The earliest firearms were made of three essential components; the lock, stock, and barrel. The lock is the ignition source that ignites the gunpowder, the stock is usually a carved piece of wood that holds the parts in alignment, and the barrel is essentially a closed pipe that contains the powder, projectile, and pressure of the explosion. Although there are lock designs that predate the flintlock, that is where we will begin our journey in the use of blackpowder as a bullet propellant. Blackpowder is made from saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur. When mixed in the correct proportions, they form what is now know as blackpowder, which is a class A explosive. For most practical shooting, blackpowder was replaced by the newer smokeless powders at the end of the nineteenth century. The most common shooting use of blackpowder today is during the muzzle-loading hunting season, cowboy action shooting, frontier rendezvous, hobby shooters, and for those who own antique firearms that cannot handle the higher pressure of smokeless powder.
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This is a typical caplock muzzle-loading pistol that was made from an affordable pistol kit. Click on the photo to see an enlarged version of the photo. In the enlarged version, you can see the copper percussion cap in the area where the hammer would fall. This cap ignites the powder charge. | ||
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Prior to about 1836, all firearms were muzzle-loaders. Muzzle-loading firearms have their barrels plugged at the breech end and are loaded down the barrel from the muzzle. A measured amount of blackpowder is poured down the barrel, a round lead ball is partially wrapped in a lubricated patch of linen, and the ball is rammed down the barrel with the ramrod. It is important that the ball be rammed all the way down until it has compressed the powder a little. Air spaces between blackpowder and the projectile are known as a short start and may cause the gun to explode. A flintlock muzzle-loader has its powder ignited by a lock that contains a pan of powder, a flint for producing sparks, and a hinged frizzen to protect the powder until being fired. When a flintlock is fired, the sparks from the flint ignite flashpowder in the pan, which flashes through a touchhole in the barrel, and ignites the gunpowder in the breech. If the powder in the pan ignites, but fails to ignite the powder in the barrel, it is known as a flash in the pan. A caplock ignition system uses a small explosive cap that is struck by the hammer. The cap forces sparks through a hole in the breech and ignites the powder. With a charge in the breech, the shooter either places a percussion cap on a caplock firearm or or places flashpowder in the pan if it is a flintlock firearm. |
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| Blackpowder carries a series of the letter "F" to designate special characteristics. The finest and fastest burning blackpowder is FFFFg, or four F. Four F powder is used exclusively to prime the pan of a flintlock. Unless you intend to shoot a flintlock rifle or pistol, you should not be using this powder. Triple F or FFFg powder is a fast burning powder that is used for shooting smaller pistols up to around .44 caliber. I also like to use this powder in reloading cartridges for both handguns and rifles. Pyrodex uses a different rating and their equivalent of triple f powder is labeled as "P" for pistol powder. Double F, or FFg powder is used for large caliber pistols of about .44 or above and for use with rifles. Pyrodex labels their equivalent powder with a "R" for rifles. It burns slower and longer in order to allow provide more consistent pressures with longer barrels and heavier bullets. I like using the FF blackpowder or Pyrodex R for shotgun shells. Single F, or Fg powder is not normally used and is primarily intended for use in cannons. | |||
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These two photographs illustrate the differences between caplock (left) and flintlock (right) ignition systems. The flintlock predates the Revolutionary War while the caplock was used from about 1815 through the rest of the century. |
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| With the gun loaded and charged, it is pointed toward the target and the trigger is pulled. The blackpowder muzzle-loader will shoot like any other firearm, but you may experience a little of what is known a lock time delay, which is particularly noticeable with flintlocks. This delay is caused by a combination of the slower locks on these firearms and the slower burning powders. Blackpowder burns slower than smokeless powder and generates lower pressures. This can cause a slight delay in getting the bullet up to speed and usually generates a lower recoil when compared to firing a gun with the equivalent bullet energy at the end of the muzzle. | |||
| Shooting real blackpowder is getting rather rare now days. Blackpowder is classified as an explosive and is sometimes hard to find and to own in some communities. This is not a problem to most blackpowder shooters, because several companies are marketing substitutes. Products like Pyrodex, Clean Shot, Clear Shot, and Triple se7en ((Triple Seven) are substitutes that are not classified as explosives and may be shipped and stored like any other smokeless gunpowder. Lets take a quick look at each of these remarkable substitutes. | |||
| Hodgdon Pyrodex is actually blackpowder with an additive to convert it to a propellant instead of an explosive. It works in caplock guns, percussion revolvers, shotgun shells, and metallic cartridges. It is not sensitive enough to be shot in a flintlock unless a few grains of real blackpowder is first put down the barrel to help with ignition. Pyrodex will boom and smoke just like real blackpowder. Cleaning of the gun parts must be done soon after shooting or corrosion will damage the steel. I find that Windex window cleaner and hot water work well for cleaning either Pyrodex or real blackpowder. I prefer to only use Pyrodex in shotgun shells because it is difficult to clean and quite corrosive. Using Pyrodex or real blackpowder requires the use of a lubed patch in a muzzle-loading gun or a lubricant such as a 50/50 mix of Crisco and beeswax in the form of a cookie for percussion revolvers and cartridges. The bore of the gun should be cleaned about every five shots to prevent the buildup of powder deposits. | |||
