Maynard Reloading

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Hi, I posted a similar thread back in July ... and the posts would have been very helpful if I had a clue about reloading ...

So once again I am asking for resources for this living relic .... don't want to blow it up the first time I fire it ....

I have decided against the plastic (plastic?) cartridges, but should I buy the full size cartridge or the reduced load cartridge ...

And what kind of a ram should I use that will drive the bullet into the cartridge but not score the bullet (please forgive the awful terminology ... what can I say; I'm a newbie!)

[J.D. Yellowhammer]

I pm'd you, but I'll add here: I assume you're asking about a seating die that will match the profile of the nose of the bullet?  There are a couple of methods for making an exact match using epoxy or tin foil. I'll see if I can dig up a how-to thread on one of the BPCR forums.

As for your question about the "cartridge," do you mean you can buy already loaded cartridges for the Maynard? Or do you mean the empty shell case? I must caution you about reduced loads--you really need to know your business if you're reloading black powder with reduced charges. You have to have a filler--empty air space in black powder can cause detonation! (bp is an explosive). Some people use grits to take up empty space. I think that's a waste of good food, but I'm partial to grits.   

I hope you can find someone with experience reloading for obscure, old cartridge weapons. It can be very dangerous to build too much pressure in an old steel barrel. It can be very dangerous to reduce loads with black powder.  It's not something that should be done with casual experimentation. I think you should find an expert who can mentor you, if at all possible.

[Major 2]

Skip...Did new Romano Maynard arrive ?

Check with Ramano or http://www.trackofthewolf.com/categories/partdetail.aspx/1217/1/lyman-310-adaptor

I'd look into a Lyman 310 hand loader , may have to have custom Dies made ( 50cal. right ? )

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Major 2,

Not yet ... Larry said that he was sending it on Tuesday and that he would send a tracking number when sent ... to date, I have not received anything ... but if he is sending it by mail, it will probably arrive about the same time as the rifle ....

Since it is coming by USPS, I simply wanted the Tracking Form to assist the postman ...

But I will be happy when it arrives ... it is almost the last thing I need to finish my persona as my great grandfather ... and I will fire off a pic as soon as I get it all together....


TTFN,

[Major 2]

Major 2,

Not yet ... Larry said that he was sending it on Tuesday and that he would send a tracking number when sent ... to date, I have not received anything ... but if he is sending it by mail, it will probably arrive about the same time as the rifle ....

Since it is coming by USPS, I simply wanted the Tracking Form to assist the postman ...

But I will be happy when it arrives ... it is almost the last thing I need to finish my persona as my great grandfather ... and I will fire off a pic as soon as I get it all together....


TTFN,

you'd BETTER ! 

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

WWE;  Lyman 310 tools are the closest thing to traditional tools being manufactured at present.  They do take their own unique set of dies.  If you want the same function, and be able to use conventional dies, get the LEE handtool!

http://leeprecision.com/breech-lock-hand-press.html

Like I tol ya severeal tymes b for!!!

You really need to get a reloading manual and do some homework.

Here's one.  There are others'

http://leeprecision.com/modern-reloading-book/

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Sir Charles,

I had been hoping for a set of dies that would fit on my old Lyman Spartan reloading press ... I have tried to stay away from buying an entirely new press .... I was hoping to find dies that would just screw into my old press ...

[Major 2]

That is much like to my Lyman and standard dies fit mine 

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Sir Charles,

I had been hoping for a set of dies that would fit on my old Lyman Spartan reloading press ... I have tried to stay away from buying an entirely new press .... I was hoping to find dies that would just screw into my old press ...

That'll do 'er Wadd;  Should take standard dies.  If LEE doesn't have your caliber, try CH4D.  They have most non-common calibers for less than $100.  And good quality.

http://www.ch4d.com/catalog/dies/caliber-list/?field=desc&query=56-50

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Very Similar!

I have been told that  a 50/70 Cartridge holder works very well, but what bullet and standard die would fit the Maynard Bullet...or I have heard theat thse Smith and Gallagher carbine bullets will fit in a Maynard cartridge case ... if so, do I get Smith/Gallaghewr bullet seating die?

I am so confused ....

Sir Charles,

When I emailed CH4D I got a reply from a guy named Dave that he did not have a clue and to talk to Larry ... so, since I have already emailed him, I will have to wait until he returns ....

So I sit and send out threads, hoping one of our members will have the answer ....

Like order #______ Lyman Dies ... or # ________ CH4D dies ...

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Sorry Wadd;  I`m not clear on the caliber you need dies for.


Here is a link to a cartridge dimension chart.  navigate around to find your caliber.  From there you can compare dimensions to see if a more common case can be adapted.

http://members.shaw.ca/cstein0/riflelist2.htm

[rickk]

There is more than one Maynard caliber.

If  a die set can not be found for your particular caliber from LEE, RCBS, Lyman, then CH4D would be the next place to shop.

You can ask him if he can make a custom bullet seating plug for the seating die if you sent a sample bullet to him. That should be no big deal.

Personally, I reload for about 25-30 calibers that use cast bullets and have never had to resort to a custom seating plug. Lead is pretty hard stuff.

