Shooting And Enjoying Old Guns

What it Takes to Shoot the Old Ones

Ok you bought this old gun at the local gun show. The seller thinks that it was an old French military gun but he isnt sure. Anyway you thought that it would be a good looking wall hanger and the price was right. Its been on your wall for awhile and you never had an urge to shoot it. One day your buddy comes over and inquires about shooting it and you give him a blank stare as to what it shoots. After he leaves you get thinking that maybe you would like to try it out. After all you do some reloading and you are confident that ammo isnt available at the local gun shop. You get your reloading manual out and there is nary a mention of your mystery gun. So you start doing some research and find out that its an 11 mm Grass which France brought out in 1874 and was used until 1886 when the French brought out the revolutionary 8mm Lebel the first smokeless cartridge brought out by anyone. You buy Cartridges of the World (a smart move) and it gives you a little history of the rifle a nd cartridge. You found out about the rifle on the web. Anyway you now know what you have and what it shoots. Now comes the fun where and how do you get ammo for it. None of the reloading manuals have info on it and you dont see any source for dies.

The very first thing that you do is to make sure its safe to shoot and you are shooting the correct cartridge. Someone may have rechambered or rebarreled to another more common caliber. That happens and I have seen it. The last one was a 43 Spanish rolling block. Someone reamed out the chamber to take a 348 case necked up to the 439 diameter bullet that the 43 commonly uses. I suppose that they did that because the 348 case was easier then the 43 Spanish cases to get though that is no longer true. Another odd ball conversion that I encountered was an 11 French Gras that had the barrel set back and rechambered to the more common 11 mm Mauser round. More info on taking a chamber cast in a previous article published in SGN titled Whats in a Name A chamber cast can reveal those important details prior to shooting it. In this instance shooting a 43 Spanish round may have been dangerous because the case might of split.If you are not sure of the guns condition or caliber spend a fe w dollars to have a qualified gunsmith check it out for you. A few dollars spent that way is a lot cheaper and less painful then a hospital bill.

Once you ascertain what it is and its safe to shoot then you have just started your project. You need dies, cases and bullets in order to make functioning ammo. You will quickly find out that some of the components are very scarce or non existent. There are several makers that sell custom dies and shell holders. Keep in mind they will be a lot more expensive then common dies. Brass for many of the old ones has to be made out of something else. If you dont have the knowledge or tooling then the best thing is to buy it from someone who specializes in that. The two best sources that I can think of are Buffalo Arms and Bob Haley Brass (940) 888-3352 for both the bullets and brass. Both make many calibers and advertise in the SGN. If you have an 11 mm Mauser or a 43 Spanish then you can buy HDS brass and bullets from Huntington Die. Sometimes you really have to use your imagination to get or make a die set. That saying about thinking out of the box can really apply here. Custom d ies are very expensive sometimes costing over $200.00 and if you are only going to shoot it a few times then it may not be worth it to purchase special tooling. Making some of those cases requires sophisticated tools and techniques which may make it impractical to make them. I order a lot of my cases from Bob Haley or Buffalo Arms and then reload them from there.

In this part I want to concentrate on the first generation of cartridge firearms meaning the black powder offerings that came out in the 1860s and 1870s for the most part. Breech loaders were in their infancy and many interesting if impractical ideas were generated during this time. The next installment will be the second generation such as the 6.5 Dutch etc. If you decide to make your own cases then a book such as The Handloaders Manual of Cartridge Conversions by John Donnelly & Bryce Towsley is a good place to start. It will give you the dimensions and which case to start with as well as couple of hints on how to form the cases.

One of the early offerings was the 11 X 58 French Gras. It came out in 1874 and was the French military rifle until 1886. The cartridge is a large and powerful for its time while the rifle is a well made and sturdy affair common with those of the period. The only way to get brass is to make it out of 348 cases which are still available. There is quite a bit of work involved in the process such as cutting down the rim and swaging the case body. There are times when annealing may be required. If you dont have the required equipment I advise buying the finished product from Bob Haley or Buffalo Arms. They have the necessary equipment and knowledge to form the cases. Dies can be very expensive and I made mine from the 11 X 59 Mauser set. I cut the body off a set of extra Lee dies so that I just sized the neck and did the bullet seater in a similar fashion. That saved me a couple of hundred bucks. The bullet is a standard .446 diameter which can be bought from a couple of sources . Since this is a black powder gun I advise starting with either black powder or a suitable substitute such as Pyrodex or Clean Shot. The Clean Shot has the advantage of being non corrosive for cleaning purposes. Its very important to be sure there is no airspace when using those propellants or you could run the risk of blowing up the gun. Smokeless powders can be used but caution must be observed as these guns are well over a century old and the designs and metal technology arent up to todays standards.Remember we are shooting these guns for fun not to make a magnum out of them. This missive applies to all the guns discussed in this article. I found that the Gras shot very well with the proper loads and is well worth the effort required to get it in shooting order. As a note the 11 X 59 Mauser cartridge will fit and fire in the Gras but I do not recommend that practice. The case body of the Mauser is a bit smaller and may rupture causing some problems.

Another oldie that can be made to shoot by forming 348 cases is the 12.17 x 44. It is the centerfire version of the 12 X 44 Rimfire military cartridge. Brought out in 1867 it was never a military offering though sporting rolling block rifles were made for it. Basically it is a 348 case shortened and straightened out using a bullet of .502 in diameter. Even though my gun looks rough it shoots very well.

Another old caliber in rolling blocks is the 11 mm Spanish Reformado. It preceded the more common 11 X 53 Spanish. It came out in 1867 and was replaced in 1871. As a note the bullets were brass covered and frequently turned green giving the Reformado the nickname of 43 Spanish Poison. While similar it isnt interchangeable with the more common round. Brass can be made from 348 cases and 11 mm bullets can be used. The dies can be a shorty set such as I have or you might find that another 11 mm set might work. I found with the low pressures associated with these calibers neck sizing usually works ok.

Sometimes you find a 43 Dutch Beaumont rifle floating around at a gun show and may want to purchase it for shooting. While it has a couple of strange features it is worth shooting. There are 2 versions of this cartridge the shorter one came out in 1871 while in 1878 it was slightly lengthened and a 457 bullet adopted. It is said to be similar but not identical to the 43 Egyptian. If you are unsure of which version you have then I advise you to do a chamber cast and a bore measurement. The later version can be used with 458 bullets ok and the reworked 50-90 Sharps cases that are available from Starline. The body is a bit small in diameter but will be ok due to the low pressures associated with this cartridge. Dies can be bought or try a 45-75 die for neck sizing and bullet seating. To do a chamber cast the best material to use is Cerrosafe which can be bought at Midway or Brownells. It has a very low melting temperature and if properly used gives an accurate chamber cast. Pri or to doing a chamber cast be sure to have a plug of some kind in the barrel just in front of the chamber. A bullet works fine and you can get a little of the rifling for a bore measurement as well. Thoroughly cleaning the chamber is also important for good results.

The Italian Vetterli rifle was adopted in 1870 being similar to the Swiss version that was originally a rimfire. Like most guns of that period it was well made and sturdy. The cartridge was one of the smaller military offerings of the period but can be made to shoot accurately. Cases can be made from 348 brass and bullet diameter called for is .422. However mine is 412 so 41 mag or 405 bullets work best. The best way to make 422 diameter bullets is to swage down 44 magnum bullets. Ch Tool & Die can make a bullet reducing die for such work. You will need that also for the Italian revolver of the same period. I dont know of any commercial source for 422 bullets and a mold would be very expensive. The 44 magnum unsized bullets will not fit in either gun.

The British first foray into the breech loading gun market was the 577 Snider. It used a system devised by Joseph Snider an American which converted the Enfield muzzle loader into a cartridge weapon. From the start they knew that is was a stopgap measure and was used from 1867 to 1871 when it was replaced by the 577/450. The mini ball that was used in the 58 caliber can be used and are available from various sources. They generally weigh from 450 to 500 grains making them an impressive slug. Molds are also available from several makers and they should be cast soft for best accuracy. The shock of the powder going off blows out the skirt which grips the rifling for accuracy. The brass can be made from a brass 24 gauge shell by shortening it. Bob Haley has ready made cases that can be reloaded by using a Berdan primer which he also sells. The special decapping tool is available from Huntington Die. Jamison made regular boxer primed cases but unfortunately they took a government contract and they wont be available for at least a year. My dies came from Lee and they work fine. For a light bullet I use Hornadys 58 caliber round balls and they work fairly well.

The 577/450 Martini Henry replaced the Snider and was used until the 303 British came out in 1888. It is an elongated and necked down version of the Snider round. If you have 24 gauge brass casings then you can make them or buy the Berdan primer version from Bob Haley. Like the 577 Jamison made some boxer primed cases and if you have them then you have a prize as they wont be available anytime soon. I have used both cases with satisfaction with Lee dies. Smokeless loads can be used if you are careful. Bullet diameter calls for 455 but I use 458s with complete satisfaction. The original bullet weighed 480 grains but bullets from 300 to 500 grains can be used. The heavier bullets tend to have frisky recoil. Like many of the guns discussed in this article slugging the bore will determine which the best diameter to use in it. Tolerances werent as tight as they are today and bores are frequently oversize. The 45-70 Trapdoor Springfield was a big offender in that regard.

The 45-75 and 50-95s were made for the Winchester model 76 with the idea that they would provide more power without the ammo being too long for a lever action. They were marginally more powerful then a 45-60 which is nothing but a 45-70 shortened. The 45-75 can be made from 348 cases that are reworked and the 50-95 is best served by using a 50-90 Sharps case. A 300 grain bullet of the appropriate caliber works fine in either rifle.I would hesitate to shoot the originals because of the value and if I did I would use black powder. However Uberti makes a real nice knockoff which can be shot with sensible smokeless powder loads.

The 50 Navy rolling block pistol came out in 1867and was different then the 50 Army. The army version had a larger rim and a bottleneck while the Navy version was a straight walled offering. The Army can be made by shortening the 50-70 to .6 and using a 300 grain .512 diameter bullet. The Navy version that I made were from a 500 Linebaugh case shortened to the same .6 and using the same bullet which are available from Buffalo Arms if you dont mold them yourself. I found that it was a fun gun to shoot and fairly accurate although it shot high.

