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Developing load for .45 cal Pedersoli Gibbs rifle

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6 Comments
(5)
Posted on: 26/02/2015
 
A young and enthusiastic Italian shooter was so kind to share with us his expereinces with his first ever muzzleloading gun: a Pedersoli Gibbs .45 long range rifle. Here is his story of success: I am Gianluca Frison, 41 years old, I live at Enego, a small mountain village located on the Sette Comuni plateau (Vicenza). The passion for hunting, harboured since childhood, was passed down from my grandfather to my father and for more than twenty years I have been reloading for several calibres, both rifles and shotguns, I also attend many target shooting competitions with winning results. For some years I have been curious about the mystical world of muzzle loading and I took the time to research to learn more, consulting specialty magazines and the web to understand which gun could satisfy my expectations. Having obtained great satisfaction with rifles, looking for best accuracy, I wanted a muzzle loading gun that could have the best accuracy with the possibility to perform at long range shooting. The choice was just so easy, I wanted a Pedersoli Gibbs rifle, 45 calibre! After considerable research I had the opportunity to purchase a used rifle, with impatience I started immediately to experiment with different loads, typical for the Gibbs rifle, downloaded from published information and from the web. I almost got frustrated during the firing tests with 80-95 grains of Swiss powder #2, with the classic, greased bullet of 535 grains, until I thought about the well-known adage when reloading modern guns “if the reloading formula (bullet type and weight, powder type and weight, primer, etc.) is the Holy Grail for one gun, the same cannot occur for another gun even chambered in the same calibre, even of the same model. This should also be the case of muzzle loading”. I therefore decided to try a new strategy. I gradually reduced the loads to 60 grains and finally I started to have the desired results.. [caption id="attachment_290" align="alignnone" width="474"]gibbs1 Five shots, pure lead bullet 535 grains, lubed with 50% bees wax and 50% paraffin, 60 grains of Swiss powder 2F. One 9x21 case load of semolina over the powder and a vegetable fibre wad.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_291" align="alignnone" width="474"]gibbs2 Six shots with pure lead bullet 535 grains, lubed with 30% bees wax and 70% margarine butter, 60 grains of Swiss powder 2F, between the powder and the bullet a cardboard wad obtained from a beer coaster.[/caption] As it can be seen from the photos, I tried different lubes, but I also experimented with semolina as wad filler. This practice is quite widely used among the shooters, it seems that semolina has the ability to absorb the inertia at the bullet base, due to the deflagration of the powder, semolina also has a cleaning effect on the barrel. After the initial promising results, having seen other interesting ones on the web, I decided to have a bullet mould made by Brooks’ (www.brooksmolds.com). I chose a bullet design, the New Postell weighing 552 grains in pure lead. With the increased bullet weight, I increased the powder load by 5 grains… I did not have to wait for the results for long! gibbs3 gibbs4 I tested at 200 metres and I was happy with the result! [caption id="attachment_294" align="alignnone" width="474"]Five shots at 200 metres, two rounds doubled at 8 h. 552 New Postel pure lead lubed with citronella candle 65 grain Swiss 2F, cardboard wad. Five shots at 200 metres, two rounds doubled at 8 h.
552 New Postel pure lead
lubed with citronella candle
65 grain Swiss 2F, cardboard wad.[/caption] As you see I experienced an unusual lube!! The citronella candle. When I published this news on one forum in USA, the members were shocked and exclaimed: “It does not matter what you use, what is important is that it works, not what it looks like”   Many thanks for your report Gianluca! Keep up the good work! The Pedersoli Team  
 
Tags : Gibbs, Muzzleloading
Posted in: Blackpowder shooting, Product reviews

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Comments

  • Ron Pardue
    By: Ron Pardue On 23/12/2015
    Rating:
    5.0

    Gianluca
    I am planning to buy a Gibbs rifle to shoot in long range matches. Thanks for posting the loading information. One question, what diameter do you size your bullets to?? Also, do you use paper patched bullets and if so, what diameter do you size them to before wrapping??

  • Gianluca Frison
    By: Gianluca Frison On 23/06/2015
    Rating:
    5.0

    My mold Brook's is .451 and is designed for casting bullets 555 grains from pure lead, i also bought a adjustable mold of the company Kal Tool & Die, i experienced different alloys of lead and tin, and various weights but i did not get good results.

  • Sára Neužilová
    By: Sára Neužilová On 18/05/2015
    Rating:
    5.0

    Hi Gianluca,
    I am amased by your results with Gibbs rifle and thank you for sharing all these information. Could you please share the exact specification of Brooks New Postel Mold as well? I just bought Pedersoli Gibbs rifle and started with a friend of mine developing load for home made paper patched mold but I would like to order Brooks mold for comparison.
    Yours sincerely,
    Luděk Neužil
    Czech Republic

  • Ron Pardue
    By: Ron Pardue On 23/12/2015
    Rating:
    5.0

    Gianluca
    I am planning to buy a Gibbs rifle to shoot in long range matches. Thanks for posting the loading information. One question, what diameter do you size your bullets to?? Also, do you use paper patched bullets and if so, what diameter do you size them to before wrapping??

  • Gianluca Frison
    By: Gianluca Frison On 23/06/2015
    Rating:
    5.0

    My mold Brook's is .451 and is designed for casting bullets 555 grains from pure lead, i also bought a adjustable mold of the company Kal Tool & Die, i experienced different alloys of lead and tin, and various weights but i did not get good results.

  • Sára Neužilová
    By: Sára Neužilová On 18/05/2015
    Rating:
    5.0

    Hi Gianluca,
    I am amased by your results with Gibbs rifle and thank you for sharing all these information. Could you please share the exact specification of Brooks New Postel Mold as well? I just bought Pedersoli Gibbs rifle and started with a friend of mine developing load for home made paper patched mold but I would like to order Brooks mold for comparison.
    Yours sincerely,
    Luděk Neužil
    Czech Republic

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