Reply #4 on: July 24, 2006, 08:50:42 AM What fun! My Pedersoli percussion double is an absolute joy.

. It's taken dove, pigeon, rabbits and squirrel and it's one of my favorite guns to tote in the early squirrel woods when the cover is too thick to get guaranteed head shots. One thing I've found. If you are right handed or left handed, it doesn't matter, but the support hand needs long sleeves or a forearm protector. You can get tatooed with burnt powder and cap debris otherwise! I do not trouble myself with shot cups and whatnot. I load the gun the way it was loaded back when the wagon trains carried everyone with a westward dream into the unknown. Scatterguns outnumbered rifles and pistols several times. I dump my powder and seat an over the powder card. I put a quarter inch or half inch cushion wad over that. Dump my shot (6 works best for me) and place an over the shot card. I have interchangable chokes, but I have changed them out to the most open choke available for both barrels. You can experiment with powder/shot combinations and have a ball. For squirrel, I don't often load more than 70 grains of powder and an ounce of shot. Light kicking and well balanced. Same holds true for rabbit. Dove requires (for me at least) a bit more shot so I can fill the sky a little better. In that case, I up my powder to 90 grains. I've found that my patterns are actually a bit tighter with the lighter loads and quarter inch cushions. Read this essay by Ross Seyfried. It's wonderful. http://www.98.net/ibha/shotguns.htm This can get habit forming. another writer: I use 80 grains of 2f with my pedersoli 10 guage with same volume of powder. It slays clays well. I use overpowder and overshot cards of same material and I split a prelubed felt wad in half. It works well for me. I have IC and MOD fixed chokes. I emailed Pedersoli about using PRB in the shotgun and they sent back a long article that pretty well explained what can be and can't be done with the Pedersoli shotgun. In short, the

advise against PRB but suggest that buck and ball be used. Three 00 or 000 balls depending on guage, (I used 36 cal balls) with a large caliber ball on top. (I used a 58 caliber ball. It worked pretty well) I never patterned it but did catch a gong at 40 yards with the one shot I tried.
I find that with my shotgun, I have to concentrate to keep my cheek on the stock when I shoot as it slaps me pretty well. But if I do my part, the shotgun has never let me down. another writer: a good load for cylinder bore is powder,, nitro card,, fiber wad with gob of lube on botom of fiber wad(tc bore butter works fine in all weather conditions)many homeade lubes can be found..,,shot,, over shot wad.. pack the powder and wads not the shot........ remove caps before loading single barrel after shooting.. re seat unshot barrel, as shot likes to move up barrel

with succesive shots... measure load with ramrod lenght protruding out of barrel with fingers and make sure that each loading conforms to that or pull the load.... to tighten patterns use larger shot, more shot, less powder, harder shot(plated shot) , , to open up patterns use more powder, less shot, smaller shot, chilled (softer) shot,, pack shot.. to stop loads from working loose use two overshot cards and turn them so the punch bent edges face toward the muzzel.... good luck , dave. God bless ya dave;;;;; the old quote/rule of thumb,, less powder, more lead, shoot's farther kill's dead. Would be about the same as your experiance of more shot less powder= tighter pattern,,and/or more powder and smaller or less shot=open pattern. Them darn olde rules of thumb! ?? Shocked A goodley wad of hornets/bees nest for a "tween" wad works,,and "green leaves" on top ta hold the lead from spillin',,huhm? I guess our traditional for-fathers just didn't know nuthin bout shootin them smoothies Huh Think in terms of "drams"... 3drams = 82gr. 3 1/8 = 85gr. 3 1/4 = 89gr. 3 1/2 = 96gr. 3 3/4 = 103gr. (and that's a good place to call maximum with a 12ga. 4 = 109gr.

using 1 1/4 oz. of shot)

So the 10ga. are "maxed" with that 4dram 1 1/2oz of shot loading. The twelve would be closer to 3 1/2 or 3 3/4 dram and 1 1/4 oz. of shot. Most old charts show 3 1/2 dram (96 gr.) as a "Heavy" load. Lyamn goes to 103gr. (close enough to 3 3/4 dram) in their black powder data... split the difference for a nice round 100gr. as the max. Lyman goes to 1 1/2oz. fo shot...the old charts stopped with 1 1/4 oz....again, split the differnce and call 1 3/8oz. max. But shot weight kind of varies...using a measure that holds 103gr. of powder, will get a bit more shot weight with the small sized shot (packs better..less air space) than with large shot (like #2's). In real,life, most of the time you don't need to load to the max...do you need 3 1/2" mag. shells to shoot doves with a modern shotgun? Same idea...most of the time, can get it done with 75gr. of FFg and 1oz. of shot. -------May as well metnion it...will still find dram equivilant numbers on modern shot shells. Those equililant numbers have nothing to do with the weight of smokeless powder being used...it's just a comparison number in today's world, divorced from it's black powder roots. I shoot 80 grs 2f with equal volume shot in my 10 guage and it shoots very well. I take it into the fields for clay bird shooting. The hard part is finding all those little pieces of broken clay bird so I can pick them up and throw them away. TREAD LIGHTLY! I have a Pedersoli 10 Ga. side by side and I have found that like rifles, each shotgun is an individual. For my shotgun, I load 80 grains of 2f with equal volume of shot. I use an over powder card and one-half of a prelubed wad. Works like a charm.

