10" barrel how much powder is too much?

Joey V. · November 12, 2010, 03:10 PM

Hi all,

How much 3f powder would you guess it possible to burn in such a short pistol barrel (10 inches)? I am not talking about exceeding max charges I am talking about burn rates and how much is a waste of powder? I am shooting 50 grains of 3f and it seams like it is all burning but until I have snow on the ground it is hard to tell for sure...

THX..

Rifleman1776 · November 12, 2010, 03:32 PM

Without knowing more (caliber) I would estimate you are at max right now. Besides, assuming you are talking about a single shot ml pistol, you aren't going to turn a pistol into a rifle. And even rifles do not always consume all the bp when shot.

kwhi43 · November 12, 2010, 04:11 PM

How much would you say is too much?

mykeal · November 12, 2010, 06:43 PM

60 gr is too much. IMO.

robhof · November 14, 2010, 08:25 PM

If you can't wait for snow; put an old sheet on the ground in front of the gun. There was some talk in a Walker section awhile back and tests done over a sheet with 60gr and the conclusion was that it was a waste of powder and 45-50 was a cleaner burn, now that's in a revolver and a slightly shorter ba

rrel.

FL-Flinter · November 15, 2010, 10:55 AM

The "snow" and "white sheet" thing is just more BS myth that continues to perpetrate the ML world. Approximately 60% of total charge of black powder remains as solid combustion product so no matter if all the powder is burning in the bore or not, you're still going to get black chunks on the snow/sheet.

Caliber, projectile mass, projectile to bore friction factor, effective (not overall) barrel length, rifling twist, vent loss and so forth all play into how much powder can burn efficiently in a given bore - and, if you're talking a revolver or breech-loader, you have to factor in the cylinder gap or breech losses too. A 10" barrel doesn't give much room, I use 14"-16" barrels on the Big Game Hunter pistols I build and 10"-16" barrels on my small-bore & target pistols. I think a picture of my personal BGH pistol is in my profile here, it has a 16" long 54cal 1:66 twist bore that does quite well with 75gr of 3F under a 0.535" PRB.

Mark

Pahoo · November 15, 2010, 11:29 AM

Quote:

The "snow" and "white sheet" thing is just more BS myth that continues to perpetrate the ML world

Not completely and in the past, what we did, is collect what is on the sheet and try to ignite it. Surprisingly, there always seems to be some that will ignite. However, it's gotten to a point, that doesn't really matter. If you do your homework up front, then don't worry about too much about it. Whenever we get a good shot-string, we call it quits and live with it. I use to work in a testing lab and if you test anything hard and long enough, it will fail. ....

Be Safe !!!

scottrussell · November 21, 2010, 11:21 AM

30 years hunting with 10 inch cva mountain pistal. 60 grns 3f....all the retired critters seemed to think it was ok

. Efficient?? I don't know...never paid attention, thats just what i have always shot out of it.

November 12, 2010, 03:10 PM	#1
Joey V. Member Join Date: October 18, 2010 Posts: 55	10" barrel how much powder is too much? Hi all, How much 3f powder would you guess it possible to burn in such a short pistol barrel (10 inches)? I am not talking about exceeding max charges I am talking about burn rates and how much is a waste of powder? I am shooting 50 grains of 3f and it seams like it is all burning but until I have snow on the ground it is hard to tell for sure... THX..

November 14, 2010, 08:25 PM	#5
robhof Senior Member Join Date: September 16, 2007 Posts: 712	robhof If you can't wait for snow; put an old sheet on the ground in front of the gun. There was some talk in a Walker section awhile back and tests done over a sheet with 60gr and the conclusion was that it was a waste of powder and 45-50 was a cleaner burn, now that's in a revolver and a slightly shorter barrel.

November 15, 2010, 10:55 AM	#6
FL-Flinter Senior Member Join Date: June 24, 2007 Location: West Central Florida Posts: 207	The "snow" and "white sheet" thing is just more BS myth that continues to perpetrate the ML world. Approximately 60% of total charge of black powder remains as solid combustion product so no matter if all the powder is burning in the bore or not, you're still going to get black chunks on the snow/sheet. Caliber, projectile mass, projectile to bore friction factor, effective (not overall) barrel length, rifling twist, vent loss and so forth all play into how much powder can burn efficiently in a given bore - and, if you're talking a revolver or breech-loader, you have to factor in the cylinder gap or breech losses too. A 10" barrel doesn't give much room, I use 14"-16" barrels on the Big Game Hunter pistols I build and 10"-16" barrels on my small-bore & target pistols. I think a picture of my personal BGH pistol is in my profile here, it has a 16" long 54cal 1:66 twist bore that does quite well with 75gr of 3F under a 0.535" PRB. Mark __________________ "Carry the battle to them. Don't let them bring it to you. Put them on the defensive and don't ever apologize for anything." Harry S. Truman [email protected]

November 12, 2010, 03:32 PM	#2
Rifleman1776 Senior Member Join Date: April 25, 2010 Location: Arkansas Posts: 3,309	Without knowing more (caliber) I would estimate you are at max right now. Besides, assuming you are talking about a single shot ml pistol, you aren't going to turn a pistol into a rifle. And even rifles do not always consume all the bp when shot.

November 12, 2010, 04:11 PM	#3
kwhi43 Senior Member Join Date: August 21, 2008 Location: Kansas City Posts: 1,393	How much would you say is too much?

November 12, 2010, 06:43 PM	#4
mykeal Senior Member Join Date: October 8, 2006 Location: Northern Michigan Posts: 2,772	60 gr is too much. IMO.

November 21, 2010, 11:21 AM	#8
scottrussell Member Join Date: May 14, 2010 Posts: 15	30 years hunting with 10 inch cva mountain pistal. 60 grns 3f....all the retired critters seemed to think it was ok . Efficient?? I don't know...never paid attention, thats just what i have always shot out of it.