Period correct '74 Sharps Buffalo Rifles?

[Gunner500]

10-4, I'll give that a try, do you seat the patched bullets with a die?

I have to wet patch when I install the patch on the bullet, then sit the bullets on their flat noses to dry, they're really snug and pretty durable.

Mould dia is .428" will patch up to .438" with the paper I use.

[rfd]

g500, that sounds like a wonderful rifle that'll soon arrive at ya way faster than via shiloh, congrats.

[Don McDowell]

10-4, I'll give that a try, do you seat the patched bullets with a die?

I have to wet patch when I install the patch on the bullet, then sit the bullets on their flat noses to dry, they're really snug and pretty durable.

Mould dia is .428" will patch up to .438" with the paper I use.

No I seat with thumb pressure.
You may run into some accuracy problems with the bullet that small and paper that thick...432 is about as small as I would go.

[rfd]

i agree with don - too little bullet and too much paper, i suspect. as a comparison of sorts, and fwiw - with a .45-70 barrel bore of .450" i like my ppb's to patch to about .449" dry. my prime bullet is a custom BACO jim443530e that drops @ .443" w/1:20 alloy, and a twin dry wrap of fidelity 9# onion gets it into a proper bore rider diameter. thumb seated only ... well, into fire formed brass the ppb just falls in and wobbles. i use a special die to close off the case mouth just a tiny tad so the ppb won't fall out, yet it will still spin in the case mouth and can readily be pulled out with finger 'n' thumb, patch fully intact.

[MikeR]

I agree that the paper is too thick, but the bullet may still be too big for a BN case. If you were loading a .44-anything straight, I would say your bullet diameter is spot on(.010" less than bore diameter). For my .45 rifles I use a bullet that is .440" and patch it up to .446". This provides adequate accuracy for hunting out to 350 yards or more and the rounds drop into the chamber with a fouled bore for many shots and allow a loaded round to be removed with the bullet still in the case. I tried this "formula" with my .44-2 1/4 SBN and the second round would not chamber with out blowing into the breach. Unless you are going to shoot immediately, loading a PP bullet into a wet chamber is not a good idea, not to mention having to take your eyes off the game to blow into the breach. With the chamber you have ordered in your rifle, that bullet might work if you use the Seth Cole 55W paper and rdnck's lube.

You might want to wait until you have the rifle so you can try some bullets and not order a mistake mould. I had the same problem when using my .40-2 1/2 SS bullet in my .40-2 5/8 SBN.

[J.B.]

I think you'll find that diameter slick a little on the small side. I'd be working on a minimum of .432 & possibly even .434 with thinner paper. jmho

J.B.

[Gunner500]

g500, that sounds like a wonderful rifle that'll soon arrive at ya way faster than via shiloh, congrats.

Thanks rfd, it will be a fine rifle that I'll be happy to own and hunt, it will join the team of my other Sharps rifles, I don't believe I own one yet that I'd sell, they're just too dang accurate and kill as sure as we have air to breathe.

10-4 on Bill Goodman too, RDNCK advised me to go that route.

[Gunner500]

That's a lot of good info on differing bullet diameters and papers you men use/used to get your rifles up and shooting well, I appreciate the information.

[Gunner500]

Also, paper patch bullets being what they are, wouldn't the thinner the paper the more fragile they would be?

Slowly dragging oneself through briar filled clearcuts and dragging a half a pickup bed load of sawbriars around your waist would sure have me worried about my ammo in the belt.

I even went the extra step on year of wet patching my bullets, standing them on their noses to dry, then dipping the patched bullets in Rooster jacket lube,returning them on their noses to dry again, loading, shooting and hunting them, a real tough water resistant patch that shot, blew confetti at the end of the barrel on firing, and was just as accurate as any other I've ever patched and loaded.

I saw early on in this Sharps rifle game, a man can never get bored with all the differing combos of bullets, cartridges, calibers, paper patching or grease groove shooting, it's all right here, what do you want to invent/reinvent today?????

[rfd]

g500, you may just need to see for yerself what'll work best with how you build, carry, load yer ppb cartridges. i prefer dry wraps, and if need be i'll wipe a very thin smear of jojoba oil on the paper, but after the ppb is seated in the brass. i use cases or full leather pockets to hold rounds, not belts with exposed ppb snouts poking thru.