Walker... Walker... Walker....

[Afy]

Went to range and filled it with smoke...

However for those who own a this... a few questions...

1. How do you prevent the loader from dropping at charges over 40 grains.
2. Accuracy... how do you get it to actually hit the target?
3. Do you brush the bore between loads?
4. Cylinder drag? I have found mine starts to drag at about 18 shots... primarily due to crisco buildup on the frame. Am I using too much?
5. If you overload and the ball is not going to the barrell how do you actually shoot it with other loaded cylinders without the barell. I typically have removed the nipple and some powder... rather than try to shoot without the barrell.

Any and all pointers on this amazing gun are more than welcome for my education...

 

[DaveP (UK)]

1) Dont have a Walker but they were reviewed in a mag here about a year ago.
Just thought it might help you to know that yours isn't faulty - the reviewer had this problem too!
2) Prayer?
3) Dont brush my Remington out between loads, but I did try using it with the balls set back on a light charge and found that I needed to clean the cylinders to be able to reload without massive effort.
4) Try using less? you dont need much to keep the fouling soft, and there's little point in applying more than the first shot leaves in the other cylinders.
5) I imagine its just a matter of removing the barrel and holding the cylinder in place keeping fingers away from the front and pointing it in a safe direction. Of course you could just position the offending cylinder and then replace the barrel over the protruding ball. I dont have that option, and I generally use a Stanley knife to shave off the offending lead. That cylinder doesnt get shot at a target of any importance!

 

[Tommygunn]

1.) The loading lever falling during recoil was a common problem with the Walkers -- even originals, which is why you will notice the subsequent designs of the dragoon series and other revolvers have a clasp of some type on the muzzle end. Maybe if you put a rubber band around it, it will help.
2.) Try aiming a bit low, say around the 6:00 position. Try lighter powder loads.
3.) No, not usually.
4.) When shooting any BP revolver, you might find it is necessary to clean the arbor after awhile. This is why when you go to the range it's always a good idea to take whatever tools are necessary for this purpose. Neither the Colt or Remington designs are hard to deal with if you're prepared. If you're using crisco, a little dab will do ya. I use the felt wads that go under the bullet, and thus I don't have to deal with crisco or bore butter, but however you do it, BP residue will foul the gun and you will need to clean it -- just one of those things with blackpowder, that's all.
5.) Why do you over-load? Follow the instructions. You really don't need a full load of powder anyway. If you are loading so much you can't seat the ball down behind the face of the cylinder, your way of dealing with it is as good as anything. I would not try shooting without the barrel; when you cock it the pawl could push the cylinder forward, and then the bolt will not engage. Plus you could have chain fires.

 

[mike101]

Use felt wads between powder and ball. It's a lot cleaner than any over the ball grease.

In the old days, they tied a leather thong around the loading lever and barrel. How about a leather shoe lace? It's period correct.

 

[oneshooter]

The arbor on the Colt style revolvers has a series of rings machined into it. These are to hold grease that will keep the cylinder rotating freely by keeping the fouling that builds up there soft. I can shoot my 1860 or my 2nd Dragoon all day by filling these rings with cheap axel grease!

Oneshooter
Livin in Texas

 

[mec]

The Walker and Paterson designs came along before the rings on the arbor. Also the cylinder's butted up close against the front of the frame. The later changes were a response to the fouling problems that were noticeable on these early revolvers.

 

[peacemaker45]

1. With a leather shoelace. A slipknot is the best medicine, i think.
2. Easy way: Aim WAY low. Better way: replace front sight blade with taller one. The old horse pistols were conceived as a replacement for a cavalry carbine, and are regulated for what modern pistoleers cosider to be rifle ranges. As a result, they shoot way high at short range.
3. no
4. loosen up the wedge a little. If that doesn't cut it, then windex between loadings.
5. use a powder measure. if you've already done this and want to fix it, use a ball puller.

Welcome to the Fraternity of the Original .44 Magnum.

 

[mykeal]

Lots of good advice

1) Yup. What they said. Either tie it up or put up with it.

2) Move closer. No, not really. True that they were intended to shoot long range, thus high at short range. Just compensate. And quit closing your eyes. PS - see No. 5.

3) Nope.

4) Use lubed overpowder wads, and either dump the Crisco or use much less. It doesn't take much at all. "Seal" means a thin layer.

