Keeping a Cap and Ball Pistol Loaded Long Term

simonkenton · May 6, 2009, 06:29 PM

I have had this pistol loaded in the house for a little over 3 years.

Yes it is the Uberti Cattleman. I use 28 grains of Goex fffg, a .457 ball, and CCI number 11 caps.
The ejection mechanism has been removed, don't need it with cap and ball, and the gun handles better without it.

I live in the humid North Carolina mountains in a little log cabin. I only have a window unit a/c, and don't use it much. It is humid inside my house 6 months of the year.
I keep the pistol in this drawer.

I took the pistol out and fired it today. As no surprise to me, it fired fine, all five cylinders. It had normal power, and blasted right through 2 inches of pine.

I have a Pietta 1860 Army that I have left loaded for 2 years, and it also fired fine.
No corrosion in the cylinders of either gun.
I use no wax or grease on top of the ball, nothing on the cap either.
I don't see how moisture can get past the cap, or the ball, unless you dunk the pistol in a bucket of water.

long rider · May 6, 2009, 06:36 PM

Are the p/caps 3 yrs to?:

CaptainCrossman · May 6, 2009, 06:38 PM

nice gun- there was a thread somewhere on the boards, a guy bought one, and got a Colt 45 cartridge cylinder for it, converted it to 45 Colt and shoots cowboy loads from it- the local gun store here has one for sale, $245- it's beckoning to me. That gun sorta does it "all"- easy cartridge conversion, topstrap, and it's a Colt pattern with the classic balance and grips of a SAA 1873

I used to keep my Remington 1858 loaded next to the bed, then I got married, had a kid- so one July 4th night, fired it off into the woods and unloaded it. Didn't want to risk it getting knocked down or my kid playing with it, and an accident happening. Kept all 6 loaded with hammer on safety notch in cylinder, and greased for chainfire prevention with Crisco- the grease never ran out.

hit an intruder with that big round ball, he's goin' DOWN !

but I'd wager just the sight of that 6-gun would make 'em freeze in their tracks, and then run like hell.

Hawg · May 6, 2009, 06:41 PM

Quote:

easy cartridge conversion

Not easy but doable. The firing pin is offset.

simonkenton · May 6, 2009, 06:47 PM

The caps had been loaded on that cylinder for 3 years, but, they are 6 years old.
However, my brother came up here last month with his old pistol, he hadn't fired it in 30 years, believe it or not!
He had a box of CCI caps that he had bought in 1978.
We loaded his gun up with his powder and primers and it fired fine, 30 shots without a misfire.
My conclusion is that you can keep a cap and ball pistol loaded just about indefinitely, and it will fire when called upon.

long rider · May 6, 2009, 06:49 PM

COOL.

Raider2000 · May 6, 2009, 08:04 PM

Very nice report, I had done a similar thing but with a Pietta 1860 Army about 20 some odd years ago & I had written an article a while ago where you could keep one loaded with a little extra sealing to prevent any moisture intrusion "short of going swimming with it that is" but you had proven that even that isn't really necessary if kept inside the home.

simonkenton · May 6, 2009, 08:13 PM

Raider what is the longest that you have kept a cap and ball pistol loaded?

Bigbadgun · May 7, 2009, 02:59 PM

I have read that peopel have found old enfields in barns that had been loaded for 150 years and still fired so I dont know. I figure the life expectancy of bp is 150 years and 3 days.

MacGille · May 7, 2009, 05:53 PM

i was in a friends house one day in the 60s, he had bought an old musketoon at an auction. He was sitting in his living room and put a cap on the nipple. We were both VERY SURPRISED when he blasted a large hole in his front door. Apparently the gun had been loaded for about 140 + - years.

Smokin_Gun · May 7, 2009, 05:58 PM

HOLEy Sheet! Did he put a Porthole window in it?
Bet that was a surprize... :O)

Raider2000 · May 7, 2009, 07:53 PM

The longest was 7 years once.

It was a ASM 1851 Navy .44 caliber that I had gotten from a bud that was not the sharpest tool in the shed when it come to maintenence, I kept it clean & it shot great but was never my favorite pistol "my historical correct side grrr" & well long story short I had loaded it up in 1999 & me keeping it in the back of the safe made it become sad & lonely on a many a days till 2006 when I was cleaning out the safe & well this thing needs to be emptied...

Each chamber reported just like I had loaded it up that mornin & the felt recoil was just the same as well.