CCI No. 11 Percussion Caps? How do I load my muzzleloading shotgun? The proper sequence for loading a muzzleloading shotgun is as follows: 1. black powder 2. over-powder (heavy card) wad 3. fiber cushion wad 4. optional shot (thin card) wad 5. shot 6. over-shot wad Recommended loads are as follows: 20 gauge -- 65 grains of FFG black powder and 1 ounce of shot, 12 gauge -- 75 grains of FFG black powder and 1 1/8 ounces of shot, and 10 gauge -- 85 grains of FFG black powder and 1 1/4 ounces of shot. Dixie stocks all of the wads needed in assorted gauges. Muzzleloading shotguns can be loaded with patched round balls as well as shot. We recommend using a .600 round ball for the 20 gauge, a .715 round ball for the 12 gauge and a .760 round ball for the 10 gauge.

$47 for shot

10ga. bore diameter .775"-wad diameter.788" In Stock, for immediate shipment WAD-10-A 10 gauge, .787" ideal for . 775" bore, .125" over powder card, 1000 $7.50 In Stock, for immediate shipment WAD-10-B 10 gauge, .787" ideal for . 775" bore, .025" over shot card, 1000 $7.50 In Stock, for immediate shipment WAD-10-C 10 gauge, .787" ideal for . 775" bore, .500" thick fibre wad, 500 $7.50 Out of Stock, expected soon. Order Now.............. WAD-10-CL 10gauge,.787"ideal for.775" bore, lubricated .500" thick fibre wad,500 $16.95

JAG-10-8 Button jagged cleaning tip, 10 gauge, brass, 8-32 thread . . . $2.75 NW-120 Nipple Wrench for Rifles & Shotguns, socket end, for #11 nipple . . . $6.99 SHOT-DIPPER-D Shot & Powder Dipper $19.95
For wads, I use a vegatable fiber wad. I think the ones I am currently using are from Circle Fly. Sometimes I use overshot cardboard cards, sometimes I use 10 gauge "Wonder-Wads" for overshot. Wonder-Wads are easire to ram than cards and are pre-lubed, which helps keep fouling down. However, they are more expensive than cardboard cards. The fiber wads need a lube (like TC Bore Butter) around then to ram easily, especially once the bore has started to foul a bit. Fiber wads are usually way over sized compared to the bore they a punched for but they give a great seal and are pretty inexensive. FYI - I am mostly shooting TT size shot (.210 dia. shot), that I get from Ballistic Product, as a general purpose load in my 10 gauge. _____________ Loading and Shooting Shot in a Shotgun or Smoothbore 1. Swab the bore dry using a jag and cleaning patch. 2. If using a flintlock, put hammer on half cock and clean frizzen and flint, and then make sure the touch hole is clear. -ORIf using a percussion gun, check the nipple for any obstructions, and snap a couple of caps with the muzzle pointed in a safe direction and with the muzzle near a leaf or blade of grass. If the vent is free the leaf or grass will move. 3. Pour powder charge from your powder horn or flask into a separate powder measure. NEVER load directly from a horn or flask!!! 4. Pour the powder in your measure down the barrel. 5. Place a cardboard over powder wad on your muzzle, and push it down your barrel with the ramrod until it is firmly seated on the powder. 6. Place a lubricated fiber wad on your muzzle, and push it down your barrel with the ramrod until it is firmly seated on the powder. 7. Measure out your shot and pour it down the barrel. 8. Place a thin cardboard over shot wad on your muzzle, and push it down your barrel with the ramrod until it is firmly seated on the shot. 9. When the Over shot wad is seated mark your ramrod, so you will know your wad is seated on succeeding shots. 10. Remove the ramrod and store it under the barrel. 11. If using a flintlock, prime the pan 1/4 to 1/3 full, and close the frizzen. -ORIf using a percussion, place percussion cap on nipple. 12. After making certain of your target and what is behind it, bring your hammer to fullcock. 13. Take aim at your target and fire. 14. Run a damp swab down the barrel, and you are ready to begin loading again. Modern shot cups are safe to use in a BP shotgun. I have had my best turkey loads in BP shotgun using CVA brown shot cups? The traditional method is to use the same volume of shot as powder. Since black powder is

measured by volume, (not the actual weight) whatever you are using as a powder measurer could also be used to measure shot. NEVER pour powder into the barrel(s) from a flask or other storage container. Here's an easy way to make just a measurer. For example, In my 10 gauge, I shoot 110 grains of FFg. I measured out 110 grains of powder and poured this into a empty 20 gauge hull. Without tapping of "settling" the powder, mark the level of the powder with a magic-marker and trim the hull to the level of powder charge. You can now use this as the shot measurer too. The old indian method was "a little bit of powder and a whole lot of shot". I think the other method works better. .760 round ball for 10 gauge blackpowder shotgun