15 replies to this topic

[karlunity]

Fellas.

I have a Remington 1858 New Army pistol with GOEX black powder, 24 grains will send a .44 cal 454 target ball down range and in the black of a rifle target at 25 yards.

With American Brand powder, 30 grain tube on the flask, 2 out of 12 balls did not clear the barrel:

One coursed the pistol to jam. By sticking between the end of the cylinder and the lip of the chamber. I pushed the ball back into the cylinder, took off the nipple and poured in some of this "powder" and fired the ball.

The second "incident" was worse.

The ball cleared the chamber but stooped about an inch from the muzzle.
It was the fourth shot in the cylinder, had I not been trained to listen when I shoot, I could have easily fired another cylinder into a blocked bore...NOT GOOD.

The powder also lacked consistency.

I use a flask to throw my charge so you would expect a similar result with each charge?

Nope, some cylinders went boom some went pop.

Save your money and perhaps your hand. Leave the "American brand powder" in the store.

Karl

[steveeg53]

Karl, glad it all worked out ok for you, your well trained ear probably saved you a few digits and/or a nice revolver today! what is "American Brand" powder? I have never heard of it befoere. is it black powder or a BP substitute? In the past 35 years I have tried most of the BP subs I could find in the Spokane area and have always gone back to good old Goex. In pistols, all of the substitutes seemed like i was shooting squib loads, and in rifles it always took alot more powder to get the same results. all this B.S. and for a lot more money than Goex. From now on, in my black powder guns, I will stick to real black powder. After all the years of experimenting I have done, and spent a lot of money doing it, I have come to one conclusion, black powder is best, screw the rest! Stick with Goex. Steve

[karlunity]

Hello Steve.

"American Brand power" is a BP substitute.

Here in the PRC GOEX is very hard to find, I don't know why as all the dealers I asked tell me it is still legal to sell. If I cannot find any at the gunshow next month or if " PyrodexP" does not pan out, I am going to pay the Haz-mat fee and order some GOEX over the net.

Karl

[steveeg53]

Karl, did'nt realize things had gotten so silly concerning black powder. Its always been classed as an explosive, with special storage regs, amounts on hand laws,etc. the subs , including pyrodex are classed the same as reloading powder. Things have probably gotten tighter since 9/11 and homeland security. I hane'nt done much with my BP stuff for a few years, been more into my milsurps. Pyrodex may work for you, I don't recall using it in a revolver, but i'm sure I did at one time or another. Must be a senior moment, lol. pyrodex would always be my second choice if i could'nt get real BP. It prefers a hot cap to set it off, especially in cold weather, but in Cali, you probably don't have to worry about that, and revolvers have pretty much straight line ignition, which is also a plus for it. In a moment of weakness, I sold my last BP revolver to a good friend (I hate to see a grown man beg). It was a Pietta from cabalas 1860 Colt. Quite accurate at 25 yards, wish I still had it.
We got 10 inchs of new snow last night I need to go deal with, thank God for $ wheel drive and 2 teen age sons. best of luck! Steve

[fritz]

It has been a few years since I have used my BP revolvers and Hawken rifle, and I used both Goex and Pyrodex in them. They both worked ok, but what struck me as a plus for the Goex was the fact that it was over 20 years old, and still ignited fine.

I'm not sure if the BP substitutes have the same shelf life, but I can say for sure that Goex is kinda like the Energizer bunny.

fritz

[Doble Troble]

Karl,

It sounds like your "American" powder must be of the new generation. Hopefully "no child left behind" will fix this. And hopefully the remaining powder you have on will be useful as fertilizer.

I've used both Pyrodex and the Holy Black in my revolvers. They both work fine. I like the real stuff because I can use it in Sparky (my fliintlock) too. Sparky hates Pyrodex.