The 10.4 Italian service revolver came out in 1874 and was used in the model 74 revolvers as well as the Glisenti revolver. Both black powder and smokeless loads were available. Cases can be made from 44 special shortened to .9 and possible rim reducing. You can check your individual gun for that determination. The dies I use are a 41 magnum bullet seating die to size the cases and a short version of the 44 special dies to seat the bullets. Bullets are 422 in diameter and have to be swaged from 44 caliber slugs. CH tool & die can provide the necessary tooling. I have used both jacketed and cast with good results. To be honest you cant drive jacketed bullets fast enough to expand at safe pressures so you are just as well off with the cast verity. I found that this gun is very accurate at 15 yards though it hits high. Like many of the revolvers of the period the sights are crude and the double action trigger is so heavy that single action is the only way to go.

The 11 mm French revolver came out in 1873 and was replaced in 1892 by the 8mm Level revolver cartridge. Brass can be made from 44 special shortened and the rim thinned quite a bit. Bullets are generally in the 430 diameter range though that may vary. I would slug the bore to get the proper diameter for your gun. When loading I would stick with black powder or one of the substitutes available as it isnt designed for high pressure loads.

In 1892 the 8mm Lebel round replaced it. Like its predecessor it was underpowered as a military handgun. Cases can be made by shortening and forming 32-20 cases. Bullet diameter is .330 and they weigh around 115 grains. They would have to be cast via a special mold if you can find one. Possibly one of the listed sources can help out though I make my own. Some people use the 8mm Nambu bullet which while slightly smaller in diameter can be used though may not be as accurate. I use my Nambu dies to neck size the case and seat the bullets.

The 11.75 Montenegrin Austro-Hungarian revolver is a massive hinged frame affair based on the Gasser system. It weighs around 4 & lbs and a set of wheels should come with it. Anyway I got brass and bullets from Bob Haley and used my custom shorty dies to load the ammo.The brass is from an extensively reworked 45-70 case and I used 446 diameter bullets that weigh in at 300 grains. It is definitely a black powder proposition.

The 9mm Jap was the Japanese revolver cartridge from the 1890s. To make ammo for it you can shorten 38 special cases and cut down the rim as needed. I have used standard 9mm bullets weighing 115 or 125 grains with good accuracy for that gun. There is no need for jacketed bullets as velocities arent that high and will keep the cost down a bit. Keep the loads light and you should be in good shape.

Is it worth the time effort and expense to make ammo for these obsolete guns? Keep in mind you will have to expand a lot more effort and time to do a fractional amount of shooting and it will cost more. Frequently when I do a test batch of ammo for one of these weapons I seldom shoot more then 50 rounds at a time frequently less. I may spend a good part of the day testing the loads by chronographing and target shooting but may only shoot two or three guns. Another thing to keep in mind is that many of the cartridges headspace on the rim but many old guns have excess headspace so when being sized you should size them just enough to easily chamber. That will extend the life of the cases by several firings and make your shooting more enjoyable. Taking notes and pictures is time consuming where if I had a more modern gun I could shoot more and observe less. Is it worth it?You bet!!!! I wouldnt have it any other way.

Shooting Black Powder Guns

Shooting Black Powder Cartridge Firearms

One of the earliest if not the earliest rimfire cartridge was the 22 BB cap which came out in 1845. It was chambered in Flobert rifles for indoor practice hence it had no powder just priming. Later on some variations of the BB and CB caps did contain a small amount of black powder. In fact I shoot BB caps on occasion and find it enjoyable. They are capable of killing a rat at a few yards given good shot placement. The oldest cartridge in continues production is the 22 short which came out in 1857. It was the first cartridge meant for self defense and outdoor shooting. Of course the pin fires preceded them by some years but for our purposes we wont get into them. Rim fires became popular during the 1860s and some militaries used them as large as a 50 caliber. An example is the 44 Henry rimfire used during the Civil War between the states. At one there was quite a selection of rimfire cartridges in the US. They went from the 22s to some 56 and even 58 calibers. The Swiss and S wedish military used rimfires in their military for a few years. I have a nice example of a Swiss military rimfire in my collection dated from the late 1860s and if I get a few loose cartridges will shoot it. By the late 1860s centerfire cartridges were being perfected and they have some advantages over the rim fire verity. They were generally more powerful and they could be reloaded which was an important factor especially to western settlers and buffalo hunters. When done shooting for the day commercial buffalo hunters dug out the slugs and re-molded them. They then reloaded their brass with the nut cracker looking tools available then. Weight and space was a precious commodity so any way they could save on that they did.Competition target shooters also preferred the center fires as they could custom load the ammo to their rifle.

The centerfire as we know it will be the focal point of this article. Centerfires as we know them started to be developed in the 1860s and by the 1870s they in some instances started to use the common Boxer primer while many did and still do use the Berdan type of primer. Some ammo was made with an inside primer which wasnt visible from the outside of the case. My guess is it is cheaper to make a Bearden type case and primer which is why some countries still use them. Apparently serving the reloader isnt a priority. While the Berdan primer can be reloaded it is much more difficult and time consuming. Many times you also need a special size primer which can be difficult to get. You need a special decapping tool for that and for the most part it isnt worth it. I use them in the 577 Snider and 577/450 because I cant always get Boxer primed cases.I have seen cases that were converted from Berdan to Boxer primers and that can work ok if done correctly.

When shooting old guns that are designed for black powder there are a couple of things to keep in mind. Frequently these guns are well over a hundred years old and arent getting any stronger. The designs and metal technology from the 1860s through the 1880s wasnt what it is today. If you have an antique black powder gun and you want to shoot it there are two things to keep in mind. First make sure it is in good enough shape to shoot. If the action is extremely loose or its excessively rusty then you might want to hang it on the wall. You should also look for any tampering which might render it unsafe to fire. Sometimes they might be rechambered and I have run across that a couple of times. If in doubt have an experienced gunsmith check it out. The other thing to look for is the correct caliber. Many of the old guns werent marked so it would behoove you to do a chamber cast and a bore slug to ascertain the correct caliber. Firing the wrong ammo in a gun can be extremely hazar dous to your health. Once you have determined the safety and caliber you are ready to shoot and enjoy a piece of history.

The next thing is where you are going to get the proper ammo. There is no major company that loads actual black powder loads as far as I know. However there are a couple of specialty outfits that will. For the most part you will have to roll your own if you want to shoot it. In many instances the brass can be difficult to get especially some of the old foreign calibers. Frequently you will have to make it or buy it from someone who does. Buffalo Arms makes a lot of odd ball calibers and I use them for some of my needs. Starline brass makes some of the old timers and their line is expanding. They make good quality brass and it can be used to make other cartridges. The 40-65 case can be used to make such black powder numbers as the 40-60 Winchester and Marlin. is an easy way to browse their catalog. You are not going to go to the local gun shop and pick up some 11 mm Grass ammo. Many of the American calibers are easier to find brass for as companies such as Starline make qua lity brass for many of the obsolete calibers such as the 41 Long Colt and the 45-90. Because of the good quality I can make many other cases from the Starline cases. Part of the fun of shooting these guns is the challenge of getting the brass and bullets. Anyone can walk into Wal Marts and buy some 223s but where is the challenge to that? As for bullets you will have to either mold them or find a specialty maker who does. Ah then you have to buy the dies which while can be found can be expensive. Hey if it was easy where would the challenge be? Then you have to get the powder. Since they are called black powder guns you should start with black powder. Lets examine your options on propellants.

Black powder is by far the oldest propellant in use. If you can obtain it I would recommend that you start there. The reason is if properly used it is very safe in old weapons because it doesnt generate dangerous pressures that can damage a fine old gun. Other advantages of black powder are it produces excellent accuracy and is consistent given proper loading procedures. It is also relatively inexpensive. There are a couple of downsides also. First of all it is regarded as an explosive as opposed to a propellant such as all other powders are. That makes it more regulated and sometimes more difficult to buy. Many stores wont carry it because of the regulations and licensing requirements.It is corrosive demanding immediate cleaning after shooting especially in damp climates. It is hydroscopic which means that it absorbs moisture which causes rust. It fouls the bore badly and needs brushing between every few shots to maintain accuracy. You should also clean your empty cases wit h soap and water as soon as possible. If you let them sit they will corrode and be no longer reloadable in advanced instances. The corrosion will eat through the necks rendering them useless. If you spent a lot of time or money getting those cases that is a major consideration.

To give an example of powder fouling a couple of months ago I was doing some velocity and accuracy tests on 38 short and long Colts. I was using a S & W model 15 which is chambered for the longer 38 special round. Anyway I shot a few dozen shorts with black powder and when I tried to chamber some longs they would not fit in. I dry brushed out the chambers and went back to testing without a problem. I then brushed the chambers again and fired some 38 special smokeless to start the cleaning process. Like all black powder guns I shoot they are cleaned with soap and water then left in the sun to dry after which I check them and lightly oil it. I am not crazy about the Arizona sun but it is good for drying guns. Is that an unconventional to clean guns?Maybe but it works for me. If the sun isnt available for drying I use the hottest water I can get to help out with the drying process. There are many products made to clean black powder guns if you dont like the water method employe d by me. Also I had a client send me some 43 Beaumont that he fired and wanted me to reload. Unfortunately he didnt take care of the brass and it grew a mess of corrosion. (See picture) Anyway I was able to remove enough of to salvage and load the cases. These cases are very expensive and hard to get. They will sell for over $3.00 a piece so it behooves you to properly care for them.

If you cant get black powder for some reason there are some alternatives. Pyrodex is the oldest substitute that is useful. It acts like the original given the same loads. I have shot it along side black powder and for the most part there is little or no difference. Like all guns if you switch propellants for some reason check your sighting and accuracy before using it for some serious purpose. It comes in FFG and FFFG grades as well as a cartridge grade. One advantage is it isnt considered an explosive so it is less regulated.It fouls and is corrosive like black powder so clean accordingly. The price on Pyrodex is generally pretty reasonable and it is widely available.

Cleanshot came out a few years ago as a non corrosive black powder substitute. In that regard it works very well. While non corrosive it leaves a lot of residue in the cases and barrel though it can be cleaned fairly easily. With cases if you dont tumble them first the powder will fall off the insides of the cases when you resize them. I dont consider it a real problem though a minor nuisance. The inside of the barrel will be white and requires some cleaning. It is very course in both grades FFG & FFFG.Powder measures might have a hard time digesting it causing it to bridge in them. Grain for grain it produces more velocity then either black powder or Pyrodex. Like its predecessors it should not have airspace between the bullet and powder. It gives off smoke like the original stuff. It also works well in blanks making a loud noise and produces a lot of smoke. Like the others it ignites easily though it looks funny.

