777 in a percussion Sharps?

[Dave Fox]

I'm a casual shooter of an original Sharps M.1863 three-band .54 calibre rifle. I use and dote on Charlie Hahn cardboard cartridge tubes. With a Rapine ringtail bullet inserted, there's not a world of room for powder. It's an accurate 100 yard rifle and pleasant to shoot, but I can't help wondering if a tad more oomph might be nice. Anyone have experience using 777 in a percussion Sharps?

[AntiqueSledMan]

Hello Dave,

From my experiences shooting 777, it's a little harder to ignite than Black.
I use it in my front loaders, but in my brother's Lyman Great Plains we
started putting 4 gr. of 4F in first for consistent ignition.

AntiqueSledMan.

[Dave Fox]

Tried ten rounds of 777 in Hahn cardboard cases under Rapine ringtail bullets in my original three-band M.1863.. Didn't feel any different than FFFg black pwder. Shall load some more to guage accuracy.

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[boilerplatejackson]

I roll my own paper cartridges for my percussion sharps replica. I use 65 gr of triple seven in my flat based paper cartridges. My cartridges are tailored to just fit into the breech, and the cartridge base is right against the breech block flash hole. Before I load a cartridge I make a diagonal slit in the base of that cartridge with a razor. Powder stays put and the flash has an easier time penetrating the base. I also discovered early on that the percussion nipple needed to be vented to allow more flash to transfer down the breach block flash channel. That vent was cut with a Dremel wheel on the side of the nipple facing the flash hole. It did not need be very large, and it improved flash ignition 100%. I use bond typing paper to fabricate my paper tubes with.