Do you have a muzzleloader with an inexplicable problem?

I’m curious if anyone has a persistent issue or problem with a muzzleloader that you simply can’t fix?

For example, I’ve got a side by side shotgun and after about 6-7 shots the right barrel will misfire and get clogged up. The left barrel never does. I’ve been down in that breech with a scope and see no difference between it and the left barrel. I load each barrel the exact same way. I’ve tried different kinds of percussion caps and different kinds of nipples but, alas, the mysterious misfires remain. Even putting powder under the nipple and picking it clean through will not help, and I have to pull the load.

Maybe I need an exorcist?

Anyone else with weirdness in your guns?

Widows Son said:

I’m curious if anyone has a persistent issue or problem with a muzzleloader that you simply can’t fix?

For example, I’ve got a side by side shotgun and after about 6-7 shots the right barrel will misfire and get clogged up. The left barrel never does. I’ve been down in that breech with a scope and see no difference between it and the left barrel. I load each barrel the exact same way. I’ve tried different kinds of percussion caps and different kinds of nipples but, alas, the mysterious misfires remain. Even putting powder under the nipple and picking it clean through will not help, and I have to pull the load.

Maybe I need an exorcist?

Anyone else with weirdness in your guns?

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Assuming the bore is clear and oil free, difficult to try understand without more details. It’s been a few weeks, but shot two rounds of sheet (50 shots, 25 each barrel) out of my 12 gauge Pedersoli double without any misfires or human intervention. Now this gun is basically an in-line, with little between the base of the nipple and the powder charge, though we don’t know what gun you are shooting. As far as a load, I was using Swiss 3F and RWS 1075 Plus caps, though CCI #11 and #11 mag caps also work fine.

Any chance you are swabbing between shots or using a substitute powder?

Thanks for your reply

My shotgun is a Pedersoli 12 gauge with cylinder bores ( no chokes).
I don’t clean between shots, just use a mildly greased felt wad between powder and shot. As I said, the left barrel is always reliable. For some mysterious reason the right barrel only gives misfires.
I’ve tried fg, ffg & fffg powder (Wano and also 5FA blasting/firecracker powder). No difference in performance.

All I can think is there must be some tiny little obstruction in the breech of the right barrel that clogs up when it gets too dirty.

But damn if I can find it!

I offer no real help here but I wonder, if you brought it to the Northern Hemisphere, would the problem change to the left barrel.

Do you have a muzzleloader with an inexplicable problem?​

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No, but sometimes it seems like I'm the only one.

I wonder if you could have a weak spring on the right lock?

Of course. All my muzzleloaders though have one consistent problem. The roundball never hits where it was supposed to. I have no clue. It is all my muzzys. I know my aim is true but they just do not hit where I thought they should have.

Widows Son said:

.....,

Anyone else with weirdness in your guns?

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Some are just weird to begin with. Not just muzzleloaders, either. I've been trying to diagnose and fix problems with my two examples of Excel Arms .22 WMR semi-autos (rifle and pistol) for years. Hoping if I could get them running reliably I could sell them!!

jdw276 said:

.....I know my aim is true but they just do not hit where I thought they should have.

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If they keep hitting in the same spot then you just need to adjust your aim.

Widows Son said:

I’m curious if anyone has a persistent issue or problem with a muzzleloader that you simply can’t fix?

For example, I’ve got a side by side shotgun and after about 6-7 shots the right barrel will misfire and get clogged up. The left barrel never does. I’ve been down in that breech with a scope and see no difference between it and the left barrel. I load each barrel the exact same way. I’ve tried different kinds of percussion caps and different kinds of nipples but, alas, the mysterious misfires remain. Even putting powder under the nipple and picking it clean through will not help, and I have to pull the load.

Maybe I need an exorcist?

Anyone else with weirdness in your guns?

Click to expand...

Have you tried changing the nipples from one side to the other? I see you have tried different nipples. Any debris in the cup at the nose of the right hammer? Is the right hammer rubbing on the stock? Are the internal screws on the right hand lock too tight? Any lock internals springs rubbing in the lock mortise?

