Ammo manufacturing at home

[yqtszhj]

Hypothetically let me ask a question. If the ammo situation gets really bad I'm wondering what it would take to have a have a "Make your own ammo at home" set up at home for modern firearms even if it's only small scale.

I'm guessing casting bullets is easy enough if you have molds and lead.

You would have to have brass to load.

What about primers and powder, is there a work around for that if not available commercially or really high priced?

Of course the reloading equipment.

So if primers and modern powder are a big limiting factor what about black powder guns, making your own powder, etc... Has anyone ever done this?

What would you have to get to completely be independent of the supply chain and is it even possible?

[KoolBreeze]

The most logical choice is to stock up while it's available and not have to worry about such as that. That's what is driving this ammo craze at the moment. People are afraid it's not going to be available in the future. But you already knew that.

I sold my Thompson Center Hawkin 50 cal muzzle loader years ago, when the state started calling Encores and the like primitive (yeah right). But I wish I would have kept it because I did enjoy shooting it, just hated cleaning it.

Anyway, my guess is that if something were to happen to the legal ammo market, it would become a huge black market, much like prohibition was. Where there is a need, there will always be someone willing to supply. If commercial ammo ever becomes illegal, then so will reloading supplies. So you'd have to make whatever you made completely from scratch. I wouldn't know where to start.

[wyntrout]

Smokeless powder is totally different from black powder. Modern firearms need smokeless powder. You can't substitute black powder, especially homemade, for smokeless powder ammunition!

Percussion caps can be made at home, but they aren't close to primers... totally different. you couldn't use modern brass cases with black powder and homemade primers.

Wynn

[Bawanna]

I still have my 54 Hawkens. I too hate cleaning it but it's fun to shoot. Haven't had it out in quite a spell.

Have a 3 or 4 black powder six shooters and a 45 and a 50 rifle too. Only shot the 54.

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[yqtszhj]

Have a 3 or 4 black powder six shooters and a 45 and a 50 rifle too.

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I've been thinking about filling that void in my collection. It's what I don't have at this time.

[mr surveyor]

as far as primers...I don't think it would be a safe DIY project, so metallic cartridges may be a problem. Black powder itself, I believe, is achievable in a DIY situation. I've heard.... no personal knowledge.... that black powder can safely be DIY'ed with the right knowledge of chemistry and the right tools. I don't remember who or where the information came from, but I think it was a second cousin of the mailman that knew a guy in the next town south of me that heard about someone that knew a guy that was working on it.

Even with powder, you still gotta have a way to light it. And, trying to DIY primers or caps might just be a bump in the road.

I have wondered about electronic ignition though

[wyntrout]

Gun powder isn't hard. I had a chemistry set when I was 12 years old. That was the first thing that I made. I went to drug stores and got finer sulfur, powdered charcoal, and saltpeter... back in 1958. Times have changed! It's a wonder I grew up back them. I liked blowing s#!t up! I started when I was 8 years old... yeah, I could have qualified for MENSA, but barely! At 8 I figured out how to make cr@cker balls from the residue they left... made my own from firecracker duds and very small "flinty" rocks... twisted the powder and rocks into a ball in grocery bag paper and detonated it with a heavy pipe. It was a wonder that I was not injured or blinded! I liked that kind of stuff and still do! We were very poor, mom divorced and working to support us. I had to care for younger siblings and amuse myself at age 8!

Wynn

[mr surveyor]

yep, making something that will go "boom" ain't that difficult. Making something that will cleanly send a 300-400 gr chunk of lead, accurately, down the rifled tube of a firearm downrange (at an acceptable velocity) is a bit different

[muggsy]

as far as primers...I don't think it would be a safe DIY project, so metallic cartridges may be a problem. Black powder itself, I believe, is achievable in a DIY situation. I've heard.... no personal knowledge.... that black powder can safely be DIY'ed with the right knowledge of chemistry and the right tools. I don't remember who or where the information came from, but I think it was a second cousin of the mailman that knew a guy in the next town south of me that heard about someone that knew a guy that was working on it.

