1819 Hall Rifle Molds

[rescuerandy2]

Good Afternoon,

Just purchased an 1819 long rifle and "it" wants to go to the range. Looking for recommendations on bullet size and molds. Thanks, Randy.

Information

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[Patrick Chadwick]

The problem of sizing for a Hall rifle is really just the same as for a percussion revolver. The ball must be held firmly in the chamber, but not overstress the barrel.

My very serious recommendation is that you measure the actual chamber, groove and land dimensions of your rifle. There is no kind of standard that you can refer to, and after 2 centuries information on the original bore must be treated as nominal and of limited use for an individual rifle.

Since the major feature of a Hall rifle is that the breech block assembly is not only tiltable, but also removable, the task is somewhat easier than for a muzzle-loader.

You also need to measure the diameter of the chamber in the breech block. Ideally, the ball should be a firm "thumb fit" in the block, so that it does not roll forwards in the block. If the ball is undersized, it will be necessary to use a wad to keep it in place. And having to whack in an oversized ball will not be good for accuracy.

Now look at the groove and land diameters. The ball must be of pure lead, and a ball of the right size for the chamber should be larger than land diameter (naturally!) and about groove diameter. A little less than groove diameter will not matter much, as a soft lead ball will obturate to fill the grooves when it hits the start of the lands. Anything over groove diameter will be placing an extra stress on the rifle, but even a noticeably oversized ball for the groove will shoot - as long as it is of pure lead, not an unknown mishmash recovered from the backstop!

Putting it very simply - you have to choose the ball to fit the chamber, and check that it will be OK for the barrel.

So let's hope that the groove and chamber diameters are compatible.