| Hodgdon triple se7en (777) is marketed to the hunter who uses one of the modern in-line blackpowder hunting rifles. My experience is that it is about twenty-five percent more powerful than real blackpowder or the other blackpowder substitutes. It is not sensitive enough to be shot in a flintlock unless a few grains of real blackpowder is first put down the barrel to help with ignition. It measures easily and cleans easily with water. It is not as corrosive to steel as blackpowder or Pyrodex, but still should be cleaned from the gun within a few days. I have used it in my 51 Navy revolvers and gone two weeks without cleaning and I saw no corrosion problems. This powder is very corrosive to brass, however. I use it without lubricants and have shot thirty rounds through my guns without any loss of accuracy. This powder puts out a fair amount of smoke, but does not boom like blackpowder. | |||
| Clean Shot, which may now be sold as American Pioneer Powder. This is my favorite powder and I use it in all of my competition firearms. Its coarseness causes it to not meter as well as other powders, but it cleans up very easily with plain water. It is not sensitive enough to be used in a flintlock unless a few grains of real blackpowder is first put down the barrel to help with ignition. It is not as corrosive to steel as blackpowder or Pyrodex, but still should be cleaned from the gun within a few days. I use it in all of my guns and have often gone a couple of weeks without cleaning and I experienced no problems. This powder is very corrosive to brass, however. This powder puts out a lot of smoke and it tends to boom about the same as true blackpowder. It provides its own lubricant and I have easily shot over a hundred rounds through my rifles without having to clean them. | |||
| Goex Clear Shot, was one of my favorite powders until it was discontinued in 2001. Its meters as well as other powders and it cleans up very easily with plain water. It is not sensitive enough to be used in a flintlock unless a few grains of real blackpowder is first put down the barrel to help with ignition. It is not as corrosive to steel as blackpowder or Pyrodex, but still should be cleaned from the gun within a few days. I used to use it in all of my guns and have often gone a couple of weeks without cleaning and I experienced no corrosion problems. This powder is very corrosive to brass, however. This powder puts out a lot of smoke and it tends to boom about the same as true blackpowder, but seems to be a little lower in power. It provides its own lubricant as it burns. | |||
| Samuel Colt changed the firearms world when he began selling the ill-fated Paterson revolver in 1836. Overly complex and difficult to shoot, it provided its owner with the ability to shoot five times without reloading. It takes about thirty seconds for an experienced shooter to reload a muzzle-loading single shot weapon so five shots in a row was revolutionary. Colt's new company failed and went out of business until 1847, when a Texas Ranger named Samuel Walker convinced Colt to redesign the old Paterson to make it bigger, heavier, more powerful, and faster to load. The result was the 1847 Colt Walker revolver that began a revolution in firearms. | |||
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At left are the .44 caliber 1847 Colt Walker revolver (top) and the .36 caliber Colt 1851 Navy revolver (bottom). The Walker saw service in the war between Texas and Mexico in 1847. The 51 Navy is the gun carried by Wild Bill Hickock . Note the loading levers under the barrels. | ||
| The blackpowder revolver is loaded by using a loading lever located under the barrel. With the barrel pointed up and the hammer in the half-cock position, a measured amount of powder is poured into one of the chambers, a round lead ball is placed on the top of the chamber and rotated under the rammer, and the loading lever is pulled down to press the lead ball into the chamber and seat the ball directly on the powder. A small ring of lead should be shaved off as the ball is seated in the chamber. After all six chambers have been loaded, a ball of grease is put on top of each ball to seal each chamber and to provide a lubricant for the ball as it travels down the barrel. This grease is not necessary if using Clean Shot, Clear Shot, or Triple Seven powder since these each produce their own lubricant. With the chambers charged, a percussion cap is carefully pressed on each nipple on the hammer end of the chambers and the cylinder is rotated so the hammer can be carefully lowered into a safety notch between the nipples. On caplock revolvers that do not have safety notches, then you should only load and cap five of the chambers and let the hammer rest on the unloaded chamber. | |||
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Metallic cartridges came into use around the time of the Civil War. Smith & Wesson held the patent on the bored through cylinder so other makers of revolvers had to wait until around 1872 to produce revolvers for these new cartridges. An innovative way of getting around the patent allowed many of the Civil War caplock revolvers were converted to use the new metallic cartridges during and after the war. In 1873, both Colt and Winchester introduced new center fire cartridge firearms that were loaded with blackpowder. Blackpowder would be used as the only bullet propellant until the introduction of smokeless powder around the end of the 1800s. I believe the first rifle that was specifically designed to be strong enough for the new smokeless powder was the 1894 Winchester designed by John Browning. |
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| Blackpowder did not go away because someone invented smokeless powder. The guns designed before the invention of the more powerful smokeless powders simply are not strong enough to use the new powder and had to be loaded with blackpowder cartridges or greatly modified for use with the new powders. | |||