Jbar4Ranch · May 7, 2009, 11:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaptainCrossman

there was a thread somewhere on the boards, a guy bought one, and got a Colt 45 cartridge cylinder for it, converted it to 45 Colt and shoots cowboy loads from it

Like Hawg already said, it's doable, but it's not something your average gun tinkerer can undertake. I had one of these that I attempted to convert by installing a .45 Colt cylinder, a centerfire firing pin in the hammer, and egging the hole in the recoil shield to the side just enough for the firing pin to work. I stepped outside with two rounds in the cylinder, thumbed the hammer back, and let one go. It went bang, and the recoil felt a little... odd. I opened the loading gate and found both rounds empty and missing their primers... The egged out hole in the recoil shield allowed the primer from the first round to blow back and swage itself through the oversize hole, recock the hammer, and drop it on the next round, repeating the process as long as the trigger was held back. ATF refers to this as a sub machine gun. Two solutions are to weld up the existing off center hole and drill a new one for the centerfire firing pin, or ream the existing hole out large enough to install and fit a centerfire bushing. My solution was to reinstall the off center firing pin and original percussion cylinder then buy more percussion caps.

This revolver was once left loaded and capped for four full years with the only thing done before firing it being to refresh the Bore Butter in the chamber mouths, as it had shrunk up considerably. Just as with the OP's gun, it went bang all six times with no problems.

tiberius10721 · May 9, 2009, 03:05 PM

I leave my uberti remmy loaded all the time never had any problems when I take it out and fire it!Keep it in my night stand as my main self defense weapon.Take it traveling with me in the back of my car with the cylinder loaded but removed from the gun.

Dingoboyx · May 9, 2009, 03:21 PM

Wow, It looks just like a Vaquaro to me. It has a loading gate and everything very tricky

I guess you open the gate to cap the nipples? Haven't seen one of those before

However, as long as the powder doesn't get damp or the gun be left in sunlight for a long period, it should be fine for years. Powder is pretty resiliant, the navy had to disarm mines floating in the sea for years after WW11 even tho they were rusty, barnacle covered and generally RS, they still would go off.... same for the army digging up landmines and old munitions that have been buried for years (even in mud)

So yes, IMO, you could leave a C&B revolver loaded.... indefinately, really

May 6, 2009, 06:29 PM	#1
simonkenton Senior Member Join Date: April 25, 2008 Posts: 891	Keeping a Cap and Ball Pistol Loaded Long Term I have had this pistol loaded in the house for a little over 3 years. Yes it is the Uberti Cattleman. I use 28 grains of Goex fffg, a .457 ball, and CCI number 11 caps. The ejection mechanism has been removed, don't need it with cap and ball, and the gun handles better without it. I live in the humid North Carolina mountains in a little log cabin. I only have a window unit a/c, and don't use it much. It is humid inside my house 6 months of the year. I keep the pistol in this drawer. I took the pistol out and fired it today. As no surprise to me, it fired fine, all five cylinders. It had normal power, and blasted right through 2 inches of pine. I have a Pietta 1860 Army that I have left loaded for 2 years, and it also fired fine. No corrosion in the cylinders of either gun. I use no wax or grease on top of the ball, nothing on the cap either. I don't see how moisture can get past the cap, or the ball, unless you dunk the pistol in a bucket of water. Last edited by simonkenton; May 6, 2009 at 06:39 PM.

May 6, 2009, 06:36 PM	#2
long rider Senior Member Join Date: January 8, 2008 Posts: 669	Are the p/caps 3 yrs to?: __________________ Sod Buster Tried To Pull On Willson.

May 6, 2009, 06:49 PM	#6
long rider Senior Member Join Date: January 8, 2008 Posts: 669	COOL. __________________ Sod Buster Tried To Pull On Willson.

May 7, 2009, 02:59 PM	#9
Bigbadgun Junior Member Join Date: February 14, 2008 Posts: 9	I have read that peopel have found old enfields in barns that had been loaded for 150 years and still fired so I dont know. I figure the life expectancy of bp is 150 years and 3 days. __________________ The website has changed but the leather has not. www.bbgcustomleather.com "Are you gonna pull those pistols or whistle dixie." "When guns are outlawed only outlaws will have guns."

