To all,

In past postings on this subject DoubleD has reported that Puff-Lon will coagulate into a solid mass under certain circumstances. In another thread he had a link to another BBS in which there is a long discussion of wads in the .577/.450 Martini-Henry (IIRC). I read that with interest some time back. Having just said that, I now see he reports some of his findings earlier in this thread. Maybe he can post the link to the other BBS.

Like Rusty, I cannot understand what would keep the Puff-Lon separated from the powder charge over the long run.

On the other hand, Graeme Wright speaks somewhat favorably about the use of shot buffers as fillers. I assume shot buffer is essentially the same as Puff-Lon in this application.

Just like 400NitroExpress says about monometal bullets - he's not testing them on his nickel when the tried and true is available. I feel the same way about fillers. Dacron and foam are tried and true. No Puff-Lon for me. I might try Kapok, but haven't yet.

One last note. Marrakai strongly promotes the use of saddle felt as a filler. I have never tried felt, but recently a good friend who is well versed in bore rifles and BPE rifles pointed out that Precision Reloading sells 3/8" felt wads in 32 gauge, which is the precise size you want for the .500 BPE. My friend graciously sent me a package of these wads. I plan to try them in my Purdey before long. I may become a convert to this filler.

In the same vein, why wouldn't a standard 32 gauge fiber wad do the same thing? It's used to take up space in a shotshell and does the job well.

Any comments, DoubleD and Marrakai? Or others?

By the way, Marrakai - in your NFB loads using a felt wad, do you apply any compression to the charge? Do you have a recommended NFB load for the .500 3" BPE using 340 grain lead bullets and a felt wad?

The subject of wads is always a good discussion.

Regards,
Curl