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At left is a replica of the brass frame 1863 Remington New Army revolver that was used during the Civil War. This one is a cartridge conversion that chambers the modern .45 ACP cartridge and is used to shoot blackpowder cartridges in SASS Cowboy Action Shooting competition. This revolver is similar to many of the guns that were converted for cartridge use shortly after the Civil War. | ||
| Loading blackpowder in metallic cartridges is not difficult. Blackpowder and Pyrodex requires some rather complex bullet lubes and methods that are a bit beyond the scope of this primer. Lead bullets must have their wax lube removed by cooking them in an oven at 300 degrees to melt the wax. The bullets must be liberally coated with a lubricant such as SPG or a 50/50 mix of beeswax and Crisco. SPG lube is commercially available, but you must mix the flammable beeswax and Crisco in a hot pan and then pour the mix over clean lead bullets. After the solution cools, you remove the lead bullets from the hardened solution. The lubed bullets may now be loaded into the cartridges following the instructions listed below if they are being used for a pistol. Fill the cartridge with the powder to line representing about a sixteenth of an inch of powder compression and seat the bullet in the cartridge. Never allow an air gap to exist between the powder and the bullet as this may cause the gun to explode. | |||
| If you are loading for a rifle, it will be necessary to add additional lube cookie between the powder and bullet. This is done by creating a thin sheet of lube and using an old cartridge case to cut out lube disks like cutting cookie dough. When loading with this combination of lube and powder, it is advisable to cut a wax paper disk from a milk carton to separate the powder from the lubricant. The load is assembled by pouring the powder into the casing, add the wax wad, add the grease cookie, insert the bullet into the casing creating about a sixteenth of an inch of powder compression and seat the bullet in the cartridge. Never allow an air gap to exist between the powder and the bullet as this may cause the gun to explode. This is not rocket science, but I recommend you do more research before loading real blackpowder into cartridges. | |||
| Loading the substitute powders like Clean Shot, Clear Shot, or Triple se7en (Triple Seven) is much easier. Most substitute powders produce their own lubricant while they burn, and are used with lead bullets with wax lube. Most of the substitute powders work best when they are compressed about a sixteenth of an inch. Assuming that you are loading for a modern firearm, simply measure the point of the cartridge that is about a sixteenth of an inch above the point of the base of the bullet when it is seated in the cartridge. Fill the cartridge with the substitute powder to that line representing about a sixteenth of an inch of powder compression and seat the bullet in the cartridge. Never allow an air gap to exist between the powder and the bullet as this may cause the gun to explode. Regardless of the powder used, fired cartridge casings should be immediately put into a solution of water and liquid dishwashing soap for a few hours before cleaning. This solution will help neutralize and make cleaning the brass much easier. | |||
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Twelve Gauge Shot-shell reloading components. Clockwise from top; two plastic hulls, two plastic wads with shot cups, three primers, 1 1/8 ounces of number 8 shot, a .25 over-powder wad, and two half inch cushion wads. These various components are mentioned in this article and it is helpful to see them illustrated. Click on the thumbnail to see the enlarged version. | ||
| There are two ways to load shotgun shells with blackpowder. The first makes use of a .25 inch over-powder wad and a .5 inch fiber cushion wad. I only load shot-shells for cowboy action shooting so they are loaded for relatively high power with number 8 shot. Starting with a primed hull, I will load between fifty and ninety grains of powder, insert the over-powder wad, add the cushion wad, add 1 1/8 ounces of shot, and crimp the hull closed. I adjust the powder volume to allow this column to work in a particular hull. The other method of loading shot-shells is to put in about 50 grains of blackpowder, add a plastic wad with an integrated shot cup, add the 1 1/8 ounce of shot, and crimp the shell in a way that the wad collapses to the correct spacing. The use of plastic wads works well with the blackpowder substitutes, but the hotter burning of true blackpowder tends to melt the plastic wad and causes it to adhere to the inside of the barrel. | |||
| Safety notes: Follow the gun maker or the powder makers recommendations for the firearm you are using. Blackpowder and substitutes are measured by volume and not weight. Blackpowder dippers are available for establishing volume. Use only a powder dispenser designed specifically for blackpowder. These are usually of brass design and have no plastic components. Never fire a caplock revolver with a charged, but uncapped nipple. I recommend that people not attempt to shoot blackpowder in any kind of semi-automatic weapon or in modern double-action revolvers. These guns tend to be built with close tolerances that do not lend themselves to the powder fouling of blackpowder or modern substitutes. | |||
| This has been a simple primer on shooting blackpowder firearms. Blackpowder firearms can be very dangerous in the hands of someone who is not familiar with their safe operation. Please learn from an experienced blackpowder shooter and read some of the very good books available on the safe shooting of blackpowder firearms. Shooting a blackpowder firearm on a public range will usually result in other shooters asking to fire a shot. These guns are a curiosity and many people are fascinated by the sights and sounds of blackpowder firearms being used. Be ready for the questions and the curious. | |||
