Right now my wife is yelling at me 'cause I'm laughing so hard. Wants to know whats so funny. Told her...she said I'm sick. They just can't understand sometimes. Great story!
I've often heard that there is a fine line betwixt genius and insanity. Both can be a sickness if not managed properly IMO. Both have their unique rewards. Tell your wife not to be critical until she has walked in your shoes. If that doesn't work there is always Siverstein, Rabinowizc and Their Seven Savage Jews.
Ya know, the ashtray thing got me to thinking, and well it wasn't long before I spiraled out of control...again. Y'all remember awhile back when we were chatting about building a new wildCAT cartridge for our endeavor? I think one was call something like "der Kattensplatten Magnum" or something like that. Well, I just had an epiphany(my 4th today, and still on my first cuppa). I think a 20 Ga. would be a good platform for this because it is gentle with neophytes and God knows we need their help too.
Whatcha do is simple. Build up a load for a 20 Ga. single ball load(That's RB - 1 ea.), but before you put the roll crimp on it you gotta make it look like one of those .45 ACP flyin' astray loads so popular amongst the shootin' range commandos. Clamp that ball on the drill press and chuck up a masonry bit of about 5/8" diameter. Run the bit half way into the ball, and viola'! 20 Ga. flying ashtray! I think it would work best in a rifled barrel but at close range it wouldn't matter much regardless. Bet you could get near 2000 fps with it! Talk about a "KER-WHOPP!" Thin skinned critters beware!
Derf I understand the no hunting problem but that is the beauty of my loads I have them almost silent. I am actually developing these loads because a friend of mine lives in your area and has been using a 22lr which has been just a little too loud for him. My goal is for them to be quieter than the hammer hitting the firing pin of my T/C Contender carbine 22" barreled 45-70. Imagine a 450gr cast bullet of almost pure expanding lead, drill a hole in the front of it to help in expansion would be best. I should be getting about 300fps when I'm finished. I'm now @ 400fps but still have a bit too much noise (boom). I'm getting about 2" groups with iron sights @ 25 yards and have just mounted a 2-7X scope to make it more accurate and increase my range to 50 yards. I also have a 18.5" 10mm barrel 4X scope and have been thinking about how I can load the 10mm silently as well I heading off to Lacombe, Alberta for the holidays ( inlaws place ) and was developing these loads to shoot coyotes in the ravine beside thier house as well(what else am I going to do there). Now that I've found this site I think I'm going to expand my hunt to include those dangerous field lions as well.
Moki, don't know how you're are loading them or what charge, but next time try seating the bullets all the way down on top of the powder with a dowel betwixt bullet and seater. Card wad if you care to but I wouldn't. You might also try a round ball with a thin patch if necessary to keep it in place. Better yet, buy one of the Lee sizers(custom for diameter) and use a properly sized ball. You might be amazed at their efficiency. Quiet is a function of expansion ratios and charge. You get more velocity per charge weight with the bullet deep in the case.
I've just started these silent loads about a month ago but have been saving data that I had found on other sites for about 2 1/2 years now.
I started with 450gr cast 4 lube groove bullets and 8grs Hodgdon Tite Group @ 860fps and have now worked down to 3grs @ 400fps. I hold the powder in place with styrofoam left over from the styrofoam boxes of Jae-Bok Young's .452 330gr WFNGC cast bullets that I had been loading into my 45 Colts. I am using Winchester large rifle primers and brass and seating the bullet without a crimp only as far into the case as I need to be able to properly close the action of my T/C Contender carbine.
The first loads you still needed hearing protection because they sounded like a 410 shotgun but have reached a point now that they can be fired without hearing protection sort of a soft boom.
I have loaded up 2.5grs and 2grs but won't be able to try them out until Sunday at the earliest. I'm leaving for Alberta on the Dec 22 so have to have all of my loads ready and sighted in by then.
This has been the most fun reloading project that I have ever done. I load for over 30 rifles/shotguns/handguns now and none of them have even come close to this project. Now to find out that there is a whole new game species to target just makes it that much better.......