May 7, 2009, 05:53 PM	#10
MacGille Senior Member Join Date: July 6, 2006 Location: Planet Earth Posts: 976	i was in a friends house one day in the 60s, he had bought an old musketoon at an auction. He was sitting in his living room and put a cap on the nipple. We were both VERY SURPRISED when he blasted a large hole in his front door. Apparently the gun had been loaded for about 140 + - years. __________________ If ye love wealth better than Liberty, the tranquillity of servitude than the animated contest of Freedom, go from us in Peace. We ask not your counsel or Arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen. --Samuel Adams--<*ixoye><

May 6, 2009, 06:38 PM	#3
CaptainCrossman Junior member Join Date: April 2, 2009 Posts: 381	nice gun- there was a thread somewhere on the boards, a guy bought one, and got a Colt 45 cartridge cylinder for it, converted it to 45 Colt and shoots cowboy loads from it- the local gun store here has one for sale, $245- it's beckoning to me. That gun sorta does it "all"- easy cartridge conversion, topstrap, and it's a Colt pattern with the classic balance and grips of a SAA 1873 I used to keep my Remington 1858 loaded next to the bed, then I got married, had a kid- so one July 4th night, fired it off into the woods and unloaded it. Didn't want to risk it getting knocked down or my kid playing with it, and an accident happening. Kept all 6 loaded with hammer on safety notch in cylinder, and greased for chainfire prevention with Crisco- the grease never ran out. hit an intruder with that big round ball, he's goin' DOWN ! but I'd wager just the sight of that 6-gun would make 'em freeze in their tracks, and then run like hell.

May 6, 2009, 06:47 PM	#5
simonkenton Senior Member Join Date: April 25, 2008 Posts: 891	The caps had been loaded on that cylinder for 3 years, but, they are 6 years old. However, my brother came up here last month with his old pistol, he hadn't fired it in 30 years, believe it or not! He had a box of CCI caps that he had bought in 1978. We loaded his gun up with his powder and primers and it fired fine, 30 shots without a misfire. My conclusion is that you can keep a cap and ball pistol loaded just about indefinitely, and it will fire when called upon.

May 6, 2009, 08:04 PM	#7
Raider2000 Senior Member Join Date: July 23, 2007 Location: Virginia Posts: 719	Very nice report, I had done a similar thing but with a Pietta 1860 Army about 20 some odd years ago & I had written an article a while ago where you could keep one loaded with a little extra sealing to prevent any moisture intrusion "short of going swimming with it that is" but you had proven that even that isn't really necessary if kept inside the home.

May 6, 2009, 08:13 PM	#8
simonkenton Senior Member Join Date: April 25, 2008 Posts: 891	Raider what is the longest that you have kept a cap and ball pistol loaded?

May 7, 2009, 05:58 PM	#11
Smokin_Gun Senior Member Join Date: December 4, 2005 Location: Mojave Desert, CA Posts: 1,195	HOLEy Sheet! Did he put a Porthole window in it? Bet that was a surprize... :O) __________________ "I Smoke Black Powder" "Favor an 1858 Remington" SGT. Smokin' Gun, Mosby's Rangers 43rd Virginia Cavalry C.S.A. SASS# 19634, ... Admin:http://blackpowdersmoke.com/oldcoots/index.php

May 7, 2009, 07:53 PM	#12
Raider2000 Senior Member Join Date: July 23, 2007 Location: Virginia Posts: 719	The longest was 7 years once. It was a ASM 1851 Navy .44 caliber that I had gotten from a bud that was not the sharpest tool in the shed when it come to maintenence, I kept it clean & it shot great but was never my favorite pistol "my historical correct side grrr" & well long story short I had loaded it up in 1999 & me keeping it in the back of the safe made it become sad & lonely on a many a days till 2006 when I was cleaning out the safe & well this thing needs to be emptied... Each chamber reported just like I had loaded it up that mornin & the felt recoil was just the same as well.

May 9, 2009, 03:05 PM	#14
tiberius10721 Junior member Join Date: December 22, 2008 Posts: 228	I leave my uberti remmy loaded all the time never had any problems when I take it out and fire it!Keep it in my night stand as my main self defense weapon.Take it traveling with me in the back of my car with the cylinder loaded but removed from the gun.

May 9, 2009, 03:21 PM	#15
Dingoboyx Senior Member Join Date: March 7, 2009 Location: South East Queensland, Australia Posts: 1,513	That is a cap & ball gun is it? Wow, It looks just like a Vaquaro to me. It has a loading gate and everything very tricky I guess you open the gate to cap the nipples? Haven't seen one of those before However, as long as the powder doesn't get damp or the gun be left in sunlight for a long period, it should be fine for years. Powder is pretty resiliant, the navy had to disarm mines floating in the sea for years after WW11 even tho they were rusty, barnacle covered and generally RS, they still would go off.... same for the army digging up landmines and old munitions that have been buried for years (even in mud) So yes, IMO, you could leave a C&B revolver loaded.... indefinately, really __________________ Muzza If you cant blind them with brilliance, Baffle them with BS Be alert...... there is a shortage of LERTs