Track of the wolf has an asortment of barrel wedges , you can call him he can probably tell you exactly which one will fit

Yep I bought stuff for my cap and ball pistol from TOW. I have one wedge I can measure so should be able to get what I need. Going to run to gun shop this morning they may have what I need. I'm not sure where and when the one wedge came out. Honestly didn't know there was even wedge in there until one dropped out on tail gate of my truck. Figured the other had to be right there somewhere. Ran my two big magnets all over and it wasn't. So no idea when where fell out??
I checked last night can even get them on Amazon.

Mac

is that Weibke?
we were in there last year I need to get up that way again and get more of the 2x leather gloves they carry I pulled the tag off the last pair a week ago.

I think the boy and I might head up that way fishing in the spring he really liked that area on the river.

Yep figured to just go give Dan the business and see if Jeff has a wedge in his stuff. Could probably just run to Ace near me and get the FFG there. But the store recently got new owners and their two main gun sporting goods guys retired. So I'm not as quick to go there even though it's is literally within walking distance. Even with me being crippled up.
I get some of my gloves from Weibke and I have couple pairs of the leather chopper mittens which are great for ice fishing and running the quad.

Mac

Went to Webkie got the only bottle of FFG he had. They did have several bottles different brands FFF but I want FFG.



Then I went in garage when got home fired up the lead pot. Didn't take long to knock out a batch bullets and balls. Next hopefully be will be trip to range one morning soon. Throw few bullets down range see what I can make them do. I even found couple little boxes in my wife craft stuff makes the bullets look nice.lol. Might put couple on scale just because, but they kinda are what they are.






Guess I will add to this post again up date once I hit the range. Wish still had access to the farm I used to shoot on. Was always easier to just go when ever I felt like.

Mac

777 is about a good of a black powder sub as there is

you still need to clean same as black powder , they call it easy clean but really wasn't real black powder , market anything you have I guess.

you can use FFFg in muzzle loading rifles you just back your charge off a bit.

I use real black FFFg in all my muzzle loaders one powder to fire them all. I am not hot-rodding any load just pleasant to shoot and hits the target well.

FFFg reduces better for light target loads half the time we are running round balls on paper at 25 yards with 30gr of FFFg in a 50 cal you can shoot all day like that and not get sore at all. also get twice as much shooting in on the same powder.

I use FF in the bore and FFF in the flash pan.

I had just typed up a whole nice long boring story about my trip this morning to shoot my muzzle loader. While blow by blow. Account..Danged if I didn't loose the whole thing just when I was going to add picture. So guess now it's short boring story.
I Did go shoot the gun and actually got it to go kaboom without killing me. It did kick more than I recall. I wasn't really able to piddle around and keep shooting. I did just load 50 gr of the FFG as a starter as people recommend. Picture is the card board I shot at at 25yd couple top hole can tell are shot from other side the cardboard are not mine.
First shot went high right and them conicals make big hole. Almost looks like it key holed but I don't believe it did.
I blame most that shot placement on delay between cap and main charge firing. Forgot about that.
Second shot was still high and right. Those two shots were the conicals I poured. Then I loaded one of my balls I poured shot that. It was pretty good left right but high. Probably be good at 50yd??
Main thing is I got a chance to fire the gun with my home cast loads.
I need to get my ducks more in a row before I go really try dial in a load. I'm pretty clumsy with whole loading process look like monkey trying to work Rubik's cube. Is why only took 4 shots this morning took way to long just to do 4.
Got to thank everyone here for the info and inspiration.
Special thanks GREENCOUNTYPETE for sharing his vast knowledge with me.



Mac

on that cap gun there should be virtually no delay between hammer fall and boom

really clean that flash channel good , get in there with a pipe cleaner the kind you get at a smoke shop with metal splines make sure you get all the gunk out

did you pop some caps first to dry out the flash channel?

after cleaning and lube set the gun muzzle down on a rag to keep oil/lube out of the flash channel.

you really shouldn't be able to tell the difference hardly between a hammer fired shotgun and a caplock for ignition speed other than the sound and cloud of smoke.

I had a lyman great plains rifle in 1980...peep sights..and shot those 325 maxi bullets from a bench...At 50 yards with 5 shots ,it looked like a clovah leaf. No brag..just fact

Green
I actually blew that channel out with compressed air. I'm not sure just what was dirty. I didn't mention that I snapped 3 caps on the first charger and the gun didn't fire. I actually took the screw out of the flash channel and dumped some powder in it. What ever kept the first 3 caps form firing the charge. That 4 cap with powder in the channel cleared it. After the first shot the 4 I shot at the card board all fired fine. The one I talked about feeling the delay was actually the second shot. The 3rd and 4th shot actually fired pretty much at the hammer drop. So I blew some loose or did something different for sure after that first shot fired. I also ran damp patch down barrel between shots.
I will get it all figured out always do. Actually I wouldn't be afraid to try shooting a deer with it tomorrow. That said I'm also not saying I'd try that at any great distance.

