LOADING INFORMATION

SAFETY FIRST!
If you are new to shooting live rounds from a muzzleloading firearm, PLEASE find someone to show you how to properly and SAFELY load and shoot. The Society offers the following information only as a guide. YOU are responsible for your own safety and the safety of those around you when shooting. See additional Safety guidelines HERE.

When shooting a fine fowler, musket or other smoothbore, accuracy is completely dependent on finding the proper load, that is, the best combination of powder, shot and wadding for your specific firelock. The black powder known as ì3Fî works best in pistols and fowlers, whereas ì2Fî powder is best in military arms (though 3F may also be used for more sure ignition).

In determining the proper load, in general, the following formula may be used:

That is, if shooting a fowler that takes a round ball of 20 to the pound (20 Gauge) your bore diameter is .62. Using the formula above, your powder charge would be approximately 62 grains, your over-powder wad approximately 5/8" thick, and your volume of shot, be it #5, #6 or #7 (these being the best for shooting fowl) would be dispensed from the same measure as your powder. Field experiments have yet to determine if the thickness of the wads is crucial to the pattern of the shot, and any wad over 1/2" seems excessive, in our humble opinion, so you may have to experiment.

Even so, the formula above offers an excellent guide for the amateur or novice shooter in determining a starting point for finding the proper load for his specific piece. In field trials we have found that a load of 80 grains of 3F in a 20 gauge fowler with two, pre-lubricated "wonder wads" over the powder, an ounce of #5 shot, and a third wonder wad as an over-shot card patterns wonderfully. This load has worked well in breaking clays and has brought down a few birds, but we are currently experimenting with a heavier powder charge for hunting, as the charge of 80 grains of 3F does not seem to have enough knock-down power.

In shooting ball, your bullet must naturally be a size or two smaller than the bore. You can shoot ball in the same manner described above by simply replacing the shot in the diagram with a suitable projectile. For a .62 bore a .60 ball fits perfectly. In larger military arms like the British ìBrown Bessî a .735 ball does remarkably well.

Ball can also be fired using a greased patch for a snug fit. Once again, consistency is the key, and your patch should always be the same thickness and even the same lubricating agent used. A patch of .01" thickness works well with a ball sized .02 smaller than your bore. Once again using the 20 gauge fowler as an example, a .60 ball with a .01" patch performs very well.

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