please share with me your loads/info about your 1851 navy 36 caliber

[midland man]

as you guys most know I just bought a traditions 1851 navy colt 36 caliber as I have never owned the period correct caliber. so since I am getting a first time 36 caliber and yes I did take a 3/8ths hole punch and cut out 1/8th inch wads and soaked them in my homemade lube and I have a new can of 3f goex to use with it so what powder charges do ya'll use etc? thanks!

 

[John L Venable]

.375/80 Swaged Ball, 20 to 25 gr 3F max in my Ubertis.

 

[Fingers McGee]

My standard load for CAS is 22.5 gr (by weight) fffg 0ld Eynsford, lubed wad, .380 roundball. My navies will shoot all day without fail.

 

[drobs]

I have 2 powder flasks. 1 is black plastic and has a 20 gr spout filled with FFFg Goex the other is brass and has a 30 gr spout filled with FFFg Graf's Scheutzen.
I can cram 30gr into the chambers of my steel frame 36 cal Pietta 1851 Navy "Yank" but its messy. Real easy to overflow the powder on the cylinder face. I can then load a .375 Hornady ball with no wad on top of that powder using the loading lever.

20gr is much nicer - lots of room for a wad and ball. I'd wager 25gr would be perfect but need either another flask or nozzle.

 

[Steel Hayes]

For just weekend target shooting, I made up .375 roundball over 22grn 3f Goex.

 

[midland man]

View attachment 797796
For just weekend target shooting, I made up .375 roundball over 22grn 3f Goex.

man how you make those they look nice and make loading very fast...

 

[Steel Hayes]

Ultra thin cigarette rolling paper, a homemade tapered dowel and a purple glue stick.
There’s lots of you tube videos out there, I just took ideas and reformed them for the easiest way I could think of.
I can make 10 in roughly 15 minutes.

 

[44 Dave]

I have 2 powder flasks. 1 is black plastic and has a 20 gr spout filled with FFFg Goex the other is brass and has a 30 gr spout filled with FFFg Graf's Scheutzen.
I can cram 30gr into the chambers of my steel frame 36 cal Pietta 1851 Navy "Yank" but its messy. Real easy to overflow the powder on the cylinder face. I can then load a .375 Hornady ball with no wad on top of that powder using the loading lever.

20gr is much nicer - lots of room for a wad and ball. I'd wager 25gr would be perfect but need either another flask or nozzle.

I slit a soda straw and fit it inside of one of my spouts to reduce the charge.

 

[entropy]

20 gr. Pyrodex 'P' , lubed felt wad, Hornady .375 round ball. Nice plinking load.

 

[tranders]

I also have the Traditions (Pietta) 1851 Navy in 36 caliber. I use a .375 Speer swaged ball over a lubed felt wad and 15 grains of Goex FFFg. Very easy shooting load, but still get the boom and the smoke.

 

[midland man]

so is the .380 ball to big or just hard to press in the cylinder??

 

[J-Bar]

Are you using the factory nipples or are you using aftermarket nipples like Slix Shot or Track of the Wolf or Treso (if you can find them)? You will get less blowback with heavier powder charges with after market nipples. With factory nipples, I would stay around 20-22 grains of 2F or 3F.

A .380 dead soft pure lead ball is all I use in my 1851s and I load on the gun, not a separate press. If you are using other than pure lead, a .380 can be tough to seat.

 

[44 Dave]

so is the .380 ball to big or just hard to press in the cylinder??

.375 are ok in some but .380 are good in all

 

[midland man]

Are you using the factory nipples or are you using aftermarket nipples like Slix Shot or Track of the Wolf or Treso (if you can find them)? You will get less blowback with heavier powder charges with after market nipples. With factory nipples, I would stay around 20-22 grains of 2F or 3F.

A .380 dead soft pure lead ball is all I use in my 1851s and I load on the gun, not a separate press. If you are using other than pure lead, a .380 can be tough to seat.

j-bar I am still waiting on the pistol to get here by usps tracking it should be here Monday but trust me if they had gotten around to shipping it like they supposed to it would been here Thursday/Friday time frame!

