pistol. Easiest way for all of us to stop argueing about it. The cylinder will come with new nipples also.

 

That's the best, the cheapest, and most sensible solution to the problem.

But, the human mind always asks: "what happened?"

I read in numerous ML books that a bullet, not seated firmly onto the powder/wad can bulge your barrel. Why not a chamber, too?

 

[Kelhammer]

I have not seen the model of gun in question, but my 1851 navy by CVA has abount a .015 chamfer on each chamber. If your's is simmilar there could be a burr at the bottom of this .015 chamfer. That would also cut the ball undersize for the chamber, allowing it to creep forward.