Sweet weeping Jesus. I’ve been making videos on this topic for three damn years and you show up and watch one video and you’re mad because I didn’t go over everything from the very beginning to date? GTFO man. If I had done that I would have cheese d!cks like you bitching about it being a two hour long video.
Balsa is used as cores in those giant wind turbine blades. And apparently so much of it is used that its wiping out the plantations where it's grown. The blades are not recyclable so they are just buried or chopped up and buried. Perhaps the firms that dispose of these blades can be contacted to see if some of that balsa can be repurposed. Certainly would be cheaper than buying it from craft stores.
A friend of mine, who used to shoot for T/C, and still holds several NMLRA records, would clean his guns as follows. With a mixture of water and Dawn detergent, he would saturate a number of correctly-sized patches, squeeze out as much liquid as possible in a tight fist, then store the patches in an airtight jar. At the range, he would shoot once, swab the bore with one patch, turn it over and swab once more, then load and shoot again. He could shoot all day with this routine and it was the most uniform with results. I have adopted his method with very good success.
I've owned a 58 double and I now own a 72 Cal double rifle. It's the same routine I use only I use a spit patch to swab the bores between rounds. I fire each barrel once, swab them and then reload and shoot another round from each barrel. I can shoot all day like that even with GOEX, my favoured powder. Having said that, I'm probably going to look into making some of my own powder now that I've seen this channel. 🙂
File a Patent and start selling this, I'll definitely buy it because when shooting my Brass Pietta 1851 Colt Navy .44, I don't use any grease or wads and shoot 30 ish times before I'm done. I don't really care about the accuracy or power but just firing the gun so the cleaner and weaker powder would fit my shooting style well.
I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS CHANNEL!!!!! For the following reasons...1 the man backs up what he says and proves it...2 he ACTUALLY answers viewers questions. 3 He is humble and wants to explore and test as much as the next person that is heavy into this and WANTS to share his findings...if any other Creator can top this channel on this subject ( which I highly doubt...) go for it.
Balsa BP would make for really good pistol powder, I think. A few others on RU-vid have made some and unlike the usual hiss or whoosh that other BP makes when burning in open air, balsa BP tends to go thump instead, which implies a faster burn rate.
Interesting results! Now I am even more curious about charcoal made from toilet paper or cotton (old denim jeans) etc.! Might be too click-baity for your viewers though!
@@keithmoore5306 Seen it numerous times with smokeless with my own and a buddies. Put it in the sun, put it in the shade, put the tall rods on, put the short rods on. ERR2! &^&%^% I want a labradar someday.
Here is an interesting experiment. Weigh your patches before and after swabbing the barrel. that way you'll have a numerical measurement of the amount of residue left behind by the different powders.
The balsa wood was recomended to me long ago by an old school pyrothechnic artisan from southern México, he passed away on early 90's, most of his sons and grandsons continúes with that tradition.
There is a tree called Yaupon (technically it's a shrub, but it grows pretty tree-like) it's in the holly family and grows in the deep south from Texas to the Atlantic coast. It has a very light wood, not as light as Balsa, but if Balsa worked this well, it might be worth checking out. It's considered a nuisance in many areas by ranchers and farmers, so cost sure won't be an issue! And given how fast it grows and spreads, keeping a supply on hand if it works well won't be an issue either.
Just a thought…the balsa may be cleaner because it contains less “impurities” than many other woods. If I remember correctly, balsa is nearly pure cellulose, without a lot of sap and mineral residue. I haven’t made the plunge into homemade powder yet, but it’s looking like it’s time to make an investment in the equipment.
That makes me wonder if taking any of the other "good" woods (seasoned and chipped) and then boiling the snot out of it in a big kettle and re-drying them would improve performance. That would remove a large majority of the non-cellulose components. Or even taking chips while green and boil them, strain and dry, then do the seasoning. Anything to remove the sugars.
I would like to thank you for doing this series and documenting your journey of making black powder. I am hoping someday to have the facilities and the room to make my own powder and your series is so far the most down to earth and approachable for a novice that I am confident when I start my own journey, your notes will provide an excellent jumping off point. Again thank you for the excellent content.
I saw another youtuber making transparent wood. Wonder how that would work for black powder. Seems like they use balsa wood and dissolve out the lignin using some kind of chemicals.