Real blackpowder is (it seems to me) more versatile than Pyrodex and so it seems to me that its the stuff to have on hand. Plus, you never know when something around the house will need to be blown up, and you're going to be scrathing you head about how to get the job done with Pyrodex.

[fritz]

I've always wondered if Pyrodex or one of the other black powder substitutes would work as well as old black powder when blowing an anvil.

That is something that is not done much anymore, but it is a part of American history. I guess the migration of farm boys to the cities had something to do with it, that and the black eye that the ATFE casts upon anyone using black powder (or any kind of powder).

Another part of Americana gone.

fritz

[flaco]

There's a funny typo in your title.

flaco

[steveeg53]

Fritz, is blowing an anvil the same as shooting an anvil? I have heard of shooting an anvil and it sounds like great fun. Would like to see it some time. Don't know of many anvils around unfortunatly. My best friend has 1 so I guess we're half way there. steve

[Horsefly]

I've used Pyrodex ever since it hit the market and never looked back because of the amount of shots you get without having to do a complete cleaning.We had some troubles at first with hangfires,but HotShot nipples and the German made primers Wrywerkledinkle(a name I'll never learn to spell,but they come in a red can)took care of all slow fires.On my Renegage I have the adapter to use 209 shotgun primers.They'll shoot a ball out without powder.I forgot about blowing the anvil New Years eve,but remember it well.I was to young to get in on it and could wait for my turn to come.Jerry

[FC]

I wonder if you aren't getting hot enough of an ignition for the American Brand Powder? It is very possible. It may never have been meant for other than rifles.

You can order an entire case of Goex online. That's how I did it. You will have a hard time ordering locally. Just use a search engine and compare prices. Yup, they will deliver to your door.

[karlunity]

Thanks FC.

The Hippy wants to know what part of Hawaii you headed for?
For some reason that state fascinates the ladies.

Karl

[fritz]

Blowing an anvil and shooting an anvil must be the same thing. It used to be real popular around this area, and probably a lot of the country also.

There would be contests to see who could launch one the highest. I have heard that the noise from one going off was pretty loud, I wonder if they wore ear protectors? Likely not, and thus the cause of hearing loss just as I am experiencing now.

Blowing the anvil on New Years Eve and turning over outhouses on Halloween was a big thing years ago.

fritz

[FC]

Karl, the women do seem fascinated by Hawaii for some reason. I'm going to Oahu to Tripler Army Medical Center. It's always painted pink for some reason. It has a view of Pearl Harbor.

Fritz, I never heard of blowing an anvil. What is it?

[fritz]

Tony,

From what I gather, blowing an anvil involves placing black powder under it and seeing how high and far it will go. I once thought that you placed the powder in a recess of the anvil, but that would just make noise. I believe the idea was to launch that heavy metal into the air. Being solid iron, it should withstand quite a bit of powder.

I think the trick was to place the powder in just the right place to gain the most altitude. I'm sure there were some who were more proficient in this than others. Can you imagine the noise that a big charge of black powder would make?

That's why it was reserved for New Year's Eve.

At least that's my take on it. Like Jerry, I was too young to remember just how the old-timers did it. You don't see many real anvils anymore, those vises with an anvil are not anything like a real old anvil.

fritz

[steveeg53]

As I understand it, blowing or shooting an anvil requires 2 anvils, preferably the large 200 lb. blacksmith type. MY great grampa saw this at a fourth of july celebretion in minot, N.D. many years ago when he was a boy. The first anvil is set in a field upside down and level, there is a small depression in the bottom of the anvil left from the casting process. This is filled with black powder, a pound or a little more, a piece of cannon fuse is placed in the powder charge and the second anvil placed on top of the first one face up. the fuse is then lit. when the powder goes off the top anvil is launched, and a great part of the fun is the ringing sound made by a well cast anvil as it is launched. plus trying to see how high you send a 200 lb. anvil. Fritz is right, the past few generationations have been robbed of many very simple pleasures. this is something I would enjoy to see. Steve