Muzzleloader noobie questions

[jblomenberg16]

My dad and I went in 1/2 and 1/2 on a muzzle loader to use this deer season. Today we decided to sight it in with pretty good results. We took a look at the bore after each shot and noticed some powder fouling, and would run a dry patch through after a couple shots.

After about 5 shots I noticed it was getting noticeably difficult to fully seat the bullet, as you could feel it biding up near the breach. We saw that after about 5 shots the accuracy went to crap with shots starting to spray 10-12" off center, and holes in the target that showed the bullet was not flying true when it impacted. Not a real key hole as much as it looked like the bullet was just wobbiling off center like a poorly thrown football.

We cleaned the bore really well and accuracy came right back in. We knew the cleaning shortly after shooting was always a good idea in any gun, but didnt' realize it could make that big of an impact to accuracy.


So...we made a mental note that a full cleaning every 3rd round is going to be necessary to maintain accuracy. Now clearly the odds of being able to fire and then reload 3 times in quick succession are unlikely and would be due to misses or bad hits, or just extremely dumb deer.

For those of you that hunt or shoot muzzleloaders...is this pretty common or did we make some other mistake (perhaps not getting things fully packed tight in the breach)?

 

[kalboy]

Nothing really unusual, they do foul pretty quick.

 

[Mgderf]

Yes, and no.
The cleaning after each use is a must, but cleaning between shots can be mitigated to a point.
1- Take a bore brush and a nipple pick with you into the field. After 1 or 2 shots, run the bore brush down the barrel, followed by the pick.
2- Try different powders. I have found IMR "White Hots" pellets are about as clean as you can get when it comes to fouling a barrel. They are also almost instantaneous combustion when using 209 primers and an in-line setup.
Shockey's Gold is another relatively clean burning powder.
3- Don't over-charge. A lot of people seem to feel the need to run magnum charges. (150grs +) Any unburnt powder will foul the barrel MUCH quicker. I found excellent results with White Hots (2 pellets = 100grs) and Power-Belt bullets.
Just like Raid, they kill deer dead.

 

[jblomenberg16]

Yes, and no.
The cleaning after each use is a must, but cleaning between shots can be mitigated to a point.
1- Take a bore brush and a nipple pick with you into the field. After 1 or 2 shots, run the bore brush down the barrel, followed by the pick.
2- Try different powders. I have found IMR "White Hots" pellets are about as clean as you can get when it comes to fouling a barrel. They are also almost instantaneous combustion when using 209 primers and an in-line setup.
Shockey's Gold is another relatively clean burning powder.
3- Don't over-charge. A lot of people seem to feel the need to run magnum charges. (150grs +) Any unburnt powder will foul the barrel MUCH quicker. I found excellent results with White Hots (2 pellets = 100grs) and Power-Belt bullets.
Just like Raid, they kill deer dead.

Good to know. We were running 150gr (3 pellets) of the 777's. Sounds like the white hots are even better. We're going to spend some more time on the range with it next weekend to be fully ready for the season.

Thanks!

 

[ilikeguns]

Agree with everything mgderf said, especially about Magnum loads. 150gr loads are completely unnecessary and usually just a waste of powder/money. Most of that extra 50 grains gets blown out of the barrel or left in it as fouling. You're getting more recoil with little to no benefit. I too use white hots, but have used a bunch of the triple 7 over the years with no problems as well.

 

[Small's]

You do get a benefit of using 150 grains of powder. Increased ft lbs of energy and less drop at longer distances. If your hunting in the woods like most then its not really necessary but hey why not. I usually run a patch down the barrel every other shot. Good luck

 

[Winamac]

although I do not shoot nor hunt with modern in--line muzzleloaders. I shoot the "old school" side hammer type. I use 3F real black powder, round ball and patch. I have never used 150 grains. Like was already mentioned on here that much ends up contributing to fowling or goes out the end of the muzzle un-burnt. I shoot 70 grains of 3F and have successfully taken deer out to 100 yards. I guess what I am suggesting is along with swabbing the barrel after say every third shot( or whatever your rifle likes). Dropping your charge can also improve accuracy. Just my

 

[jblomenberg16]

Lots of great suggestions guys, thanks! I think we'll drop the charge a bit, as the woods we're in is likely going to limit shots to well under 100yds, and most likely under 50 yards.

 

[mikeruth]

although I do not shoot nor hunt with modern in--line muzzleloaders. I shoot the "old school" side hammer type. I use 3F real black powder, round ball and patch. I have never used 150 grains. Like was already mentioned on here that much ends up contributing to fowling or goes out the end of the muzzle un-burnt. I shoot 70 grains of 3F and have successfully taken deer out to 100 yards. I guess what I am suggesting is along with swabbing the barrel after say every third shot( or whatever your rifle likes). Dropping your charge can also improve accuracy. Just my

Like Winamac and two others have said over-charging is not worth it. I usually shoot about a caliber's worth (.54, I shoot 54 to 75 grains) and never more than twice the caliber.

 

[back40hunter]

Blackhorn 209 is the way to go. No crude ring, higher velocities, easier to clean.

 

[midget]

Blackhorn 209 is the way to go. No crude ring, higher velocities, easier to clean.

However it is more annoying to meter than pellets, you have to take more care with seating bullets/sabots on it, smells like sulfer after shooting, and ashes a whole lot. I shot it a lot last year and loved that you didn't have to scrub between shots. But I went back to 777 pellets.