Elric
Well-Known Member
Folks, another blast from the past. It should confirm things that people have known...
Shooting and Fishing, page 47, vol 30, No. 3, May 2, 1901
https://books.google.com/books?id=b5cwAQAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=editions:4_nJVSo-51oC&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiOvcf4gIrYAhUY22MKHWqBD-04ChDoAQgrMAE#v=onepage&q=ENGLISH RIFLE NOTES&f=true
ENGLISH RIFLE NOTES, by J. J. M.
I think that during next hunting season there will be a number of men trying the effect of ball shooting smoothbores on large game in the states. To obtain great accuracy it is necessary to have a much more perfect sphere than in a rifle, and the great care with which American molds are made ought to induce all American sportsmen to apply for those required to fit their smoothbores. About twelve years ago I purchased a No. 6 Ideal tool for a .40 or .60 through the Colt Co., in London, and I thought the bullets the most perfect I had ever been able to cast. It was difficult and sometimes impossible to find on them any mark where the two halves of the mold joined. The Ideal lead loader also I found a great help in casting bullets free from defects.
In 1888 an Englishman who had spent forty years hunting and exploring in South Africa wrote several letters to the London Field about ball shooting smoothbores. His experience was that to obtain the greatest accuracy the ball should be hardened with about one-half part of tin, so that it could not be deformed by the blow of the powder gas. It should fit very closely but not tightly, so that it could be pushed through the barrel by a steady pressure of the cleaning rod, but without any ramming. It should be lubricated and should rest on a thick and very soft wad. The barrel being bored a true cylinder internally should have externally a straight taper from breech to muzzle, instead of being dished in the central part as is the case in most ordinary shotguns. The object of this shape is to make them very rigid. Barrels that are dished, being thin in the metal, vibrate too much for good ball shooting. The muzzle should be thicker in the rim than guns made for small shot only. The gun should have a rear sight like a rifle. I think a very small Lyman rear aperture sight would be the best for this purpose. I have never had a smoothbore breechloader especially made for ball, but in experimenting with my shotguns have obtained the best results with bullets of such a size that when resting in a thin tough linen patch they could be sent through the barrel with one steady push of the cleaning rod. In muzzleloaders I have also found this kind of fit gives the closest shooting, but I still think the close fitting naked ball as above described would be worth a trial.
In the Ideal Handbook it is frequently mentioned that round balls in rifles must be used with only small powder charges, to prevent their jumping the grooves. I have found that the actual charge depends much upon the depth of grooves as well as rapidity of twist. I have made nearly all my rifles shoot well with round ball, in order to kill birds like geese or cranes without tearing them. A 45 Express, the ordinary charge for which was 124 grains of powder, shot round balls very accurately with 55 grains of powder. A 40-60 Maynard— which has rather deep grooves like the Ballard and Marlin rifles—carries round balls of 102 grains with beautiful closeness with any charge between 15 and 40 grains of powder. A .32-35 Maynard barrel shoots balls just fitting the shell nicely, close enough to hit a rabbit in the central part of the shoulder at 50 yards when driven by 10 grains of Curtis's & Harvey No. 6 powder, the twist being one turn in 15 inches. More powder cannot be used without a slight loss of accuracy. I leave it loose in the shell, put a thick cloth lubricated wad in the mouth, and on this a thin dry paper wad to prevent the bullet sticking to the cloth wad when leaving the muzzle. With such small balls this makes a marked difference. With my Winchester .38-55-255 rifle, '94 pattern, I have never been able to obtain good work with round balls, although with the 255 grain bullet it is a splendid shooter. I attribute this to the very shallow kind of grooving, which causes the round ball to tip with even a small powder charge. J. J. M.
Shooting and Fishing, page 47, vol 30, No. 3, May 2, 1901
https://books.google.com/books?id=b5cwAQAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=editions:4_nJVSo-51oC&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiOvcf4gIrYAhUY22MKHWqBD-04ChDoAQgrMAE#v=onepage&q=ENGLISH RIFLE NOTES&f=true
ENGLISH RIFLE NOTES, by J. J. M.
I think that during next hunting season there will be a number of men trying the effect of ball shooting smoothbores on large game in the states. To obtain great accuracy it is necessary to have a much more perfect sphere than in a rifle, and the great care with which American molds are made ought to induce all American sportsmen to apply for those required to fit their smoothbores. About twelve years ago I purchased a No. 6 Ideal tool for a .40 or .60 through the Colt Co., in London, and I thought the bullets the most perfect I had ever been able to cast. It was difficult and sometimes impossible to find on them any mark where the two halves of the mold joined. The Ideal lead loader also I found a great help in casting bullets free from defects.
In 1888 an Englishman who had spent forty years hunting and exploring in South Africa wrote several letters to the London Field about ball shooting smoothbores. His experience was that to obtain the greatest accuracy the ball should be hardened with about one-half part of tin, so that it could not be deformed by the blow of the powder gas. It should fit very closely but not tightly, so that it could be pushed through the barrel by a steady pressure of the cleaning rod, but without any ramming. It should be lubricated and should rest on a thick and very soft wad. The barrel being bored a true cylinder internally should have externally a straight taper from breech to muzzle, instead of being dished in the central part as is the case in most ordinary shotguns. The object of this shape is to make them very rigid. Barrels that are dished, being thin in the metal, vibrate too much for good ball shooting. The muzzle should be thicker in the rim than guns made for small shot only. The gun should have a rear sight like a rifle. I think a very small Lyman rear aperture sight would be the best for this purpose. I have never had a smoothbore breechloader especially made for ball, but in experimenting with my shotguns have obtained the best results with bullets of such a size that when resting in a thin tough linen patch they could be sent through the barrel with one steady push of the cleaning rod. In muzzleloaders I have also found this kind of fit gives the closest shooting, but I still think the close fitting naked ball as above described would be worth a trial.
In the Ideal Handbook it is frequently mentioned that round balls in rifles must be used with only small powder charges, to prevent their jumping the grooves. I have found that the actual charge depends much upon the depth of grooves as well as rapidity of twist. I have made nearly all my rifles shoot well with round ball, in order to kill birds like geese or cranes without tearing them. A 45 Express, the ordinary charge for which was 124 grains of powder, shot round balls very accurately with 55 grains of powder. A 40-60 Maynard— which has rather deep grooves like the Ballard and Marlin rifles—carries round balls of 102 grains with beautiful closeness with any charge between 15 and 40 grains of powder. A .32-35 Maynard barrel shoots balls just fitting the shell nicely, close enough to hit a rabbit in the central part of the shoulder at 50 yards when driven by 10 grains of Curtis's & Harvey No. 6 powder, the twist being one turn in 15 inches. More powder cannot be used without a slight loss of accuracy. I leave it loose in the shell, put a thick cloth lubricated wad in the mouth, and on this a thin dry paper wad to prevent the bullet sticking to the cloth wad when leaving the muzzle. With such small balls this makes a marked difference. With my Winchester .38-55-255 rifle, '94 pattern, I have never been able to obtain good work with round balls, although with the 255 grain bullet it is a splendid shooter. I attribute this to the very shallow kind of grooving, which causes the round ball to tip with even a small powder charge. J. J. M.
Last edited:
