DIY Black Powder... Testing Charcoal Blends

[@laluzlobo]

Great video, take apart your powder measure and check it.. learn something new every day. Thanks!

[@anthonyberger225]

Well sonofabugger I'm glad you made this video I'm watching you thinking i have a measure like that and just checked it and it was the same way thanks for the update 👍👍👍👍👍

[@kg4eiq]

I wonder if the internal threaded plunger is a kind of regulator for a specific black powder brand? It could also be set to the industry standard of 1.75g/cc compression rate used by commercial black powder manufacturers to equal out weight and volume measurements on the powder measure.

[@OhmSteader]

Need an ice bucket to dip your barrel into. Hate those mirages. Those white burn spots were perplexing me when I was first starting BP making earlier this year. I just figured it to be too much potassium. Regardless it looked unburned which meant something was being wasted. Thanks

[@mikesellers9827]

Eastern red cedar is a juniper not a cedar. I have a book (not internet) where it's listed in the juniper family.

[@lamebeavertradingco.1642]

Evergreen. Tomato Tomato

[@guardsmanom134]

Those Traditions brand powder measures are a pain in the butt. 😂 I should know, I have the exact same one! 🤦USING one, is like sticking a square peg in a round hole! Also, from what I've been seeing... the longer you mill(ball mill, not spoonmill) the cleaner the powder burns regardless of carbon source. The reason is that the mixture is more complete. However, when spoonmilling, ratio and amounts of moisture/isopropyl alcohol, makes ALL the difference(in the gun, not block test). Just some observations, and I hope they help. This makes me want a ball mill.

[@lamebeavertradingco.1642]

True enough, but the rate of burn is slower with heavier woods. This is why I keep showing this. For a while now I use a 50/50 mixture of Distilled water and Acetone.

[@guardsmanom134]

@lamebeavertradingco.1642 my most recent batch has been 50/50 red oak and balsa, and I use a spritz of water and a bottle of iso straight out the gate, before freezing any I don't puck right away. This is of course, after mixing dry(ish) in a bowl(spoonmilling) for around 3.5 to 5 hours, but most often less. My powder is actually pretty potent for never using a ball mill in the entire process... 😳

[@lamebeavertradingco.1642]

@@guardsmanom134 Excellent. Mixing Balsa wood with a Specific Gravity of.17 would balance out the heavy nature of Oak at .68 for White oak and .63 for Red Oak. Blending charcoals does have its advantage.

[@guardsmanom134]

@lamebeavertradingco.1642 I suspected that it was something like that. I don't have a scale(it looks bad, because of what I used to do for a job) so I measure volumetrically according to the USARMY Manual, "Standards and Measures, gunpowder." section. Three cups of nitrate, six cups of carbon, and one eighth cup of sulfur. This normally gives a ratio between 75/15/10, and 78/15/8... it's a rough estimate, I'll grant you. However, because I don't waste nitrates using the full CIA method, I get a lot more power and a lot less soot. It's still sooty, but it's not nearly as bad as using the full CIA method. 😉

[@guardsmanom134]

@@lamebeavertradingco.1642 I have a question, if you have time... using the same standard, how many cups of straight balsa would I need to make a complete recipe at 78/15/8? If not, I understand... it's a lot of math! 🤣

[@davefellhoelter1343]

Yes "I do know" as I lost my plunger? and re worked with a shell case, knocking out, or re working my my calibration. then "I found it" months later, ah nevermind.

[@MrPanchoak]

After watching Mr Willard Bcbain I'd be pretty curious to know if your powder with the white ball residue was milled well enough. Possibly that particular charcoal might be a tad more difficult to integrate than another variety. Whenever I see those in my powder I immediately think about the fuel supply.

[@lamebeavertradingco.1642]

I mill my powder 30 hours, which I have explained time and time again on this channel. Even the great and mighty Swiss powder leaves the white residue behind. I also showed this in a video, and will show again soon. It is not the Charcoal

[@barlscharkley5411]

If the KNO3 is an oxygen source for the combustion, and the pet bedding mix isn't completely consuming it, have you considered reducing the percentage of KNO3 in the mix to see if there's less of a white residue when it burns, and what effect is has on the velocity and spread?

[@lamebeavertradingco.1642]

The white residue will always remain. It's the Kno3. I am uploading another burn test with swiss and It is still very much observable.

[@woodrowbrimm2805]

Who made your Powder Measure ? My Measure must be a different brand, I recently had the same issue with my measure bot my bottom knob doesn't remove . I solved the plunger problem by cleaning it out and re-assembling with a drop of Super Glue in the threaded rod and re-installing the plunger . Now it cant come unscrewed,but I can still remove it with a little Heat if I need to.

[@lamebeavertradingco.1642]

If I recall it's CVA. I did take it apart again and used a drop of Blue Lock tight