A new powder that came out recently is Blackhorn 209. It is made for inline muzzle loaders advertising higher velocity plus little residue. A few months ago they sent me a bottle of it to evaluate and comment on. At the time I didnt have an inline handy so I decided to try it in some of my black powder guns. Wow!It is the cleanest burning of all the propellants I have tried. Another thing I found it produces more velocity by far with less powder then any of the other powders including Cleanshot. This is true for rifles with fairly large to large cases. In small rifles and handguns there is no velocity advantage though it produces good accuracy. It is a low density propellant with a hole in each kernel.The two problems with Blackhorn 209 are high price and it is hard to ignite though in cartridge arms I never had a problem with that. I always use magnum primers which helps that out. It doesnt work well in blanks because of its hard ignition and somewhat slow burning character istics. There are other powder substitutes out there but I havent used them so I wont comment as to how well they perform.

I am covering the alternatives to black powder in order to give you some options in case black powder isnt available or desirable. Smokeless powder can be used but caution is the byword. You are dealing with antiques or replicas of them. Most of them were designed years before smokeless powder came out. Even the replicas require care in loading smokeless because even though they are better built they still have the original designs which requires some common sense. Smokeless powder can generate much more pressure thus putting the gun at risk. There are some suitable powders out there if used carefully. Accurate Arms produces one called 5744 which is an excellent powder for many rifles and they provide some data. Some other good powders are IMR 4198 and Data 4197 both are good if used correctly. For handguns and small rifles, powders such as Unique and Herco work well and I have used them for many years. A fairly new powder Trail Boss is made especially for those types of gun s and works very well. It is a low density powder which takes up a lot of airspace without generating excess pressures. I urge you not to attempt to increase velocities over the originals especially in antiques as it will surely lead to grief. Smokeless powders have different pressure characteristics then black powder and the differences can ruin a gun.The object should be getting a gun to shoot well with a bullet similar to the original. The velocity should be around the original also. In my experience those are the most accurate loads most of the time. The idea is to have fun shooting a part of history.

Some people like a lot of power and that is fine but it is achieved somewhat differently in a black powder gun then something new. Most black powder loads seldom chronograph much over 1500 FPS. That is the nature of the beast and there is nothing you can do about that. Cleanshot and Blackhorn 209 will produce more velocity but it wont put the gun into the wiz-bang category. To get more power in the old smoke pole you need to increase the weight and size of the bullet. A large capacity case will increase velocity to an extent. A 45-120 will shoot a 500 grain bullet at 1500 fps as compared to the 45-70 at 1200 merely by being able to use more powder. Another example a 45-60 will shoot a 300 grain bullet at about 1200 FPS while a 45-70 will shoot a 500 grain slug at the same velocity both using black powder. The 500 grain will hit a lot harder and travel further. I have a client who wanted to take a 500 Nitro Express black powder double to Africa and asked me to work up a load. After some experimenting and punishment I used a 515 grain bullet at 1400 FPS backed by 135 grains of FFG powder. It was impressive on both ends and he had good results in Africa. At one time the British had a 4 bore that shot a 4 oz slug at about 1300 FPS giving it more energy then a 460 Weatherby magnum. The powder charge was 325 to 380 grains what fun. You couldnt pay me enough to shoot that monstrosity. They also had an 8 bore which only weighed 15 lbs as opposed to the 25 for the 4 bore. Big guns were used in the good ol U.S. with some of the bigger ones being the 45-120 and 50-140 as well as some of their shorter cousins. In spite of the pedestrian velocities they were and are very effective rounds on most anything that walks. Big heavy, slow moving bullets hit hard and penetrate deeply. They also produce a large hole and a good blood trail. A good friend of mine used my 45-120 on an American Bison with a 520 grain at just over 1600 feet per second. He didnt want blac k powder so I loaded 5744 which performs well in those rifles. Anyway he dropped a bull at about 50 yards with one shot and it didnt move after it was shot. The bullet broke the near shoulder went through the heart and stopped just under the hide expanding to twice its diameter. The Bison weighed about a ton.Some of the European military calibers were pretty potent such as the 577/450, 11 mm French Gras and the 11 mm Mauser. They like the Sharps rounds can be used to hunt large game successfully.Not a well know fact but the 303 British started out life as a black powder round. They used a heavily compressed load of 70 grains with a 215 grain round nose. The heavily compressed load was rated at about 2100 fps no doubt because of the compression and the bottle neck. I also wonder if that rating was a bit optimistic. In 1891 they went to smokeless and the 303 became one of the great military cartridges of the 20Th century.

To make life interesting for western settlers there were frequently two or even three cartridges with the same name but they were not interchangeable. Remington, Winchester and Sharps among others would put out their version. Many times the main difference was one was bottlenecked and another might be straight. One claim was that the straight case didnt kick as much though if that was the scenario then perhaps the bottle neck case shot a little faster given the same load. It would be an interesting study to compare them. Looking at old ammo tables the bottle neck seems to have a slight advantage but it was small. The bottom line was if went to the local hardware store you better know which version you had.

If power isnt important there are some fine cartridges out there for you to use. A 32-40 loaded with black powder is a joy to shoot and is super accurate. It shoots a 170 grain bullet at around 1200 fps or so and at 200 yards can produce excellent accuracy. It would work fine on small game though it would be light for deer. With modern loads in a strong rifle you can safely take that 170 up to 1700 + fps but dont try that in an old gun. The 38-55 is another fine round from the 19Th century that started as a black powder round that made the transition to smokeless powder. Three cartridges that came out in the black powder era are the 32-20, 38-40 and the 44-40. They are popular because they can be chambered in both rifles and handguns. They are low powered rounds suitable for small game and two legged critters. One thing worth mentioning is that the cases made in the 1800s were frequently of the balloon type. That means that the head was thinner and the rim was hollow. That a llowed a little more powder to be loaded in those rounds giving it a little more velocity. With the advent of smokeless powder it was discovered that the balloon head cases wouldnt always hold up to the higher pressures.

There have been many handgun cartridges brought out during the black powder era. They range from the tiny 22 short to the massive 11 mm Montenegrin. A large percentage of them are badly underpowered by todays standards though they were popular in their day. Many of the derringers chambered such rounds as the 32 and 41 short rimfires. They were so underpowered that they would bounce off a tree but ladies of the night liked them because they were small and easy to conceal. The card players of the day also had an affinity for them for various nefarious reasons. The early center fires for the most part were also anemic though there were exceptions. The 44 Bull Dog came out around 1880 and was popular in spite of its anemic ballistics giving a muzzle energy of only 80 lbs. The 50 Army and Navy were fairly decent in power as well as the 11 mm Montenegrin revolver which is a massive affair. The U.S came out with such offerings as the 44 American and the 44 Colt neither which would light the world on fire. The 44 Russian was known for accuracy though not particularly powerful. When the 45 Colt came out in 1873 it quickly was regarded as great man stopper shooting a 255 grain bullet at 930 fps giving around 490 ft lbs of energy. Now that is a man stopper! The 38-40 and 44-40 were popular by virtue of being chambered in a revolver and rifle which was an important consideration during the frontier days. While decent man stoppers they were on the light side for large game. To my knowledge they didnt chamber a rifle for the 45 Colt which has me scratching my head as it is superior to both of the other cartridges especially for hunting. The 41 Long Colt was fairly popular for a number of years while the 41 short fell into deserved obsolesce. The 41 Long Colt was well regarded as a man stopper because of its blunt 200 grain bullet. It has a smaller frame which appealed to some folks and it was said that it was Billy the Kids favorite weapon as he had small ha nds.The 38 Short Colt was also a weak sister though it was the forerunner of the 38 special. The British came out with their verity of 45 caliber Webley revolvers. They shot a big chunk of lead at low velocities usually around 600 feet per second. The Brits believed that if the bullet expanded all its energy in the target it would be a better stopper. They carried that philosophy to the 38 S & W AKA 38-200. It shot a 200 grain bullet around 500 feet per second according to their info. Try as I might I couldnt get one much over 400 fps no matter how much I packed the powder. Maybe they used balloon head cases. Anyway I have shot a lot of good groups with various black powder pistols from the 9.4 Dutch to the 10.4 Italian revolvers. Black powder produces low pressure and mild recoil in these arms.

If you have a Damascus barrel shotgun and want to shoot it I would strongly advise sticking with black powder. They are a twist steel and arent as strong as modern shotgun barrels. Yes I have talked to folks who use smokeless and all I say to them is its not if it will blow it up but when. You can load 50-60 grains of black powder and 1 & 1/8 oz of shot and have a good small game load. You can also load buckshot or slugs if desired but you wont get the same velocity as modern loads produce. You can also use modern plastic hulls to good effect. There are brass hulls for those who want to be authentic or for re-enactors. A little experimenting and you can get good loads that pattern well. Pyrodex and Clean Shot seem to work well though the same isnt true for 209. Black powder also makes impressive blanks in the various gauges. Back in the good ol days the 10 gauge was very popular because it held more shot and powder then the 12.

When you load black powder it is very important to keep it away from any open flame or static electricity. Any spark will set it off. If you use a powder measure be sure it is no non sparking or have the ability to produce static electricity. There are special measures out there for that. Buffalo Arms sells them. To put the most powder you can in a case you might try a drop tube. That seems to allow a few more grains and help it settle. The substitutes arent as dangerous but if you act foolish it will cost you dearly. I run all of them through a measure and they meter well except Cleanshot FFG and 209 with a small measure. Just watch your cases and make sure that you are getting the same amount of powder in each shell. That is also true of smokeless powder.With the larger cases and blanks I use magnum primers which will increase velocity a bit and may help the powder to burn a little cleaner. If you chronograph your loads you will have to step back a few feet especially with the larger guns. They produce so much smoke that it can obscure the screens rendering them useless because they cant see the bullet. Normally I stand 10 feet away from the first screen but with black powder or a substitute I move back to 15 feet and a breeze doesnt hurt either.

To give you an idea of how black powder and substitutes perform I am going to include some of my chronograph results. All of the loads were slightly compressed regardless of the propellant used. Note that Clean Shot and especially Blackhorn give higher velocities with less powder in almost all of the loads in the rifles.

