Studemeier 38g travelling pistol pair - shooting thereof.

[TFoley]

A friend of mine, who is the curator of a large historic collection of arms and armour, has suddenly acquired a desprit need to trial shoot a pair of Studemeier flintlock travelling pistols in 38g.

They are smooth-bores, and are in very fine shooting condition.

38g = .497", and of course we have the excellent Jeff Tanner locally to make a suitable mould in very short order. How much smaller do we need to be to ensure at least some degree of accuracy, bearing in mind they were intended for defensive shooting across the width of a stage-coach? Do we need to use a patch, or.........................?

I'm asking here for load recommendations for his fine old pistols - specifically from any of you who already shoot a similar handgun. DGW and Lyman documentation both suggest loads starting at around 35gr of FFg.

What is the current wisdom here, please?

TIA

 

[dave_person]

Hi,
Are they pistols by Staudenmayer of London? Are they rifled? I suspect they are smooth bores but Staudenmayer was known for his rifled guns. When I shoot smooth bore and rifled pistols I've built, I typically use faster burning 3F powder. I also like a thick patch (0.018-0.020") so with your caliber, I likely would start with a 0.490" ball if rifled or perhaps a 0.470" ball if smooth bored. I would also start with 20gr of powder and work upward. If smooth bored, I would also experiment with a thin over powder wad but may end up not using it if it does not significantly improve performance.

dave

 

[TFoley]

Yes, they are by Studemeier/Staudenmayer of London and have been in the collection since they were bought new by the Earl of L*********. Many thanks for your words of wisement - I'm hoping to get asked along to see this all happen, as and when they have the correct ball, and yes, they are smooth- there being no need to go to the expense of rifle in pistol intended for self-defence. I recall seeing an odd-looking flintlock rifle by this gentleman - it had a kind of saw-handled stock and looked MOST peculiar.

 

[Zonie]

Being a smooth bore pistol I would use a 490 diameter lead ball and a .010 thick cotton patch. The 20 grains of powder mentioned by Dave sounds about right using either 2Fg or 3Fg powder.

In addition to centering the ball in the bore, the .010 thick patch's main job is to hold the ball firmly against the powder charge and using a thin patch like this would make loading the gun easier while still doing its job.

I wouldn't expect to see a lot of accuracy on a pistol that was made for shooting across a card table or stage coach but at 20 feet it should do rather well.

 

[TFoley]

Thank you all for your very useful tints and hips. I'm hoping to get an invite in the shooting, and will, if I do, be making a Youtube movie of the event!!! You'll like the house and backyard - that's all I can say at the moment