5) I know it's fun to make lots of smoke and noise, but often the least accurate loads are the "full" ones in black powder shooting. Back off the loads until hyou don't have this problem and you may find that you are starting to shoot consistent groups. Although, if you don't heed No. 2 that group may be at the bottom of the target board. And if you just can't bring yourself to back the load down, remove the cylinder, remove the nipple, pour out the powder and either use a bullet puller or push it out from the back using a small steel punch through the hole where the nipple was. Shooting it out with the barrel removed is a little silly and kinda dangerous.

Aren't these fun guns to shoot?

 

[Steve499]

Actually, I'd love to see someone with a chronograph rig up some kind of replacement arbor to enable a cylinder to be fired without the barrel. I've always heard the velocity of a round so fired was much less but have never seen any actual numbers.

Steve

 

[Yankee John]

To keep the loading lever up, just use the "search" function and you will see a couple of my posts where I put up pics of the modification that I did to my loading lever spring. Works great with 50-60 gr. of powder!

John

 

[Afy]

Am using about 44 grains of BP. And then some cous cous as a filler. Which is really poured using the eye as a measure. And terein lies the problem of overloading...
Need to work on the technique...

Will work on Yankee John's modification at the range this weekend.

 

[DixieTexian]

And then some cous cous as a filler.

Finally, a good use for that stuff!

 

[sjohns]

I used a small strip of thin rawhide with a bead. Over the barrel with the bead under the loading lever.

 

[rifle]

In other posts and in my crusade against barrel fouling and arbor drag I'll mention the use of lube pills or wool wads saturated with lube/wax UNDER the balls as a major source of relief. I use lube pills punched out of a recipe made with equal amounts of bees wax,paraffin wax,and MUTTON TALLOW and saturate the wool wads with the same. The lube pills can keep a Colt or Remington going all day without the barrel getting too fouled or the arbors dragging. If the arbors do drag a little after 200 shots or so a visine bottle with water or blackpowder solvent used to drip a drop or two on the arbor at the front of the cylinder and then spin the cylinder and BINGO. Good as new. Those dang Walker loading levers can be a problem but......bending the spring forward just a smidgin will keep the lever up using up to 45gr. FFFg and filing a slight notch across the hump on the spring where it can hang over the lever a little will keep the lever up with max loads. File a slight angle and it'll come loose without depressing the spring with a little screw driver or whatever. I'd bet that Yankee John has a pic of that right Yankee? Anywhooo.... using lube pills or wool wads saturated with lube/wax "under" the ball solves the dirty barrel sticky arbor thing. Try it. You'll like it.

Grinding hammer sights lower and/or raising the front sights get the accuracy goin better or easier. A barrel can be faced off at an angle to direct the balls. Shoots too high? Face off the barrel at a slight angle so the gas errupts out at the top half of the barrel first compared to the bottom half and the gun will shoot lower. The gases push the ball down some as it enters free air space if the gases come out at the top half of the muzzle first. Kinda like reverse engineering or maybe wacky engineering. Muzzles are faced perfectly perpendiular with the axis of the bore so the gun shoots straight. Well the gun can be made to shoot "not straight" in a controlled direction by relieving the crown at the muzzle opposite the way the ball is wanted to go. Face off the top of the muzzle and the ball will shoot lower. Face of the left part of the muzzle and the ball will go to the right. Face off the right of the muzzle and the ball will go left.Face off the bottom of the muzzle and the ball will go higher. The gases just push the ball at the point the barrel muzzle is relieved. The idea works better with balls than conical bullets. Conicals can yaw but a ball can't because it's.....a ball. It's more consistant to do the adjusting with the sights though. I've had to face off muzzles where guns would shoot consistantly to the right or left or high or low because the crown was not perpendicular to the bore. Usually a gunsmith makes a muzzle perpendiular with the bore but....it can be done in reverse to get different results as I explained above. Strange world ain't it?

 

[mukluk]

1. I've never tried tying up the lever, I just flip it up when needed (about every shot )
2. Consistant loading and careful aim will get you good accuracy; my personal best is 4 shots out of 6 hitting a six inch gong at 100yds firing two-handed (packed up after that, wasn't gonna get any better)
3. The only thing down the barrel at the range is lead and burning powder
4. I use crisco exclusively for lube on my Walker. Lube the arbor generously with crisco; load the cylinder with enough powder that the ball is almost even with the cylinder face when slightly compressed (about 50-55gr), followed by crisco over the ball even with the cylinder face. When loading like this the cylinder starts to drag slightly after 3-4 cylinders, but it never stiffens to where function is affected.
5. Can't comment on that one, haven't overfilled a chamber yet.