Buck and ball!!

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Markst93

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Hello all. I know there is no relevant use for this load but I was curious about trying a buck and ball load out of a Smoothbore sidelock. Just wondering if anyone had tried this before, and what suitable powder charges would work, and also would you load all four projectiles in an over sized patch or something different.

Cheers
 
Don’t quote me on this but I think it was used as the first load for both sides in the revolutionary and early civil war with subsequent loads being just ball, I assume it might have been longer to load but I think during battle they didn’t worry so much about the nitty gritty stuff like we recreational shooters do. And when I say no relevant use I mean I don’t think it’s legal for hunting, and although it would make for one hell of a news article “man defends house against burglars with 1760’s era musket”, I don’t think a Muzzleloading firearm is anyone’s first choice for home defense 😂
 
standard civil war load was around 65 grns. and depending on cal. The cal.62 had a 62 ball at bottom with i believe 6 or 7 32 or 36 caliber balls on top. most were made in a paper cartridge. On ground troops at that time it was devastating within 60 -70 yds. I always wanted to try on deer
 
Don’t quote me on this but I think it was used as the first load for both sides in the revolutionary and early civil war with subsequent loads being just ball, I assume it might have been longer to load but I think during battle they didn’t worry so much about the nitty gritty stuff like we recreational shooters do. And when I say no relevant use I mean I don’t think it’s legal for hunting, and although it would make for one hell of a news article “man defends house against burglars with 1760’s era musket”, I don’t think a Muzzleloading firearm is anyone’s first choice for home defense 😂

It would be mine. . . .One shot one kill, then. . . instant smoke screen for retreat. . .

just saying. . .
 
Just curious, is it safe to leave a muzzleloader loaded for like this purpose, like would the powder stay dry over time? And as a self defense charge I would think buck and ball would be devastating, those rounds would be coming out hot at around 1500 FPS correct?
 
depends on amount of powder used, could be loaded indefinitely as long as no moisture gets introduced to load thru humidity etc.
Recoil would be very stout with said load and enough powder to move it all at 1500fps.
 
Just curious, is it safe to leave a muzzleloader loaded for like this purpose, like would the powder stay dry over time? And as a self defense charge I would think buck and ball would be devastating, those rounds would be coming out hot at around 1500 FPS correct?

ONLY if you have NOT fired the gun previously and reloaded it.
If you have loaded it and never fired the gun, yes, you can keep it loaded.
I put a toothpick in the flash hole to seal off the main charge in my rockscratchers.
You can put a spent cap on the nipple to seal off the charge of a percussion.
You can put a spent 209 in the breach.

But, if You have fired it and NOT cleaned the gun, then no.
 
OP,
As Potatoe boy said, the standard load for a buck and ball is 110 grains of 2F. that's for a .69cal musket.
If you have a .54cal smooth rifle, for instance, that charge would be too high. In a .72 Brown Bess, you'd be alright. Still gonna kick like a mule, though.
What's the bore size fo the weapon in question?
Also it's worth noting that while there was a standard military buck and ball load, things were played pretty fast and loose back then. the number and size of buckshot would vary depending on a variety of factors.
Here's an period example totally in situ:
Google Image Result for https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/15/Buck%26Ball_musket_StormWreck.jpg
A diagram from Pedersoli
Google Image Result for https://www.davide-pedersoli.com/uploads/immagini_gallerie/big/780post-837-1247876039.jpg
And an article from Pedersoli
https://www.davide-pedersoli.com/rivista-dettaglio.asp/l_fr/idne_89/69-ball-buck-and-ball-and-buckshot-cartridges-of-the-us-army.html

Hope that helps some
Cheers,
dgfd
 
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