Great video. Especially like the trick of using the dowel to determine the amount of powder required. I buy my 45 Colt pre-lubed bullets from Missouri Bullet Company. They make pre-lubed cast lead bullets for smokeless powder and also black powder bullets that use a special lube just for black powder.
I am reloading for .45APC BP for shaved Mk,I and Mk,II webleys. This video was Excellent for helping me to improve my loads, I now know that why my hand-loaded cast and sized bullets are better than the pre-cast pre lubed .454" Mk.II webley 265grn HB bullets I buy, the bought bullets have a triple lube groove that are very shallow and have red carnuba wax, my hand-loads have double lube groove but deeper and are beeswax, and now I know that to get the load I want I need a new bullet mold. was a little hesitant to go searching for big lube dick dastardly so thanks for the links, LOL Thank you for all of your informative videos, my requests for new videos, Black powder loading for . 455/.476 Webleys /Enfields and .44 Bulldogs, 2 most common big bore antiques for reloading in Canada right now, excluding the cowboy guns.
Back when I was shooting Black Powder I always did the Cap & Ball thing, with a Walker replica and a Navy. Never even imagined a black powder cartridge revolver. Excellent video Mike Thanks.
I like the wonder wads. Its like shooting a brillo pad thru the barrel. Nearly eliminates barrel leading. I cant believe some people shoot with out them!
FYI the cheapest I’ve heard of would be 50/50 by weight of paraffin wax (gulf wax) and 1 pound of Vaseline (petroleum jelly). It’s not perfect but it works, it’s cheap and it’s available almost any department stores. Another plus is it won’t decompose or go rancid like tallow (could).
Very informative. I learned why my 44/40 rifle BP loads don't group after 10-15 shot. I use SPG lube but the lube grooves on the Lee bullet I shot are way to small. I now Have an NOE mould with a wide deep groove for BP.
with cap and ball, each shot leaves a thin circular rim of lube at the edge of the barrel crown, which for me is perfect. I am able to shoot as long as I want without cleaning - any amount, so long as I am using good black powder (Old Eynsford in my case - no longer avail., I assume Swiss is the same). I imagine cartridge black powder shooting with Big Lube bullets would be similar. I can't shoot Pyrodex without a lot of cleaning no matter the lube.
I was buying 410 shotgun paper cards on top of 25gr FFF with a wonder wad to keep the lub seperated from the powder with various degrees of success. A thin layer of corn meal helps between the powder with the card on top. I tried a 451 round ball on top of 25gr of FFF without flaring the case. The ball seats below the mouth and you just put bp lube in the mouth of the case but accuracy was just ok.
Lol i found the beeswax/olive oil mix by accident about 4 years ago lol I wont use a wonder wad with out a leather wad under it anymore. They contaminate powder in my experience if not used fairly quickly, sad to say.
Reloading is easy to start - just go slow and pay attention The most important thing is to develop habits and organization that will prevent errors like double loading Good organization is when things are organized so errors can't happen - there are many individual ways that work. It is important imo not to start with a progressive press, you might get so frustrated you quit the hobby. Most people don't need the extreme volume they provide anyway - better to learn how to make a quality reload, then move on to progressive presses if you really need volume and can put up with the finicky adjusting.
Excellent tutorial, like you I stumbled around loading BP cartridges in the 1960's, and it was very much a trial and error thing, but that is what made it so interesting to me, the only worry I have with the Big Lube 45s is that the base is very weak, and I wonder if anyone has recovered a fired bullet to see if the base has collapsed, I would think that DD would have done that, but there is no information available. Chris B.
Hey Mike...thanks for the video. I just use smokeless bullets and put the BP lube at the end of the cylinder like the cap and ball method...works great!
I have an Astra American Pioneer Single Action that I bought several decades ago, before I ever heard of the Uberti. Internally, it is not much different than the 1851, 1860 & 1861 black powder Colts; which means it is easy to take apart to clean. I made some black powder loads for that gun, and had a lot of fun. I do not think that I would use black powder loads in a Ruger Blackhawk because they are more complicated, and therefore not as easy to clean.
