Power masher upper....

[Paladin UK]

I`ll bet that got ya`ll !!!

Well, I`m looking to make a powder mill..

I have more course than I need and so I thought I might mill myself some med/fine fer my little ol, .31

I have an old gem stone rotary grinder that has a rubber barrel cylinder with looks like nylon  struts (3) on the inside.

Soooo, could I use this.  I was thinking of also throwing about 10 .44 lead balls in also to add to the agitation, I also have an old glass jar that sits quite happily in the rollers, so I could also use that iffn it was thought that the rubber cylnider would be a `No Go`

Any thoughts  good or bad would be welcomed

Paladin (What wants ta `speriment  ) UK

[Noz]

Please put me in your will to receive all your guns upon your death.

[Deadguy]

Hi PUK,

I mill my own powder at home with a United Nuclear 3 lb capacity ball mill.  It uses a rubber cylinder with about a dozen and a half .45 caliber lead balls inside for grinding media.  It works good.  Put in the sulfur powder, saltpeter powder, and charcoal powder, and let it run overnight.  The next day, the powder is ready to be wet down and corned into granules.

[Paladin UK]

Ho Deadguy....

Thanks for the input pard, What I really needs ta know is iff it would be safe ta use the mill to grind down the granuals more, or do I jest `Corn` the granuals?

BTW........ What method do ya use ta `corn` em!!

Paladin (What needs more input  ) UK

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Hey, Paladin old pard!

How's things 'cross the water?

Well - I'm not sure I'd use that "mill" with completed powder.  Deadguy mentioned how he did it: notice he mills his ingredients BEFORE they're combined, not after. 

BP isn't as pressure sensitive as say, C-4.  (You can cook a meal with it - no problem ... but DON'T step on the burning pieces to put out the fire!    It'll ruin yer day.  Or week.  Or life.  I'm sure you have access to lots of C-4 which is WHY I use that as an example.  )
**************************

Paladin:  it's now 15 minutes later than when I started this post.  Since it's cost prohibitive for you to call them, I took the liberty of calling the Black Powder engineer, Mike, at Hodgdon - the makers of Pyrodex.  As you probably know, Pyrodex IS real Black Powder, but since it has less of some ingredients and more of other, it's considered to be a sub.  Anyway, Mike said do not  attempt to re-size your coarse powder in your "ball mill!"  Bad news possible!  Or perhaps I should say probably.  When Deadguy puts his ingredients into his ball mill, he's creating what's called an "intimate mixture."  After the powder is wetted, rolled and then dried it becomes WAY more pressure sensitive.

You make up your own mind, but as stoopid foolish as I sometimes get, I wouldn't try this!

Jeff  "Steel Horse Bailey"

[Deadguy]

That is true, SHB, that I do not put completed BP in the ball mill!  If you just want to re-size the powder, a ball mill is not neeeded at all.  Find a wire mesh kitch straining sieve with the gaps between the wires being about the size you want for your powder granules, and then another one with the gaps being smaller.  Dump your BP into a ceramic bowl, and add just enough water until it clumps.  Put the wet BP into your hands and squeeze it into a golf ball shape.  Work it in your hands for a little while until you are satisfied that it is sticking together well.  Then, lay out a sheet of newspaper on the table.  Take your larger kitchen sieve, hold it over the newspaper, and rub your golf ball of BP through it, spreading it evenly over the newspaper.  Let it dry for a day or two.  Then, lay out another sheet of newspaper.  This time, take both kitchen sieves, stack them on top of each other, the sieve with the larger gaps on top, and while holding it over the second sheet of newspaper, push the granules that you made through the larger sieve.  The ones that are the size you want will be captured inside the second sieve, the pieces that are too small will fall to the newspaper below.  You may put your BP that is inside the second sieve into your BP container, preferably a metal one.  The BP particles that have fallen to the newspaper may be put back into the bowl, and you then repeat the entire process, from the beginning, with those.  Do so until complete.  On a side note, BP is not very pressure sensitive.  I have taken VERY small quanties of it, for testing purposes, putting it on a hard flat surface (NOT one that could create sparks when hit!) and whacked it with a heavy hammer, only ever getting crushed BP granules as a result.

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Interesting, Deadguy.

I'll let you do the "whacking", if you don't mind. 


Not sayin' anything detrimental, but I'll stick with the manufacturer's advice.  You, on the other hand, seem to have real-world experience that I don't ! 


According to all published "expert" advice, one shouldn't EVER put BP in a plastic Powder Measure.  But, BP/Pyrodex & subs can be bought in plastic containers.  "Special, non-static plastic" say the experts.  Which is used to manufacture the powder hoppers used on Powder Measures.

Go figure.

[Paladin UK]

  WOW!!

Thanks Deadguy `n` SHB  fer yer input and advise pards!!

And that campers, is WHY I asked BEFORE I did anything!! I`m starting ta get a better picture of how I want to continue now!!

Paladin (Gonna make sure Annie `O` aint about when he starts `sperimentin in her Kitchen  ) UK

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

PUK;  I have read that Btitish authorities used sifted powder, or "fines" for pistol powder.  I'm not sure how it was done, but imagine it was the use of graduated screens under coarse or cannon powder.  It probably didn't need any wetting or such.

But; No actual experience!

[litl rooster]

Interesting, Deadguy.


According to all published "expert" advice, one shouldn't EVER put BP in a plastic Powder Measure. .  "Special, non-static plastic" say the experts.  Which is used to manufacture the powder hoppers used on Powder Measures.

Go figure.

I have several Pounds of Schutzen in plastic containers look like a Havoline Oil containers to me....So whats the difference in these over the "special " non- static containers?

[Steel Horse Bailey]

The last guy I talked to about it (Mike @ Hodgdon) used plastic juice containers as an example of NON-static free plastic.

Can't say about any oil containers. 


I'd bet those Havolene look-alike containers ARE non-static.


Besides; like so many things, the correct term may be static resistant , not static-free. 

[Arcey]

So whats the difference in these over the "special " non- static containers?

Prolly four er five bucks if ya wanna buy 'em empty.

Heh, heh, heh..... One born ever minute.......

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Prolly four er five bucks if ya wanna buy 'em empty.

Heh, heh, heh..... One born ever minute.......

[litl rooster]

Prolly four er five bucks if ya wanna buy 'em empty.

Heh, heh, heh..... One born ever minute.......

That's what I think also but i just damn old fool

[Springfield Slim]

If they are anything like the static dissapating containers and surfaces we used at my last job, the plastic is made with some static dissapating elements that bleed of the static. We were making small electronic items that would be destroyed by static. They are not"static free" they just bleed it off slowly so there is never a static differential between the container and whatever is near it, as long as that is grounded to the same thing. If the differential is the same there can be no spark jump. I don't know what the dissapating elements are, I was just involved in testing and makng sure everything was at the same differential.

[Steel Horse Bailey]

That makes sense, Slim.  I know MANY electronic items are VERY static sensitive.  Anyone who works on computers or has put a couple memory chips in their equipment will have seen all the red letter warnings on all the wrappings and installation instructions.

[Deadeye Dick]

This thread gives me the willies!

Deadeye Dick