Rick

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Sir Charles, Rickk,

I think the best bet in matching the bullet and the bullet seater die will be to buy one from Romero Rifles ... Probably not the cheapest way to go, but buying a second bullet mold when the bullet and seater die do not match will be about the same price .... so I think I will go with Mr Romero ... he certainly has the experience with both the rifle and the round ..... *S*

[rickk]

WWE,


Be aware that the seater plug is a replaceable part of a die set. It just screws in place. If you do have a problem the standard plug can be unscrewed and replaced.  Most of the time they design the profile of the standard plug to roughly fit a bullet that would typically be used in the caliber of the die. Normally they pretty much are close enough to work.   You might run into a problem if you had a SWC plug and were loading spire point bullets, and there are probably a few other possible incompatible shapes, but I suspect that the "normal" plug for the dies you are looking for will be such that it will contact most "normal" bullets a fair ways down from the point where the diameter is so bit that you aren't going to distort the bullet a noticeable amount.

Having said that, the seater plugs are partly to mostly die brand specific.  You typically cant screw a plug made for one brand of die into another brand of die.

You may already know all this, but if not it is important to know.

Rick

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

I think that we are all I am on a night-shoot   Blind folded!

None of us know specifically what the firearm is chambered for, or the barrel dimensions, or what the recommended bullet is.  Get some basic info, and we can go from there.

Wadd; You might be right about going to the vendor/maker. Knowing some basic prices from what we have dug up will allow you to evaluate what he can offer you.

Correction;  I did not read the other thread WWE started back in July.  After some intence study, I think I am up to speed.

[WaddWatsonEllis]

I think that we are all on a night-shoot   Blind folded!

None of us know specifically what the firearm is chambered for, or the barrel dimensions, or what the recommended bullet is.  Get some basic info, and we can go from there.

Wadd; You might be right about going to the vendor/maker. Knowing some basic prices from what we have dug up will allow you to evaluate what he can offer you.

Sir Charles et al,

First I want to thank you all for your patience with this neophyte ...My lack of knowledge reminds me of an old poem:

"Great with child to speak,
and helpless in my throes"

I know what I want to say: I just haven't developed the vocabulary yet

I am getting a Maynard 1st Model , .50 Cal (actually .515):and the Specs are all on the Romano Website:

http://www.romanorifle.com/html/maynard.html

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Hi again,

And for all of us anal/too-little-to=do-on-a -Sunday-morning, here is a great little article taken from a paper done in a Latin Studies Course (?)

http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/civil-war/Maynard-gun.pdf

[J.D. Yellowhammer]

I suspect that you'll discover that you don't need a special seating die for your bullet.  I reload several different bullet profiles for .38-55 and .45-70, use fairly soft alloys, and never needed special dies.  But as I mentioned before, there are self-help remedies.
(There are also professional remedies. If you buy RCBS dies you can send them a couple of bullets and the dies and they will machine a seating stem to match the ogive.  I think Lee wiill, too. And probably others, if you ask.)

Self Help (from Beartooth Bullets):

A custom fit seating stem is easily and quickly fashioned from your existing seating die parts! Simply disassemble your die, removing the seating stem. Next, thoroughly clean the tapered portion that contacts the nose using either denatured alcohol or acetone and a q-tip type cotton swab. This is to allow total bonding of an epoxy glue compound with the seating stem. Now, with the seating stem removed, spray the entire die with a light coating of WD40, this will prevent the epoxy from adhering to any other part of your dies, except the cleaned, degreased seating stem.

Prior to disassembling your dies you need to prepare a dummy cartridge. Using the cast bullets intended for use, take a fired piece of brass and size it just slightly, only about 1/32" down the neck of the case to hold the bullet, then carefully seat the bullet into the case without deforming the nose. Little resistance to seating should be encountered with the brass prepared as described above. Once seated, wipe any bullet lube from the bullet's nose, then grease the entire dummy cartridge with a light but thorough coat of vegetable shortening. Finally, place the dummy cartridge into the proper shell holder installed on a single stage reloading press.

Mix a small amount of two-part five minute epoxy (5 minute epoxy gel is very easy to work with) as per glue manufacturer's instructions, place as much mixed epoxy into the concave tapered portion of the seating stem as it will hold, then reinstall it into your bullet seating die body without the glue dripping out of the cavity in the seating stem, leaving the stem screwed deeply into the die. Now, screw the entire die into your single stage loading press, then slowly raise the ram on the press until gentle contact is made between bullet and the seating stem. Be careful not to shove the bullet further into the case, and to not lose contact between the two once the ram is raised to an extended position. Weight the operating lever of the single-stage press with just enough weight to keep the ram extended and applying gentle and continuous pressure on the bullet and seating stem.

After an appropriate time elapses for curing the epoxy in the cavity of the seating stem, lower the ram of the loading press, and then remove the bullet seating die from your press as well. Then, disassemble your die once again, removing the bullet-seating stem. Trim away any excess epoxy which may have oozed out of the seating stem cavity during this process, clean the die of any excess WD-40, and reassemble the die. Check to see that the seating stem now perfectly matches the contours of the cast bullet of interest and provides the necessary full nose contact. Cast bullets seated with a stem thus altered will exhibit far less bullet run-out than those with a standard, unmodified seating stem when checked with a dial indicator. Additionally, even very soft bullets will be virtually unmarked by the seating stem.

http://www.beartoothbullets.com/tips/archive_tips.htm/89

The same can be done with tin foil. I don't have the link handy but google could probably dig up the technique.

[WaddWatsonEllis]

Hi J.D.,

Thanks for taking the time to post these instructions ... they sound simple enough that even I could follow them!

I think that my first option is to buy a set of dies and bullets from Mr Romano ... (something that is made to match) ...

but yours sounds like the ultimate backup plan if that does not work ...

[rickk]

WWE, try them as received before messing with them.

I'm about 99.845 % sure you won't see an issue worth fixing.