LOADCALIBER-BULLETVELOCITYCOMMENT

40 X FFG C.S.38-55245 grain cast1555accurate

30 X 20938-55245 grain cast1526consistent

37 X FFG PYRO45-60300 grain cast1316accurate

64 X FFG BP45-70500 grain cast1025ok

70 X FFG BP45-70400 grain cast1203accurate

60 X FFG CS45-70400 grain cast1244consistent

55 X 20945-90300 grain cast1656good load

90 X CS45-120535 grain cast1634consistent

103 X FFG BP45-120535 grain cast1405accurate

72 X CTG PYRO45-120535 grain cast1410ok

69 X 20945-120535 grain cast1693OUCH

75 X CS11mm Gras370 grain cast1543accurate

89 X FFGBP11 mm Gras 370 grain cast1465good load

73 X CS11 mm Gras 385 grain cast1534potent

81 X FFG BP11 mm Gras 385 grain cast1405consistent

53 X 20911 mm Gras385 grain cast1669WOW

52 X CS12.17 X 44300 grain cast1183Ok

60 X FFG BP12.17 X 44300 grain cast1222accurate

40 X 20912.17 X 44300 grain cast1402deer

115 X FFG BP577 Snider500 grain cast1110consistent

76 X CS577 Snider500 grain cast1270potent

110 X FFG BP577/450300 grain cast1626pleasant

100 X FFG BP577/450400 grain cast1416accurate

82 X CS577/450510 grain cast1494potent

Handguns

19 X FFFG BP32-20115 grain cast785accurate

14 X FFFG CS32-20115 grain cast653ok

10 X 20932-20115 grain cast586slow

10 X FFFG38 Long Colt158 grain cast498slow

17 X FFFG BP9.4 Dutch180 grain509slow

13 X 2099.4 Dutch135 grain619accurate

11 X 2099.4 Dutch180 grain557ok

14.5 X PYRO41 Long Colt192 grain cast730good load

10.5 X 20941 Long Colt192 grain cast642consistent

9 X FFFG BP41 Short Colt135 grain385useless

10 X FFFG BP41 Short Colt148 grain502fair

Thats just a partial list did some of the odd balls. CS Clean Shot,PYRO Pyrodex, BP black powderNote in rifles CS and 209 produced the highest velocities but not in the handguns. This just gives you an idea as to what a black powder firearm will do. There is a lot of potential and fun in shooting these old fashioned guns. Everyone should give it a try and you wont be sorry you did.

Bob Shell

Shooting And Enjoying Old Guns

What it Takes to Shoot the Old Ones

Ok you bought this old gun at the local gun show. The seller thinks that it was an old French military gun but he isnt sure. Anyway you thought that it would be a good looking wall hanger and the price was right. Its been on your wall for awhile and you never had an urge to shoot it. One day your buddy comes over and inquires about shooting it and you give him a blank stare as to what it shoots. After he leaves you get thinking that maybe you would like to try it out. After all you do some reloading and you are confident that ammo isnt available at the local gun shop. You get your reloading manual out and there is nary a mention of your mystery gun. So you start doing some research and find out that its an 11 mm Grass which France brought out in 1874 and was used until 1886 when the French brought out the revolutionary 8mm Lebel the first smokeless cartridge brought out by anyone. You buy Cartridges of the World (a smart move) and it gives you a little history of the rifle a nd cartridge. You found out about the rifle on the web. Anyway you now know what you have and what it shoots. Now comes the fun where and how do you get ammo for it. None of the reloading manuals have info on it and you dont see any source for dies.

The very first thing that you do is to make sure its safe to shoot and you are shooting the correct cartridge. Someone may have rechambered or rebarreled to another more common caliber. That happens and I have seen it. The last one was a 43 Spanish rolling block. Someone reamed out the chamber to take a 348 case necked up to the 439 diameter bullet that the 43 commonly uses. I suppose that they did that because the 348 case was easier then the 43 Spanish cases to get though that is no longer true. Another odd ball conversion that I encountered was an 11 French Gras that had the barrel set back and rechambered to the more common 11 mm Mauser round. More info on taking a chamber cast in a previous article published in SGN titled Whats in a Name A chamber cast can reveal those important details prior to shooting it. In this instance shooting a 43 Spanish round may have been dangerous because the case might of split.If you are not sure of the guns condition or caliber spend a fe w dollars to have a qualified gunsmith check it out for you. A few dollars spent that way is a lot cheaper and less painful then a hospital bill.

Once you ascertain what it is and its safe to shoot then you have just started your project. You need dies, cases and bullets in order to make functioning ammo. You will quickly find out that some of the components are very scarce or non existent. There are several makers that sell custom dies and shell holders. Keep in mind they will be a lot more expensive then common dies. Brass for many of the old ones has to be made out of something else. If you dont have the knowledge or tooling then the best thing is to buy it from someone who specializes in that. The two best sources that I can think of are Buffalo Arms and Bob Haley Brass (940) 888-3352 for both the bullets and brass. Both make many calibers and advertise in the SGN. If you have an 11 mm Mauser or a 43 Spanish then you can buy HDS brass and bullets from Huntington Die. Sometimes you really have to use your imagination to get or make a die set. That saying about thinking out of the box can really apply here. Custom d ies are very expensive sometimes costing over $200.00 and if you are only going to shoot it a few times then it may not be worth it to purchase special tooling. Making some of those cases requires sophisticated tools and techniques which may make it impractical to make them. I order a lot of my cases from Bob Haley or Buffalo Arms and then reload them from there.

In this part I want to concentrate on the first generation of cartridge firearms meaning the black powder offerings that came out in the 1860s and 1870s for the most part. Breech loaders were in their infancy and many interesting if impractical ideas were generated during this time. The next installment will be the second generation such as the 6.5 Dutch etc. If you decide to make your own cases then a book such as The Handloaders Manual of Cartridge Conversions by John Donnelly & Bryce Towsley is a good place to start. It will give you the dimensions and which case to start with as well as couple of hints on how to form the cases.

One of the early offerings was the 11 X 58 French Gras. It came out in 1874 and was the French military rifle until 1886. The cartridge is a large and powerful for its time while the rifle is a well made and sturdy affair common with those of the period. The only way to get brass is to make it out of 348 cases which are still available. There is quite a bit of work involved in the process such as cutting down the rim and swaging the case body. There are times when annealing may be required. If you dont have the required equipment I advise buying the finished product from Bob Haley or Buffalo Arms. They have the necessary equipment and knowledge to form the cases. Dies can be very expensive and I made mine from the 11 X 59 Mauser set. I cut the body off a set of extra Lee dies so that I just sized the neck and did the bullet seater in a similar fashion. That saved me a couple of hundred bucks. The bullet is a standard .446 diameter which can be bought from a couple of sources . Since this is a black powder gun I advise starting with either black powder or a suitable substitute such as Pyrodex or Clean Shot. The Clean Shot has the advantage of being non corrosive for cleaning purposes. Its very important to be sure there is no airspace when using those propellants or you could run the risk of blowing up the gun. Smokeless powders can be used but caution must be observed as these guns are well over a century old and the designs and metal technology arent up to todays standards.Remember we are shooting these guns for fun not to make a magnum out of them. This missive applies to all the guns discussed in this article. I found that the Gras shot very well with the proper loads and is well worth the effort required to get it in shooting order. As a note the 11 X 59 Mauser cartridge will fit and fire in the Gras but I do not recommend that practice. The case body of the Mauser is a bit smaller and may rupture causing some problems.

Another oldie that can be made to shoot by forming 348 cases is the 12.17 x 44. It is the centerfire version of the 12 X 44 Rimfire military cartridge. Brought out in 1867 it was never a military offering though sporting rolling block rifles were made for it. Basically it is a 348 case shortened and straightened out using a bullet of .502 in diameter. Even though my gun looks rough it shoots very well.

Another old caliber in rolling blocks is the 11 mm Spanish Reformado. It preceded the more common 11 X 53 Spanish. It came out in 1867 and was replaced in 1871. As a note the bullets were brass covered and frequently turned green giving the Reformado the nickname of 43 Spanish Poison. While similar it isnt interchangeable with the more common round. Brass can be made from 348 cases and 11 mm bullets can be used. The dies can be a shorty set such as I have or you might find that another 11 mm set might work. I found with the low pressures associated with these calibers neck sizing usually works ok.

Sometimes you find a 43 Dutch Beaumont rifle floating around at a gun show and may want to purchase it for shooting. While it has a couple of strange features it is worth shooting. There are 2 versions of this cartridge the shorter one came out in 1871 while in 1878 it was slightly lengthened and a 457 bullet adopted. It is said to be similar but not identical to the 43 Egyptian. If you are unsure of which version you have then I advise you to do a chamber cast and a bore measurement. The later version can be used with 458 bullets ok and the reworked 50-90 Sharps cases that are available from Starline. The body is a bit small in diameter but will be ok due to the low pressures associated with this cartridge. Dies can be bought or try a 45-75 die for neck sizing and bullet seating. To do a chamber cast the best material to use is Cerrosafe which can be bought at Midway or Brownells. It has a very low melting temperature and if properly used gives an accurate chamber cast. Pri or to doing a chamber cast be sure to have a plug of some kind in the barrel just in front of the chamber. A bullet works fine and you can get a little of the rifling for a bore measurement as well. Thoroughly cleaning the chamber is also important for good results.

The Italian Vetterli rifle was adopted in 1870 being similar to the Swiss version that was originally a rimfire. Like most guns of that period it was well made and sturdy. The cartridge was one of the smaller military offerings of the period but can be made to shoot accurately. Cases can be made from 348 brass and bullet diameter called for is .422. However mine is 412 so 41 mag or 405 bullets work best. The best way to make 422 diameter bullets is to swage down 44 magnum bullets. Ch Tool & Die can make a bullet reducing die for such work. You will need that also for the Italian revolver of the same period. I dont know of any commercial source for 422 bullets and a mold would be very expensive. The 44 magnum unsized bullets will not fit in either gun.

The British first foray into the breech loading gun market was the 577 Snider. It used a system devised by Joseph Snider an American which converted the Enfield muzzle loader into a cartridge weapon. From the start they knew that is was a stopgap measure and was used from 1867 to 1871 when it was replaced by the 577/450. The mini ball that was used in the 58 caliber can be used and are available from various sources. They generally weigh from 450 to 500 grains making them an impressive slug. Molds are also available from several makers and they should be cast soft for best accuracy. The shock of the powder going off blows out the skirt which grips the rifling for accuracy. The brass can be made from a brass 24 gauge shell by shortening it. Bob Haley has ready made cases that can be reloaded by using a Berdan primer which he also sells. The special decapping tool is available from Huntington Die. Jamison made regular boxer primed cases but unfortunately they took a government contract and they wont be available for at least a year. My dies came from Lee and they work fine. For a light bullet I use Hornadys 58 caliber round balls and they work fairly well.

