BP gets in the way!

[ZVP]

How much has Black Powder shooting hacked into your Smokeless powder shooting?
For me, I have cut the smokeless (and Rim Fires) down about 70%
It seems when I go to the Pistol Range, it's my BP guns I grab for first, and then I get involved reloading and shooting untill it dawns on me that I'd brought other guns...
Yea C&B Revolvers are consuming! You get started and can't put em down! You think "just one more cylinderfull" and before long it's time to go home.
I actually have to plan to shoot my .357 Vaquero or I'll get sidetracked with BP! Sometimes I shoot smokeless or RF inbetween cylinder fulls of BP, just to let the embers die off. and that way I get a more rounded shooting day in.
When I bring say 3 or 4 BP revolvers the only problem I have is that if I shot all 4 then I HAVE to clean 4! Actually clean-up is the most detremental aspect of BP shooting.
Clean-up? Pretty much have it down to a science. I break down the guns get the sink going with hot water and get the windex out, I spray and soak for a few minutes and then clean. I dry with paper towels and a old Hairdryer then lube the cylinder pins and wipe em down with Break-Free. The barrel and cylinder get a good swabbing with patches and Break Free. Done! It dosent take much to do but I have been known to delay doing it a day or two. BTW, I haven't had any corrosion really build-up with a 2 day delay...
Iknow, I know!
So How much does BP affect your shooting?
ZVP

 

[makos_goods]

What is this smokeless powder you are speaking of?

 

[chicharrones]

For me, I have cut the smokeless (and Rim Fires) down about 70% . . .
Yea C&B Revolvers are consuming! You get started and can't put em down!
ZVP

I'm afraid of this. Thanks to MCGunner's thread back in August http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=609939 I lost my mind and ordered my 1st BP gun. A Cabela's Pietta 1860 Army.

I have spent the last few weeks filling my head with all the cap and ball info my mind can absorb. After getting the basic supplies I plan to finally fire the thing this week.

Pray for me.

 

[Busyhands94]

i have two smokeless guns i don't shoot that often. i have a blackpowder revolver that will safely shoot smokeless, my NAA Companion will shoot with bullseye. but for the most part i find blackpowder guns to be prettier, funner, not expensive at all, and to me they are more accurate. besides, who the heck wouldn't want a handgun with a loading press and sizing dye under the barrel? that's just plain cool. and no FFL needed? i can own one even though I'm 17, and i can order them through the mail and get them in a pretty brown package a few days later on my doorstep? IN CALIFORNIA OF ALL STATES?!?!?! it doesn't surprise me that i am hooked on blackpowder. it's the funnest hobby i have ever tried!

 

[junkman_01]

Wait 'til you discover GIRLS!

 

[Jaymo]

Busyhands, don't listen to junkman.
As much as I love women, I wish I had all the time AND money back, that I spent chasing skirts in my misguided youth.
I'd have a lot more money and BP.

 

[Texas Moon]

LMAO at Junkman!

 

[Armored farmer]

I just posted on another thread that I grabbed my '58 to go investigate someone shooting on our property. I have cartridge guns waaaay more suited for that sort of thing, but I havent shot them in months. I may have crossed over to the dark side.

 

[Shinbone]

I'm wondering how practical it would be to use one as a carry weapon?

 

[zimmerstutzen]

smokeless was just a way to span the gap between high school, college and affording a real long rifle.

 

[Jaymo]

Smokeless???
Propellant???
What have YOU been smoking???

BP and air guns have taken over my shooting.

 

[Busyhands94]

Jaymo, on the third of July my sweetheart of three years ended the relationship for some very mysterious reason. God knows why women do stuff like that. the first thing i did the day after to make me feel better and to get a hold of myself is i grabbed my flintlock rifle, powder, bullets, and some cap and ball guns and went out to that field out on the outskirts of town. it helped lift my spirits and helped me feel just a little better. it's my way of coping when stuff is not going well for me. some people like golf, some like collecting stamps, some like chasing pretty girls around, i like shooting blackpowder. it's literally done what therapists have given up on. and while i still have a sore heart it's getting better because i am doing something i like.

 

[burnse]

Busyhands, that is sad news. My sympathies.

On the subject of BP, I been looking at smokeless firearms since, well, forever. I was always thinking that smokeless guns were the only thing to have. Well, boy, did that change! I have a hard time regarding them as "real" guns in the face of a good black powder gun, be it single-shot, or repeater.
I have a single shot .22 H&R Sportster - a gift from my girlfriend. Beyond that, I don't know if I'll own another smokeless gun for quite a long time. I did buy a H&R pardner single-shot 12 gauge, but I made the purchase specifically with black powder shells in mind!
More than any other firearm, I love my Uberti 1860. It's beautiful. It came with a fluted cylinder. No other gun I've fired makes me feel quite as alive and content as my 1860.
Next, I need me a good left-handed percussion rifle.

 

[Voodoochile]

My modern guns see the light of day maybe once a year cept for my ole M1911A1, the rest of the time I'm at the range it's with one or more of my C&B revolvers & one of my .50 or .54 caliber rifles.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

I'm wondering how practical it would be to use one as a carry weapon?

Not very. There is a reason they went out of style as SD weapons. That reason still applies today. A possible exception is a jurisdiction that prevents one from carrying a modern firearm for SD, but has no legal restrictions on Cap-n-Ball, or you simply must have an SD gun, but your budget is so stressed that all you can afford is a brass framed "Confederate" repro by Pietta.

