Yesterday's Weapons Forums

A few years ago, I asked Alliant powder for a recipe for my MK VI Webley and they responded with a most excellent brew. I have now asked them if they have a solution for the conversion of grains of Cordite to grains of Unique.

When the MK I was adopted in 1888, the cartridge was loaded with 18 grains of black powder. In 1889 the Ordinance Board adopted Cordite and the charge was set at 11 grains. As the only way to acquire Cordite currently is to disassemble POF .303 MILSURP .303 cartridges and recycle. This is obviously a poor way to go about business. Hopefully, the good people at Alliant will have a good answer for us. When i get an answer, I will share it.

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David

"We are not interested in the possibilities of defeat; they do not exist"
Victoria 1899

Well I got my response from Alliant. Not what I hoped for.

David,
We do not have a direct method to convert from one type of propellant to another such as you request.
Thanks,
Shoot Straight
DuaneVB
CCI/SPEER/ALLIANT POWDER
2299 Snake River Ave.
Lewiston, ID

_________________
David

"We are not interested in the possibilities of defeat; they do not exist"
Victoria 1899

i was so hoping i might one day shoot my mkI in smokeless , if ever you get a better response please share it , ill not dirty mine with black these days - too much work for the risk ,

Why don't you try Trail Boss, figure what the bullet weight and FPS was for the cordite and start working up a load at 10% under that. Remember they used lead bullets! Jacketed bullets will cause you problems.

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"Like a tank with it's tracks blown off, my turret still swivels and my cannon fires, so whenever the fight kicks off, I'll likely live or die right there, where the fight begins and ends"
John Connor

A square 10 and rebel49,

I do have a recommendation for Trailboss. When I actually find some, I'll load up for my MK I and post results. Until then, my Webleys are put away wondering what they did to so ignored.

rebel49, you are absolutely correct in DO NOT EVER USE jacketed bullets in any Webley. The rifling will not stand up to it at all. In short order you will be shooting a smoothbore pistol. Unjacketed lead is the only approved bullet for the Webley revolver family.

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David

"We are not interested in the possibilities of defeat; they do not exist"
Victoria 1899

That's a shame about not being able to find Trail Boss. I have some and I know where there is more. Depending on where you live is the issue. I'm in the worthless state of IL. and my source is also, but he may be willing to ship some. I'll check with him on Monday as he's training all weekend.
Someone gave me 8 pounds about 2 years ago because they didn't like it for their .45-70. I gave some away to a friend and probably have 4 pounds or so left. I was always going to try it in my .45-70, but never got the chance.

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"Like a tank with it's tracks blown off, my turret still swivels and my cannon fires, so whenever the fight kicks off, I'll likely live or die right there, where the fight begins and ends"
John Connor

Good news for-for a change. Went to the gun show and scored 2 cans of Trailboss!
A good starting load is 4 grains with a 230 grain LRN bullet. The maximum recommended load appears to be 4.5 grains. Being a cautious soul, I'll stay in the 4 grain range until I get a better fell of what this powder is capable of. I should invest in a chonometer. Except that would be wisdom and I don't think I could stand that.

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David

"We are not interested in the possibilities of defeat; they do not exist"
Victoria 1899

i think that might actually be a turning point for me , being able to shoot my older models with something other than black , ill look at that

DSCN0186.JPG [ 124.53 KiB | Viewed 6044 times ]

DSCN0186.JPG [ 124.53 KiB | Viewed 6044 times ]
I have taken my MK I to the range with 4.0 grains of Trailboss. The felt recoil was quite similar to a load with 18 grains of black powder. Research reveals the maximum recommended load is 4.5 grains of Trailboss. For the time being, I am pleased with 4.0 grains and intend to stick with that.
I also took the pistol as far apart as I will go. What a mess! There was decades of neglect in the form of crud, residue and surface rust present. 6 hours later the application of elbow grease and chemicals, mostly Kroil, I managed to get it pretty clem. Didn't know the Brits blued just about every part on the inside of the cylinder. They did. There is an indexing plug underneath the extractor that sets the automatic extraction feature.

Here are 2 pictures of a disassembled MK I.

_________________
David

"We are not interested in the possibilities of defeat; they do not exist"
Victoria 1899