Spencer Testing

[1816flintlock]

I decided to "enjoy" the 95+ degree heat this afternoon and go give the Spencer Rifle and Carbine a test.  Shooting was done at 50 yards.  My load was as follows:

Brass-Starline, necks annealed every 3-4 shots
Powder-Pyrodex RS, 40 grains by volume
Primer-CCI Magnum Rifle
Bullet-Lyman 330 grain, .515 Spencer bullet sized to .510.  I know .512 is the standard size, I'm still waiting on my custom .512 die from Lee.  I slugged the bore on my Spencer rifle and it measures roughly .504" land to land and .507" groove to groove.  So, I ordered the .510 Lee sizing die from Midway to play with for $13 along with some other goodies while waiting on my .512" die to show up someday.
Lube- 50/50 mix of crisco and beeswax
Overall length- 1.650, fed fine in both the rifle and carbine.

The rifle seems to shoot pretty good with this load.  The carbine using the same load was throwing them high and to the right.  In all honesty I don't think the carbine will be worth much accuracy wise until I get the trigger pull down to something less "heroic".  I've thinned down the portion of the mainspring that serves as a sear spring with a grinding wheel and emery cloth about as much as I dare to without making it too thin and it still takes 20 pounds of force to squeeze the trigger as measured with a fish scale attached to the trigger!  Even with the hammer down and the sear completely disengaged it takes a ton of force to move it.  I've opened up the rear sight a bit with a needle file on both guns and filed down the front sights to make the blade lower and a bit narrower.

I can't say as I've ever loved Pyrodex but, it does seem to work well in my Spencer rifle.  I will give the stuff credit for not building up fouling shot after shot and being easy to find unlike real black powder.  For that matter, I've tried the same bullets sized to .510" or as cast at .515" with 30, 35, and 40 grains by volume of GOEX 2FFG in both the Spencer rifle and carbine and would have been better off launching them with a slingshot.  They patterned, if they hit the target at all.

Target.  "Flyer" on the left target was from a clean barrel. 



Two Spencers plus a Spencerish looking rifle in the form of a Model 1859 Sharps Rifle.  Sharps rifle is a reproduction by Davide Pedersoli.  Fun to shoot, not fun to clean. 




Cross roads at Cold Harbor, Virginia.  I drive through this each time I visit the range.  Union Calvary was able to sieze and hold this position on May 31 - June 1 1864 thanks in part to the firepower provided by their Spencer Carbines. 


   

Stephen

[Two Flints]

Hi 1816flintlock,

Thanks for the thread and load information and photos...much appreciated.

Two Flints