A few years ago, if I lived in DC, I would've had a brace of '58's loaded in my home at all times.

LD

 

[StrawHat]

BP has a big place on my reloading bench. I use it in most of my cartridge frearms with some exceptions. I have not found it acceptable in my 405 WCF, nor in my 45 ACP. I am still looking for "the" load in 22 WCF also, but in my other cartridge firearms, black powder has at least some application. Also black powder equivalant loads and by that I mean loads that equal the original ballistics of the cartridge, (ie 260 grains of lead at 950 fps for the 45 long Colt.)

I still have Bullseye, Unique and some rifle powders but more and more, Black powder is my propellant of choice.

As for using a black powder revovler for SD, only if I had nothing else. The reason I built a 45 ACP double action revolver was for SD. Why would I give up 50 years of technological advancement?

As has been stated, if the situation demanded antique armament, than yes, I would, and have, chosen such but given my druthers, I will stay with the DA revolver.

 

[Busyhands94]

thank you Burnse, i appreciate that. i figure i need to find a girl that shoots more, I'm going to frequent gun clubs and such to see what God has in store for me. women are strange, why one would want to leave a good christian man with a heart of gold just confuses me. but that's all part of life. for now I'm just going to pay attention to my skills in working on and enjoying blackpowder firearms. I just installed a patchbox on my rifle, now she's looking mighty nice.

for self defense i have Smith and Wesson to accompany me as i sleep, but i also like my NAA Super Companion loaded with Triple Seven there too as a backup. that little bugger is quite fierce for being so small. I figure that combined with me being alert and cautious should give me an edge. but a regular blackpowder revolver for self defense is not going to make you outgunned. my .44 Remington has never had a misfire, with the exception of the time i loaded a ball in there without powder! the moral of the story is don't forget to bring a nipple wrench. luckily i had one that i made, i had to remove the nipple and chuck some powder back there and then put the nipple back in, cap it, and shoot it. other than that i haven't seen any kind of reliability issue, and the power seems decent. i know it's supposedly only as powerful as a .38 Special, but given proper shot placement you shouldn't have a problem. you don't need a .500 Smith and Wesson for home defense, all you really need is to stop the threat so you and your loved ones are safe.

~Levi

 

[Racebannon]

BP shooting supplements my smokeless shooting, its also a great complement to Zoot Shooting. It's a great range of guns to play with.

 

[TomADC]

I alternate on range trips one time BP next time the other stuff.

 

[TomADC]

Sorry duplicate post its this new iMac..

 

[Jaymo]

What is Zoot Shooting? Never mind. I found out.

Busyhands, you dealt with that breakup better than I dealt with some. Alcohol is not an effective way to deal with a breakup. At least, not in my experience.
Besides, BP doesn't cause hangovers.

 

[robhof]

I started out with b/p as a teen with a kit gun, but graduated to smokeless upon legal age, now 40 years later I'm starting over with B/p and loving every minute. I've got plenty of both, but the smokers get the most usage.

 

[ZVP]

As you can see by the number of answers to every post here, Black Powder is all consuming and once you get through with that first cylinder load, you'll soon load up another...
Be assured your life is all but ruined! soon you'll be searching out even more pictures and print to support your desires!
ZVP

 

[Tallbald]

If I may offer my two cents in this conversation, I will say that my 44 year love affair with cartridge guns is 70% fading. Will my new love affair with black powder cap and ball last? I really can't say. I will tell everyone that when an offer to send lead downrange pops up, the first guns I reach for are my Old Army's. Is it because the process of thought that goes into loading clears my mind of the day's problems? Is it because I relish the attention that my old-technology garners at the range? I think I prefer to look at muzzle-loading as an extension of my interest in cartridge guns. The same fascination and interest I have in a 39 Plymouth is the same fascination I have with old technology guns versus the newest latest, greatest developments. All facets of shooting are wonderful, it's just that the Old Ways have caressed my thoughts and opened up a new-to-me frontier. Don.

 

[YumaKid]

Can't remember the last time I shot my SIG, or either of Smith & Wessons for that matter; and that's very surprising to me. But I can remember every shot with each of the Remmies; and look forward to having more time to spend with "Shorty" (the new 5-1/2 incher) so that I can work out a good load and file on the front sight to get the li'l guy to shoot closer to POA.

And Busyhands; you can never figure out "wimmen"... any man that claims he's figured them out is either a liar or a complete idiot! You'll spend a lot of time looking for "the perfect girl", and when you finally fall into despair believing that "the perfect girl" for you does not exist; she'll come "out of nowhere" (which is exactly right in front of your face) and pick you out!
But don't believe that it will always be so sublime, there will be "moments". For example, my "perfect girl" of Thirty Years has absolutely ZERO interest in shooting either of the '58 NMA's She'd much rather be shooting HER (although I bought it and still weakly "claim" it) K-Frame .357! Weird, huh?

Doesn't stop us from still being 'sweethearts', ifyaknowhudImean
However, I have been known to mumble that it's just too much of a PITA to start all over again, and she has said that she has no interest in "training another one". So I guess we'll just continue to be 'sweethearts'.




OBTW... I was 19+ before starting what I now know to be a successful 'serious relationship'.... I fact, I had given up on ever finding a girl like her that wasn't already "spoken for".
But, I guess the other guy didn't use the right terms when "speaking for her".