Filler

[g smitty 45]

All you revolver shooters, what is the best filler to use?
COW, Grits, Corn Meal or does it matter
Tks
Garry

[efritz]

I Garry
in my humble opinion it doesn?t matter which as long as you?re consistent. COW doesn?t compress. Corn meal does. Never used grits so I can?t advise on that. You want enough of whatever you?re using to be able to seat the bullet close to the top of the cylinder. If you have a stop machined into your rammer that will insure proper consistent seating depth. Hope that helps.

[Keith Williams]

All you revolver shooters, what is the best filler to use?
COW, Grits, Corn Meal or does it matter
Tks
Garry

Cream of wheat is made up of grounded wheat, ground into very small parts, whereas Grits are made up of grounded corn. Cream of wheat has a smoother or creamier texture, while Grits have a coarser or trainer texture.

Cornmeal
Although cornmeal can be either fine, medium, or coarse ground, the cornmeal we find packaged in the baking aisle is generally finely ground dried corn. Coarser than wheat flour, cornmeal has a slightly powdery, yet granular texture.

Cornmeal is often used to dust baking surfaces when making bread and pizza to prevent sticking and provide texture. Cornmeal is also used as an ingredient in batters for deep-frying, as it offers exceptional flavor and texture. Perhaps one of the most common uses for cornmeal is as the main ingredient in cornbread (https://www.thespruceeats.com/basic-corn-bread-recipe-995198), a popular dish in the Southern United States. Cornmeal comes in several varieties depending on the type of corn used, including white, yellow, and blue.

Like cornmeal, grits are made from dried and ground corn but are usually a coarser grind. Grits are often made from hominy (https://www.thespruceeats.com/hominy-corn-995715), which is corn treated with lime, or another alkaline product? To remove the hull.

Hey Garry, your thread has an interesting question. This was a quick round down. It seems cornmeal can be found finer, whereas Cream of Wheat is medium coarse, and Grits are larger and grainer. Perhaps fine cornmeal would pack nicely into 3f powder? You can't be faulted for trying all of them. Moreover, preference may be determined by living arrangements above, or below the Mason Dixon Line. I would choose the fine cornmeal first and work up from there...if you were not satisfied.

Take care,

Keith A. Williams
15th VA Reg Vol Cav

[Muley Gil]

And besides all of the above, grits taste better than COW! :D

[bobanderson]

And besides all of the above, grits taste better than COW! :D

The mice like the yellow corn meal best.

[Keith Williams]

Funny you said that Bob, my dad blamed me for taking his carbine rounds and making firecrackers out of them as a kid. His apology was absorbed when we tore up our old work barn floor...there laid several dead rats killed by the cream of wheat and powder mixture. The look on his face was precious as I laid into him. Ahhh, those father and son bonding moments.

Keith A. Williams
15th Reg VA Vol Cav

[Ron The Old Reb]

After reading all this I think I'll have a big bowl for breakfast tomorrow.:rolleyes:

[RangerFrog]

After reading all this I think I'll have a big bowl for breakfast tomorrow.:rolleyes:

A bowl of grits, cream of wheat, or gunpowder??

On a similar note, the noted child star from the ?Little Rascals? series, Buckwheat, converted to Islam in his later years. He changed his name to (wait for it)?



Kareem o Wheat!

[edrutecki]

Just to send this in another direction. I've been using "semolina". I read a number of years ago that this was the filler of choice by the top European shooters. It is a very fine powder that measures and pours extremely consistently. Might be something to look at.

[Keith Williams]

Ladies and gentlemen, I will add this to the rest of my sulfur, charcoal, and saltpeter induced baking receipts...depending on price!

Semolina is the name given to coarsely milled durum wheat (https://www.bing.com/search?q=Durum%20wikipedia&form=WIKIRE) mainly used in making couscous (https://www.bing.com/search?q=Couscous%20wikipedia&form=WIKIRE), pasta (https://www.bing.com/search?q=Pasta%20wikipedia&form=WIKIRE), and sweet puddings (https://www.bing.com/search?q=Pudding%20wikipedia&form=WIKIRE). The term semolina is also used to designate coarse millings of other varieties of wheat, and sometimes other grains (such as rice (https://www.bing.com/search?q=Rice%20wikipedia&form=WIKIRE) or corn (https://www.bing.com/search?q=Corn%20wikipedia&form=WIKIRE)) as well.

Options are good!

Keith A. Williams
15th Reg VA Vol Cav

[Keith Williams]

Hey Ed, I have been thinking about your semolina response, as I still have to look for it in the stores and try it. You stated it was very fine, have you noticed more muzzle flash because it's a fine powder compared to others fills?

Just wondering...take care.

Keith A. Williams

[edrutecki]

Hey Ed, I have been thinking about your semolina response, as I still have to look for it in the stores and try it. You stated it was very fine, have you noticed more muzzle flash because it's a fine powder compared to others fills?

Just wondering...take care.

Keith A. Williams




Keith,

No difference in firing from cow. I like Semolina because it pours into the chamber very tight. No crunchy feel like when cow is compressed. Figured if it was the filler of choice for the top European shooters, it couldn't hurt to try it. I've been using a cut down .32 Long with a brass handle soldered to it to fill my chambers. Everything pours in and loads with zero issues. Top it off with some Wonder Lube. Look for Semolina in the stores that sell top end pasta. Give it a try! I still use cow in my Smith but revolver is Semolina all the way.

Ed

[Keith Williams]

Roger that Ed, thanks.

Keith A. Williams

[RaccoonRough]

Would there be any difference in COW and Instant COW? I could only find the small packages of instant COW in my grocery store last time I needed to get some.

[Keith Williams]

Well Raccoon Rough, I would assume that instant cream of wheat may have salt content...I do not know for certain-check the box label. Since boiling times are probably different for cooking COW, the instant maybe softer for compaction. This forum started as a good question for pistol packing, I think we also added carbine into the fray. As with Eds reply as well as, Bobs and other inputs...I have noticed and decided to eliminate COW from my carbine rounds as I did not like its compaction with 3f powder...hence cornmeal now. For pistol cylinders...the finer the better for compaction-a firmer seat in a small chamber is great. So, I will use Eds suggestion of trying Semolina. However, since I have not bought this product yet...I do not know the actual course size. Is Semolina finer than cornmeal? Is it closer to a fine powder...I do not know...there's also rice powder. For carbine I would suggest cornmeal, and for pistol Semolina-or something finer for better compaction.

I hope this helped, good luck.

Keith A. Williams
15th Reg VA Vol Cav

[Dheisey#7003]

I used to use cornmeal and switched to COW. It seems to work well for me.