Mac

sounds like you had a blockage

did you pick a leaf or blade of grass for that 3rd cap to hold the muzzle near, if you don't see it move well you don't have a clear channel

a tissue rubber banded over the muzzle will actually blow a hole in it if she is clear.

so even at the end of the barrel it is stronger than blowing your nose from that little cap

those CVA had a patten breach it is cone shaped at the bottom a 30 cal brush on your regular rifle rod when cleaning to get town in that is good , nipple out and the screw in the bolster out some pipe cleaner up in there , hot soapy water then clear flush as hot as it runs from your tap is good , then if you want to blow it out with the compressor it wouldn't hurt but isn't really needed. a patch to dry and you run it up and down quick make sure you hear the his of air from the channel

on every loading when you swab the barrel with a lightly moist patch you should hear the hiss of air coming out your nipple if you don't hear it you likely have a plugged nipple so you check it.

my theory is we clean , lube and often stand them up in the rack, cabinet , safe ect.. oil/lube gets down into that flash channel.
that seems to have been confirmed over the last several years as
I have had much fewer ignition issues with the 4-H kids since storing all muzzle loaders muzzle down on a rag after cleaning.

had a few kids that has the special super power of stopping any muzzle loader I would hand them in 5 rounds or less.
they even managed to stop up an inline 209 once
I think it was a two part issue the one was a brute who packed the powder charge like he was driving a drill rod and also went very heavy on the patch juice making a sloppy mess rammed home and packed in the flash channel.

a tiny amount of anti seize just on the threads of the bolster screw and nipple when you put her back together , and you screw them in till they stop then back off a 1/4 turn then just till they stop a few inch pounds of torque is all on these little threads and soft Spanish steel.

tripple 7 is recommended for in line guns that use 209 shotgun primers. You get a chance get you some pyrodex RS. Lights lots easier. Works good in a sidelock gun

the 777 pellets are for 209 only the granular is fine for cap guns the suggested loads on the bottle all have #11 cap ignition recommended.

I got to admit I never even looked at the load chart on bottle. I do know this powder is a finer grain than the old bottle I threw out. The chart on this bottle does say 120 grains is max load for 54 cal with 325 grain bullets. So I guess I was plenty safe with my 50 grain loading. I didn't put any of the conicals or the balls on scale. Box says conical should pour at 380 grains and balls at 230 grains. I'm guessing that is with a pure lead pour. I poured this batch with lead from cable shield. It's plenty soft but I'm going to guess based on past experiences it pours lighter than mold says. I know the first mold I had for this 54 made what they call buffalo bullets. They where way longer chunkier looking with a round nose and sort of a hollow point. I lost that mold along with several other in garage turn house fire. Only poured a few and never did try shooting them.
The bottle does say use CCI #11 cap too. Which is actually what I was using. I also have couple tins of Remington #11 caps. Remington being closed up parted out. The tins might become collectors items lol. I know I have a Anniversary tin of Remington 22 shells and a matching can oil I bought probably 40 years ago?? Should probably put on e-bay..

Mac

Remember that the conical or ball is a top.....which needs to spin at the desired speed for it not to wobble and or travel...ideally stay in the same place on the table....how fast it spins in according to rifling twist and amount of powder used to trust it.....a tall top needs a faster twist or rotation to stablize. Just a little FYI . Once you find out what it likes your home free. Many of the mountain man original Hawkens were 1 in 48 twist.....modern in-lines 1-28 conical with sabots.....large round ball need slow twist of 1-60 to 1-72 smaller round ball need faster twists.

My gun is a 1-48 twist. I recall being told back when I first got the gun. That twist was considered a ball gun twist. I've learned most of the things I do by being hands on. So as long as I don't over charge the gun. I will keep doing what I call playing with it. I'm not looking to shoot competition and only need to get it good enough for me.
I sure appreciate the info I'm getting here. I read each post take from it what applies.
Really shortening the learning curve.