First: Thanks for bothering to make your own damned video. I think your content is great! Haven’t read all of the comments, so I may be repetitive with my thoughts. 1) You said that you didn’t know why Swiss uses so much graphite on their powder. Neither do I, but I suspect that it has to do with the fact that potassium nitrate is hydroscopic and graphite is hydrophobic. You know, “keep your powder dry.” 2) I’ve head that cottonwood makes an excellent charcoal and is widely common. Just sayin’. 3) There’s only so far you can push BP technology. But the purists don’t take into account that people who were depending on BP would use to best technology available. With that said, rather than brass or lead media… how about aluminum? My thoughts are that aluminum oxide could actually reduce fouling while increasing velocity. Don’t know, but…
Thank you Good Sr! "This Is?" why I am turning Wheat, and Corn Flour into char, I just never bought into the "Willow" thing as I can Not get ANY. "I think" it is about the cellulous density and sugars or fructose? I may? cook up my mash and pitch amylase to convert cellulose into sugars using my still knowledge as "I think?" this art may relate to the BP dragon arts!
The difference between Swiss Powder and everyone else is they do not allow the charcoal to get as hot. By not heating the charcoal as much they retain more of the creosote, this makes the powder less hygroscopic , more powerful with less fouling, all be it slightly harder.
OK, been on this channel for a little while now. So, I am an electrician by trade. I am an industrial forensics scientist (Ret) by education. I would think that the molecular structure of the wood species is making the difference (Duh!). I do not have the millions of dollars to look into it (S.E.M. or FT-IR or comparison microscopes) but I will look into it further - no promises. Thank you. God Bless and stay safe.
BALSA?!?!? For r/c planes?!?!?! SACRILEGE!!!!! : ) I only say this as where I am at least it is difficult and expensive to get (for use as God or deity of your choosing intended - to be fashioned into an aeroplane shaped robot then sent zooming around the sky getting pulled along by some sort of infernal combustion engine and hopefully not into the ground, a tree or other r/c planes). However..... an irregular source of balsa for me has been shipping pallets. Some of them are made, at least in part with what I'm 100% convinced is balsa, albeit in grades and densities not really suited to r/c planes. Typically it's the "planks" on the top of the pallets that are balsa. I'm thinking that these planks when fed through a drop saw and cut into 19mm lengths (or whatever the thickness may be) will produce little blocks that are 19mm square and are as "long"as the parent plank is wide but the resulting wood grain would be "left to right" rather than along the finished piece. The idea being the oils, water and whatever is driven out of the wood when charred has a very short route along the grain to the outside of the wood. I've also found some broom handles that also appear to be balsa. Strong, light and fast growing being desirable properties for this application too. A good indicator of what Balsa is for me is that it is extremely porous, very open grained and when the grain is viewed "end on" it has what appears to be a hexagonal/honeycomb sort of structure to it. It is possible (with some difficulty admittedly) to blow/breathe through short lengths of balsa blocks.
I have heard that Balsa wood powder burned very clean. You are the first to confirm it on RU-vid. Hey, you got the know how. You are young enough. Go make yourself some money making and selling this stuff. I'd buy some.
Don't confuse yourself with questions how this clean example happen... The reason is how you charr your charcoal ... The low temperature of your finishing fire coals make all the work. Because of the pyrolysis of charcoal must be 435° Celsius and the end product must look like dark brown colour not complete black(complete black charcoal is waste) you just make it not exactly like this but by waiting! The results are great and perfect!👌👌 Also the balsa wood have more "clean" cellulose contents than other woods! Alder buckthorn in the other hand is monster in velocity but dirtier! The reason is balsa or ochroma pyramidale need plenty of water and drainage terrain that's why is a clean wood out of unwanted byproducts because the minerals recycling all the time in its life cycle Also it grows in neutral soil, while alder buckthorn is more like sunny Swamp soils and it like acidic conditions which balsa don't! Now acidic soil can effect the wood by produce byproduct enzymes that follow the the wood all the way down to charcoal and already chared particles consequently a little more dirty charcoal end product! A little help from the nature guy ! Nice work!!
I could be wrong but, I'm noticing on the shots that are not being picked up by the chronograph there is quite a bit of smoke going though the screens. With less smoke due to the wind or your position, accurate reading are seen.
You said it was left over balsam just thought age ,kill dried wood , which in my mind theres no hint of sap left in wood ,its simply clean super dry before you char it so on so on , ?? Just thoughts
Right? This is the kind of blackpowder you could run an automatic with. Heavy greased bullets, full house loads, and a powder with some good balsa charcoal.
@0neDoomedSpaceMarine with powder that clean, you could probably do a round of trap without having to run a patch down the barrel. Thats pretty impressive! Im down to my last 1.5 lb of goex so... im gonna see what balsa i can get at this point.
@@davidjftooley Right? The fouling is described as soft already, so I wonder how long it could really run when paired with some good lubricant? Wonder if you could use little paper patches in the cartridges like on those old British large bore rifles which used brass foil cases? It seems that for autos, less complex actions appear to play better with blackpowder as well, so something like a transferable MAC M10 or M3A1 Greasegun, where the bolt is a weight and you don't need to recock any hammers or strikers, would perhaps run the longest. Or at least an old exempt open bolt M10 pistol. Something which is large bore and which provides as little mechanical resistance as possible.
