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Newbie Advice for Jukar .45 Pistol and Markwell .45 Rifle

4K views 2 replies 2 participants last post by  crispy1138 
#1 ·
Hi all,

I've inherited from my dad a couple of black powder percussion firearms: Jukar .45 cal pistol serial# 4006795, and a Markwell Arms .45 cal Kentucky rifle serial# E5923

Both are in perfect cosmetic and functional condition and complete with their rods, never been fired. I remember my dad building the rifle kit, was an excellent woodworker and craftsman, the finish on the stock is quite pretty. In any case, they appear to just need a good dusting and cleaning to be ready to shoot. I have several pistols, rifles, and shotguns but have never shot any black powder and look forward to the experience. As a total BP newb I am looking for guidance.

I found a thread here advising that for the pistol: .440 round ball ammo, .010 lubed patch, #10-11 percussion caps, and start with 25 grains of 3F powder. Everyone agree or possibly want to add to those basic recommendations?

I did not find any direct recommendations for the .45 rifle. Should I use the same ammo/items as for the pistol? Maybe more powder, or...? Any and all advice or information welcome, please.

Is there a good website(s) or tutorials to show me the basics of using these firearms properly and safely? Better than bugging you guys with black powder 101 questions!

Thanks in advance, Cris
 
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#2 ·
You can use the same ball and patch combo in the rifle but it will probable require a larger charge to get the best accuracy out of it, I have a .40 cal rifle that likes 40 to 45 grains and the only .45 I own seems to perform well at 50 to 55. I also use .018 patching with it, it's a little harder to start a ball down bore than the 010 patch but it shoots more accurately so that's what I load it with.

What yours likes to shoot is going to be something you will need to experiment with to find out, start with a low charge, fire for group and keep increasing the charge by five grains until the group tightens up.

Remember that black powder and it's substitutes are measured by volume rather than weight.

Your rifle might like 2f better than 3f or it might shoot just as well with either size.

Something else to note, that Markwell has been out of production for several decades and the locks and triggers weren't the best quality, if something should break you aren't going to be able to find replacement parts very easily.
 
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#3 ·
Thanks Grizzley1, I'll keep scarce replacement parts in mind. I plan to shoot these for recreation and occasionally, and they are "new" so to speak so hopefully I won't have any issues or mechanical failures. If I were to enjoy it enough I suppose I would look for something more current and higher quality to get into more serious shooting. I'll rummage around on YouTube some more for muzzle loading tutorials to get me going.
 
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