How Do You Load Your 1858 Army ?

[Hammerdown77]

On the matter of weighing the charge thrown by a "30grain" spout. Consider that the classic way of filling the spout is to stick a fingertip firmly on the opening, open the gate than flip the flask spout down and release the gate lever. The finger holding back the powder from pouring on the ground domes up into the end of the opening. Typically by the time I flip the flask back up and if I look at the end the powder level is actually a good 1/16 inch below the edge. I suspect that represents around a 2 to 4 grain amount. If the spouts are "designed" for a specific volume/weight of dry powder on the drawing board without consideration of the flexible fingertip used to cap it off then I'm not surprised that a 30 gn spout throws more like 27gns.

You're exactly right about the finger over the nozzle causing a doming effect.

I weighed out some charges using this 30 grain spout on the end of my flask again, using FFFg Goex powder, but this time I held a small flat piece of metal over the spout opening instead of my finger, and I shook the flask up and down three times to settle the powder in the spout before releasing the cutoff lever.

Weighing these on my beam scale, they were all pretty much 30 grains on the nose.

Using the finger on the spout method, it was a grain or two less than that.

 

[scrat]

Hammerdown you are correct under ideal conditions. Those who live in the south florida texas. It will work when your indoors. However you get to the range when the humidity plays in the works and you might as well just toss that idea out the window. Go with a powder volumetric measure. use 35 grains and shoot a full cylinder. From there go up 2-5 grains or down 2-5 grains and try it again. When you get to a load that works for you stick with it. You may have to adjust again next time out. However you will have a starting point to deal with.

Shoot i remember i was working one time in Corpus Christi Texas. 11am and 11pm felt the same exact way. You could get all dressed up for work. go outside to your car. Get in turn on the ac full blast within about 3 minutes from the time you went outside till the time the ac starts to kick in your soaking wet. Felt like you took a shower and just put your clothes on without drying off. Weighing a powder charge in that kind of environment is useless.