Free TC Black Diamond. Was it too good to be true?

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teddy james

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I posted some short time ago about a friend that aquired a TC Black DIamond and since he likes me so well, he was going to gift it to me. It was shot three or four times, leaned up in a corner and sat for some 20 years untouched and uncleaned. I asked my buddy to look at the bore and he made some funny sounds and said that he as seen worse. I posted about my good fortune in my excitement. My excitement was soon quenched when I was informed about the rarity of replacement parts for this gun. (Breech plug to name one)

So here is the follow up. The gun arrived freshly cleaned and oiled, maybe too much. Looks good on the outside with minimal scratches but some are there. A look in the bore shows some very minimal rust or pitting. Rifles look pretty good actually. A run down the barrel with a .50 swab yielded no brown stuff and didn't feel any snags. I guess he scrubbed it good. Well done mate! Time for a test fire!

Target set up 45 yards just to have something to shoot at. Two charges of pyrodex pellets and a .45 hollowpoint wrapped in a .50 cal sabot was shoved down the barrel and made sure it was seated. Time to place the cap! It won't go on and with a little "help" it went on crooked. I'm not even going to try at this point. A low mounted scope and no nipple wrench made removing the nipple a pain but I got it out pretty quick/easy. A small piece of sandpaper and some spinning of the nipple against said sandpaper made the cap seat properly against it. Nipple was replaced back in the plug. Cap on and on target and with a pull of the trigger....... nothing happened...... then BANG!. Gun went off just as I was about to ease up on my grip. I suspect too much oil/cleaning stuff left in barrel. My bad, I should have done a drying load without a bullet first. Second shot went off instantly and I shot perfectly high 3 inches. Click, Click, Click of the scope settings allowed me another shot. Dead center. Another shot yeilded another hole that touched the other hole. Another shot was off to the right about 1/2 inch. I'm Done! Ready to hunt. Maybe tweak the scope a little more but its deadly as it is.

My surprises along the way: 1. The nipple looked as if it was snapped without a cap more than once. The gun wouldn't fire as it was. This could be why it was sold. 2, For it to never have been cleaned, barrel is pretty good. 3. This gun is loud. A lot louder than I expected.

Lots of good times ahead.. I'll stay in touch.
 
I'm thinking very seriously about ditching pyrodex and trying some 777 when I use up what stock I have. Im aware I must convert to 209 primers to burn 777 but thats ok!
 
Find some magnum caps to use with the 777 and you'll be ok. Personally I'd stay away from T7 pellets and prefer the T7 granular, preferably ffg.

That Black Diamond is typically a nice gun. Accurate and easy to care for. Get your T7 and shoot it a while, I'm sure you'll agree.
 
Yup I just saw those. A few mins ago I decided to remove the plug and check it out. Know what? I'm missing my striker handle retainer... lol. The handle stays put but if you wiggle it you can get it to almost come out. I found the complete striker set at around 130 bucks.. ouches. Im going to call my friend and ask if he found a little round top-hat looking piece of metal when he cleaned it. It looks like it could be lost easily if you didn't know it was there.
 
They also made the Musket nipple that fits the Blk. Dia. I have a Blk. Diamond in a .50 other than all the plunger n its parts to clean every time its a solid rifle. I have not even worked up a good accuracy load for mine yet. It will do an honest 2.5" 5 shot group at 125 yds using 75 gr of T7 2F & a 209 primer
 
Yes, this gun seems to be a real shooter smokepole. It seems musket nipples are easier to find than the standard #11's for the BD's. It shoots so good to me, that I no longer look at it as an obsolete tool you can't find parts for.
 
Congratulations . I am a sucker for guns like that. My free gun turned out to be a real shooter once i got the barrel clean. I spent countless hours scrubbing the inside of that barrel. I have to agree with using loose powder vs pellets. Since we rarely shoot over 100yds during ML season, this thing rocks.
 
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