I guess I have to ask. I have a 1858 army revolver replica, and was
thinking of buying the round ball mold from lyman. The molds are
either a 451dia. or 454dia round ball they sell. So I was thinking my lyman
45acp mold casts at 452dia. Bullet weight is 225 grains round nose. Can I
use this mold for my 44 army???
LoneWolf:lovecast:
Attached Files
From the Gun Digest Black Powder Loading Manual: Texas New Army Revolver, 25 gr. FFF by volume, Lee 456-220-1R 220 gr. roundnose, cast at .456. If it was me I'd just try one and see, using pure lead only. If you're not familiar with loading/shooting cap and ball revolvers it'd be a good idea to get a book, maybe save yourself some trouble and have more fun. Good luck. EDIT; Dale makes a good point, chain fires aren't funny. I should have been more specific about the 'try one' part, meaning only load one chamber. Better yet just follow Dale's advice, use an oversize bullet. I've had great luck with the Lee bullet made for the Ruger Old Army.
Attached Files
LoneWolf; Your Lyman mould will probably cast an undersize bullet when the alloy is plain lead (Lyman bullet mould size is calculated with their #2 alloy which will measure larger that a pure lead bullet).
It is important to use an OVERSIZE bullet when loading C&B revolvers for the bullet to seal the mouth of the chamber to avoid “chain fires". A proper round ball will cut a ring of lead from around the ball when loading and get a good seal in a cylinder that is in good shape.
A tight wad under the ball or bullet helps in this regard:
FWIW Dale53
Attached Files
Lone Wolf, different manufacturer's of 1858 Rem. New Model Army replicas specified different round ball diameters for use in their revolvers. Some specified .451", while others recommended .454". As Dale 53 said, regardless of the diameter ball your revolver needs, it must shave a ring of lead when you load it to reduce the odds of chain fires. A lubed .45cal. felt wad between the powder charge (FFFg or Pyrodex P only; no smokeless powder ever!) also helps in this regard. Before you purchase a mold, why not purchase or borrow a few swaged Hornady or Speer .451” and .454” RB's to see which one fits the cylinder better. Once you determine that, you can then decide whether or not the .452” mold will fit your gun or not.
All, If you belong to the NMLRA, there's an excellent article by the Bevel Brothers in their November '09 “Muzzle Blasts” on chain fires.
Attached Files
I use the Lee 90392 and 90390 REAL mini ball .454 mold for my 1858 pistol, they work really well in my pistol. My accuracy improved a lot by using the mini balls. I lean towards the 200 grain mold.
Jerry
Attached Files
Pieta specifies .454” balls. I have used .451", .454" and .457". The .451” seem to give best accuracy but, as previously pointed out, chain fires are more likely. I will probably stick with .454” balls when I run out of .457” balls.
If you have a Pieta, note that the chambers are bottle shaped. The powder must be settled down well in order to get consistent velocity. Before I learned this, velocity ranged from 200 to over 1,000 fps with 28 grains of FFFG.
Also note that anything like accuracy requires that the barrel be cleaned after each string. I also have to clean and lube the cylinder pin of my Pieta 1858 after each string. Otherwise the cylinder pin becomes very difficult to retract. My only other cap and ball revolver is an original Colt, and it is not necessary to clean and lube the cylinder pin, it being entirely different in design.
Attached Files
i have a lee double cav. ball and a lyman single cav. i prefer the lee mould because after you cut the spure and drop the boolits you almost cant tell where the spure was where the lyman i have some shaving to do if i want that look.
Attached Files
I've tried both ways with my ROA. I have found that whether my balls start out smooth, are shaved, or used as is makes no difference as far as accuracy is concerned. They do look better cleaned up though.
Attached Files
I whill probably be out with my pistol after a coyote later this week. I can blow them away at great distances with a rifle, but real hunting is the skill and the adventure, so I am going to try something different for me.
Jerry
Attached Files
I whill probably be out with my pistol after a coyote later this week. I can blow them away at great distances with a rifle, but real hunting is the skill and the adventure, so I am going to try something different for me.
Jerry
Attached Files
The 200-gr. Lee R.E.A.L. is really the best bang for the buck, but .457 roundballs work in almost everything. I reamed out my Pietta chambers to hold more powder. Sold the reamer though...
Somebody on this forum has it 8-)
73 de KE4SKY In Home Mix We Trust From the Home of Ed's Red in "Almost Heaven" West Virginia
Attached Files
Wm Cook
20
Aaron
17
MP1886
14
beagle6
13
linoww
12
John Alexander
5
Wilderness
5
Rich/WIS
5
GWarden
5
4060may
5
