Fantastic! You are going to be set up! Thanks so much. Paper cartridges are fiddly and take some experimentation, but convenient when you finally get it to the range. We're always here for you if you have any questions.

I read something about a Charlies's Tubes makes and offers the tubes ready made, like 300 to a bag. But I can not find him. I did experiment and made a couple and glued a bullet in and put it into the rifle until I got my tube length down pat. Mine seemed to be aroumd 1 7/16ths. Once I get my end tissues I will actually make some bullets. Looking forward to it. I also order a cartridge box from Cary Davisson. Can't wait to get it. I have always been a CW buff and was a reenactor during the '80s up to mid '90s and have always thought Civil War equipment was just so Cool. I am 63 now and having surgery on my knee Friday. so too old and decrepid. I do miss it. My brother and I were raised by my grandmother here in Alabama and spent a lot of time with my other one up in southern Maryland. We grew up hearing stories of theri grandfathers and uncles in the war, who died, whose homes were burned and looted, etc. Only one was with the Union. My great grandfather was a doctor from northern Ky and was Surgeon with the 11th Ky Cav, USA. It is funny, of the many ancestors who fought in that war, the only one whose portrait hangs above my mantel pieces is Dr. Rodgers, the Yankee. I had an artist do a portait of him in uniform. I would like for you to see it.

Put them low heat on a cookie sheet in the oven about150 they dry nice and stiff

Thanks so much for adding this, it's certainly going to be helpful! I thought it was odd the 1859 manual didn't suggest a mix for the lube since tallow can also get gooey when hot. Your recipe adds a lot more stability to the original lube. Oh, and thanks for sharing the tip on coating the dowel. I seriously considered it and now I might just do it.

Company D 2nd USSS : Thank you. It will be awhile but when I make a batch of lube I'll see if I can put something together for you. But I may not need any wads until Sept or Oct.

I looked up those kits. Those look nice. We'll I guess I shouldn't be surprised they would be, it is after all, Shiloh. I've been debating getting into bullet casting since so many Sharps owners seem to do it. Thanks for the great share.

We're glad you found it informational. We have a new article on our website about our experiments making linen rounds at www2ndUSSS.com it's under the armory section if you're curious about that, too.

We do make a dummy round filled with corn meal and brightly labeled to distinguish it as a dud to show the public. We keep it secured in a box for demonstrations so it doesn't get mixed with regular blanks and cause a safety danger. These are pure lead bullets and like most reloaders, I just wash my hands when I'm done messing with them. Take whatever safety precautions you feel best using.

Awesome! Thanks again!

60 would be about right for a max charge with a bullet. The 1860 ordnance dept called for 60. I've also had decent accuracy with 50 and 55 grains, just have to play with it a little. As for waxing I would try it with waxing the "casing" first then wrapping. I would just be worried of the wax seeping through to the powder and fouling it

Sorry to hear about your Facebook issues. You can find Cpt. Whitehall's email on our webpage, you can reach out to him, too. My overall length of live cartridge does have a gap between the flash hole and the end of the cartridge when in the block. How much of a gap a rifle will tolerate is up to each rifle. Your manual may also have some good info and suggestions.

I think it all depends on your storage. I keep my blank rounds in a rubbermade tub with several silica packets in a non-climate controlled space and they do pretty well. I also only typically batch these out before I go to the range, so unfortunately I can't share a whole lot on the outcome of long term storage. Thanks for the great question.

@@CompanyD2ndUSSS that's good to know and I think I'll use your storage method, I've just been using a Plano ammo box that holds individual rounds. Maybe one of these days I'll put some to the test and see how far out they can be made from the day they're shot, for curiosity's sake

A Shiloh Berdan...Awesome...and no lie, a bit jealous.

@@CompanyD2ndUSSS I'll definitely be posting videos when I get it.

Hi David, While I don't own a Sharps, I've fired many rounds through my 1861 Springfield reproduction. When I first got the musket, I used Pyrodex. Unfortunately I had trouble igniting the charge. Keep in mind, the main charge on the musket is much closer to the cap than it is on a Sharps. Considering the flame of the cap has much further to travel on the Sharps, you're getting even less flame to hit the charge than you do on a conventional musket. My hunch is that you'll need to use real black powder to get consistent ignition.

First, let me say follow your rifle manufacturer's instructions for safe operation and seek any final say from a qualified licensed gunsmith. When we use loose powder, we use a measured load within the recommended safety guidelines of the manufacturer. The Sharps paper or linen cartridge doesn't fill the breech completely, either. When live firing the rifle, we've never had an issue. For more details, you can check out some Sharps Rifle forums for an even deeper explanation of the rifle's design and engineering.

@@CompanyD2ndUSSS Thank you for the helpful information.

Good question, but it wouldn't for several reasons most notably, the flash enters the breach from the side on a Springfield. That and the U.S. Gov't spent years researching and developing the live round that saw reliable and effective service for those pieces. Cap and Ball, and maybe British Muzzleloaders have done videos for the rounds used by companies like Springfield and Enfield you could probably check out.