I hope you find this video helpful? Mike, this is the most informative, easily understood video that I have ever seen on the subject. Thank you so much for making it. You have just helped me immensely.
What a fantastic video, Mike! I've been loading a lot of .45 Colt lately, so this is timely advice. I can see I need to get rid of my Lee mold and get a big lube mold. Also, I was not aware that Swiss didn't like compression, so that's new. Thank you. I'm really looking forward to seeing the .45 reloading video next time.
Great video Mike! I agree %100, shooting black powder cartridge is WAY more fun than shooting smokeless ammo in old guns. I’ve never tried a “Big lube” bullet but they look good. I melt the smokeless lube off and pan lube the bullets with homemade BP lube and they work really well. I put 50 rounds of BP 45 Colt through my converted dragoon without any trouble and it was still going strong.
I love this video so much, tons of helpful information in one video! Have you ever tried Acme bullets? They say their lube is compatible with black powder. Do you have an opinion on that?
I shoot CAS (COWBOY ACTION SHOOTING FROINTEER CARTRIDGE CLASS (black powder) and I shoot with guys that their load is a soft lead round ball and 2f powder and filler ( cream of wheat) loaded in a 45 colt case and before they load their pistols they dip the end of the cartridge ( the end of the ball protruding out of the case) in MOBIL RED SYNTHETIC BEARING GREASE bought at AUTO ZONE with no fouling problems
I loaded up some .45 colt with 6 grains of WIN231 for the 1858 conversion cylinder. Near every shot shakes loose the loading ram from its latch and drops down. Sent it back to Traditions and it still does it... Embarrassing. I chronied a few and they had an average vel of only 606..
Great tutorial, Mike! Like you, I learned bp cartridge loading by trial and error. Way back....when none of this information was readily available as it is today. Went down the same rabbit hole with grease cookies, etc., too. I also load my cartridges using the same method you use, to determine powder charge and compression. Very consistent and makes good loads, once a person gets the hang of it. Looking forward to the next reloading segment.
Got the 45 but big lube is no longer in business! Is there a way I can contact you directly for a casting from your mav dutchman mold. There are shops that will make the mold but they need the casting or spec sheet.
I’m shooting targets so I don’t need a lot of power, my thought is to go with 2 wads in my 45 and about 21gr of BP, the wads will be a non lube followed by a lubed followed by reg bullet. So I can get a lube without getting it in the gun powder.
Mike, can you show us how you clean the brass to get it shiny again after BP shooting? I’m not sure it’s possible if you leave them out too long. I think maybe hot water and a jar right away would help. But my brass is a bit dark but seems to still work as well.
Do you ever load round ball? I have lots of .454 round ball, and am lazy and don't want to cast 45 LC bullets. I tried some quick and dirty round ball loads with Pyrodex (filled the cases to the top with Pyrodex, round ball over that, whatever compression that gave me, Alox lube on the ball). I didn't have any fouling problems, but it was horrifically inaccurate. Not even hitting the paper at seven yards. Shot some smokeless cowboy loads right after and the gun shot fine, so the issue was my ammunition for sure. I've heard of cowboy action shooters loading round ball 45 LC, I'm just not sure the correct way to do it. I assume a grease cookie or wonder wad under the ball, with real BP lube (and real BP, not that I can find it for sale anywhere), but that's still a lot of powder for a very light projectile, and that seems bad for accuracy, unless my smokeless powder mind is confused.
have you ever heard of desperado bullets. I have used there bullets and the lube they use works with both blackpowder and smokeless. So far, I have not had a problem
Great video Mike. Are there any reloading manuals or books that are a good resource for black powder cartridge reloading? I would like to start reloading 45 colt and 45-70.
