Excessive powder residue and damage to cylinder bluing

[Mac]

In my first outing with my new Colt .44 Special, I noticed some conditions that I do not recall from my earlier days of hand loading.

• The cases seemed to have quite a bit of powder residue down one side of the shell.
• The cylinder has a discolored spot in the bluing at each chamber.
• There seems to be quite a bit of powder residue on the inside of the top strap, just above the barrel.
• I didn’t think much about it at the time but my forward hand (two hand hold) had a good bit of powder residue on it.

The loads were a follows:

• New Winchester Brass
• CCI 300, Large Pistol Primers (standard not magnum)
• Sized the brass with RCBS .44 Mag/.44 Special dies
• Seated and crimped the bullets with RCBS dies
• The bullets were .429 Dia., 240 grain, hard cast, SWC,
• The powder for each round was measured with a balance scale at
  • 25 rounds with 6.0 grains of Unique
  • 25 rounds with 4.5 grains of Bullseye
• The powder is fairly old (ten years +) but it’s been kept dry and at garage temperatures.

I purposefully started the new gun with low velocity loads, intending to work up and watch the accuracy.

I measured the spent cases and compared the dimensions to the SAAMI specs. Every thing looks O.K. except the case is a little small in diameter (.435 vs. .456)

I can live with the excessive (to me) powder residue but the damage to the bluing is unacceptable.

Any thoughts on what is going on?

Mac

[BigRix]

I'm new to handloading but I do remember coming across something when I was researching .44 Mag loads. Some people were complaining of the same problem you are having with the cases when thier low power loads were not developing enough pressure to expand the cases inside the cylinder. Now whether that is the cause of your other concerns, I don't know.

[peacemaker]

Bump up the loads to normal pressures. It sounds like your new brass isn't sealing in the chambers and your powder is running dirty. I'm not sure about Bullseye in big bores, but I know Unique burns quite a bit cleaner and more thoroughly when loaded hotter.

[nightshade2x]

Nothing there looks strange to me. That's just Unique.

Have fun and be safe.
Nightshade2x

[smkummer]

In my 45 Colt SAAs, they all have the powder residue on the cylinder just like yours but magnified. (If you think your 44 special cases are dirty, try shooting starting loads with the 45 Colt, they are much blacker than that.) Wipe on some Hoppes 9 on the cylinder, wait 15 minutes and wipe off with a clean patch. It should be gone and the blueing will be fine. Like others have said, low pressure with unique (and most likely other powders) will do this. The 44 special pressures are kept lower than really needed, as I have heard it was for concern with the original Smith triple locks. If you prefer light loads, then use a fast powder and try to keep the pressure up. I use 700X, 231, red dot and bullseye for lighter loads. I have yet to try any of the clays powders but have heard that they burn clean. Also some lead bullets use more lube than needed for light loads. Since I am a bullet caster, I can adjust the lube amount for velocity concerns. The 45th Lyman reloading manual used a Colt SAA in 44 special for its loading data and that was prior to SAMMI specs. I have used data from that manual for my Colt SAA 44 special with no problems. For example the Skeeter Skelton load of 7.5 grains of Unique and the 245 Keith bullet is also a favorite of mine going out at 900 FPS but its hotter than needed for plinking. The 45 Lyman manual lists 8.0 grains as max..

[joshb]

Was talking to a guy, at the range. He seemed knowledgeable. He mentioned that he used the Vihtavouri[spell check] powders and doesn't get any "soot" or residue on his guns. Went to the local shop, and they didn't have the 240 in stock. The guy behind the counter mentioned that the Unique and Bullseye were made out of "treated paper", which caused the "soot". He said the Dupont powders were cleaner burning, so I bought some of them to try. Havn't tried them yet, but that's "what I heard".

[Mac]

I'm more than a little embarrassed about this issue. The responses I received make a lot of sense.
1. Low velocity loads don’t expand the cases enough to create a good gas seal.
2. Typical powder residue from Unique.
3. And this one really gets me. Soak the cylinder in Hoppe’s. I’ve cleaned guns for years with Hoppe’s but never needed to resort to soaking.

I soaked the cylinder and the residue rubbed off just fine. I’m very relieved that the bluing on my very expensive SAA with one piece Ivories and factory “Tune” is not damaged.

I feel pretty foolish but THANX for the input.

Mac

[dickttx]

I've been working up some 45 ACP loads with Unique. At 5.2gn the cases looked just like yours. At 6.4gn they look like they just came out of the tumbler.

[bmcgilvray]

I agree that a bit more powder is called for. I use 7.0 in a .44 Special load using 245-150 grain lead SWCs.

The powder residue won't hurt the finish. I never really worried about "dirty ol'" Unique. It gives dependable performance for me and I clean the guns after each use anyway.

[kennyb]

yup...they look normal to me as well