Mac

Yep, 1:48 is a fast ball twist. As you already know, it can be overloaded. A tight patch/ball combination will help with heavier powder charges. Try to look at your patches after they've been shot, Make sure there are no holes or burnthroughs in them. That can point to rough bore, sharp edges on the muzzle (when loading) or a loose patch letting gasses past.
When dialing in a load, play with one variable at a time, shoot at least a three shot (five is better) group. I usually start with ball diameter, then move on to patch thickness and type, then powder charge. Pick the best result from each variable and that should get you the best load for your barrel.
For hunting, I will sacrifice a bit of accuracy for an easier to load combination if necessary.
On your home cast stuff, especially the conicals, if you have a grain scale weigh them after casting. Throw the bottom and top 10% back in the pot. This will give you consistent weight projectiles.
Also, and this is rare, if you have a 2 cavity mold, make sure both cavities cast the exact same size ball. I borrowed a .610 mold once and one cavity threw a .610 ball, the other threw a .615 ball.

Yep what your talking about is what I meant when said I was like monkey with rubics cube. I need to scale the conicals and the balls. Decide which one I'm I'm playing with before I go. Have my self set up to pour and measure the powder not fumble with charge weight. I have box of 35 mm film cans I used when scaling powder loads for steel shot shells. So I can sit here at home scale or measure powder charges.

My molds for the conicals and the balls are both dual cavities. I poured both cavities when I cast the rounds.
If I get really fussy about this I might have to buy a caliper measure cast from each cavity.
I've never done the type of reloading that requires the use of one. Always been just shot shell loader but I did load out match loads doing hunting loads. Just because I could. So I have basic understanding of what I need to do scale loads for consistency.


Mac

I have 1:28 and 1:30 shooting round balls in a clover leaf at 25 yards just reduced powder loads I can still get them to hit targets decent at 100 yards not great but decent enough.
cletis is correct a ball is like a top or a ceiling fan a perfectly balance top or ceiling fan can spin at any speed , the less balanced it is the slow you need to spin it to see less effect of being off balance

in 4-h the kids are limited to a max of 60gr charge. if you said hey that is exactly half of max of most muzzle loaders you would be correct a 50% safety margin.

1:48 is the combo twist short conicals and round balls

a 54 round ball is fine for bambi , you will likely get a little better accuracy with the RB inside 50 yards easier than the Lee R.e.a.l but with enough playing you can probably get the r.e.a.l to hold minute of bambi heart at 50 yards just fine you may end up with a fiber wad under the r.e.a.l some people do some don't but it takes more playing in my experience with them to make r.e.a.l's work

I would guess you end up around 80-95gr of the 777 under the r.e.a.l

and about the same for good accuracy on the RB in 54

when they print in the muzzle loader manual the Max powder or put it on a jug of powder it is the Max and not the most accurate

my hunting load with 385gr hornady great planes conicalls in 50 cal from my fast twist NEF Huntsman was 90gr 777 it would travers a deer nearly end to end so if you end up at 75-80 gr no worries it will have plenty of thump for a deer accuracy over power is the way to roll.

in the civil war they were only loading around 85 gr of powder and those 69 cals were plenty effective if they went to heavy they blew the skirts on the mini balls

on those round balls make sure your loading sprue up , it effects them less if the flat spot is the leading edge.
a patch that is tight enough that it needs a firm push down the barrel but not so much your hand gets sore beating it down the barrel
short stokes on ram rod mark your rod with a an unloaded mark it is longer than the barrel , then when you find your load mark it with a loaded mark.
I use the caliper less on the ball and more on the patch material so I can find the thickness I want with less trial and error , you don't need a caliper just easier to take shopping than the gun and ball

the 50gr recommendation you got was the super safe and easiest recommendation on any muzzle loader typically we say "what's your cal?" 54 then load 50 or 55gr and try it work up 5 gr at a time till you make nice groups.

as you found ignition consistency is important to good groups


if your looking for easy in that 1:48 I would play with balls for a couple reasons you can't start a ball crooked, sure you could get the sprue a touch off top center but not that huge of a deal. patches make for nice tight fit , and good grab in the rifleing and no blow by or gas cutting on the projectile the patched round ball was basically the original sabot.

they are simple and still work especially at 50yards

less felt recoil

only a couple weeks to season

I am cheap and have not found a good reason not to use my patch from swabbing the barrel flipped over to load the ball , would I do it in a for money competition , maybe not but playing at the range it is a non issue

just stuff a patch in your cheek take your shot and your patch is read for the reload

if you hate the mouth feel of dental gauze 1:1:1 rubbing alcohol , murphy's oil soap. hydrogen peroxide makes a nice patch lube in a little spray bottle , the little travel size spray bottles, this mix is sometimes called Friendship Speed juice. works as a way to start cleaning before you get home also run 2-3 patches with it before you leave the range and your cleaning at home is reduced.

Moose Milk is another patch lube this is 10 parts water to 1 part balistol or napa cutting tool oil part number 765-1526 both are water soluble oil.

spit is free and easy to carry.