One of the best mentalities I've heard is to that of seasoned cast iron pan. Needles to say, my cast iron pans are wipe easy to clean and don't stick when cooking. This is what you should be experiencing when shooting black powder.
I use olive oil and beeswax, it works well but you need to adjust the beeswax content to your climate. In my climate I can use 1/3 beeswax (the most expensive ingredient). I can even mix it so I can lube with a syringe (1/4-1/5 mix). Further south that would melt and make a mess. I live in Maine. In cold weather a 50/50 mix works but can be pretty stiff.
Good video Mike, and I have a question in regards to the manufacture of Goex powder, which I understand will be discontinued. After using this product for 40+ years it was very disconcerting to hear this, and will we have to rely on imported propellant's.
I do similar. Would never change. Do remove primers. No need for the expensive machines unless for 100s of cases. I have a Chinese tumbler, half the size, for UK 50 pounds on ebay. Solid, timer, spare belts, lasted well these past years. Correct here, must use lemon juice or citric acid. Good luck. Peter.
Hi Mike! Just noticed this older video. Curiously, the Snakebite boolit you show seems NOT to match the original design. Maybe Snakebite revised it or maybe Dick Dastardly did so. I have a supply of mine cast in unsized form down in the shop, If you wish, I can ship at my expense a good sample of them to you for examination and compare/contrast. I might even tell Ya my modern era name. prs AKA Rooster
Mike, do you know where we can get the PRS or Mav Dutchman bullets these days? I went on the Dick Dastardly site and tried the number but it looks not operational anymore! Congrats by the way on your recent positive developments!
Mike Very helpful video. I just bought a bunch of 38 short colt shells. I have a Taylors conversation cylinde with an unlined barrel. Taylors recommends to shoot cowboy ammo or 38 special HBWC so it flairs to catch the rifling. How does these .357 diameter bullets catch the rifling for accuracy?
I use wonderwads in my 36 and 44 cal BP revolvers, I ran the ball home with my powder charge topped off with the wonderland, am I gonna have lube problems with my powder? you said in loading 45 cal bullets you could have problems when you squizzy lube into the poeder?
Wonder wads hold their lube pretty well. You can’t really compress them enough with a C&B loading lever to contaminate the powder. Grease cookies are a different story.
I have only loaded for smokeless cartridges and cap & ball before. This was quite instructive and useful, as I have revolvers amenable to such cartridges. I've used Colt Navy and Ruger Old Army since the late 1970s and detail strip them for cleaning after every outing. Has this been necessary? I've witnessed the horror of oxidation that black powder sets into motion. Ivory soap and hot water have prevented it from reducing the revolvers I now have. I'd like to hear how much fouling gets into the action of, say, a Smith & Wesson Model 10 with black powder. That is a set of machinery that I'm disinclined to break down on a regular basis.
Question if I may. Can a small pistol magnum primer be used when loading black powder with a lubed wad under the bullet in a 38 Special. I have thousands of mag primers, but very few standard primers left. Can’t find standard primers anywhere. Will a mag primer cause unsafe pressure spikes when loading black powder to your specifications as shown in the video?
Hi Mike. I am a big fan of your work, I am also an avid black powder shooter and love shooting and cleaning my c&b revolvers. I have never produced a video however I am interested in doing some. I was wondering if you had any advice. Also would you be interested in setting up a c&b shootout virtual with contributing video. From others who can shoot and provide video. I would be interested in giving it a try. Also I have been trying to get out and shoot but it has been 15 below in Vermont this week.
I hear you. It is cold here too. As far as making videos goes...just do it...best way to learn. My early stuff is awful, but I got better with experience. So will you. Do videos on subjects that interest you. If they interest you, there will be others who are interested too.
I like your videos a lot and hope you keep making them for decades to come. I have a question. Is it possible to use an outside lubed bullet, (beeswax and tallow) as you use on your heel-based bullets on regular smokeless bullets instead of a wonder wad?
you only need a little bit of lube for preventing leading in smokeless loads, but i suspect a bp style lube would do the job just as good, just put it on the lube groove
Yes, but the lube groove doesn't hold enough lube to keep the fouling soft. But, if you clean the bore after each cylinder-full, you can get away with it.
