Slip n Slide

[mr phil]

              So . I have been neglecting my Sharps 45-70 EMF ( Pedersoli ) . I hate to admit it but I still have not shot her . I bought her last year .  SO.... I finally loaded up some rounds with 13g Trailboss under 405 grain lead  if it ever stops snowing on my day-offs I am taking her out to dance.  Well I took her out of the safe and she is still pretty and all but after I levered it twice ( yes I half cocked it and didn't dry fire it ) she locked up tight. It was not new when I bought her so I was concerned something was wrong. All seems well. I removed the pin and dropped the receiver block and she looked good , but dry. After putting silicone on everything she works smooth as silk.
               My question is  do you all have a favorite lube ?
               We are expecting more snow tomorrow but if I get a chance I am taking her out. 

[Blair]

mr phil,

Are you buying bullets, or casting them yourself?
Are they sized to fit your guns bore diameter?
What is the lead alloy mix of the bullets?
These are important things most folks will need to know to address your question.

As for the lube, I can only recommend a lube mix that has worked well for me with BP powder.
My best,
Blair

[Major 2]

Since your loading Trail Boss ( where did you find some ? ) and alluding to the action being dry... not bullet lube ...

I'll mention Gibbs Lube and I like EEZOx both will work with BP or smokeless as they are non petroleum based 

G96 is very good as well .

Ballistol I'll mention as I have like the results in cleaning BP

[mr phil]

My mistake. I did not mean bullet lube.   
I bought 45=70 .459 from laser-cast.
I measured the barrel out at .449. That probably won't help accuracy but will it harm the barrel ?
I don't know the alloy.
I have had the trailboss for about 3 years. I haven't loaded since I haven't been to SASS since I am working weekends. I have since found out the Trailboss is impossible to find. I may switch powers for my next batch .
I now realize that there is a small dock on the back of the breech block that seems to be there to cover the linkage for the lever and the disk falls out of place and jams. Is that disk really necessary?

[Blair]

mr phil,

I have no clue what you are talking about.
Can you post photos?
If you are not sure how to do this, perhaps the Moderator can help you?
My best,
Blair

[mr phil]

I keep getting an error 500 message when I try to post a picture. Thanks anyways. It is a disk recessed into th back of the falling block. If I remove it I can see the small toggle linkage for the lever. If that doesn't make sense than I don't know what else to say. I wish I could post a picture. Thanks for trying to help Blair.

[Litl Red]

My mistake. I did not mean bullet lube.  
I bought 45=70 .459 from laser-cast.
I measured the barrel out at .449. That probably won't help accuracy but will it harm the barrel ?
I don't know the alloy.
I have had the trailboss for about 3 years. I haven't loaded since I haven't been to SASS since I am working weekends. I have since found out the Trailboss is impossible to find. I may switch powers for my next batch .
I now realize that there is a small dock on the back of the breech block that seems to be there to cover the linkage for the lever and the disk falls out of place and jams. Is that disk really necessary?

It sounds like you measured the bore diameter.  Bullets are sized to be very slightly larger diameter than the groove diameter.  Your bullets are probably close to perfect for your barrel, which will be about .458" groove diameter.    Commercial bullets are often overly hard for the older cartridges.  That'll probably be the only drawback to worry about.  Trying to load down to keep recoil tolerable combined with harder cast bullets often hurts accuracy and encourages leading.  If the rifle seems not very accurate with your first loads, look around for softer bullets.  

TrailBoss is going to work ok, 3 years old or not.  There are quite a few new powders that do well in 45-70s.   One modern one that is made for the old cartridges is A5744.  It's very good at giving uniform velocities and is as economical as any.  Most powders are going to meter far more uniformly than TB, and are sold in pound cans that have more than 9oz in them.  

Sorry, I don't have a '74 Sharps so don't know what the disk that's jamming your action is, but for sure there shouldn't be anything that can do that in a falling block action simply because it's dry of lube.    

[Major 2]

Can you pin point the "Disk" your speak of ?
perhaps then, we'll be on the same page ...

BTW- I meant Gibbs Lube,  EEZOx  & G96 as action lubes & anti rust products.

[mr phil]

Well  I have tried re-sizing the picture but nothing works.  The mentioned "disk" is not on the diagram. If it were it would be at the base of part 97 facing the shooter . And as long as I don't have the barrel pointed skyward it stays in place. When the block is shut you can see the top half of it instead of the top of the cutout area shown in the diagram. I assume on other rifles when the block is shut you see the top of the cut out ? If I remove the disk it seems to function fine , so I may remove it . It seems it is there for appearance  or keeping dirt and such out of the lever area.  It's not important I guess. Thanks for trying to help and thanks for the diagram.

[Blair]

mr phil,

Have you tried contacting the Moderator and ask them for help with posting your photos?
Another option may be to contact Major 2, perhaps he can help you with this?
I would offer to do this for you, but I seem to have the same trouble with posting images here too.
My best,
Blair

[mr phil]

lets see. Hey it worked. Twice, but ok.

[Blair]

mr phil,

Good job. I can't say that I have seen this kind of thing before. And really can't guess at why it would be needed.

Can you try a photo with just the breech block?
My best,
Blair

[mr phil]

I will get a picture of it tonight when I'm home. I had to crop the picture on a computer to get it small enough to post. Yeah. I really do not think it is needed. I think it would function fine with out it. I wish I could find a picture of another closed breech block from another rifle. 

[Coal Creek Griff]

Here is a photo of the breech of my Pedersoli Sharps.  It appears to have a different design to yours...

By the way, as far as attaching photos, if you're using the "attach" function, they need to be under 400 KB.  While cropping can be a factor in file size, there are other ways to reduce the resolution to keep the files small enough.  I use a free downloaded program from "Paint.net" to open my photos and resave them.  The program gives a sliding bar that allows you to reduce the quality to get the file size smaller without reducing the physical dimentions of the photos.  Just a thought.  Others use other methods to attach photos.

CC Griff

[mr phil]

Thanks CC Griff for posting that picture of yours. Yeah. If I take mine out you will be looking at an open space . Not sure why they would have done that . The barrel is stamped EMF . Aren't those made by Pedersolli ?

[Major 2]

IAB Pedretti Sharps the part is the Rear Bolt Assembly Disc .45/70

EMF imports Pedretti & Pedersolli

[mr phil]

IAB . How bout that. Thanks  Major 2. Now I know what the hell I have. 
Much appreciated.

[Blair]

Major 2,

This is not a Pedersoli made arm!
I will be more than happy to cross check this info with my DP connections.

I have two IAB made Sharps, one is a center fire cartridge gun and the other is a percussion "paper cutter" Sharps. Neither have this Disc assembly application to the breech block.
However, both of these arms are more that 20 years old.

mr phil,

Does your Sharps still have a PROOF Date code marked on it?

My best,
Blair

[Major 2]

Correct !  it is an IAB Pedretti Sharps as I said 


However EMF  has and does import both Pedretti & Pedersolli

[mr phil]

Yes. You can see the disk in the diagram Major2.