The 577/450 Martini Henry replaced the Snider and was used until the 303 British came out in 1888. It is an elongated and necked down version of the Snider round. If you have 24 gauge brass casings then you can make them or buy the Berdan primer version from Bob Haley. Like the 577 Jamison made some boxer primed cases and if you have them then you have a prize as they wont be available anytime soon. I have used both cases with satisfaction with Lee dies. Smokeless loads can be used if you are careful. Bullet diameter calls for 455 but I use 458s with complete satisfaction. The original bullet weighed 480 grains but bullets from 300 to 500 grains can be used. The heavier bullets tend to have frisky recoil. Like many of the guns discussed in this article slugging the bore will determine which the best diameter to use in it. Tolerances werent as tight as they are today and bores are frequently oversize. The 45-70 Trapdoor Springfield was a big offender in that regard.

The 45-75 and 50-95s were made for the Winchester model 76 with the idea that they would provide more power without the ammo being too long for a lever action. They were marginally more powerful then a 45-60 which is nothing but a 45-70 shortened. The 45-75 can be made from 348 cases that are reworked and the 50-95 is best served by using a 50-90 Sharps case. A 300 grain bullet of the appropriate caliber works fine in either rifle.I would hesitate to shoot the originals because of the value and if I did I would use black powder. However Uberti makes a real nice knockoff which can be shot with sensible smokeless powder loads.

The 50 Navy rolling block pistol came out in 1867and was different then the 50 Army. The army version had a larger rim and a bottleneck while the Navy version was a straight walled offering. The Army can be made by shortening the 50-70 to .6 and using a 300 grain .512 diameter bullet. The Navy version that I made were from a 500 Linebaugh case shortened to the same .6 and using the same bullet which are available from Buffalo Arms if you dont mold them yourself. I found that it was a fun gun to shoot and fairly accurate although it shot high.

The 10.4 Italian service revolver came out in 1874 and was used in the model 74 revolvers as well as the Glisenti revolver. Both black powder and smokeless loads were available. Cases can be made from 44 special shortened to .9 and possible rim reducing. You can check your individual gun for that determination. The dies I use are a 41 magnum bullet seating die to size the cases and a short version of the 44 special dies to seat the bullets. Bullets are 422 in diameter and have to be swaged from 44 caliber slugs. CH tool & die can provide the necessary tooling. I have used both jacketed and cast with good results. To be honest you cant drive jacketed bullets fast enough to expand at safe pressures so you are just as well off with the cast verity. I found that this gun is very accurate at 15 yards though it hits high. Like many of the revolvers of the period the sights are crude and the double action trigger is so heavy that single action is the only way to go.

The 11 mm French revolver came out in 1873 and was replaced in 1892 by the 8mm Level revolver cartridge. Brass can be made from 44 special shortened and the rim thinned quite a bit. Bullets are generally in the 430 diameter range though that may vary. I would slug the bore to get the proper diameter for your gun. When loading I would stick with black powder or one of the substitutes available as it isnt designed for high pressure loads.

In 1892 the 8mm Lebel round replaced it. Like its predecessor it was underpowered as a military handgun. Cases can be made by shortening and forming 32-20 cases. Bullet diameter is .330 and they weigh around 115 grains. They would have to be cast via a special mold if you can find one. Possibly one of the listed sources can help out though I make my own. Some people use the 8mm Nambu bullet which while slightly smaller in diameter can be used though may not be as accurate. I use my Nambu dies to neck size the case and seat the bullets.

The 11.75 Montenegrin Austro-Hungarian revolver is a massive hinged frame affair based on the Gasser system. It weighs around 4 & lbs and a set of wheels should come with it. Anyway I got brass and bullets from Bob Haley and used my custom shorty dies to load the ammo.The brass is from an extensively reworked 45-70 case and I used 446 diameter bullets that weigh in at 300 grains. It is definitely a black powder proposition.

The 9mm Jap was the Japanese revolver cartridge from the 1890s. To make ammo for it you can shorten 38 special cases and cut down the rim as needed. I have used standard 9mm bullets weighing 115 or 125 grains with good accuracy for that gun. There is no need for jacketed bullets as velocities arent that high and will keep the cost down a bit. Keep the loads light and you should be in good shape.

Is it worth the time effort and expense to make ammo for these obsolete guns? Keep in mind you will have to expand a lot more effort and time to do a fractional amount of shooting and it will cost more. Frequently when I do a test batch of ammo for one of these weapons I seldom shoot more then 50 rounds at a time frequently less. I may spend a good part of the day testing the loads by chronographing and target shooting but may only shoot two or three guns. Another thing to keep in mind is that many of the cartridges headspace on the rim but many old guns have excess headspace so when being sized you should size them just enough to easily chamber. That will extend the life of the cases by several firings and make your shooting more enjoyable. Taking notes and pictures is time consuming where if I had a more modern gun I could shoot more and observe less. Is it worth it?You bet!!!! I wouldnt have it any other way.

Shooting Black Powder Guns

Shooting Black Powder Cartridge Firearms

One of the earliest if not the earliest rimfire cartridge was the 22 BB cap which came out in 1845. It was chambered in Flobert rifles for indoor practice hence it had no powder just priming. Later on some variations of the BB and CB caps did contain a small amount of black powder. In fact I shoot BB caps on occasion and find it enjoyable. They are capable of killing a rat at a few yards given good shot placement. The oldest cartridge in continues production is the 22 short which came out in 1857. It was the first cartridge meant for self defense and outdoor shooting. Of course the pin fires preceded them by some years but for our purposes we wont get into them. Rim fires became popular during the 1860s and some militaries used them as large as a 50 caliber. An example is the 44 Henry rimfire used during the Civil War between the states. At one there was quite a selection of rimfire cartridges in the US. They went from the 22s to some 56 and even 58 calibers. The Swiss and S wedish military used rimfires in their military for a few years. I have a nice example of a Swiss military rimfire in my collection dated from the late 1860s and if I get a few loose cartridges will shoot it. By the late 1860s centerfire cartridges were being perfected and they have some advantages over the rim fire verity. They were generally more powerful and they could be reloaded which was an important factor especially to western settlers and buffalo hunters. When done shooting for the day commercial buffalo hunters dug out the slugs and re-molded them. They then reloaded their brass with the nut cracker looking tools available then. Weight and space was a precious commodity so any way they could save on that they did.Competition target shooters also preferred the center fires as they could custom load the ammo to their rifle.

The centerfire as we know it will be the focal point of this article. Centerfires as we know them started to be developed in the 1860s and by the 1870s they in some instances started to use the common Boxer primer while many did and still do use the Berdan type of primer. Some ammo was made with an inside primer which wasnt visible from the outside of the case. My guess is it is cheaper to make a Bearden type case and primer which is why some countries still use them. Apparently serving the reloader isnt a priority. While the Berdan primer can be reloaded it is much more difficult and time consuming. Many times you also need a special size primer which can be difficult to get. You need a special decapping tool for that and for the most part it isnt worth it. I use them in the 577 Snider and 577/450 because I cant always get Boxer primed cases.I have seen cases that were converted from Berdan to Boxer primers and that can work ok if done correctly.

When shooting old guns that are designed for black powder there are a couple of things to keep in mind. Frequently these guns are well over a hundred years old and arent getting any stronger. The designs and metal technology from the 1860s through the 1880s wasnt what it is today. If you have an antique black powder gun and you want to shoot it there are two things to keep in mind. First make sure it is in good enough shape to shoot. If the action is extremely loose or its excessively rusty then you might want to hang it on the wall. You should also look for any tampering which might render it unsafe to fire. Sometimes they might be rechambered and I have run across that a couple of times. If in doubt have an experienced gunsmith check it out. The other thing to look for is the correct caliber. Many of the old guns werent marked so it would behoove you to do a chamber cast and a bore slug to ascertain the correct caliber. Firing the wrong ammo in a gun can be extremely hazar dous to your health. Once you have determined the safety and caliber you are ready to shoot and enjoy a piece of history.

The next thing is where you are going to get the proper ammo. There is no major company that loads actual black powder loads as far as I know. However there are a couple of specialty outfits that will. For the most part you will have to roll your own if you want to shoot it. In many instances the brass can be difficult to get especially some of the old foreign calibers. Frequently you will have to make it or buy it from someone who does. Buffalo Arms makes a lot of odd ball calibers and I use them for some of my needs. Starline brass makes some of the old timers and their line is expanding. They make good quality brass and it can be used to make other cartridges. The 40-65 case can be used to make such black powder numbers as the 40-60 Winchester and Marlin. is an easy way to browse their catalog. You are not going to go to the local gun shop and pick up some 11 mm Grass ammo. Many of the American calibers are easier to find brass for as companies such as Starline make qua lity brass for many of the obsolete calibers such as the 41 Long Colt and the 45-90. Because of the good quality I can make many other cases from the Starline cases. Part of the fun of shooting these guns is the challenge of getting the brass and bullets. Anyone can walk into Wal Marts and buy some 223s but where is the challenge to that? As for bullets you will have to either mold them or find a specialty maker who does. Ah then you have to buy the dies which while can be found can be expensive. Hey if it was easy where would the challenge be? Then you have to get the powder. Since they are called black powder guns you should start with black powder. Lets examine your options on propellants.

Black powder is by far the oldest propellant in use. If you can obtain it I would recommend that you start there. The reason is if properly used it is very safe in old weapons because it doesnt generate dangerous pressures that can damage a fine old gun. Other advantages of black powder are it produces excellent accuracy and is consistent given proper loading procedures. It is also relatively inexpensive. There are a couple of downsides also. First of all it is regarded as an explosive as opposed to a propellant such as all other powders are. That makes it more regulated and sometimes more difficult to buy. Many stores wont carry it because of the regulations and licensing requirements.It is corrosive demanding immediate cleaning after shooting especially in damp climates. It is hydroscopic which means that it absorbs moisture which causes rust. It fouls the bore badly and needs brushing between every few shots to maintain accuracy. You should also clean your empty cases wit h soap and water as soon as possible. If you let them sit they will corrode and be no longer reloadable in advanced instances. The corrosion will eat through the necks rendering them useless. If you spent a lot of time or money getting those cases that is a major consideration.