That was pretty much what I wanted to ask, thanks. I have a bunch of healed externally lubed slugs that I wanted to repurpose to a different cartridge. With my Gasser I had wonderful success with the wonderwads, but with my next purchase the space left in the case is not going to allow too much extra. Trying to make 450 boxers.
@@HircineDaWolf I read it as a question about black powder, he is asking if he can lube a black powder outside lube bullet in the same manner as he sees done with heel based smokeless bullets.
NOE Bullet molds, makes a couple of molds that work great for black powder, they have the extra wide Bullet grove to hold a lot of SPG lube, one for the 45 colt is , 454-241rnfp, with hp pins if needed, drops out of mold at .456 before sizing, also 432-216 rnfp for .44 cal, i use it for 44spl, 44-40, or mag , 5 cavity’s, will yield a bunch of Bullets quick,
Great video, thanks. Just now getting started, bought a Lee Loader kit and am attempting to create cartridges for my Webley MK VI. Another channel did a video for using .45 Auto Rim with Pyrodex as the propellent, and semi wad cutters as the bullet. Any comments you'd like to share on that combination would be greatly appreciated. I've watched about a half dozen of your videos, and enjoyed them enough to subscribe and rang the bell for all notifications. This is very fascinating. I'm retired, be 72 in August and need a hobby to keep the grey matter stimulated. I inherited my WEBLEY from my father in law when he passed away a few years back. It had been modified to accept .45 ACP with the moon clips. I don't dare use those, but I really want to use this old pistol. I love these old things, and figured it would be less expensive than a Model T! Thanks again...
I’m new to black powder but I do have handloading experience. Problem is I cannot find molds for the “Biglube” bullets you describe. The link you provided is to a company that is sadly no longer in business. Do you have a current source for Biglube bullet molds?
Like the video! Working on a 9.4 Dutch pistol - just took .400 bullets down to .380 on the lath - guess I'll think about cutting in a bigger lube ring! Is a drop tube silly on a pistol case?? Do you take any precautions for static issues on the bench??
In the 19th century, what did they do about lube/black powder fouling? they didn't have big lube bullet designs, so did they just have to clean their bores after 6 shots? I know that paper cartridges often had the bullets dipped in lube, but what about metallic cartridges like the .44 WCF or .45 Colt in black powder?
Jeff I was going to ask the same question. The black powder cartridge era did not last that long, perhaps they never got a solution as effective as Big Lube bullets - or maybe they did. I would be interesting to find out. They had solutions for everything else and had some practices that are better in my opinion than today's, eg I am convinced they had no need or desire to wash their guns with soap and hot water after every time they shot. They were practical and knew running a patch or two with liberal use of grease everywhere worked fine. It does work fine. I have gone nearly a year without soap and hot water, so long as a use the gun weekly and grease well, no sign of corrosion or pitting etc. With only black powder - I would never try that with black powder substitutes - especially Pyrodex. If I tried that with Pyrodex it would not be long before I had a ruined gun.
There are a couple of very good vintage design bullet molds that hold a decent amount of lube. The fact is, they didn’t expect protracted gun battles with revolvers. Most B-P rifle bullets hold a lot of lube, but I think bullet designer expected just one cylinder full of handgun ammo would be expended in any given fight.If you were fighting at handgun range, the fighting was about to be over.
Excellent video Mike, absolutely more on black powder and the top breaks. You’re beginning to ruin me and bankrupt me with every program, and I love every minute of it. Thanks my friend, 👍👍👍
Mike, do you have any experience with synthetic powders loading cartridges like .45 Colt? With the shortages of real BP, how about some info on powders like 777 or Pyrodex as a substitute for real BP. btw I am saving my real BP stash for flintlocks. Thanks.
