16ga.com ~ View topic

Hello; Just wanted to know if anyone has loaded BLACK POWDER Loads for 16ga. If you have---Do you have a Receipe that you will share?
Thanks; Pastor Ray

Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 185 Location: Boulder,Colorado

I'm also interested in a BP load for the 16 ga. It would be great for Vintage shoots or surprising the H out of a grouse.

Hello
I need to ask some questions first, please.

Will you be loading all brass or plastic hulls?
If all brass, what brand? I use CBC/MAGTECH.
For plastic, I use Federal purple hulls Very Happy

Will you be using fiber/horsehair filler wads or do you wish to use plastic wads?

One more question, in what guns will y'all be shooting these?

Short chambered guns? 2.5 inch or 2 9/16 or 2 3/4?
Damascus/Twist/Laminated or Fluid?

Anything would be helpful.

Thanks
Mike

Member Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 425 Location: Maine

A load I've used in a modern 2 3/4" 16g single shot:
Federal case
any primer
80 grains F, or FF
.135 over powder cards X2
1 oz. shot

May need to adjust shot column height with fibre wad, or puffed rice.
Don't try to re-use plastic hulls after BP.

Some 16 ga loads half way down the page. HTH Bob
http://www.tbullock.com/bpsg.html

Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 185 Location: Boulder,Colorado

Skeet Tx: My plan is to reload with plastic Fiochhi shells using plastic wads...IF THIS IS POSSIBLE. I really know nothing about black powder reloading. I would shoot these through a damacus barrelled SxS. Chambers are 2 1/2" .

thanks for your input !

Thnuderstick

Thunderstick, Not enough room for the powder if you use plastic wads. BP is very bulky compared to smokeless. Plastic wads will also melt due to the higher temp. of BP. You'll want to get some fiber wads from Circle Fly. Plastic hulls will work for 1-2 reloads then they burn through the sides.
http://www.circlefly.com/

Hello
Thunderstick, I am presently reloading Black Powder in plastic hulls with plastic wads in 2.5 inch.

Here is my process,

Federal hull cut to 2.5 inches,

Size and primer with Winchester 209 primer.

I use a Lee dipper 3.4CC which is nominaly 50 grains of F Black.

For a wad I use the Gualandi TUWG1816 16 Ga Super G Mini Wad.
Precision Reloading 1-800-223-0900 has them.
I just bought 2000 wads for 69.98 which included shipping

Add a Cherrio to the bottom of the wad

Use the same Lee dipper 3.4CC for shot.

Use a 16 guage Circle Fly over shot wad and glue in with Elmer's school glue

I do not re-use plastic hulls after they have been used with black powder.

Hope this helps.

PLEASE let us know how this works out for you !!

Enjoy the day

Mike

Hello All

Just got back from the skeet range. Shot two rounds of skeet with the 16 ga sxs, one round with a Win 1912 20 gauge, and two rounds with a Win 42.

I was using a W. Richards, under lever, hammer sxs gun.
All went well. I did have to lead the birds a bit more than with faster loads.

I might try not adding the Cherrio and going up to 7/8 oz of shot and using 60 grains of black. But the gun liked the old soft load if I did my part Very Happy

Anyone else shoot black today?

Now it is off for an evening quail hunt , ta ta

Enjoy the day
Mike

Joined: 23 Jun 2005 Posts: 185 Location: Boulder,Colorado

Thanks for all the help, guys ! I'm not able to try reloading the BP until after my move at the end of March, but I'll get set up and give it a go then. I 'm thinking I'll make just a handful of shells with plastic wads and a handful with fiber wads and see how they perform. I kinda like Skeettx's light load Wink

so I don't go planting meself on me hindquarters Surprised

Is it just me, or are others suffering from cabinfever also ?

Joined: 29 Jan 2009 Posts: 31 Location: N. FL

Here's a pretty complete treatise on loading black powder shells and some loads for 16's are in there. http://www.tbullock.com/bpsg.html
About the only thing I'd differ with him on is the melting plastic. I've been shooting black powder in shotshells and muzzle loaders for many years. Never saw any melted wads or hulls. I use a 28ga flintlock fowler with plastic wads for squirrels and some clay bird shooting. Also loaded for my old Parker Damascus for a long while with plastic.. no problems. Your mileage may differ Confused

.

Great fun to keep these old guys out there shooting.

Greg

Skeetx has hit on one of the basic guideline when loading shot with black powder. Use equal volumes of shot and powder thrown from the same size measure. This guideline seems to work well in both beechloaders and muzzleloaders. I've never had it explained why it works, but I've witnessed the results and know it does.

Most shotshells do not have enough capacity for modern one piece plastic wads. However, you could use a basic plastic shot cup and the right thickness card wads under it or a plastic under powder gas check wad. Or, you could cut the shotcup and wad base of a one piece wad away from the compression legs or section. This amounts to the same thing by shortening shot/wad/powder column enough top fit into the hull.

You will also gain some capacity if you roll crimp these loads. This means buying uncrimped virgin hulls, a roll crimping tool, some over shot wads, and a shell vise. Roll crimping might not be requiired for target ammo, but it probably will be for more effective and heavier hunting loads.

Some folks simply seat in then glue an overshot wad in place with Elmer's glue. If the method produces enough resistance or "pull" to get good ingnition and a clean burn, then it might work.

Contrary to some opinions, black powder needs to be confined a bit to help it combust efficiently. If there is not enough pull, the back part of the charge will blow some of the top part out with the shot. True, black powder is an explosive which simply means it burns with a rapid but constant rate of combustion. It is a low grade explosive which combusts from the flash point to the end of the column if it is packed in a shotshell. a good crimp is required to allow the powder enough time to do so.

Hello All,

A freind brought his under lever hammer gun over to the house to have his chambers measured. His is a 2.5 inch chamber as we suspected. Well something triggered a flash in my brain and I went in and got my under lever hammer gun and measured the chambers, HMMMM 2.75 inch, WOW!!

SOOO, I gave him my already cut off Federal 2.5 inch hulls and loaded some 2.75 black powder loads.

Here is my process,

Federal hull , size and primer with Winchester 209 primer.

I use a Lee dipper 4.0CC which is nominaly 55 grains of F Black.

For a wad I use the Gualandi TUWG1816 16 Ga Super G Mini Wad.
Precision Reloading 1-800-223-0900 has them.
I just bought 2000 wads for 69.98 which included shipping
http://www.precisionreloading.com/2004catalog.htm

Wad pressure 30+ pounds.

Use the same Lee dipper 4.0CC for shot.

6 Star crimp as normal.

I do not re-use plastic hulls after they have been used with black powder.

Enjoy the day

Mike

Joined: 16 Nov 2006 Posts: 367

Get a "Dixie GunWorks catalog, in the back pages there a loads for various blackpowder shotshell. use those as a starter.