This is too controversial for the BPCR forum.







Turned brass from Dixie Gun Works is all I can find at present,
but it does have same rim diameter, and rim thickness as Captech brass advertised on the Captech web site as "Out of Stock."
Same neck wall thickness too, if it is indeed 0.0100" at case mouth on the Captech brass.

The turned brass and the Captech brass should be interchangeable, except 25K psi for the former, and 40K psi for the latter.

See if they got the 450 NE #2 brass, straighten/expand

it out and you could make case 3.55" long if you wanted.

Then call it the 50-170 Berry Sharps. Or cut it back to 3.25".

I used same to make 499HE 3.55" long. Only we used

.500" bullets instead of .510"...

I think Base on cases measured .565"..

make reamer .003" bigger.Ed

Nice to see big bore black powder cartridges brought into the 21st century...

Having had more than a little bit of involvement with this project I would shorten the case to at least 3" We found that if we used IMR-4831 that recoil was just to great and in fact sheared the fore-end tie down block from the barrel on the second shot. As I was there when this happened I saw Bob come out of recoil on the 2nd shot with a now quick detachable fore-end and say "Damn I'm seeing stars". We then went to a cork wad and a much faster powder under the Barnes bullets. Even so you do not have to eject an empty to know the rifle was fired, trust me.

Effective ? Expect the same performance as a 500 Nitro as that is what we were hoping for at the time. At that time nobody made 500 Jeffery brass etc so we chose to use the 50-3-1/4" Sharps case. Today I'd use a 3" case amd remember the loading gate on the action must be opened up radically . The Hagn I used worked just fine, but just barrely. It was a great project. Would I do another one? No I'd rather cut the grass or paint the house. It has proven as effective as the 500 Nitro.

Posted for D'Arcy.

quote:

Originally posted by hubel458:
See if they got the 450 NE #2 brass, straighten/expand

it out and you could make case 3.55" long if you wanted.

Ed,
You and boom stick! Wildercatters than me!
I'll just stick with the pedestrian 50 basic case or 50-140 3.25", thanks.


Then call it the 50-170 Berry Sharps. Or cut it back to 3.25".

I used same to make 499HE 3.55" long. Only we used

.500" bullets instead of .510"...

I think Base on cases measured .565"..

make reamer .003" bigger.Ed

Actually I only have a measured base diameter (just above the rim) for the turned brass 50 basic 3.25" case: .5630"
I was allowing only +.002" for the reamer minimum over that.
I better add a couple of thou to assign a brass maximum of .565" even for this turned brass, then add the +.002" to that,
so the reamer minimum base diameter will be .004" bigger than this turned brass that I have in hand.
I really ought to wait to get some Captech 50-140 Sharps 3.25" brass in hand before I assume that will work.
Captech does claim a rim diameter of .660" and rim thickness of .067" which are exactly what I get when measuring the turned brass from DGW.

Maybe I should allow +.003" on the reamer rim diameter minimum?
Zero tolerance on the rim thickness though, brass and chamber rim thickness are same, for zero headspace.

D'Arcy,

Thanks for the input.
I am just noodling until I get some Captech brass in hand.
Maybe the Ruger No.1 forearm hanger is more secure than the Hagn?
I never had a Ruger No.1 500 A2 lose a forearm,
whether wood or synthetic from B&C.
Actually the 500 A2 has just about the same case capacity as the .510 Nitro Express.
Thanks to Chuck, I am comparing my Ruger No.1 to Mr. Schneidmiller's Hagn that you built:

Doc
If you could lay in a supply of Hornady 500 Nitro brass I would look no further. I wish we had had that option at the time but there was no other alternative. The Sharps cases worked out fine but she should have shortened the cases to 3". I used a Douglas .510 dia. Barrel with a 1-18 twist and it proved to be very, very accurate with the original Barnes X and Super Solids. The Hagn does not come with a Fore-end hanger as part of the action. You are required to fit a block onto the barrel, you can use solder, screws, duct tape, etc.

I had soldered the block on the barrel then had the fore-end screw attach 90 Degrees to the center line of the barrel. The recoil generated with a case full of 4831 and a 500 plus grain bullet was just a bit to much for the shooter, fore-end block and our nerves. The powder change solved the problem, with the 3" case and a typically long Barnes bullet there would be no air space under the bullet that we filled with a wad. With many of the newer powders you might find a powder that will safely give you proper case capacity and 2150fps with the heavyweight 500gr to 600gr pills.

I made a new fore-end block that dovetailed into the barrel and was also screwed in place with two 8x40 screws. The fore-end block has never moved since. As one might expect is has been a real tiger by the tail.

Ah shucks! D'Arcy is making too much sense.
Might as well scrap the 50 BS and just get a 500 NE 3" with 1:18" twist .510 barrel on a Ruger No.1, using Hornady brass.
Very practical all around, and I won't be profaning the BPCR religion.

Impractical and profane, yep, that's the ticket!
If Captech ever makes any new brass for the purpose ...

What does practicality have to do with what we enjoy here And as

an aside, What Would the World be Like if RIP, and or Saeed, and or Ed Hubel, and

or Robgunbuilder, and or Michael & Sam OWNED CAPTECH INT'L ? { I dream the

dreams of dreamers... You guys can have your dreams of Jeanie, with the light

brown hair }

Sweet dream, but the company would go bankrupt from producing brass more obscure than 50-140 Sharps.