One of my favorite bathroom books is the "Lyman Black Powder Handbook and Loading Manual." I was having a extended reading of the second edition the other day and saw on pages 286 and 287 something that got my attention. In the cap and ball pistol load section they have listings for the 44 cal Walker revolver and the 45 caliber Ruger revolver. The Walker has a nine inch barrel and the Ruger has a seven and one half inch barrel. For a forty grain charge the Walker pushes a one hundred and eighty grain conical out the pipe at nine hundred and twenty nine FPS. The Ruger, with a forty grain charge, pushes a one hundred and ninty grain conical out the pipe at one thousand thirty five FPS.
The Ruger has a shorter barrel and a heaver bullet but it's over a hundred feet per second faster then the Walker for the same powder charge. What is going on here??? Is the cylinder gap so big on the Walker that pressure is being lost compared to the Ruger?
I don't have a Walker or a Ruger so I can't compare the cylinder gaps or the bore size but something is making the Ruger more efficient then the Walker. And that means the your average Walker could be tuned to get more bang for the buck.
The Ruger has a shorter barrel and a heaver bullet but it's over a hundred feet per second faster then the Walker for the same powder charge. What is going on here??? Is the cylinder gap so big on the Walker that pressure is being lost compared to the Ruger?
I don't have a Walker or a Ruger so I can't compare the cylinder gaps or the bore size but something is making the Ruger more efficient then the Walker. And that means the your average Walker could be tuned to get more bang for the buck.