Making black powder at home

Ian

Ian

Notorious member
Missionary said:
Thank you Ian !
When we get settled in AZ I will begin private production for our rock locks. And the 1.1 on wheels. and the caplocks....
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Stay tuned for my new powder mill, got me a free treadmill and will be modifying it to spin drums as soon as I get my new shed built..

On the agenda is a polishing drum, one with some diameter to really heat and glaze the powder grains.
 
Rick H

Rick H

Well-Known Member
I would like to see him repeat it with another couple of batches before diving headlong into it. One batch looked very good. Is it repeatable?
 
Ian

Ian

Notorious member
I'll give it a try. I follow Jake pretty closely because he's on the same quest I am and is very transparent and methodical in his processes. My next experiment was going to be with cotton as a "pure base" and then was going to try adding resin or other isolated wood components to it as controlled fuel to see if I could isolate the power and dirty factors, but I think Jake just blew all that out of the water.
 
Ian

Ian

Notorious member
Tom said:
I can't speak to the power levels, but some toilet paper has a bit of lanolin in it. I wonder if that contributed to it's cleanliness?
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Probably contributed more to its speed than anything.
 
3

300BLK

Well-Known Member
Ian said:
Been a while. I finally got to the range again today with a new powder and I think I've finally gotten it right.



View attachment 32978
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I've just read a little of this, and will read more, but noticed this picture in particular. IMO, that touch hole is a half to whole diameter low for quickest, most consistent ignition.
 
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Ian

Ian

Notorious member
300BLK said:
I've just read a little of this, and will read more, but noticed this picture in particular. IMO, that touch hole is a half to whole diameter low for quickest, most consistent ignition.
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Yes, and that's after I raised and glass bedded the breech and tang up to the very limit of the wood and filed the tang down slightly. FH and all inlets were pre-done on this kit.
 
3

300BLK

Well-Known Member
Ian said:
Yes, and that's after I raised and glass bedded the breech and tang up to the very limit of the wood and filed the tang down slightly. FH and all inlets were pre-done on this kit.
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You can still plunge with an endmill in the correct location and install an internally coned liner. A White Lightning would be my suggestion, and a better alternative than deepening the pan to lower the priming powder.
 
Tomme boy

Tomme boy

Well-Known Member
Could it be that the paper is so ground up that the fine particles are what made the carbon structure more fine? Making it act like powdered aluminum burning?
 
Ian

Ian

Notorious member
300BLK said:
You can still plunge with an endmill in the correct location and install an internally coned liner. A White Lightning would be my suggestion, and a better alternative than deepening the pan to lower the priming powder.
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It already has a White Lighting liner. Trust me, it's very fast.
 
Ian

Ian

Notorious member
Tomme boy said:
Could it be that the paper is so ground up that the fine particles are what made the carbon structure more fine? Making it act like powdered aluminum burning?
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I was reading the video comments and a few people commented how the major alteration the pulp undergoes is a chemical treatment to dissolve the lignins that bind the cellulose fibers and wash them away. The lignins aren't a good fuel and just serve to make the charcoal more difficult to break down into a fine powder. Getting rid of the lignin concentrates and purifies the fuel and makes it more available to the oxidizer at a microscopic level. Made sense to me, right or wrong.
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
Ian said:
I was reading the video comments and a few people commented how the major alteration the pulp undergoes is a chemical treatment to dissolve the lignins that bind the cellulose fibers and wash them away. The lignins aren't a good fuel and just serve to make the charcoal more difficult to break down into a fine powder. Getting rid of the lignin concentrates and purifies the fuel and makes it more available to the oxidizer at a microscopic level. Made sense to me, right or wrong.
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That is correct. Here in the PNW, we have or had, many paper mills. TP was one of the prime products, so train loads of NaOH was used to break down the legumes.
 
Ian

Ian

Notorious member
I got the impression that processing the pulp is similar to using lye to dissolve the husks of corn kernels to produce hominy.
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
Ian said:
I got the impression that processing the pulp is similar to using lye to dissolve the husks of corn kernels to produce hominy.
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It is. Lye is either KOH (potassium hydroxide) or NaOH (sodium hydroxide). Although what is sold as "lye" can be any alkali metal hydroxide for commercial sale.
 
RicinYakima

RicinYakima

High Steppes of Eastern Washington
CZ93X62 said:
I have zero interest in the adventure travel required to make my own BP, but I have learned TONS OF COOL STUFF just following along here. Thank you, gents!
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Never going to shoot up all the black powder in the magazine, but love reading about your adventures.
 
Rick H

Rick H

Well-Known Member
I have no interest in making my own black powder so long as decent quality stuff is available over the counter. As recent times have shown us, availability can be a real problem. Its nice to keep the knowledge alive for when it might be needed. Same could be said for napping flint. I am probably too old to master the art, but glad others keep it alive.
 
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