efficancy of black powder

[lola]

hi all i have just bought a black powder hammer gun and i am planning on using it for the occasional wander and i was wondering if the effective range was the same as a nitro 12 #6 cartridge on rabbits and pigeons thank you.

[lola]

no replies? i was just wondering if i could shoot rabbits ect, with my bp hammergun at the same range as aya my yoeman with modern carts

[enfield2band]

I have shot clay pigeons with blackpowder cartridges and there is no noticeable difference, apart from the smoke.

I don't see why you cannot shoot rabbits, and other game, at normal ranges.

[DedIdick]

Take it out, load it and pattern it and there's your answer.

[McTrucky]

I would suggest that a black powder shot gun would not perform as well as a modern shotgun, however, modern cartidges vary enormously as some are designed for low recoil, or quieter use. So there is no black and white answer; you need to experiment.

The question's not about pattern or chokes, it is about 'stopping force'. On clays this is not much of an issue, but on live prey it would be cruel to pepper an animal without stopping it. Sure, do the pattern test so that you know the effective pattern at a given range, but also test the power.

For an easy answer, buy a couple of melons from Tescos, and do a side by side comparison between your normal game cartridges and the proposed black powder load at 30 yards or whatever you consider a normal shooting range, then cut open the melons and check the penetration of the pellets. Ones that just break the shell would break a clay pigeon but would not kill a rabbit.

It would be interesting if you could report your findings.

McT

[enfield2band]

I would suggest that a black powder shot gun would not perform as well as a modern shotgun, however, modern cartidges vary enormously as some are designed for low recoil, or quieter use. So there is no black and white answer; you need to experiment.

McT

What did people shoot game with before smokeless powder?

A charge from a blackpowder shotgun has nearly if not the same velocity as a modern cartridge.
If you can recall that some cartridges were marked 3-1/2 Dram equivalent this was because they were loaded to perform as well as a blackpowder cartridge.

I was always under the impression that for a pellet to be effective it has to have enough hitting power to break a bone? So a pellet size would need to be selected according to the game pursued.

I think the best method to determine the effectiveness is to use a pattern plate.
If the pellets flatten out on impact and if they are of sufficent size they have enough velocity to to kill game.

If you have never used a blackpowder gun before don't clean it with oil you will end up with a black sludge that looks like sugar.
Use washing up liquid and hot water or use a blackpowder solvent/cleaner.

[lola]

wow thanks for all the replies i have patterned the gun and made good patterns, similar to nitro but i wasn't sure about velocity and stopping power (hence my thread) i have tested it today and bagged a few rabbits fine. i will try to do the melon test and if i do i will report my findings. i must say it was a pleasure to shoot!. i cleaned the barrels first with the shower head disconnected and run at full heat for a few Min's per barrel before brushing out and they came up a treat. thanks for the info.

[slowcoach]

BP will do the job no problems. Only marginally slower than Nitro when it leaves the muzzle. Shot all sorts with muzzle loader and BP cartridge shotguns, they do the job well, just take longer come clean up time

[dickiebig]

Just take a look at the game books that record the shooting exploits of the victorians and before. They shot enormous bags of a very wide range of game with blackpowder shotguns, mostly with no ear protection. The shooter that is! WHAT!!!!!! WHAT!!!!!! ATB Dickie.

[cookoff013]

handload 4`s and they are fun.

3 dram, 2,3/4" shell. it should drop most things nicely, you should be expecting 1200fps or 1100fps.
good enough.