I have a question.
A friend is owning a Sharps rifle, chambered for the .45-120. He also have a lot of 405grs lead bullets with gascheck. Now, he don´t know, is it is a problem to load this bullets with a black powder charge. I´m loading only NC. I have no permit to buy BP..... And so I haven´t the experience with this.

Thanks,

Martin

It's not a problem,but he may not get the results he wants.
His charge of FFG or Cartridge black powder would be 120 grains,hence the caliber of the round.
I would suggest he get onto the internet and read all he can about "Black Powder Metallic Cartridge loading"
Loading these cartridges in not like loading Smokeless Powder.
His other options,depending on who made his rifle and how strong it is is to use a "Cowboy Load" using a pistol powder or a synthetic Black Powder equivalent.
It would fill up many pages here to give you the data.

Hello Martin,
Your friend can try the BPCR forum at Cast Boolits. It is a black powder only forum so he can get recommendations there.

For smokeless Accurate 5744 had data listed for those large black power rounds. SR4759 can be used in a similar manner. However SR4759 data is not as easily found.

This is the data I use in my 45-120 H&R.

BBF,

Just tell him to fill the case to slightly higher than the base of the bullet so the powder is compressed when he seats the bullet. You just don't want any airspace in the case when loading real blackpowder.

Those bullets will fire, but his accuracy will be horrible. Also with smokeless lube on the bullets instead of blackpowder lube, he will have issues with powder fouling in his barrel.

For real blackpowder he needs soft cast bullets sized to his barrel and lubed with a true blackpowder lube. Depending on his barrel length, and how much lube that bullet carries, he may still need a "grease cookie" sitting between the base of the bullet and the powder charge. Use a card wad between the powder and grease cookie.

Not a problem with BP; you won't be able to get 120 grains in modern cases without compressing it. Don't need gas checked bullets either, make sure your bullets are soft, as stated above. .001 larger than groove diameter is good. That will prevent gas cutting. Grease cookie? I have used them to keep the fouling soft, but I now use ten precent (NO MORE than 10 percent) of the black powder charge, of a smokeless powder like 5744 or 4759. Do not compress duplex loads! That will keep your bore clean. Use a thin card wad like slowpoke said.