About black powder balls.

Detonator · November 20, 2015, 05:01 PM

Hi,

The gunsmith just finished with my .62 rifle. He supplied me with .61 balls.

These balls are crappy. The sprue is too long, or it digs a hole in the ball. I know I can file them smooth, but at this diameter, there is no hope of getting round enough ammo that way.

I looked all over for swaged .61 balls, but no .61 swages seem to exist. I tried asking around to find someone who can make me a custom swager. No luck.

Any suggestions out there?

Detonate

hartcreek · November 20, 2015, 06:28 PM

Look at Lees site and see what they have. If they do not have a mold in that size they can make you one. You can also purchase mold blanks and have your local machine shop do the drilling.

JT-AR-MG42 · November 20, 2015, 06:34 PM

Do not quite understand what you mean by 'digs a hole in the ball'.

If the sprue was sheared too soon, before the lead was cool enough, I guess it could tear the ball.
No voids that you can see though, right?

No ideas on making a round ball swage.
If you really want the sprues pounded in, you could put them in a rock tumbler - no media - (not a vibrating case cleaner) and let them pound in that way.
It will round them out just fine.

JT

Salmoneye · November 21, 2015, 07:39 AM

Dunno what the issue is, but all my life we have loaded round balls by laying them on the patch sprue up...

mehavey · November 21, 2015, 08:39 AM

The sprue itself is no issue.
Lay it face up on the patch before seating in the muzzle.
(But if you're shooting an oddball like a .61 rifle, you must have played this game before) [?]

Send a picture if you will.

Go here:
http://www.trackofthewolf.com/list/item.aspx/127/3
They are cast -- and will have sprues as is totally normal -- but you'll have a standard.

g.willikers · November 21, 2015, 09:04 AM

Yeah, you'd think that a big fat sprue sticking up would cause all kinds of havoc with accuracy.
But, when I used to attend muzzle loading rifle matches, most folks used plain ole' home made balls like that.
Didn't seem to hurt a thing in spite of how they look.
And those folks tend to get real upset if their shootin' irons can't put holes in their targets that are at least all touching.

BillM · November 21, 2015, 09:27 AM

Quote:

I know I can file them smooth, but at this diameter, there is no hope of getting round enough ammo that way.

I'm curious---would you please define what you consider "round enough"?

I've never given it much thought---always just taken what the mould
dropped, adjusted patching material to get the fit I wanted, and played
a bit with powder charge to find the accuracy sweet spot. Always sprue
up and centered, and if it was really knobby I would smack it a few with
the butt of my patch knife.

Pahoo · November 21, 2015, 11:31 AM

Quote:

Do not quite understand what you mean by 'digs a hole in the ball'.

Same here and I would only be guessing as to what he has. As others have mentioned, RB's are very forgiving and the sprue should not be a problem. If you have a long sprue, then whittle some away and gently tape around the edges, with a spoon. I have also read about folks laying them in a cast iron pan and put them on the car trunk floor and just let then roll around a bit. As far as loading sprue up, it's easier to center in the bore that sprue down. Every spring or fall, I run a lot of RB's. I do about three separate tests and reject a large number of them, too large. Have to admit that I prefer the swaged as they pass all of my tests. .....

Don't give up and;.
Be Safe !!!

wogpotter · November 21, 2015, 11:36 AM

Do you have a tumbler?
If so tumble them with no media.

November 20, 2015, 05:01 PM	#1
Detonator Junior Member Join Date: November 14, 2012 Posts: 3	About black powder balls. Hi, The gunsmith just finished with my .62 rifle. He supplied me with .61 balls. These balls are crappy. The sprue is too long, or it digs a hole in the ball. I know I can file them smooth, but at this diameter, there is no hope of getting round enough ammo that way. I looked all over for swaged .61 balls, but no .61 swages seem to exist. I tried asking around to find someone who can make me a custom swager. No luck. Any suggestions out there? Detonate

November 21, 2015, 09:04 AM	#6
g.willikers Senior Member Join Date: September 28, 2008 Posts: 10,442	Yeah, you'd think that a big fat sprue sticking up would cause all kinds of havoc with accuracy. But, when I used to attend muzzle loading rifle matches, most folks used plain ole' home made balls like that. Didn't seem to hurt a thing in spite of how they look. And those folks tend to get real upset if their shootin' irons can't put holes in their targets that are at least all touching. __________________ Walt Kelly, alias Pogo, sez: “Don't take life so serious, son, it ain't nohow permanent.”

November 21, 2015, 11:36 AM	#9
wogpotter Senior Member Join Date: September 27, 2004 Posts: 4,811	Do you have a tumbler? If so tumble them with no media. __________________ Allan Quatermain: “Automatic rifles. Who in God's name has automatic rifles”? Elderly Hunter: “That's dashed unsporting. Probably Belgium.”

November 20, 2015, 06:28 PM	#2
hartcreek Junior member Join Date: April 22, 2014 Location: Washington Posts: 1,549	Look at Lees site and see what they have. If they do not have a mold in that size they can make you one. You can also purchase mold blanks and have your local machine shop do the drilling.

November 20, 2015, 06:34 PM	#3
JT-AR-MG42 Senior Member Join Date: December 27, 2008 Posts: 555	Do not quite understand what you mean by 'digs a hole in the ball'. If the sprue was sheared too soon, before the lead was cool enough, I guess it could tear the ball. No voids that you can see though, right? No ideas on making a round ball swage. If you really want the sprues pounded in, you could put them in a rock tumbler - no media - (not a vibrating case cleaner) and let them pound in that way. It will round them out just fine. JT

November 21, 2015, 07:39 AM	#4
Salmoneye Senior Member Join Date: December 31, 2011 Location: Vermont Posts: 2,076	Dunno what the issue is, but all my life we have loaded round balls by laying them on the patch sprue up...

November 21, 2015, 08:39 AM	#5
mehavey Senior Member Join Date: June 17, 2010 Location: Virginia Posts: 6,886	The sprue itself is no issue. Lay it face up on the patch before seating in the muzzle. (But if you're shooting an oddball like a .61 rifle, you must have played this game before) [?] Send a picture if you will. Go here: http://www.trackofthewolf.com/list/item.aspx/127/3 They are cast -- and will have sprues as is totally normal -- but you'll have a standard.