Congratulations, Jake! You're almost there - closing in on the Holy Grail of the perfect Holy Black!! Nice lock time on your flincher, too, by the way. 👍
Jake I am really glad to see your tests. I mentioned I lived in Costa Rica in my last comment and that I had been using balsa. It is easy fo me to get because I have a lot of balsa trees on my farm as well as other types I have been using. What I have found is that the older balsa trees char quicker and are softer than the young ones. Powder made with them also burns quicker than the younger trees. I am picking up a buddy at the airport tomorrow and he is bringing me chronograph we will be shooting tomorrow. Is there a way I download photos for you and your viewers to see . I think they might like to see how things are done in a third world country. I make my charcoal the same as you almost (no fireplace I stack some TEAK wood burns like coal let the fire die down through it in a hole and cover it wake up in the morning ready to use. The other ingredients are very easy to get buy the potassium nitrate in 100 pound bags and the sulfur at the pharmacy. My mill is a 8 inch pvc tube 8 inches long not counting the caps using brass balls I bought through Amazon. My workshop is under a old giant matapalo tree they are the best for shade .I use a 40 foot extension cord for power supply . If something goes wrong then nothing is harmed except for maybe a cow that is sharing the shade or I haven’t figured if they just like the clunking noise of my tumbler . OSHA WOULD LOVE IT. I will let you know what I am getting for speed .
I think they actually char the wood to still keep some of the volatiles , at a perfect and consistent temperature, it still has a certain amount of resins , thats why its clean , is its soft fouling , almost a lube in of itself, read that in a article that actually was by a historian on old blackpowder
Balsa even seemed expensive in the 60's to me as a kid. Now you got me wondering what kind of charcoal I could get out of bamboo. That's about the fastest growing stuff we have here in North America. There's also a fast growing weed here in Iowa that may produce charcoal. It grows by the creeks and gets 10 foot tall or so and probably averages an inch or so in diameter. We pulled it up and stripped the leafy bits off to make spears as kids in our fort battles with the other kids. The stems had a core that resembles styrofoam. I can't even find it locally anymore. They spray all my childhood areas with weed killer these days. It used to be so thick that we used machetes to make trails through those weeds.
The bamboo charcoal is not good for making black powder. Alder Buckthorn, Paulownia, white or pacific Willow, Poplar and Balsa charcoal are much better.
@@tenlittleindians in my area of the pnw we get really tall elderberry. Like 3-4" at the base, 20 ft tall, strong enough for a 150lb person to climb up. And yeah, the younger stuff can be beaten down with a stick.
You realize that a more "sceintific" method of testing cleanliness of powder would be to very precisely weigh a sample and burn it and then weigh the residue. I realize there could be some residue missed due to condensation of vaporized impurities on a cold barrel that would not be accounted for, but it would give you a numerical idea of how much ash you had.
Very interesting, I'll need to try the balsa wood, what's the dims on that pvc setup for ball milling, Dia...etc....looking to make a container for milling
Have you ever tried making powder with charred cotton balls? One of the other comments mentions that balsa is a really clean wood, so what if you take that to the extreme and just pure cotton?
I’ve been building model airplanes as long as I’ve been shooting black powder (about 25 years). There’s a healthy collection of scrap balsa in my shop that’s waiting for a purpose. Looks like it’s time to make some char. I’m a newbie at making bp. Any help would be great.
I wish I could afford a Jim kibler rifle. I have just been able to get to the place where I can load my traditions Kentucky rifle in fire it with a little bit of accuracy. I have learned a trick to overcome the fact that the pan is not flush with the frison. I mix a little 2f with the 4f in the pan. This keeps the powder in the pan even if I turn it sideways. Unfortunately I have not been able to see if it works well yet as far as firing goes. But now that I've got my vehicle working more reliably now I intend to go out and have some fun. I hope that you can do a RU-vid on your kibler rifle and tell us how it is with accuracy.
How much smoke was there compared to other powders. Was there less because it burned cleaner? It’s always been said that it’s the charcoal that makes the biggest difference. Thanks for the video. Keep them coming..