Most informative. You have just about talked me out of using black powder unless I can find bullets close to diameter .380" for my revolver. One possibility is finding .375 colt navy bullets and powder coat them to increase the diameter. I do not plan to buy an expensive custom mold. I have sized down 41 colt bullets in the past since I have a mold for that. My only reason to use black power is concerns with pressure. i know full loads of cartridge black powder will be safe. For smokeless one is guessing on what is safe. The Dutch did load some of their revolver rounds with smokeless, but I only it was done, but can only guess how much unique or similar powder one should use.
I've seen people cap off the chambers of their black powder revolvers with lube when shooting. It seems like this could be a middle ground that allows shooting smokeless pre-lubed bullets with less fouling. Let me know if yall have tried this.
Although slightly off topic, I have been reloading 12ga brass shotgun cases with bp loads for years. I don't have a bp only shotgun, I have an Eastern Arms and Stevens single shot that I use these in. I find it handy to make my own bp loads for specific conditions and for survival situations. I have made my own primer punch and setter as well as modifying the primer pocket on the brass cases to accept No.9 primers. I keep a powder measure, wadding and cards, a small bottle of powder and small bottles of different size shot( 7 1/2, 4, BB and 00 buck as well as round balls, and the tools needed to reprime and load the shells in a possibles bag in my pack so I can change loads in the field as needed along with a few commercial loads. This system is not only a practical and economical solution to ammo procurement, it is also a fun change to just loading and firing premade shells. BP does require some maintenance cleaning in the field to keep the shells from sticking in the chamber and make regular cleaning easier later on. I also have a chamber adapter that essentially turns a single shot into a muzzle loader and uses No.9 primers for ignition.
If you were just using greased wads/wonderwads underneath the bullet, wouldn't you want to use some sort of card underneath all that to prevent the wad from squishing/gunking up or potentially melting into the powder?
Hello Mike, quick question, just bought a Taylor's conv. cyl. for a Pietta Rem 58 . after watching a few of your videos. When installed the sharp nose on the hammer rest on the backplate above the firing pin. Is it a problem to round that off a bit just enough for clearance?
Mike I just wanted to say thank you so much. I started watching your video😢about 9 years ago when I got my first pietta and am just now getting into bp carriage shooting and am loving getting to learn from you!
Good video. Was curious about the math though. this was probably asked and answered before - the powder weighed 22.4 grs and you rounded up to 25 grs. why so much of a jump?
This brought back memories of when i started loading black powder shotshells after watching your video on it. i loaded 50 rounds with unlubed fiber wads, SIlly me. After shooting them through my coach gun i was scrubbing wad chaffe and powder fouling out of 2 barrels for what seemed like forever. For the new guys, give lube the respect it deserves. I go 50/50 beeswax and crisco.
Awesome information Mike. I've beem considering this very press for 357 mag for all my cowboy guns. Still hoping ammo prices come down because it seems supplies are scarce and expensive too. Before the pandemic I held off getting into reloading because it would have only saved .10 cents a round, and not worth the investment and time then. But, we'll see, time will tell.
Now I suppose I'm going to have to transfer that information to my 357 and 38 cartridges, although I do have a book I can use of which I know that I will be using that book but this information has given me the basics. Thank you so much for the tutorial. Have a great day and stay safe and keep your powder dry!
Do you know if Big Lube LLC is still in business? I've called several times and left messages and also emailed 4 or 5 times. Never received a response.
Thank you for a great video. Can you make a video about what equipment you need to get started with loading black powder cartridges too? You are talking about a lubri-sizer and a press??
Nice video. One thing that I always try to point out is to use a natural based lube. Petroleum based products result in "tar-like" fouling, and, as you clearly discussed this is extremely hard to remove. Natural based lubes result in fouling that can be cleaned with soap and hot water. That's what I do - soap and hot water cleaning, followed by hot water rinse (hot enough to air dry), then protectant of your choice. It has served me well since the 80's.