To give an example of powder fouling a couple of months ago I was doing some velocity and accuracy tests on 38 short and long Colts. I was using a S & W model 15 which is chambered for the longer 38 special round. Anyway I shot a few dozen shorts with black powder and when I tried to chamber some longs they would not fit in. I dry brushed out the chambers and went back to testing without a problem. I then brushed the chambers again and fired some 38 special smokeless to start the cleaning process. Like all black powder guns I shoot they are cleaned with soap and water then left in the sun to dry after which I check them and lightly oil it. I am not crazy about the Arizona sun but it is good for drying guns. Is that an unconventional to clean guns?Maybe but it works for me. If the sun isnt available for drying I use the hottest water I can get to help out with the drying process. There are many products made to clean black powder guns if you dont like the water method employe d by me. Also I had a client send me some 43 Beaumont that he fired and wanted me to reload. Unfortunately he didnt take care of the brass and it grew a mess of corrosion. (See picture) Anyway I was able to remove enough of to salvage and load the cases. These cases are very expensive and hard to get. They will sell for over $3.00 a piece so it behooves you to properly care for them.

If you cant get black powder for some reason there are some alternatives. Pyrodex is the oldest substitute that is useful. It acts like the original given the same loads. I have shot it along side black powder and for the most part there is little or no difference. Like all guns if you switch propellants for some reason check your sighting and accuracy before using it for some serious purpose. It comes in FFG and FFFG grades as well as a cartridge grade. One advantage is it isnt considered an explosive so it is less regulated.It fouls and is corrosive like black powder so clean accordingly. The price on Pyrodex is generally pretty reasonable and it is widely available.

Cleanshot came out a few years ago as a non corrosive black powder substitute. In that regard it works very well. While non corrosive it leaves a lot of residue in the cases and barrel though it can be cleaned fairly easily. With cases if you dont tumble them first the powder will fall off the insides of the cases when you resize them. I dont consider it a real problem though a minor nuisance. The inside of the barrel will be white and requires some cleaning. It is very course in both grades FFG & FFFG.Powder measures might have a hard time digesting it causing it to bridge in them. Grain for grain it produces more velocity then either black powder or Pyrodex. Like its predecessors it should not have airspace between the bullet and powder. It gives off smoke like the original stuff. It also works well in blanks making a loud noise and produces a lot of smoke. Like the others it ignites easily though it looks funny.

A new powder that came out recently is Blackhorn 209. It is made for inline muzzle loaders advertising higher velocity plus little residue. A few months ago they sent me a bottle of it to evaluate and comment on. At the time I didnt have an inline handy so I decided to try it in some of my black powder guns. Wow!It is the cleanest burning of all the propellants I have tried. Another thing I found it produces more velocity by far with less powder then any of the other powders including Cleanshot. This is true for rifles with fairly large to large cases. In small rifles and handguns there is no velocity advantage though it produces good accuracy. It is a low density propellant with a hole in each kernel.The two problems with Blackhorn 209 are high price and it is hard to ignite though in cartridge arms I never had a problem with that. I always use magnum primers which helps that out. It doesnt work well in blanks because of its hard ignition and somewhat slow burning character istics. There are other powder substitutes out there but I havent used them so I wont comment as to how well they perform.

I am covering the alternatives to black powder in order to give you some options in case black powder isnt available or desirable. Smokeless powder can be used but caution is the byword. You are dealing with antiques or replicas of them. Most of them were designed years before smokeless powder came out. Even the replicas require care in loading smokeless because even though they are better built they still have the original designs which requires some common sense. Smokeless powder can generate much more pressure thus putting the gun at risk. There are some suitable powders out there if used carefully. Accurate Arms produces one called 5744 which is an excellent powder for many rifles and they provide some data. Some other good powders are IMR 4198 and Data 4197 both are good if used correctly. For handguns and small rifles, powders such as Unique and Herco work well and I have used them for many years. A fairly new powder Trail Boss is made especially for those types of gun s and works very well. It is a low density powder which takes up a lot of airspace without generating excess pressures. I urge you not to attempt to increase velocities over the originals especially in antiques as it will surely lead to grief. Smokeless powders have different pressure characteristics then black powder and the differences can ruin a gun.The object should be getting a gun to shoot well with a bullet similar to the original. The velocity should be around the original also. In my experience those are the most accurate loads most of the time. The idea is to have fun shooting a part of history.

Some people like a lot of power and that is fine but it is achieved somewhat differently in a black powder gun then something new. Most black powder loads seldom chronograph much over 1500 FPS. That is the nature of the beast and there is nothing you can do about that. Cleanshot and Blackhorn 209 will produce more velocity but it wont put the gun into the wiz-bang category. To get more power in the old smoke pole you need to increase the weight and size of the bullet. A large capacity case will increase velocity to an extent. A 45-120 will shoot a 500 grain bullet at 1500 fps as compared to the 45-70 at 1200 merely by being able to use more powder. Another example a 45-60 will shoot a 300 grain bullet at about 1200 FPS while a 45-70 will shoot a 500 grain slug at the same velocity both using black powder. The 500 grain will hit a lot harder and travel further. I have a client who wanted to take a 500 Nitro Express black powder double to Africa and asked me to work up a load. After some experimenting and punishment I used a 515 grain bullet at 1400 FPS backed by 135 grains of FFG powder. It was impressive on both ends and he had good results in Africa. At one time the British had a 4 bore that shot a 4 oz slug at about 1300 FPS giving it more energy then a 460 Weatherby magnum. The powder charge was 325 to 380 grains what fun. You couldnt pay me enough to shoot that monstrosity. They also had an 8 bore which only weighed 15 lbs as opposed to the 25 for the 4 bore. Big guns were used in the good ol U.S. with some of the bigger ones being the 45-120 and 50-140 as well as some of their shorter cousins. In spite of the pedestrian velocities they were and are very effective rounds on most anything that walks. Big heavy, slow moving bullets hit hard and penetrate deeply. They also produce a large hole and a good blood trail. A good friend of mine used my 45-120 on an American Bison with a 520 grain at just over 1600 feet per second. He didnt want blac k powder so I loaded 5744 which performs well in those rifles. Anyway he dropped a bull at about 50 yards with one shot and it didnt move after it was shot. The bullet broke the near shoulder went through the heart and stopped just under the hide expanding to twice its diameter. The Bison weighed about a ton.Some of the European military calibers were pretty potent such as the 577/450, 11 mm French Gras and the 11 mm Mauser. They like the Sharps rounds can be used to hunt large game successfully.Not a well know fact but the 303 British started out life as a black powder round. They used a heavily compressed load of 70 grains with a 215 grain round nose. The heavily compressed load was rated at about 2100 fps no doubt because of the compression and the bottle neck. I also wonder if that rating was a bit optimistic. In 1891 they went to smokeless and the 303 became one of the great military cartridges of the 20Th century.

To make life interesting for western settlers there were frequently two or even three cartridges with the same name but they were not interchangeable. Remington, Winchester and Sharps among others would put out their version. Many times the main difference was one was bottlenecked and another might be straight. One claim was that the straight case didnt kick as much though if that was the scenario then perhaps the bottle neck case shot a little faster given the same load. It would be an interesting study to compare them. Looking at old ammo tables the bottle neck seems to have a slight advantage but it was small. The bottom line was if went to the local hardware store you better know which version you had.

If power isnt important there are some fine cartridges out there for you to use. A 32-40 loaded with black powder is a joy to shoot and is super accurate. It shoots a 170 grain bullet at around 1200 fps or so and at 200 yards can produce excellent accuracy. It would work fine on small game though it would be light for deer. With modern loads in a strong rifle you can safely take that 170 up to 1700 + fps but dont try that in an old gun. The 38-55 is another fine round from the 19Th century that started as a black powder round that made the transition to smokeless powder. Three cartridges that came out in the black powder era are the 32-20, 38-40 and the 44-40. They are popular because they can be chambered in both rifles and handguns. They are low powered rounds suitable for small game and two legged critters. One thing worth mentioning is that the cases made in the 1800s were frequently of the balloon type. That means that the head was thinner and the rim was hollow. That a llowed a little more powder to be loaded in those rounds giving it a little more velocity. With the advent of smokeless powder it was discovered that the balloon head cases wouldnt always hold up to the higher pressures.

There have been many handgun cartridges brought out during the black powder era. They range from the tiny 22 short to the massive 11 mm Montenegrin. A large percentage of them are badly underpowered by todays standards though they were popular in their day. Many of the derringers chambered such rounds as the 32 and 41 short rimfires. They were so underpowered that they would bounce off a tree but ladies of the night liked them because they were small and easy to conceal. The card players of the day also had an affinity for them for various nefarious reasons. The early center fires for the most part were also anemic though there were exceptions. The 44 Bull Dog came out around 1880 and was popular in spite of its anemic ballistics giving a muzzle energy of only 80 lbs. The 50 Army and Navy were fairly decent in power as well as the 11 mm Montenegrin revolver which is a massive affair. The U.S came out with such offerings as the 44 American and the 44 Colt neither which would light the world on fire. The 44 Russian was known for accuracy though not particularly powerful. When the 45 Colt came out in 1873 it quickly was regarded as great man stopper shooting a 255 grain bullet at 930 fps giving around 490 ft lbs of energy. Now that is a man stopper! The 38-40 and 44-40 were popular by virtue of being chambered in a revolver and rifle which was an important consideration during the frontier days. While decent man stoppers they were on the light side for large game. To my knowledge they didnt chamber a rifle for the 45 Colt which has me scratching my head as it is superior to both of the other cartridges especially for hunting. The 41 Long Colt was fairly popular for a number of years while the 41 short fell into deserved obsolesce. The 41 Long Colt was well regarded as a man stopper because of its blunt 200 grain bullet. It has a smaller frame which appealed to some folks and it was said that it was Billy the Kids favorite weapon as he had small ha nds.The 38 Short Colt was also a weak sister though it was the forerunner of the 38 special. The British came out with their verity of 45 caliber Webley revolvers. They shot a big chunk of lead at low velocities usually around 600 feet per second. The Brits believed that if the bullet expanded all its energy in the target it would be a better stopper. They carried that philosophy to the 38 S & W AKA 38-200. It shot a 200 grain bullet around 500 feet per second according to their info. Try as I might I couldnt get one much over 400 fps no matter how much I packed the powder. Maybe they used balloon head cases. Anyway I have shot a lot of good groups with various black powder pistols from the 9.4 Dutch to the 10.4 Italian revolvers. Black powder produces low pressure and mild recoil in these arms.

