Cap and ball revolver disappointment
 

You know, I am really shocked. I got a uberti 1848 dragoon model. I thought sure I would love shooting it.

Took my 777p and goex fffg and caps to the range and can't say it was much fun. Maybe half of it was I have the flu and the smoke felt like it was ripping my lungs in half. But I felt so awkward loading and shooting.

Seemed awkward getting the powder in the cylinders without making a mess and doing an accurate measure. Good news it was more accurate than I counted for. Shot 2" groups at 10 yards. That was with 30gr of 777p and roundball.

Then seems all cane broke loose. Somehow my wedge backed out, my cyclinder had tons of play, and I couldn't get the wedge to go back in, and couldn't get the barrel off. I could pull the barrel about 1/2 out and felt like metal was binding it. I guess fouling got in the cylinder arbor. And I guess I created a small burr with the wedge half out.

I left rather disappointed as I usually love anything pistol related.

Cleaning was tough. Maybe I will do better next time around. Only way I could get the barrel off was to pull the barrel as far as it would go with the loading lever and then forced twist off the arbor with alot of force.

I polished the arbor around the wedge cut out to get out any burrs. Got it all cleaned up after about 1 and half hours. Went together great after that.

After all that, I am not too excited to go back.

Maybe I better wait until I get rid of this congestion and it will go smoother next time.

bigcountry
There is a couple of things I would recommend.
I Never use 777 in a revolver, the residue can make things very difficult because it is very hard under these circumstances sometimes. 3 F Swiss or floured blasting powder is what has given me the best results, the Pyrodex P is what I use in competition, the other two for hunting.
Try a drop of olive oil on top of each ball when loading, one drop is enough more gets messy.
If you shoot for accuracy add enough corn meal to your load over the top of the ball to bring the height of the ball to 1/16 below the level of the cylinder.
If you shoot for accuracy you should be able to get them in an 1.5 inches at 25 yds off a rest. Lee

Big...It might be easier loading if you get one of those pistol flasks with a 30gr brass tube...

I'm glad to hear you are into pistols as I've recently bought a .44mag 50 anniversary Blackhawk and so far I'm dissapointed on the accuracy...My .357 Blackhawk is very accurate with the right loads so I'm just hoping it's a matter of finding what she likes...I might hit you up if she doesn't settle down...

nchawkeye
Hornady 240gr HP and 23gr gr of H110 with hit a cantaloupe at 200 yds off the bench with my Super Red-hawk 44 Mag. Lee

Yep, thats my load too. You can go as high as 24.5gr, but I had pressure signs there.

Right now. I think I just need to work in ease of loading and shooting consistently. I was thinking of buying a loading block for this. And maybe shoot again, when the flu wears down.

Get a loading block. So much easier to drop the cylinder and load it there. Also I use JSG 3f or APP 3f powder. Plenty of power, and clean up is real easy. I shoot a 1858 New Army model.

I have to order more but I like to use a .44 caliber felt wad. I like loading powder, then a wad, then the ball, and finally I lube over the cylinders. Shoot, drop the cylinder a quick wipe with paper towel ob the frame and the lube keeps most things greased, and load again. I shot over 60 rounds one afternoon with no problems.

Off a bench I can hold a real good group at 25 yards. Shooting point shoulder aim, not bad, but my favorite is combat shooting. Just pull up, look over the barrel and shoot. A man size target would have a real ruff day with me. But I used to shoot every month, rain or shine, day or night under the same circumstances. I actually at one point was considered real good with a pistol. But a black powder revolver is a whole different creature.

Try with APP 3f, Pinnacle 3f, or JSG 3f powder. I makes clean up real easy...

Not sure how a different powder would change the fun factor. Guess I didn't enjoy all the hassles. But maybe it was my consistent hacking and surly mood.

When I first got my revolver, all I used was Pyrodex P. What a PITA to clean. Then I bought some Pinnacle 3f and tried that. What a difference experience that made to shooting the revolver. With Pyrodex I had to pull the cylinder and wipe out the frame, the loading lever rod, and the locking pin rod, not to mention use a Q tip and clean the hole where the cylinder rod went. Using Pyrodex was also a pain at the end of the day to clean.

Using Pinnacle, APP or JSG I take the wood grips off, and just put the revolver and all parts in dishwater. Using a tooth brush I can have that thing clean in just a short time. And there is very little on the range cleaning going on.

Maybe it was the flu you have, with that smoke blowing back in your face and all, I could see where that would affect your range pleasure. But if you ever get a chance, give them other powders a try. I think you will really enjoy the revolver a lot more.

I too had the black powder revolver craze. I got a cabela's Ole Army 1858 and started playing. And you right I had alot of slack in the cylinder and sometimes had to finish rotating it over into the locked positon on the cylinder pin. I also used H P for my loads 30grs of powder. I made a mansized targets and at 25yds I would hit all over the place. I did better at just pointing and shooting than actually trying to aim. I myself was severly disappointed. I would love to come across someone I know that has the Ruger version and shoot that for a bit to see if I like it. Because if Cabela's standard to quality was the same as the old west lord helped them boys survive not the accuracy of the firearm. I hung mine on a wall and it has never left the wall since. I even used pre made wadding to help uniform the powder charge. Loading them is a bust too. I would get a loading block next time. It sounds fun but it looses it fantasy fast or did for me.