Driftwood Johnson
Member
Howdy Again
Your primers are 'flowing' a bit. Usually that is a sign of over pressure, but I suspect in this case it is because the hole in the frame is significantly larger than the tip of the firing pin, allowing some the material of the cup to flow under pressure into the surrounding void behind the primers. I really doubt you are going to experience over pressure with Black Powder. Another reason I would stay away from Smokeless powder with that revolver.
If you look carefully at my photo of the hole in the frame of my Merwin Hulbert you will see there is a bit of 'cratering' around the hole. That revolver was manufactured sometime around 1881 - 1883. I do not doubt that sometime in the intervening 130+ years it has seen some Smokeless powder fired through it. Anyway, over the years probably enough primers have been set back against the frame to cause the slight concave area around the hole. I think I can see the same type of cratering around the firing pin hole in your revolver. That can also be a cause of primers flowing a bit, the back pressure of the burning powder in the case, vents backwards through the flash hole and can cause the relatively soft metal of the primer to take the shape of what ever is behind it.
Regarding your firing pin being a little bit off center, I suspect it has bent slightly over the years. I doubt it left the factory like that. As I said earlier, firing pins like this can bend slightly from some unknown blow. They can also break. No telling how many times that revolver has been fired over the years. Probably not much recently, but who knows how many times over its lifetime. You may notice over time, if you fire it very much, that the off center firing pin is wearing the hole a bit larger. Again, do not try to straighten the firing pin, you may break it. Worst comes to worse you can have a really, really good welder add a little bit of steel to the frame and recut the hole. Yes, I had to have this done with another antique Merwin Hulbert.
The only thing an insufficient crimp will do is allow bullets to jump forward in the case as the gun recoils. Once you get some bullets with a proper crimp groove, sacrifice a few cases and bullets to make some dummy cartridges to set up your dies to get your crimp correct. Always make up dummies, without powder or primers, to get your seating and crimping set up just right before going ahead and loading live cartridges with powder.
You did not say what brand of dies you are using. Also, you might consider making your crimp with the Lee Factory Crimp Die as I do with my Black Powder 44-40 and 38-40 cartridges. Generally I like to seat and crimp in one step, but the extra thin brass at the case mouth of 44-40 and 38-40 makes me prefer to seat and crimp separately.
P.S. Yes recoil from a full charge of Black Powder can be stout. My Black Powder 45 Colt loads recoil quite stoutly in my Colts. Considerably more than my standard Smokeless powder loads. To tell the truth, almost all of my 44-40 loading is for rifles. The only Black Powder 44-40 loading I do for a revolver is for that Merwin. And recoil is stout.
Your primers are 'flowing' a bit. Usually that is a sign of over pressure, but I suspect in this case it is because the hole in the frame is significantly larger than the tip of the firing pin, allowing some the material of the cup to flow under pressure into the surrounding void behind the primers. I really doubt you are going to experience over pressure with Black Powder. Another reason I would stay away from Smokeless powder with that revolver.
If you look carefully at my photo of the hole in the frame of my Merwin Hulbert you will see there is a bit of 'cratering' around the hole. That revolver was manufactured sometime around 1881 - 1883. I do not doubt that sometime in the intervening 130+ years it has seen some Smokeless powder fired through it. Anyway, over the years probably enough primers have been set back against the frame to cause the slight concave area around the hole. I think I can see the same type of cratering around the firing pin hole in your revolver. That can also be a cause of primers flowing a bit, the back pressure of the burning powder in the case, vents backwards through the flash hole and can cause the relatively soft metal of the primer to take the shape of what ever is behind it.
Regarding your firing pin being a little bit off center, I suspect it has bent slightly over the years. I doubt it left the factory like that. As I said earlier, firing pins like this can bend slightly from some unknown blow. They can also break. No telling how many times that revolver has been fired over the years. Probably not much recently, but who knows how many times over its lifetime. You may notice over time, if you fire it very much, that the off center firing pin is wearing the hole a bit larger. Again, do not try to straighten the firing pin, you may break it. Worst comes to worse you can have a really, really good welder add a little bit of steel to the frame and recut the hole. Yes, I had to have this done with another antique Merwin Hulbert.
The only thing an insufficient crimp will do is allow bullets to jump forward in the case as the gun recoils. Once you get some bullets with a proper crimp groove, sacrifice a few cases and bullets to make some dummy cartridges to set up your dies to get your crimp correct. Always make up dummies, without powder or primers, to get your seating and crimping set up just right before going ahead and loading live cartridges with powder.
You did not say what brand of dies you are using. Also, you might consider making your crimp with the Lee Factory Crimp Die as I do with my Black Powder 44-40 and 38-40 cartridges. Generally I like to seat and crimp in one step, but the extra thin brass at the case mouth of 44-40 and 38-40 makes me prefer to seat and crimp separately.
P.S. Yes recoil from a full charge of Black Powder can be stout. My Black Powder 45 Colt loads recoil quite stoutly in my Colts. Considerably more than my standard Smokeless powder loads. To tell the truth, almost all of my 44-40 loading is for rifles. The only Black Powder 44-40 loading I do for a revolver is for that Merwin. And recoil is stout.