If you have a Damascus barrel shotgun and want to shoot it I would strongly advise sticking with black powder. They are a twist steel and arent as strong as modern shotgun barrels. Yes I have talked to folks who use smokeless and all I say to them is its not if it will blow it up but when. You can load 50-60 grains of black powder and 1 & 1/8 oz of shot and have a good small game load. You can also load buckshot or slugs if desired but you wont get the same velocity as modern loads produce. You can also use modern plastic hulls to good effect. There are brass hulls for those who want to be authentic or for re-enactors. A little experimenting and you can get good loads that pattern well. Pyrodex and Clean Shot seem to work well though the same isnt true for 209. Black powder also makes impressive blanks in the various gauges. Back in the good ol days the 10 gauge was very popular because it held more shot and powder then the 12.

When you load black powder it is very important to keep it away from any open flame or static electricity. Any spark will set it off. If you use a powder measure be sure it is no non sparking or have the ability to produce static electricity. There are special measures out there for that. Buffalo Arms sells them. To put the most powder you can in a case you might try a drop tube. That seems to allow a few more grains and help it settle. The substitutes arent as dangerous but if you act foolish it will cost you dearly. I run all of them through a measure and they meter well except Cleanshot FFG and 209 with a small measure. Just watch your cases and make sure that you are getting the same amount of powder in each shell. That is also true of smokeless powder.With the larger cases and blanks I use magnum primers which will increase velocity a bit and may help the powder to burn a little cleaner. If you chronograph your loads you will have to step back a few feet especially with the larger guns. They produce so much smoke that it can obscure the screens rendering them useless because they cant see the bullet. Normally I stand 10 feet away from the first screen but with black powder or a substitute I move back to 15 feet and a breeze doesnt hurt either.

To give you an idea of how black powder and substitutes perform I am going to include some of my chronograph results. All of the loads were slightly compressed regardless of the propellant used. Note that Clean Shot and especially Blackhorn give higher velocities with less powder in almost all of the loads in the rifles.

LOADCALIBER-BULLETVELOCITYCOMMENT

40 X FFG C.S.38-55245 grain cast1555accurate

30 X 20938-55245 grain cast1526consistent

37 X FFG PYRO45-60300 grain cast1316accurate

64 X FFG BP45-70500 grain cast1025ok

70 X FFG BP45-70400 grain cast1203accurate

60 X FFG CS45-70400 grain cast1244consistent

55 X 20945-90300 grain cast1656good load

90 X CS45-120535 grain cast1634consistent

103 X FFG BP45-120535 grain cast1405accurate

72 X CTG PYRO45-120535 grain cast1410ok

69 X 20945-120535 grain cast1693OUCH

75 X CS11mm Gras370 grain cast1543accurate

89 X FFGBP11 mm Gras 370 grain cast1465good load

73 X CS11 mm Gras 385 grain cast1534potent

81 X FFG BP11 mm Gras 385 grain cast1405consistent

53 X 20911 mm Gras385 grain cast1669WOW

52 X CS12.17 X 44300 grain cast1183Ok

60 X FFG BP12.17 X 44300 grain cast1222accurate

40 X 20912.17 X 44300 grain cast1402deer

115 X FFG BP577 Snider500 grain cast1110consistent

76 X CS577 Snider500 grain cast1270potent

110 X FFG BP577/450300 grain cast1626pleasant

100 X FFG BP577/450400 grain cast1416accurate

82 X CS577/450510 grain cast1494potent

Handguns

19 X FFFG BP32-20115 grain cast785accurate

14 X FFFG CS32-20115 grain cast653ok

10 X 20932-20115 grain cast586slow

10 X FFFG38 Long Colt158 grain cast498slow

17 X FFFG BP9.4 Dutch180 grain509slow

13 X 2099.4 Dutch135 grain619accurate

11 X 2099.4 Dutch180 grain557ok

14.5 X PYRO41 Long Colt192 grain cast730good load

10.5 X 20941 Long Colt192 grain cast642consistent

9 X FFFG BP41 Short Colt135 grain385useless

10 X FFFG BP41 Short Colt148 grain502fair

Thats just a partial list did some of the odd balls. CS Clean Shot,PYRO Pyrodex, BP black powderNote in rifles CS and 209 produced the highest velocities but not in the handguns. This just gives you an idea as to what a black powder firearm will do. There is a lot of potential and fun in shooting these old fashioned guns. Everyone should give it a try and you wont be sorry you did.

Bob Shell

Oils for the Body and the Mind

Essential oils are uniquely placed to be of use in massage. They are light and penetrating and contain the essence or soul of the plant, its personality and healing properties.

Because massage is a development of the natural urge to touch a painful part of the body, we can all make a start with a little care and energy. We all have the power to heal with our hands to some degree, and it is something we can develop. Being in a calm state of mind helps. Pleasant surroundings and atmosphere aid concentration and relaxation.

Massage provides us with the most beneficial method of absorbing essential oils into the body. We always use essential oils added to a carrier oil. The basic carrier, or vegetable oil. Lubricates the skin and reduces the friction of dry hands on dry skin. But more importantly, the carrier oil dilutes the concentrated essential oils and aids their absorption into the skin, tissues and bloodstream. Simply by massaging the back, or any large area of the body, we can introduce enough essence into the body, in dilution, to have a remedial effect.

Some sample massage blends

Carrier oil for general use: grapeseed, or almond oil with 5% wheatgerm oil.

Tight muscles Lavender 2 drops

Rosemary 2 drops

Juniper 2 drops

Carrier oil 2 teaspoons

Relaxing Lavender 2 drops

Geranium 1 drop

Marjoram 1 drop

Petigrain 2 drops

Carrier oil 2 teaspoons

Tonic Aphrodisiac Bergamot 2 drops

Ylang Ylang 1 drop

Rosewood 2 drops

Sandalwood 1 drop

Carrier oil 2 teaspoons

Self Massage

Self massage is used when stress and tension are building up in the muscles and there is no-one to massage the spots of tightness. First get in touch with your own body. Begin to develop the sense of touch in your hands with your body, its moods and tensions.

The simplest self massage works to stimulate the nerves, glands and circulation in the arms and legs. Mix a fragrant, stimulating oil and massage to increase circulation. Use a relaxing blend to reduce tiredness and tension.

Self massage is also based on Oriental techniques like shiatsu where 'points' on the acupuncture meridians or pathways are pressed to unblock energy in different parts of the body.

Foot massage - The soles of the feet contain many points corresponding to parts of the body. Massage your feet to increase circulation then use thumb and finger pressures to stimulate the points.

Neck press - To restore alertness press the back of the neck with your fingers and the nape of the neck with the thumbs. Start at the top and work down to the shoulders. This can be done while sitting at work, to relieve fatigue and tension.

Shoulder squeeze - Dissolve tension in the neck and shoulder area by squeezing the flesh between the shoulder and neck.

When the body feels heavy - Use the bulb of the thumb to press the right carotid artery then the left several times. Begin at the jaw and work down to the clavicle. This stimulates fresh blood flow and quick relief.

Press the temples with three fingers to relieve mental fatigue.

Sensual Massage

Any massage can be sensual depending on the state of mind of the two people involved. The emphasis here is on relaxation, enjoyment and awareness of touch. Many parts of the body are erogenous and respond to caressing and stroking. The focus is on the skin and its sensations and adapting the essential oils to a sensual purpose.

The essential oils extracted from certain plants are nature's way of making us feel relaxed. Essences work directly on the brain through the sense of smell and can produce feelings of arousal, warmth and stimulation. The seductive aroma of the massage blends can inspire lovemaking.

A fragrant atmosphere Is the best beginning for a sensual massage.

Create a calming and romantic feeling with erotic essential oils. Use an erotic essence in your oil vaporizer. Scent your sheets with your own special blend.

Some of the erotic essences are ylang ylang, sandalwood, jasmine, rose, cedarwood, neroli, clary sage, patchouli and vetivert. Try them in your oil vaporizer or massage blend.

For the massage, prepare the carrier oil in the usual way. The essences added to the carrier will be erotic, opening oils that work to release emotional blocks and inhibitions.

Sensual massage blends

For men:

Sandalwood 2 drops

Bergamot 2 drops

Patchouli 1 drop

Carrier oil 2 teaspoons

For women:

Jasmine 1 drop

Rose 1 drop

Sandalwood 2 drops

Carrier oil 2 teaspoons

Skin and Hair

Essential oils can help many skin conditions and are a pleasure to use on a daily basis. Because essential oils are highly penetrative, they can reach the small blood capillaries in the dermis where they can work from within.

The outer skin consists of layers of skin cells. Beneath the outer skin or epidermis, lies the dermis, an area richly supplied with capillaries and nerve endings and containing the sebaceous glands which produce an oily substance called sebum. Sebum lubricates the skin. The functioning of the sebum determines whether your skin is normal, oily or dry.

Normal skin should have few problems but care is still needed to maintain its condition. Wash your face with a soap which has a natural oil base such as coconut oil or other vegetable oil. Rinse your face with a facial oil. Make up the facial oil with 1 drop of rose, 1 drop of chamomile and 2 teaspoons of sweet almond oil. Gently massage this into your face to help maintain circulation.

Oily skin is caused by overactive sebaceous glands. Wash your face with a mild soap and then wipe your face with a witch hazel toner. Then apply a light facial oil made up of 1 drop of cypress oil, 1 drop of juniper oil and 2 teaspoons of sweet almond oil.

Dry skin has less active sebaceous glands and the skin is less supple. Wash the skin with a mild soap and then rinse the face in a cool mix of chamomile tea. Massage a mixture of 1 drop of lavender oil. 1 drop of sandalwood oil. 1 drop of ylang ylang or rose oil and 2 teaspoons of carrier oil. The carrier oil is made up of 3 parts of almond oil, 3 parts of avocado oil and 1 part wheatgerm oil.

Mature sin produces less sebum and cell regeneration, making the skin less elastic and prone to wrinkles. Climate, nutrition and lifestyle are influential.

The facial carrier oil should be richer, and composed of 2 parts avocado, 2 jojoba, 2 almond or apricot and 1 part wheatgerm. Add 2 drops lavender, 2 drops palmarosa to 2 teaspoons carrier oil.

