Loading conicals

[ronbow]

Anybody know of a foolproof way to load a conical straight in a ROA ? I bought a revolver loading press from Thunder Ridge which helps greatly. I am loading 30g triple7, wad and a .457 REAL Lee conical. Still it ia a real wrestling match to load straight. I know, I know stick to round balls. But I gotta try.

[ribbonstone]

Make the rammer/punch's face match the shape of the conical.  Can be as easy as greasing a conical's nose, cotaing the rammer with GOOD slow dry liquid Steel (like JB Weld), fitting thtwo togetehr, waiting over night for it to cure, and then trimming away the excess.

Started straight..rammed straignt...they usually shoot straight.

[longcaribiner]

I occasionally load some 456 diameter pure lead 235 grain bullets from an old Ideal mould in my Ruger old army.  I think they were originally meant as 45-70 bullets  kicks like a mule.

[Gatofeo]

I use the Lee conical in my reproduction Remington Army .44. Here's what may help:
1. Eliminate the wad. There's no need for it under the conical bullet, if the bullet is properly greased. The only reason for a wad under a conical bullet is to take up space so you don't have the seat the conical deep into the chamber. In this case, seat the wad first before trying to seat the bullet.
2. Drop the conical into the chamber. Rotate the conical a bit against the mouth of the chamber, so the shoulder of the conical rests squarely against the chamber mouth.
3. Using the rammer, apply very, very light pressure to the conical nose. You only want a little resistance of the conical's belt against the chamber mouth, at this point. This often squares the bullet against the chamber mouth and helps to eliminate cocking.
4. Check that your conicals are being cast correctly. If the mould halves don't match, one side of the conical will be slightly longer than the other. Look at the seam on the bullet. If a grease groove or driving band appears higher or lower on one side of the seam, than the other, your mould is not closing properly. Check your mould.
5. Seat one conical at a time, instead of trying to line up 2 or 3 on the cylinder. A greased felt wad seated on the powder will keep the powder from spilling from chambers during handling.
6. After very gently seating the conical, to true its driving band against the chamber mouth, seat it with one, quick motion if possible. A long, firm seating should do the trick.
7. Get a pistol stand for your seating, for those of you who don't have a separate rammer. I use the rammer on my pistols, in a stand. This gives me a better feel for how much pressure I'm applying. Also makes it easier to seat wads and projectiles.
8. Check your bullet alloy. While you might get by using wheelweights for cap and ball sixguns, it's a rather hard alloy. Use the very softest lead you can find. Pure lead, if you can find it.

Can't think of anything else. I shoot conicals once in a while but mostly shoot balls. Never found conicals to be nearly as accurate as a ball. However, like yourself, sometimes you just feel like tinkering with conicals.

[osceola]

For ease of loading of a conical in a ROA I have found the Lyman hollow point to work just fine.  I don't grease them, just set them on top of the chamber until they will settle in straight, they just "click" into place.  The bullet will load with enough resistance so as to not shift during a firing sequence.  It's made specifically for the ROA and can be found at http://www.gunaccessories.com/Lee/Molds&Melters/BlackPowder.asp

[hrminer92]

I live in an apartment, so casting my own bullets is a little out of the question.  What 'store bought' conical bullets would work OK in a C&B pistol?

[Shawnee Gene]

hrminer32; Buffalo Bullets makes conicals for C&B revolvers.  .375, .451,& .457.   

[howdy doody]

I can't help with conicals, but I do shoot bullets in ROAs, they being cast by me from wheels weight lead. I  lube and size them at .454. This was a special design and a group order was made to have Lee make the 6 gang molds. I have had great luck with them at cowboy shooting at close range targets. I doubt they would be good for more than 25 yards. What is nice is the sound of ding when they hit steel versus the splat of the pure lead balls I was shooting. Weight is near the same as a Speer .457 ball. I do load with a press with the cylinder out of the ROA. The small bullets have a small rebate of about .452, so that you can stand the bullet up on the chamber and then use the rammer. Just 30gr of powder, no wads, no over ball lube and they work great for what I use them for. I leave the rammer off the ROAs and the pin screw loose, the lever stays put and holds the cylinder pin in place.
Here is a pic of what I am talking about. The bullet on the left is fully lubed and sized, there is a .457 ball and a bullet that is as comes from mold. You can see I also load the bullets in 45lc too for shooting in my Vaqueros. That made up round on the left is called a 45 spl. It is near the same as a Schofield and you need ACP dies to load them. Again, the cartridges are loaded to 1/6" compression by bullet of Goex, no wads, nothing extra.



Here is a picture of the cylinder mounted in the press, with a bullet sitting on the chamber mouth and ready to be rammed onto powder.



Sure, it isn't for everyone, but after a lot of experimenting and for the the type shooting I do, this setup of bullet and big lube groove and press works really well for me and I thought you might get a kick of a different setup.

[hrminer92]

hrminer32; Buffalo Bullets makes conicals for C&B revolvers.  .375, .451,& .457.   

the local Sportsman's Warehouse carries some Meister bullets in 500 round packs for a little under $40.  I think this is one that they carry:

 45 LC 160GR .452 RNFP   
Product Code: RB-45-1602 

Caliber: .45 LC RNFP Weight: 160 GR Diameter: (.452)


Would that work ok?  It's flagged as a "cowboy bullet", but it's on their smokeless page on their website.  What's the difference between them and what's on  their black powder page?

[BUTCHER45]

     I had the BBC .451 and .457 BP Round Nose Pistol Bullets calipered at the muzzleloader shop last week.
     The .451's calipered .454
     The .457's calipered at .46 (just like the .45 Ball-Ets)


                                                                                            BUTCHER

[All Hawks Kill]

During a search I found this thread.  I was thinking about trying some soft cast cowboy bullets in my 1860 Army.  They are .452 170gr RFN and prelubed that look like this;



Has any one else tried this, or have any more information than what is in this thread?