I have had my CPA 32-40 for 2 years and have come to a couple conclusions. These only apply to my rifle and I have no clue if others have had similar results. So far I have tried kapok, foam, cardboard, cork and a few other items for over powder wads. My best results are with no wad at all. In all cases the use of no wad has produced the smallest groups. Today was a good example 5 shot groups 12 gr. AA9 with card wad gave me 2 inch groups. Leaving the wad out shrunk the groups to an inch and under. The smallest group went into .605 c to c. That said I can’t do that on demand but I can shoot much tighter groups without a wad. The best groups shot with a wad were a pinch of kapok over powder, groups are better than any other material. Still and all no wad have shot the smallest groups.  I have kept records of every group I have fired since I received the rifle both good and really bad groups. Currently I have a big box of kapok I bought on e-bay, and I will experiment with it a bit more. Then a bunch of felt, cork, foam, and other products that I probably won’t use again.  I was hoping I could find something usable that would hold the powder so I could charge cases at home and not load at the range. Now that I have been loading at the range I really enjoy doing it. The scope stand I made has an extra arm on it that will take a Belding and Mull measure or a little dandy, making it convenient to load at the bench.

Schuetzenmiester wrote on Jun 9^th, 2016 at 3:17am:


tried it still not as good as no wad. shot ok just not as well thanks for the tip

Good information on wads, still experimenting.
Loading the cases at home. Leave the cork wad in the case mouth.
Use a tool to push the wad down to about 0.1" above the powder just before firing because of the looseness 40_Rod describes.
Chuck

Joe don't hesitate to try seating your bullet deeper as well it will often times make a very substantial improvement in group size. A group of us here have found that seating the bullet just shy of going through the base or entirely through it has been a very rewarding depth. Next time you are out shooting take a shot, blow out the remaining smoke and look for any unburnt smokless powder left in the bore. If should look as if you have just cleaned it and if not try another primer and do not hesitate to try some magnum primers as well. Your 100yd. groups should average a 1/2 inch and under when everything is working in complete unison and they are not really that difficult to obtain with day in and day out consistency but it does take some work to get there. If something is not currently achieving it then its time to make some changes, powder, powder charge, seating depth, primers, lube, bullet etc. until it does as it surely will if you do your part with the exception of having a barrel thats simply just not capable and highly unlikely.

JLouis

thanks for all the information, as I haven't met anyone in this area who shoots breach seating it is a long learning curve. I have tried several powders, and sr4759 shoots almost as good as aa9. that said I am not gods gift to the shooting world and do make mistakes in my hold and trigger control. since my second heart attack I see every heart beat in the scope and I moves my rifle just a bit. so far I have finally found a hold that combats that movement. Every time I go to the range I learn something. in the 2 yrs I have owned the rifle I have only shot just under a thousand rounds from it. That number isn't a lot. it is my goal to get to the range more often and shoot only the one rifle. this winter I didn't shoot it when it was cold, I found it hard to load with cold fingers. I did shoot my low wall in 32-20 and have gotten some darn good groups with it. I have tried seating the bullet 15 thou. deeper and it does help. I made an adjustable seating plug. again thanks for the information there is a lot I don't know but I must admit I am a willing student. argie1891

You have been a great help to me already and I plan on calling on you in the future. since I purchased my cpa rifle I have bought several other single shot rifles. the single shot bug has bitten me hard. I spend most of my shooting time with the cpa but when it was to cold to load I shot other single shots. I plan on just shooting the cpa all summer and learning as much as possible. I bought the hoch 200 gr. bullet from you and have since picked up a hoch 195 gr. and the saeco mould. my experience has shown that the 195 gr. has an accuracy edge over the heavier bullet. now it may be that I started with the 200 gr. bullet and have learned more since using the 195 gr. that maybe my shooting has improved instead of it being a better more accurate bullet. next I am going to buy some floral foam and try it.  now a question do you have a problem with not using a wad? seems most shooters give advise on wads and not much on shooting without them. I would be interested to hear why wads are used so much, and if you think wads are the way to go. I will wait for the answer and by then probably will have many more questions. joe gifford

Floral foam wads can stop case collapse too. No idea why, but they do in my 25 Hornet.

argle1891
Reading through your post, it struck me that one of your reasons for using an over powder wad was so you can pre-charge your cases at home before shooting. My answer to that one is put a cork in it. I mean that literally. They are available in either cork or rubber. Buy them online. In quantities of 100 they are not expensive. My local hardware store has them at 75 cents each, online they are a fraction of that.
Measure the minimum and maximum diameters needed to fit your cases so you get the proper size.
Remember to remove the cork before chambering a case. Otherwise the cork sticks in the chamber, the cartridge won't fully chamber and as you pull the case back out powder dumps into the action. Most shooters only do this once.
Pre-charged cases with corks prevent powder spillage during transport and you get to shoot without  those pesky over powder wads.
One final thought; use a small box or baggie for the corks and re-use them over and over and over. They last forever.
Good luck