Even with powder, you still gotta have a way to light it. And, trying to DIY primers or caps might just be a bump in the road.

I have wondered about electronic ignition though

It's amazing what you can find on you tube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0jxpLH8FtY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9p1Xv6eDFjo

[wyntrout]

Yeah, for black powder there's a definite way to make it more refined, but at 12, I wasn't up to researching that and trying the wet method and drying it and crushing it finely!

In high school... Junior year... I had a thermite experiment to present to the school body. We were shown how to use a magnesium ribbon and ignite the thermite mixture to fuse two iron rods together as a repair demonstration... something that was used underwater to repair ship propellers. We had to use a propane torch to set off the magnesium ribbon to ignite the thermite mixture. I wanted something we could ignite with a match. I went looking for something in the chemical storeroom. I didn't see potassium nitrate, but I did see potassium chlorate... with warnings that it was used for fireworks... and not to use a mortar and pedestal with it. Well, I got some sulfur, powdered charcoal, and the potassium chlorate to make an ignition compound... yeah, some kind of gun powder!

I was mixing it together in the classroom with a few buds on the weekend. The mixture was a little coarse... so... of course, I got a handy mortar and pedestal and set the beaker of the mixture next to it while I tried to make a smoother mixture. I was carefully mixing with the M&P and suddenly I heard a "click"! I lifted the "pedestal" and WHOOSH! A column of flame shot up from the bowl! Next thing I knew, the container next to the bowl went WHOOSH and the room filled with dense white smoke... from about waist level to the roof. I turned on the venting fan and it pulled the smoke down just about to the floor! About then the guy in charge of the science program... the superintendent or the principal ran in... 50 years ago!! Anyhow, he came in and asked what the heck we were doing. I told him I was trying to make something to ignite the thermite experiment. he looked at the chemicals and said "You're making gunpowder!" Gulp! I got to do the experiment in the approved manner for the school presentation and I don't remember any punishment, but that was 50 years ago!

Chemistry was fun! Our teacher was a fairly young nice looking guy and we got him to do some crazy stuff.

I remember him trying to tell us that you put water into acid for dilution, not acid into water. I corrected him on that! But he had to try that himself in front of us! He once put a tiny bit of sodium into a large beaker of water and it skittered around on top of the water with the reaction. We got him to put a bigger piece in and it skittered and then blew up... spraying water all over the place! Chemistry was a hoot!

We got to make a still and make alcohol... in class... it tasted like strong vodka! Yep! Chemistry was my favorite class!

Wynn

[guido4198]

Were today's laws and regulations in place when you were in school Wynn...your chemistry teacher would probably be coming up for parole any time now.

[JohnR]

I hear there are air rifles that shoot projectiles at 1200'/second if not faster, designed for hog hunting.

Sounds like a viable alternative...

[downtownv]

If you have not gotten into reloading, yet. You may have trouble finding the components Most reloaders were well stocked in supplies and homemade ammo, hence the shortages didn't/won't effect them... I shoot less than 100 rounds weekly and scavenge up 500 round of brass every time!

[wyntrout]

I saw a video of a guy shooting a good-sized hog with one of those expensive air rifles... big bullet that went CLEAN through the hog. There are some really powerful airguns out there and there have been for hundreds of years. There was one on the Lewis and Clark Expedition that fired from a magazine of 20 rounds or so without recharging. They demonstrated that to the Indians and acted as if their whole party was armed with those, so they weren't attacked! They only had one, but it impressed the Indians! There was an article in the Rifleman about that last year. Air rifles were BIG in Europe and used for serious hunting way back in history.

Wynn

[wyntrout]

Here's A link... not the one I was looking for:

http://www.americanrifleman.org/arti...ark-air-rifle/

Wynn