Excellent video! Just to complicate things: there are three categories of balsa wood - LD (low density), MD (mid density), and HD (guess). Balsa wood density (and characteristics) depend on the climate where the balsa was grown. Having said that, Pyro charcoal tests for fireworks used "flight time" to compare tree species and here are some top 5 reported results 1) paulownia, 9.67 seconds; 2) balsa, 9.14 seconds; 3) black willow, 8.575 s; 4) alianthus, 8.275 s; 5) wild grape, 7.464 s. For baseline: White Pine, 6.440 s; Maple, 6.439 s; weeping willow, 5.806 s; of course, no buckthorn alder flight time ... Point: wish that they had measured & cited their balsa density. They did note that balsa in their process had significant reactivity and variability, damaging the test set up on several runs. FWIW, their same day "burn time" paulowonia, .4 s; balsa, .434 s; black willow, .451; alianthus, .480 s; wild grape, .634 s. For baseline: White Pine, .768 s; Maple, .3 s!; weeping willow, N/A!; and (heh, heh) buckthorn alder, .274 s ... My impression is that pyros don't really care about cleanliness. Thought you might consider measuring the density of your balsa wood batch.
That’s very interesting. I can tell you that I didn’t notice the amount of volume it took to make 23 g by weight was almost triple what Alder Buckthorn takes.
I think Ned Gorski had an article about this. The balsa charcoal was described as extremely reactive because with some of the flight tests, the mortar to launch the baseballs was destroyed.
that is so awesome!! great share and excellent research. i wonder if Chinese Royal Empress (Pawlonia) sometimes known as dragon tree(huge leaves the first couple years) it grows super fast and could be another good source wood for clean burning fast charcoal.
Very interesting Jake, as usual. Will certainly try balsa if I can lay a hand on some. Now regarding your chronograph reading "errors", I myself found that I have to extend the muzzle-chrono distance further compared to smokeless. I don't know exactly why, I can only speculate for now. Maybe more particles than with smokeless are driven along the bullet which disturb the chrono, I don't know, but definitely more errors than with smokeless. Even my MagnetoSpeed have more troubles with black than with smokeless. I will let you know if I have some kind of a definitive answer. Thank's
Fascinating as usual. If I was going to speculate than I would say it comes down to chemical composition of the wood from whatever species of tree is used for the charcoal. I can't say I have ever burned balsa to see how clean it burns but I would guess it does. Given it is part of the 'fuel' of black powder it would certainly explain why every type of charcoal changes the behavior of the powder.
I'm still using the home made cedar for pets I like it. The fps doesn't bother me as much. By the time you hear the shot that ball pretty much already hit the deer plus I don't shoot over 100 yards if I'm lucky to even get a shot off that far where I hunt
Shout out to @Snapper for hooking you guys up with this Balsa to make the "Muzzle loading propellant" cleaner than Swiss and sharing it for us all here in YT land Jake... I appreciate this as in the future, I'll look to make my own BP for storage and for emergency here in case shtf scenario hits L.A. and I'll be ready for anything!...
Prehaps the density, or lack thereof, of the Balsa wood? From my model building days I recall that Balsa was seemingly more porous or absorbing than other woods. Which lead me to think that there is less sap remaining in the wood. Prehaps a conversation with a wood expert might shed some light. Good video, thanks for sharing.
Have you tried the polawana tree for making powder? It's very lite like balsa. They use it to make surf boards. I'm in south carolina and I have found them growing here. I have used poplar and sycamore. Decent results from both. Use a jointer with your logs. It makes nice shavings that cook easily and grind easily as well. Keep making the videos
In my area that I have access to I have no alder buckhorn, little grape vine or willow with out trespassing. I do have an abundance of invasive honey suckle which when I cut it has very porous cell structure in the inner woody parts. I would like to try my hand at making antique muzzleloading propellant. The expense of start up only to find it's a failure keeps me from any attempt. Would there be any chance you would attempt a good at this in the future. Please let me know your thoughts. My woods behind my house is full of this stuff. Thanks. Oh like your videos have watched them all.
Back around 2008 or so I experimented with a lot of powders. None homemade, but close enough. Swiss, Graf, Goex and... wait for it. All of the commercial FFFg were reasonable for OEM 3F. But I'm weird. I bought 25 lbs of fireworks grade "3F". It sucked... u til I ran it through a series of screens to remove the fines and chunks. I held the 3F, Set the 2F(-) aside, and double strained the 7F. On shoot testing (It's up on one or more gun forums of the era) I found that by biying cheap firewors powder and screening the fines, you can shoot with almost no fouling/residue. As in Negligible. A greanish smear from the groves on a TC Firestar flintlock (I used the 7F as prime). SD of velocity was good, but lower than unscreened Commercial. I really didn't have enough commercial to screen, but my supposition is that if hand screened, using a brass tumbler or a flat screen in a needlework hoop, the commercial would shoot every bit as clean.
P.S. anyone ever tried cat tail tops? I know it makes fantastic char for fire starting.........PPS.....be careful with this, and let it cool down good before releasing and slowly, I had some spontaneously combust once that had cooled off enough ( I thought)......