Broken capillaries are a result of weak capillaries, consumption of alcohol and cigarettes, extremely cold conditions and moving from hot to cold environments. When washing your face do not use hot water. To improve the circulation to the area use a facial oil of 1 drop of parsley, 1 drop of cypress, 1 drop of neroli and 2 teaspoons of carrier oil.

A general rule for facial oils, when in doubt about the mixture, is to use 1 drop of essence to 1 teaspoon of carrier oil. This gives a concentration of 2% of essential oil which is a safe blend for all skin types.

Hair is affected by the same factors as the skin. Sebaceous glands supply sebum to the hair making it normal, dry or oily. Essential oils can help to keep the scalp and hair healthy. Use a mild shampoo and add drops of lavender and rosemary to aid cleansing. Give the scalp a monthly massage with oil.

A hair soak and massage

Lavender 3 drops

Petigrain 1 drop

Rosemary 3 drops

Tea tree 1 drop

Sweet almond oil 4 teaspoons

Essences for Men

Some essential oils are more masculine, or have a special relevance to men. These can be the warmer, earthier essences that have a pronounced 'Yang' or external energy. These spices and resins have a wonderfully stimulating and sharpening appeal. Fresh and exhilarating citrus, or many of the lighter or floral essences, balance 'Yang' with its opposite and complement the 'Yin' or internal energy.

Fragrance has been a part of male life through Egypt, Babylon, Rome, Greece, the ancient empires of Arabia, India and the East and virtually right up to the Victorian period in the 19th century. A fragrant or scented man was rarely seen as remarkable until the practicalities and conformity of the Industrial Age, and up to the middle of this century, when men were only supposed to smell of honest sweat, tobacco and tweed. Since WWII there has been a great growth of aftershaves, colognes, perfumes and deodorants for men. With the growth of interest in alternative remedies, the environment, and all things natural, essential oils have much to offer as fragrances and deodorants.

Patchouli - is like warm earth, musty and erotic, but use in small amounts. Can be used in cupboards to scent cotton and woolens.

Sandalwood - is warm and peaceful yet subtly erotic.

Vetivert - is smoky and earthy with a positive vibration. Use in very small amounts.

Frankincense - is clean, spicy, emotion releasing and enlightening.

Spice oils - are stimulating and refreshing but not to be used undiluted on the skin.

Cypress - is smoky and piny, controls perspiration and is a deodorant.

Lavender - is refreshing, a deodorant and skin toner.

Sensual Baths

A bath is a more luxurious method of washing the body. It is also an opportunity to use aromatic oils for the relaxation and therapeutic nourishment of the body and mind. A fragrant bath can be made for someone special.

Warm the bathroom air and scent with fragrant oils. The water should be warm, not too hot or cold. Add drops of essence to the water. Soak in the bath and take deep inhalations while your skin absorbs the oils. Essence can be added to a little carrier oil for more nourishment of dry skin.

Besides pure pleasure and relaxation, fragrant baths can benefit insomnia, nervous tension, muscular conditions, circulatory and respiratory conditions. Use 3 drops of each essential oil for bath formulas.

Relaxing Bath - Bergamot

Geranium

Lavender

Invigorating Bath - Lemon

Juniper

Pine

Sensuous bath - Sandalwood

Neroli

Ylang Ylang

Inhalations and Vaporisers

A very popular method of using essential oils for pleasure and therapy is with vaporizers, or oil burners. They release the essence into the air via steam. Aromas in a room or office can elevate mood and increase performance as they cleanse and freshen the air. Many essences kill bacteria in the air.

Inhaling essences can relieve tension, headache, colds, sore throat and blocked noses. If you need a more concentrated form of the essence, put a few drops of your chosen essence into a bowl of steaming water and inhale steam. To increase the effect, cover your head and the bowl with a towel and inhale the steam. Do not inhale steam that will burn and do not go out in the cold air after doing this or you might expose your tender nose and throat.

Essences can also be put onto a handkerchief or cotton wool and left beside the bed. A simple pottery jar with oil in it will also release essence into the air. A formula for room antiseptic is equal parts of cinnamon, lemongrass and thyme oil.

A breathe-easy formula is equal parts of peppermint, eucalyptus, cajuput and bergamot. A headache formula is one part lavender to one part bergamot.

To use a vaporizer is simple. Put water in the bowl, light the candle and add the essence. Keep topping up the water and add more essence when the first lot has faded in aroma.

Talk To Yourself To Create The Hypnosis Motivate To Success Formula

Did you ever try to do away with a harmful behavior, only to fail? There is an extensive list of ordinary problem behaviors that people often try to alter or eliminate using self-hypnosis or NLP. The most common are: Overeating and weight loss; stop smoking; quit chewing tobacco; stop nail biting; increasing self-confidence; overcoming insomnia and sleeping better; improving memory; and managing stress.

WHAT THE MIND CAUSES, THE MIND CAN CURE:

The motivation for our behaviors starts in our thoughts. If you stop and think about it, all of these unconstructive behaviors are the result of negative thinking. In other words, you think and motivate yourself into all of these behaviors. Or at least you think yourself into feeling anxious, and that can be the origin of these behaviors. And in view of the fact that you think and motivate yourself into these behaviors, you can think and motivate yourself out of them as well. In order to think and motivate yourself out of them, you will need to know specifically how to go about doing so.

DESIRE:

You are almost certainly reading this editorial because you want the motivation to make some personal changes. And that is fitting for the reason that the first building block in the "Motivation Formula For Your Success" is that you must want or desire to change. If you have read this far, at least a little part of you wishes a change.

BELIEF IS REQUIRED FOR MOTIVATION:

Before anyone can eliminate a negative behavior, that person must be motivated to do so. Merely wanting a behavior to change is not adequate.

Our motivation comes from the things that we believe. If we believe that something very important to us will get better or "become enhanced" if we alter our behavior, then we will feel a high level of motivation. Conversely, if we believe that something very important to us will be placed in jeopardy if we don't alter our behavior, we will also experience motivation to alter our behavior.

Some simple examples of these motivational beliefs would be:

If I take some weight off, then I'll be able to find a companion.

If I kick my smoking habit, then I won't have to worry about cancer.

If I stop biting my nails, then my hands will look a lot more attractive.

TECHNOLOGIES THAT CAN CREATE THE BELIEFS THAT LEAD TO MOTIVATION:

Neuro-Linguistic Programming - which is commonly known as NLP, provides methods that are able to instantly produce the element of belief. You can study more concerning this by reading the articles "How To Get Motivated To Exercise Using Hypnosis And NLP" and "Motivation Theory - How To Quit Smoking Using NLP And Hypnosis For Motivation." These articles are both available in my free hypnosis research library.

DECISION:

The dictionary definition of the word "Decision" is making up one's mind / a verdict or judgment. When you believe a concept that gives you a powerful feeling of motivation to make a change, you will feel compelled to make a decision to eliminate a negative behavior. Decision is the key that unlocks the door to compelling action.

ACTION:

The dictionary defines the word "Action" as an act or deed / to do or perform. Taking action means that rather than just daydreaming about making personal changes, you will actually take steps to bring about your desired changes.

SELF-TALK:

One of the many reasons that most individuals are unsuccessful at eliminating a negative behavior is because of what they say to themselves. Self-talk is important because repeatedly it is an important part of what caused the negative behavior to begin with.

I'd like you to think about this for a moment: Let us say that you want to kick a cigarette addiction. The first thing that you are likely to say or think to yourself is: "I'm not going to smoke cigarettes anymore."

It is universal for people to tell themselves what they aren't going to do. Unfortunately, when we tell ourselves what we aren't going to do, we are actually programming ourselves to do it!

SELF-TALK EXERCISE:

Say the following to yourself: I can't see blue. I can't see polka dots . . . . . . .

I'll bet your mind showed you the color blue, and then it showed you polka dots. That's because when we tell ourselves what we aren't going to do, in order to make sense of it our mind must make an image of us doing whatever it is that we would like to stop doing. And when we imagine ourselves in a behavior, our mind compels us to produce that behavior.

SUMMARY:

In order to get rid of a negative behavior, we must first want or DESIRE to eliminate it. BELIEF is the element that leads us to MOTIVATION. MOTIVATION is the drive that leads us to DECISION. DECISION is the impetus to ACTION. Neuro-Linguistic Programming is a technology that we can use to facilitate beliefs, motivation, decisions, and actions.

When we tell ourselves what we aren't going to do, we make a mental picture of ourselves using the behavior that we want to alter. And that mental image gives us an urge to participate in the negative behavior. So if we want to abolish a negative behavior, rather than tell ourselves what we won't do, we must always tell ourselves what we will do.

To stop smoking say: "I can live without them."

To eliminate cravings for high calorie foods or to stop chewing smokeless tobacco say: "I can live without it."

To reduce stress say: "I'm relaxed and calm, both mentally and physically."

To overcome insomnia say: "I fall asleep promptly, and sleep soundly throughout the entire night."

Telekinesis ? Remote Access Your Mac Mini Web Apps on Iphone

Telekinesis iphone Application is a remote desktop allocation which helps the user to access his Mac using the iPhone. It simplifies your screen capture facility by clicking a mouse or by a basic typing support.

Telekinesis iphone Application is a remote desktop allocation which helps the user to access his Mac using the iPhone. It simplifies your screen capture facility by clicking a mouse or by a basic typing support.

Telekinesis runs the apple script automatically and helps you to browse your files very easily. It is also featured with a iSight image capturing facility to see what is going in your house. It is also provided with a basic spot light search which is very handy for the user. You can also stream the videos and music from your pc by using this application. This application has an ability to support .mov, .mp4,.m4v,3gp video file formats and AAC-LC audio format till 48kHz.To run this application on iPhone it should be supported by OS X 10.4 ,a web login id and password should be choosed and your computer IP address should be configured.

Telekinesis Features

* Stream music and videos from your computer learn how

* Screen capture with mouse click and basic typing support

* Simple iTunes Remote control

* Browse your files

* Run applescript remotely

* iSight image capture

* Basic Spotlight search

* Easily create and add more apps

Telekinesis Security Considerations

* This is still a developer prototype and is intended only as a demo to get people started.

* It will have the same access privileges as your user account

* The login and password you specify will be stored on disk, so should be different, but as strong as your account password.

* Dont leave it running if you arent using it

Telekinesis Usage

* Run iPhone Remote (Requires OS X 10.4)

* Choose a web login/password

* Open to your iPhone

o If you want to access your computer from outside of your local network, you may need to configure your router or firewall to support it.

Download Telekinesis