Righto, if you have some Bullseye try a dash of that. I'm not sure where Titegroup is on the burn chart but the faster the better for this endeavor. And seat them ALL THE WAY DOWN ON THE POWDER. Trust me on this. I know it looks goofy, but it works. With your present load you are walking the line on sticking one in the barrel. Not a grevious offense but it sounds funny.
When you reach the pinacle of this project, I'll be happy to tutor you on the art of paper patching. This is the home turf of the 45-70, what it was made for IMO. You'll have to find your own place where the buffalo roam though. Or crats. Don't ever overlook crats as a suitable ballistic testing medium.
Moki, I strongly urge you to NOT take your 454 with you as you might be too tempted to use it on Father-in-law! From what I have heard it probably isn't enough gun for the job! Otherwise, have fun, if you can in all of that "White Mud". derf
Posts: 3450 | Location: Aldergrove,BC,Canada | Registered: 22 February 2003
Flying ashtrays? I have experamented with "frangible Round Ball" and found it to be effective at the lower velocities. I fire up the Lee melting pot and after casting a couple of R/B to get the mold heated up, I trickle No.6 shot(or whatever is to hand)into the mold and then pour in the molten lead. Allow it to cool and dump it onto the cloth. These things break up real easy and are very "urban friendly". derf
Posts: 3450 | Location: Aldergrove,BC,Canada | Registered: 22 February 2003
Actually the plan is to keep reducing the loads until the bullet does stop in the barrel. At that time you push it out and start to increase you powder charge by about .2gr at a time until you end up with your silent coyote/kitty kill'n load. In one article I read, a fellow shot a coyote through the heart @ 50 yards with a 500gr cast bullet and his load was silent.
I would have tried a faster powder but Tite Group was the fastest that I had on the shelf (4lbs). The loads that I have been looking at also used other powders 700X as an example and Tite Group is very close to that burn rate.
When I get into this abit more I'll definatly try Bulleye because that is the powder of choice.
I'll try seating my loads that I have ready a bit further in before I try them on Sunday.
Derf my father in law is 6'6" tall and about 280lbs I don't think that my 454 is big enough to slow him down........
Oh yeah...... he's only 12 years older than me and in super shape, the mother in law is a whopping 7 years older. After I passed his pre-marriage tests he has been like a best friend to me.
I usually make his daughter happy so, soooooooooo far I've been ok. I will have my G20 with me though just in case.... Cam
I got to the shooting range Sunday and tried out my next 2 lighter loads of 450gr 45-70 with 2.5grs packed Tite group and 2grs packed Tite group powder squib loads.
Digital...... I seated the bullets in a lot further but not quite as far as you suggested.
I'm now down to 290fps with the 450gr 4 lube bullets and they are soooooo quiet. Not silent yet but will do for now. Hitting 6" high with 1 1/2" group @ 25 yard. I figure these bullets should lob in perfect @ about 50 yards. I didn't have enough of the test bullets loaded up yet so didn't have a chance to shoot further.
My son was with me and said that he could see every one of the bullets flying towards the target.
Digital...... I was loading up the quiet 45-70 rounds last night for my trip when I started thinking about what you had said about seating the bullets deeper. Thats when I remembered years ago reading about turning the bullet around and seating the base forward. The reference in the article was that if you look at a water drop falling it is like a bullet traveling backwards and must cut through the air better. I loaded 2 this way just to try them out. I seated them almost flush with the front of the case. Leaves me with about a .410 meplat. That should smack them little critters.
Dandy tale old man, well done! derf
PMP
Both can be a sickness if not managed properly IMO. 
Both have their unique rewards. 
Tell your wife not to be critical until she has walked in your shoes. 
I think one was call something like "der Kattensplatten Magnum" or something like that. Well, I just had an epiphany(my 4th today, and still on my first cuppa). I think a 20 Ga. would be a good platform for this because it is gentle with neophytes and God knows we need their help too. 
I should be getting about 300fps when I'm finished. I'm now @ 400fps but still have a bit too much noise (boom). I'm getting about 2" groups with iron sights @ 25 yards and have just mounted a 2-7X scope to make it more accurate and increase my range to 50 yards. 
