Chapter 6 – Centaures the Glorious Shooting Irons and then Some

6.3 Centaure Loading and Maintenance

 

6.3       6.3.1 6.3.1.1   6.3.2   6.3.3

Centaure Loading and Maintenance (by Michael „Socks“ Mayer, translation Jörg „Magic Joe“ Ullrich) Loading – Race Against the Clock? Recommended CAS Loads – Shooter’s Responsibility Cleaning the Centaure – No Lifetime Task Good Lubrication Means Good Shooting

 

6.3.1

Loading – Race Against the Clock?

 

At a Cowboy Action Shoot (C.A.S.) even loading the gun is supposed to be done under some time pressure. There is not much time in between shooting the stages. Every shooter is expected to participate in the additional chores when not shooting. Empty cases and shells need to be collected, there are the Range Officer’s monitoring tasks at the loading and unloading table and so on.

Therefore, every shooter has developed his or her strategy when it comes to loading their cap and ball revolvers. Some use their home-made paper cartridges and press them home with the gun’s internal loading press, others prefer to pull the cylinder from the gun for external loading. As mentioned earlier, the factory fitted proper length Centaure’s arbor ensures that the cylinder can be removed without affecting the zero or the functional integrity of the pistol.

 

6.3.1_1 External loading procedure: Cylinder pulled, powder in quick chargers, semolina in powder flask (upper right), grease mixture in the white can

 

There are many schools of thought on how much and which powder to load, whether you should use some sort of wad of polenta as a separating layer between powder and bullet, and should one seal the load with grease on top of the bullet or not.

 

6.3.1_2 Dried coffee grounds as separator between powder and ball

 

Regarding the separating layer we found coffee grounds, semolina or polenta to be well suited as a separator. After trial and error, we eventually are using grease on top of the .451″ lead balls, a mixture of rather tough fat. This proved to be working nicely, as opposed to lighter flowing types of grease like skin cream. The latter usually will not stay in place and is blown away by the first shot. This renders the creamy stuff rather useless. I use a self-made mixture. It is a blend of beeswax, dripping and baby oil. The amount of baby oil determines the consistency of the mix. For low temperatures like during shoots in fall or winter the mix should be a thinner but tougher for summer matches. Compared to other kinds of grease containing mutton or deer fat my mixture has the advantage of a seemingly unlimited shelf life, the stuff just does not deteriorate.

 

6.3.1_3 Sealing/greasing the chambers after seating the bullet

 

6.3.1.1

Recommended CAS Loads – Shooter’s Responsibility

 

 

Loading Components	Load 1	Load 2
Round ball weight gr	138	138
Round ball diameter inch	.451	.451
Black powder type	CH2	Wano PP
Black powdr quantity gr	18	18
Separator	Coffee grounds	Seminola
Caps	Remington No. 10	RWS No. 1075
Loading press	external	external
Powder quick charger	external	external
Power factor (MIP) range	91.8 – 110.7	72.2 – 80.1

 

The power factor (bullet weight (gr) x muzzle velocity (fps) : 1000 = MIP) for main match percussion revolvers in BDS governed cowboy matches is 80! According to above data load I will be just fine for BDS competitions but load 2 will be borderline at best. But load 2 will do in S.A.S.S. shoots like the European Days of Truth (DOT) or the World Championship End of the Trail (EOT).

To calculate the power factor (MIP) V5 was measured, i.e. the screen of a chronograph was placed in five (5) meters distance from the muzzle to exclude wrong readings caused by powder particles or the separating agent.

 

6.3.2

Cleaning the Centaure – No Lifetime Task

 

When you are shooting black powder, the best mental attitude is to accept the cleaning chores as part of the game. The question remains just how intensely you will be pursuing this task. Some strip down their guns to the last screw after each and every use, others just clean the barrel and the chambers, whisk a damp cloth over the visible surfaces and put some oil onto the arbor and into the mechanism – that’s it. And they do all this directly after the shooting session on the range.

As for me, complete taking the gun apart, taking out the nipples – negative. But nevertheless, these revolvers work just as flawlessly as the “clinically clean” ones. I leave it up to you, dear reader, to learn from your own experience. However, I like to shoot often, and I prefer to rather spend my time shooting than cleaning. But when it comes to cleaning my black powder guns, I recommend to just use hot water. Any additional media are not necessary.

 

6.3.3

Good Lubrication Means Good Shooting

 

Many petrochemical lubes are not suitable in connection with black powder. Why? In contact with black powder residue, they tend to produce a tough mud cake. The best way to find a proper lube is simply testing different alternatives. Here is my personal shortlist:

Ballistol oil will work well.

For greasing I also recommend using an acid-free petroleum jelly aka Vaseline. During our torture test program, we have made positive experience with greases based on Vaseline like HP .357. It should be applied richly to the arbor AND the chambers on top of the bullets.

WD-40 can be used as a universal remedy. In all the years of shooting I have never encountered any discoloration of the bluing after the use of WD-40.

 

6.3.3_1 Tried and tested lubes (clockwise from the left): WD-40, PTFE Trenn Gel, Vaseline (from drug store), HP .357 Hubertus Waffen-Top-Pflege (sources of supply see chapter 7.2)

 

 

Updated February 23, 2024

© Michael, Neely & Wolf 2007/2024

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