577/450 Martini Henry

[u/Responsible-Chair794]

im looking to reload my own 577/450 since you cant buy it but i dont have any way to form 20 gauge shells or cast my own bullets is there any stores or websites that sells both that arent crazy expensive or anyone that can teach me how to properly do it

[u/Content_Sky_2676]

You can get Bertram 577/450 in Canada fir about $200 f0r 20, and there are a lot of 452-458 bullet molds on the market that will work. You can also buy plain lead 0.45x cal projectiles and skip casting. Don't use jacketed.

For single shot BP rifles you don't need dies and a press, so really the big question is: what do you know about reloading already?

[u/Responsible-Chair794 → u/Content_Sky_2676]

All I know about reloading is from britishmuzzleloaders videos on reloading the 577/450 and some other people's videos on it so I know how much powder and what weight bullets work for them I still need to get my rifle inspected just to make sure it's 100% safe to shoot aswell so I might do some lighter loads the first go around 

[u/Content_Sky_2676 → u/Responsible-Chair794]

Airspace in reduced load BP cartridges can be problematic, so adding a filler to reduced loads is worthwhile. People use all sorts of things as fillers, with cream of wheat being a Canadian staple. Until you're sure of your load check the bore after each shot because low power loads can sometimes leave the projectile in your barrel.

To prime the cases if you're moderately handy and coordinated you can find a brass or wooden dowel that fits inside the case to seat fresh primers and just seat them by hand by putting the primer in the pocket, putting both on a table withe the case mouth up, dropping the dowel into the case mouth, and firmly pressing it down against the table. There's a small risk of setting the primer off, so wear leather gloves and safety glasses.

To deprime, you use a different piece of the same diameter dowel and put a finishing nail in the end smaller than the primer flash hole and press the primers out by hand or use a little hammer, with the case resting on a piece of wood with a hole in it to let the primer drop free.

Lube the projectiles with crisco vegetable shortening, bees wax, or some other recipe you find online.

Hand seating the projectiles in the case might be tough on first firing or if your chamber is tight, but you'll figure something out.

Soak your fired brass in hot soapy water to get the salts out of them and loosen the crud for cleaning.

Cleaning your gun is a different story - read up on cleaning black powder rifles to avoid rust.