From can to cartridge how do you get it there?

[Double D]

With not a lot of experience using black powder and only using it in Cartridges I don't have a lot of powder working tools.

I have a spout that goes on the GOEX can from which I pour powder into a Thompsen Center Volumetric measure.   The measure has a little swinging funnel that levels the powder off. I then pour the powder into a funnel at the top of my drop tube down into the case.  After a loading seesion I end up with quite a bit of powder spilled all over.  A mess to clean up that for sure, and not all that safe.

I have considered one of these brass blackpowder measures, but the thought of "cutting"  a kernel kind of unnerves me. Anybody got any clean idea to get powder from can to cartridge?

[rdnck]

DD--Don't worry about using a powder measure such as a Lyman 55.  I have 3 of them, and "cutting" a kernel or grain of powder is not a concern or an issue.  You can set one up to drop powder directly into a case, or directly into your drop tube, whichever you prefer.  It does make for a cleaner loading set up.  Shoot straight, rdnck.

[The Shrink]

I got the Lyman 55 BP version, with the brass works and drop tube already there, just attach it with one tightening fingerscrew.  Easy as pie, once I fugured out how to adjust the measure.  Big change from the RCBS Easyflow I've used for smokeless.

[Coydog C.]

I started out using a RCBS Uniflow, then went to the Lyman 55.

I really hated the Lyman 55! It was accurate, and very easy to clean, but the repeatability sucked. I could never get the hang of the 3 slides with two scales and I was always over adjusting something.  

Now I use a Harrel’s Precision Classic. It’s expensive, but hey, I’m worth it. It’s repeatable (clicks) and very accurate. I now keep a little table of favorite powder charges and their corresponding measurements on my powder hopper. When working up loads it’s fantastic because 1 grain equals 5 clicks. So simple, even I can’t screw it up!  :grin:

Chuck

[Double D]

Uniflow for Blackpowder?  That's living dangerously!

Is tha Harrel’s Precision Classic for black powder?

[Coydog C.]

Double “D”,

“Living dangerously” or “playing the odds”!

I really believe that BP is a lot harder to ignite then most folks believe.

The Uniflow is about on par with a standard Lyman 55.

The Harrel’s is made of nickel-plated aluminum, anodized aluminum, and brass. They’ll sell you a brass hopper if you’re loading BP and ask for it.


http://www.harrellsprec.com/classic.html

Chuck

[The Shrink]

Marsh

All I've figured out is that I guess with the biggest one and fine tune with the middle one.  I don't think I've ever used the little one with FFG.  Maybe if I were to use it with a ball powder, but not with FFG.

It is a pain to use, but it's what I got, and it works.

[Coydog C.]

Marsh,

   Mine had end-play too, and I could keep it to about + or - .3 grains on average. It really took developing a rhythm and holding the handle against the frame to minimize the end-play. Another key was keeping the hopper close to full, even though I put a brass baffle in the hopper.

Chuck

[Double D]

Don't like playing the odds with black powder...seen two accidents.

One on the range at Phoenix when a spark from shooting got in the cereal bowl of powder sitting on the bench.  Big flare up, smoke all over trapped under the covered firing line and a big melted spot in the foam covering under the roof. I was about three benches down when this occurred and an unscheduled cease fire was called.

The other a plastic cereal bowl also from which powder was being dipped with Lee plastic dippers while the person was sitting at a bench in a room with a shag carpet. Melted then bowl enough to send burning dripping plastic onto the carpet. Quick response by the Fire Department likmited damage to the carpet and bench, and smoke throughout the house.  Saw this one when I was a Policeman in Phoenix and responded to a house fire call. Cause was believed to be static electricity of which in the winter there is no shortage in Phoenix. Bet that house smelled like rotten eggs for a long time.

The plactic hopper on my Uniflow shows a tendacy for static build-up.  So I won't use it.  

FWIW, the Uniflow is a worthless measure as it comes with it's little graduated unreadable unrepeatable stem. When you get the micrometer adjusting stem, it becomes an entirely different measure. Almost but not quite as good as the Redding.  One look at the method for setting the measure scared me away from a Lyman and it sounds like the only thing they changed for black powder was to make everything brass.

I have found one other measure to consider. The Hornady. Any comments on that one?

[Coydog C.]

DD,

   Seriously, yours is the first time I've ever heard of someone having had an accident due to static electricity with BP. I knew a guy that did all sorts of tests trying to ignite BP by accident and he told me that in fact it was pretty difficult to ignite from normal static electricity. This wasn’t the only time I’d heard this.  

In the older versions of the Buffalo Arms catalog Gullo states that he used a standard Lyman 55 powder measure for years without incident. While the operating principles might be a little different between the Lyman 55 and the RCBS, I think that both shear BP granules with equal abandon. It’s easy to get a brass tube that replaces the hopper on your RCBS uniflow if that’s your concern. I probably loaded about 2000 rounds on mine before going to the Lyman.

BTW, my RCBS has the micrometer stem, it’s cool, but no where near as cool as the Harrel’s

Chuck