Get chamber leith and fill the rest with cream of wheat to make your cartridge.

You can try reaching out the the Cpt. for more ideas. His contact is on our website.

I can't speak to nitrate paper since I'm too lazy to experiment with it and regular paper is perfectly acceptable to us. If you dig around on black powder forums, you should be able to find a lot more information about that. Cream of wheat is in the breakfast aisle of most grocery stores. It's kind of like oatmeal.

To make the Nitrated paper is simple. You take potassium nitrate and mix it with hot water till it won't dissolve any more (saturated solution) and soak the paper in the solution for about 30 seconds then hang and let dry. The paper you use should be 100% cotton rag paper, regular paper won't work as well. Haven't had any problems with the rounds not going off. For the base I use either tissue paper or if you can find magicians flash paper. The flash paper is highly flammable so much more care should be used.

We did. It was one of our earliest and poorest-quality videos. Definitely worth a redo. Thanks for the idea!

Very much so! Theres no difference in the receiver or chamber size from rifle to carbine.

We haven't but each Sharps can be quite different from the next one. Sometimes one needs saint-like patience to figure out their Sharps' quirks and to dial it in. Once you do it, though, it's a loyal and reliable piece.

BTW: thanks for the complement on bullet lube pards!

Anytime. Not too many reenactors get into the shooting side of things like you guys do. We just do them when enough people ask. You have a great idea for a channel. There's lots of reenactors out there who've never fired a bullet and probably don't know anything more about their rifles than what's in the safety manual. The cpt. and I still get a kick out of watching someone live fire their rifle for the first time.

I do too. Good way to put it.

well, its moot at this point anyway ; even with loose power and a bullet this gun won't fire . I literally pierced the cartridge rear , used a rat tail cartridge and cut the back and also just poured 60 gr in behind a loose bullet and it never fired once , Time to call DGW or Pedersoli...

Sorry to hear that. The break in can sometimes be a pain. Our corporal got a new one a couple years back and it took about 25 caps before it started to run. My Ped. worked right away. Sharps require a saint like level of patience sometimes. I hope you're able to figure it out. You can also reach out to some black powder forums or organizations for additional tips or ideas. Best of luck!

@@CompanyD2ndUSSS they are replacing it and are as dumbfounded as I was . Hopefully the new one will work . just in case , i have made some blanks and a few cartridges in 1 5/8 length since that is what the chamber depth seems to be .

Hey do you guys ever find it necessary to drill out the nipple ? We all do with our Euro or Armi sport Springfields because of damp conditions , no powder compression and even once in a while we would get an "issue " of pyrodex , lol...

Got the new rifle and after much experimentation I found that no 1 1/8" long , 2F carts would fire reliably , but most of the 4F in base( 10gr) + 60 gr main charge 2 or 3f would . The best and most reliable cart seems to be 1 7/8" long , 60gr 3f + 40 gr cream of wheat . Basically, it seems this gun needs full length carts for now , although it may get more forgiving as it gets older and more worn .

Not being there, we can't address your particular situation definitively. Always follow your owner's manual and consult a gunsmith if and whenever necessary. That said, the paper cartridge doesn't fill the chamber diameter completely. The bullet must be perfectly seated for safety. You can also check muzzleloading forums for more information, too. In Range TV, I believe, did a live fire of an original Sharps in an old video. That might give you another frame of reference. Be safe out there.

@@CompanyD2ndUSSS bullets fits fine,it was the paper part I was talking about

Sadly we do not. We are mostly a Washington State unit with some members from Idaho, Montana and Oregon.

No. Great question, though. CA is the generic term for super glue, and stands for Cynoacrylite whereas waterglass is sodium silicate. I've read some people have used it for making rounds. It was a fairly common clear, light glue of the 19th century, though. People still make it and use it. Again, fantastic question.

That is a clever idea!

Absolutely! Revolver cartridges were wrapped in a similar fashion before, during and after the war until metallic cartridges became a mainstay for ammunition manufactures. Definitely a good video idea!

@@CompanyD2ndUSSS Thank You! I will be sure to check it out.

That is what I was thinking too. It's just pig fat rendered down instead of beef. Piggly Wiggly has little tins of it pretty cheap too. I got some coconut oil for cooking and didnt like it. It is hard, wonder if Coconut renderings would work?

This was back in mid May, no where near the temperatures we have had recently.

@@CompanyD2ndUSSS You still look pretty hot out there.

Hey David, I don't have a FB page, but I've seen your wonderful pics! As to your question, all I can say is that I've come across that name before in black powder forums. You might want to dig around there. There are some fairly obscure specialists well known in forums who've been around along time but like Mike may or may not still be in the biz.

I found him, thanks. @@CompanyD2ndUSSS

Nothing to be sorry about. Lots of different ways to go about the same thing. Thanks for taking the time to share your knowledge and resources.