American Pioneer Powder???

[DakotaElkSlayer]

I was planning on using American Pioneer Powder in my cap and ball...  On their website http://www.americanpioneerpowder.com they state that NO LUBE should be used with their powders.  When their powder is fired, moisture is created that acts as a lubricant.  If lube is used, residue is greatly increased.
  So how do you load this stuff with cap and ball and still not worry about a chainfire?

Jim

[Critter]

If you have a tight fitting ball that shaves lead all the way around the ball and the cylinder is truely round you won't have chainfires cause by sparks jumping in the front of the cylinder.  The ball seals the chamber and no spark is going to get past that.  Chainfires most often occur from poor fitting caps in my opinion.  Several people I have talked to that I consider very knowledgeable agree with me.

[unspellable]

You can put a Wonder Wad under the ball for added insurance against chain fires.  They add so little lube to the equation that I don't think you would have a problem.

[jgalar]

I would use a dry wad or two. I recently tried AP in a 36 caliber Colt style revolver - the powder really compresses a lot. With a 25 grain load I could seat the ball to about the same depth as using 15 grains of Pyrodex. I did not use any wads when I shot or any lube over the ball - I have tight balls :roll:

[DakotaElkSlayer]

Hey "tight balls",

What did you think of AP powder?

Jim

[Dalton Masterson]

I like the APP powder. Clean up is easy. I havent cleaned my  '60 in over 3 weeks now, and still no ill effects. Keep wiping a little out to see, and it wipes very easily. Depending on what I am doing, I will go ahead and use some lube on top of the ball. havent had any problems, and considering, the lube is on top, wont affect powder performance too much. DM

[willysjeep134]

AP can get finnicky if you over compress it. They warn about that for reloading metallic cartridge. I don't like the residue it makes. I use AP to load brass .410 shells only. I burned up a bit in my revolver, but the soot it creates is a lot more gritty than Pyrodex or real black. Black powder makes sort of a greasy soot, AP makes a chalky soot. I was using wonder wads at the time. Now I just shoot Pyrodex or real black if I can find it, and lubed conicals. It shoots fine though, although it is so granular I don't think throwing charges with a measure was as consistant as with black.

[Bitterroot Bob]

Howdy,
I bought a bunch of APP when it was called Cleanshot. My original intention was to use it for cartridges, and I did. .44 WCF, .45 Colt, .45-70, .38-55, .30-30... It worked pretty well, but I grew to dislike it and now use only FFg Goex and, in one cartridge, 777.
I found that the stuff absorbs moisture so quickly that an open jar will cake after only 15 minutes. How this stuff will act when stored in a flask, I shudder to speculate. I suspect that by the end of the day it won't pour at all.
While a by-product of combustion might actually be water vapor, it isn't enough to lubricate a dry bullet all the way down a rifle barrel. You will need to swab your bore after every ten shots or so. Also, the corrosive nature of APP practically stripped the "casehardened" finish from my .45 Vaqueros. Not good.
The one redeeming feature that it has is easy clean-up. I can run three wet patches down the bore, one dry, and oil. Done.
I would stay with Pyrodex or Goex.

Bitterroot

[darrell8937]

I have a some clean shot that is about three years old. It is still working fine, my shooting is greatly improving. Not due to the powder but practice. I don't keep powder in the flask after shooting, I put it back in the original container. I do have a couple marble size balls in the container but they don;t bother. I almost gave up the cap and ball thing until I got in a lot of practice. I do not know if the barrell broke in or what but groups are steadly shrinking. now all I want to do is shoot some more. Need to order some supplies. I am hooked.

[blckpowderman]

Brand new memebr here, but I have several years experience with bp shooting. I used that pwder when it first came out as Cleanshot. went off fine and cleaned up easy, but absorbed too much moisture, and accuracy was horrible. I guess I've tried everything except pre-measured pellets. I you want dependibility and consistance real black powder is the best. But it can be hard to find in some areas. Hope that helps. I sure look forward to talking with you fellers.