A few years back I took my grandad's old Belgium round bottum, back action lock, 12 ga hammer gun out of the cabinet and cleaned it up. I had new firing pins made for it. The bores were clean. The stocks are in good shape except the checkering a little worn on the fore end wood from being caried. The gun has no finish left on it because grandpa used in in S. F. Bay in his scull boat. The salt air and water disloved the browning on the barrels and case hardening on the receiver and locks. I have the original brass shell reloading tools for it. He had purchased it at Sears when he was a boy. I loaded up a bunch of black powder loads for it and took it pheasant hunting. It worked real well although I had to get used to the cloud of smoke each time I shot a bird. I could hear the shot hit them, but could only see them on the ground until the smoke cleared. I used Winchester AA plastic shot shells for reloading with Wincester primers. I used 85 gr. of FFg powder and plastic AA plastic piston with the center spring cut out. I did not have any wads as I had been previously loading trap loads for my modern double guns. Now, it has been said that the plastic power piston will leave a coating of plastic in tne barrels. I did not have any problem with it with few shells I fired. The plastic base wad and shot cup seemed to work real well. I used 1 1/2 oz of #5 shot in each shell. I also have a large collection of decoys he made out of redwood that I used for duck hunting years ago. They are light, but by the end of the season become heavy as they become waterlogued. They required painting every second year I think all of you are right on with te loadss you are using.
