Walker load

[Wagon Box Willy]

Hi Folks,

I'm about to try my hand at a plainsman side match and I'm scurrying to get ready.

One of the pistols I'll be using is a Uberti Walker.  I can only find a 25g spout for my flask (shows how much I shoot C&B) and I'm worried that even with a lubed wad, I will not compress it enough.

Anyone know if 25g and a felt lubed wad will take up all the space under the ball?  I plan on test firing it tomorrow but then leaving on Thursday for a match so I don't have much time to figure this all out.

Thanks
Willy.

[Kent Shootwell]

25 grains won't come close. Use it twice for a fifty grain charge. Others may say silly things like use corn meal to fill the space but it's a Walker! Big gun, big load, big fun. At least till it gums up which it will.

[Wagon Box Willy]

Kent, thanks.  That jogged my memory and that is exactly why I got the 25g spout.  twice in the walker and once in the 1858.

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[wildman1]

If I remember correctly about 45g's is about the minimum you want.
wM1

[Coffinmaker]

Hope you got the Trails and Cason to accompany that Cannon.

Coffinmaker

[pony express]

That's how I used to load the Dragoon I sometimes shot in a stage or two. Same measure as the 1860, but 2 times.

[hellgate]

You might want to load FFg instead of FFFg. The FF will compress a little more and is softer on the gun. I shot my pair of Walkers in a 6 stage match using 50grs FFFg+ lube wad+ .454 ball + over ball lube and after the match I noticed excessive cylinder gap from  crushed wedges. I reduced the load to 44grs of FFg +.454 ball+ wad and all was well ever since but I needed to replace the wedges. Also the softer shooting FFg is less likely to cause the rammer to fall.

[Wagon Box Willy]

As soon as the wife leaves the house today (she hates when I shoot in the back yard)  I'm going to try 50g of ffg, lubed wad and .454 ball, SlixShot nipples and #10 Remington's.

[Lefty Dude]

Oh, how I love Shambers, nothing like em !!!!!!!

[45 Dragoon]

Crushed wedges are sign of a short arbor. Get it fixed (correctly) and you can shoot max loads of Trip.7 all day, every day. A barrel/cyl clearance will keep it clean too.

Mike
www.goonsgunworks.com
Follow me on Instagram @ goonsgunworks

[Freedom]

I honestly shot 1,000s of ball out of my Walker over 25 grains of 3f Goex....No problems what-so-ever. Otherwise my Walker hit way too high.

The blackpowder air gap myth is an internet sensation and is parroted daily by folks that don't understand "Why?" the air gap can cause problems.  So many false ideas and speculations of this, from "flash-over"... "instant detonation"..to the most silly "too much Oxygen!!"

Only when the column of powder is very long is there trouble with an air space. When a settled or compressed powder column of black powder is ignited from the rear, the solid mass of powder speeds forward as it burns away. Compressing the air in the gap between it and the projectile....there-by forming a bore obstruction situation.

This isn't even that easy to do in a lab. Western Powder was hired by CVA to blow-up some muzzloading rifles...They couldn't get it done with black powder and the airgap!!.. and had to go to smokeless

Schutzen guys have been adjusting the air gap in there rifles as part of load development for 100 years!

Enjoy that Walker!!! Awesome machine

[45 Dragoon]

Like I said, fix the arbor and you can shoot max trip 7 loads all day, daily . Less than half max loads in a Walker won't bother anything. I too shot 1000's of 60gr powered balls and replaced no telling how many wedges. Not sure how many hunters would use a Walker and shoot with 25grs powder. Most use the Walker for the powder capacity and the 9" barrel.  Some are fine with using Dragoons.

As far as rifle barrels and air gaps, do you think a forge welded barrel would be as strong as a modern bar stock barrel? I would say you may be correct for today's offerings but it may have  been of more concern with formed barrels.

Mike
www.goonsgunworks.com
Follow me on Instagram @ goonsgunworks

[Freedom]

Like I said, fix the arbor and you can shoot max trip 7 loads all day, daily . Less than half max loads in a Walker won't bother anything. I too shot 1000's of 60gr powered balls and replaced no telling how many wedges. Not sure how many hunters would use a Walker and shoot with 25grs powder. Most use the Walker for the powder capacity and the 9" barrel.  Some are fine with using Dragoons.

As far as rifle barrels and air gaps, do you think a forge welded barrel would be as strong as a modern bar stock barrel? I would say you may be correct for today's offerings but it may have  been of more concern with formed barrels.

Mike
www.goonsgunworks.com
Follow me on Instagram @ goonsgunworks

When I was just a kid I got a Walker and I thought that the wedge was an adjustment feature..lol

As I pounded it with full cylinder loads of powder it really wore out. The wedge on that revolver was actually harder than the barrel steel so the wedge slot bulged and stretched out badly.

 It was not until years later, with access to the internet, and after reading post from you and others that I realized that it was the arbor length that had trashed my gun...not the powder load.  I'm still learn'n too.

I posted about the air gap to hopefully help a few to understand what was really going on there. A light 25gr charge of REAL blackpowder, laying loosely in a big Walker cylinder does not form a column of powder that slams into the ball and blows a cylinder..just not going to happen. But I'm sure NOT suggesting anyone short-start a ball in there rifle.

I know you can ring a Sharps rifle chamber on the first try if you press a wad down onto the powder charge and then seat a bullet leaving an airspace... And several guys have completely blown a barrel of a Sharps with the wad trick and smokeless!! But this is the fault of the wad forming a powder column..not the air gap on its own.