doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com black powder hammer gun

My nitro for black loadings are MUCH milder that what even BP is...you can shoot 5000 psi thru sewer pipes and not blow them up if your barrels are in acceptable condition. My E.M. Reilly has .040 minimum wall thickness, is BP proofed and it will shoot low pressure nitro loads all day for the next hundred years...as long as the barrels stay in proper condition. I will not consider buying a gun with Damascus barrels unless it has a minimum of .025 wall thickness. Take this example....damascus barrels, .020 minimum WT, nitro proved for 1200 bar 1 1/4 oz. Ya, it passed proof, but I wouldnt touch it with a ten foot pole. .025 WT, no pitting and no dents..this is my bare minimum with Damascus..
Nitro loads in BP proofed guns do not scare me. If the barrels are sound and everything checks out and you keep pressures at acceptable levels..there is nothing to be afraid of.

Dustin

First off, ask him what the latest proof marks are. If they're black powder, I'd stick with black powder straightaway. Get the feel of the gun first; plenty of time to try out low pressure nitro loads. And as LeFusil pointed out, ask what the barrel thickness is. How did you come acorss this gun? I hesitate to ask this, but it's been in my mind since first reading your initial post: Is this indeed a breech loading action? Is there any chance it is a percussion blackpowder gun? I only ask because it seems you're unclear on many facets of this gun, i.e.you haven't seen it "in the flesh" or seen (m)any pictures of it. Tell us everything you DO know about this gun, then it will be easier to get a handle on what to advise you to inquire about.

It is a breech loader and I am not sure if it is 2 or 2 1/2.I have requested the serial No# The pix looks good a lot of engraving not so hot of wood.I will get the info tomorrow or Tuesday unfortunately I have this stupid job that keeps me covered up.The pix are on my work computer I will post them or send you them to see what you think,

Thanks

Monty

Firstly get him to let you have details of the proof marks. If it has been re-proofed it will be obvious as it will be stamped on it. It will also tell you if it has been tested for nitro.
Here in the UK we are not allowed to sell guns which are ‘out of proof’ i.e. the barrels a bigger by a certain amount than they were originally proofed at. I am not a gun smith or dealer and things have got more confusing since we adopted metric proofing – but a competent gun smith should know. I gather in the US you do things differently – in house proofing and measuring wall thickness as a good indication of a guns shootability. We try to blow them up and if they survive they are deemed good!
Wall thickness is obviously a good guide to what a gun will stand but old English guns often had quite thin walls but were perfectly safe.
Secondly you need to know if there are any pits. Black powder is pretty corrosive if not cleaned out promptly – and when your gun was made that was almost certainly all that was available. The bore diameter should give you an indication if it has been polished out significantly.
If you can post photos of the proof marks and current bore diameter and wall thickness I am sure more knowledgeable people than me will give you a better assessment.