 

[Eyrie G. Dogg]

.375 are ok in some but .380 are good in all

I have four in .36 which are shot regularly and that has been my experience too, exactly.

 

[midland man]

what size of buckshot balls is the same that can be used as a roundball in my soon to be new pistol??

 

[Eyrie G. Dogg]

0000 Buck 82 grains 9.70mm (0.380")

I have heard that this designated buck is tight for loading on the gun. Some guys like using it in their .36 pistols. Eight pound jar.

https://www.ballisticproducts.com/Super-Buck-Lead-0000-8-lb_jar-380/productinfo/SBK40/

Some good discussion on this and a bit on nonsense, too:
http://1858remington.com/discuss/index.php/topic,9771.msg164119.html#msg164119

Sir, were you able to reach a mutually agreeable understanding with that chimp in your avatar or did you have to … you know ...

 

[midland man]

0000 Buck 82 grains 9.70mm (0.380")

I have heard that this designated buck is tight for loading on the gun. Some guys like using it in their .36 pistols. Eight pound jar.

https://www.ballisticproducts.com/Super-Buck-Lead-0000-8-lb_jar-380/productinfo/SBK40/

Some good discussion on this and a bit on nonsense, too:
http://1858remington.com/discuss/index.php/topic,9771.msg164119.html#msg164119

Sir, were you able to reach a mutually agreeable understanding with that chimp in your avatar or did you have to … you know ...

well the chimp and I are working on a agreement so stay tuned...

 

[drobs]

Are you using the factory nipples or are you using aftermarket nipples like Slix Shot or Track of the Wolf or Treso (if you can find them)? You will get less blowback with heavier powder charges with after market nipples. With factory nipples, I would stay around 20-22 grains of 2F or 3F.

A .380 dead soft pure lead ball is all I use in my 1851s and I load on the gun, not a separate press. If you are using other than pure lead, a .380 can be tough to seat.

.375 are ok in some but .380 are good in all

Are you guys casting your own or buying? If buying what brand?
I note Hornady only carries .375 diameter ball:
https://www.hornady.com/muzzleloading/round-balls#!/

 

[J-Bar]

Are you guys casting your own or buying? If buying what brand?
I note Hornady only carries .375 diameter ball:
https://www.hornady.com/muzzleloading/round-balls#!/

Casting my own.

 

[tartancat]

For best accuracy, try to find a good bullet. I m in the process of making a cherry to cut a bullet mould, Could not find one that suited me.

 

[Steel Hayes]

.375 are ok in some but .380 are good in all

Not necessarily, my 2 Pietta’s will only take .375, anything more(.380) and I darn near need a hammer to get the plunger to get the ball into the cylinder.
My ‘51 Uberti on the other hand will only take .380’s, .375 will fall out after the first shot(found that out the hard way).

 

[midland man]

this new traditions/pietta 51' navy 36c that just came in this morning it I had ordered .375 and would had ordered a box of .380 but they didn't have the .380 so with the .375 this gun shaved a ring of lead at every cylinder evenly and shot these extremely well so guys should I bother with tryin some .380 or just go with the .375?? plus I loaded first load at 20grs but then went with the 25gr powder charges and wow it shoots very well sights right on!

 

[drobs]

I bought 5 boxes of Hornady .375 round ball to go with my Pietta 1851 Navy. Finished off 1 box so far.
I'd like to start casting my own and recently picked up 10lbs of soft lead sheet.

 

[whughett]

Lee 1.6 dipper, 25.5 by their chart, of Schutzen, 50/50 lubed felt wad .380 ball hand cast of recovered range lead and a CCI #10 cap. The dipper my be slightly rounded, I don't strike with a card. .375 is a loose fit. Shoots real well at the 12 yard to 50 foot ranges I use for paper punching.
Mine is a Goonerized Uberti obtained from this forum.