The fact that you get 6 or 7 shots from a clean gun does add to the perplexity. There has to be a relationship to the build up of fouling to the lock internals.

wiscoaster said:

If they keep hitting in the same spot then you just need to adjust your aim.

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Tried that. They started hitting in a different spot. All it is doing is confusing me.

From what you are describing, I would try cleaning just the hammer face/cup of cap residue each time and see if that helps. If a hammer isn’t centered on the nipple just a little build up on the closest part of the cup could be causing light strikes.

I suspect your problem is getting your caps mixed up. Make sure you're not occasionally putting a left hand cap on the right hand barrel.

Grenadier1758 said:

Have you tried changing the nipples from one side to the other? I see you have tried different nipples. Any debris in the cup at the nose of the right hammer? Is the right hammer rubbing on the stock? Are the internal screws on the right hand lock too tight? Any lock internals springs rubbing in the lock mortise?

The fact that you get 6 or 7 shots from a clean gun does add to the perplexity. There has to be a relationship to the build up of fouling to the lock internals.

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Thanks for the reply.

Yes, I’ve tried swapping nipples, and i should clarify that the hammer never fails to ignite the percussion cap. There’s nothing wrong with the mechanicals.
The problem, for a mysterious reason, is that the fouling in the right barrel will cause misfires after a few shots, but the left barrel is reliable.

There must be something wrong with the geometry inside the breech somewhere. Perhaps a narrowing of the flash channel somewhere that gets clogged?

The gun was made in 1985 btw (not that it matters)

I tend to think that @Widows Son is onto something in that there is a difference in the flash channel between the right breech and the left breech that causes more fouling to accumulate in the flash channel. Your bore scope gives you a view of the breech chamber and the entry of the flash hole into the breech and no differences can be seen. When the nipples are removed is there a partial obstruction of the nipple threading at the nipple seat? Have you tried removing the nipple at the 6th shot and running a pipe cleaner from the nipple seat to the powder chamber? The right barrel seems to be reliable when the flash channel has been cleaned for the first few shots. Cleaning of the flash channel, if it restores reliable shooting, will confirm that fouling build up is causing the reliability problems. A wire brush used for cleaning air brush tips may remove more fouling than pipe cleaners. I would try a bit more aggressive cleaning of the breech, especially through the flash channel. That is a difficult place to get clean. There may have been some long ago fouling that pitted the flash channel and the right breech accumulates fouling faster than the left breech. Maybe soaking the breeches with a more aggressive fouling cleaner. Be careful as some cleaners will also remove bluing.

Get a cleaning tool for a gas welder tip. Try running it thru the flash channel. It is coarser than a pipe cleaner and should remove any obstruction.

My poor boy has started hanging around with loose women and drinking an excessive amount to whiskey. I suspect it may also smoke pot on the weekends. I don't know why it does these things, I made it to be a well mannered rifle.

I chronically lose wedges. Like, almost every time I shoot, and sometimes even just handling my gun round the house. To the point where I have started running black electric tape around the stock and barrel to hold them in between shooting. This has helped but not cured the issue.

Tomahawk Taxidermy said:

I chronically lose wedges. Like, almost every time I shoot, and sometimes even just handling my gun round the house. To the point where I have started running black electric tape around the stock and barrel to hold them in between shooting. This has helped but not cured the issue.

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You need to fix that, put a slight bend in the wedge so it pulls down on the barrel slightly or slot the wedge and use a pin to make it captured, plenty of instructions on this site if you look.

Tomahawk Taxidermy said:

I chronically lose wedges. Like, almost every time I shoot, and sometimes even just handling my gun round the house. To the point where I have started running black electric tape around the stock and barrel to hold them in between shooting. This has helped but not cured the issue.

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I have slotted wedges on my rifles. I have a pin under the escutcheon that goes through the slot to keep the wedge from falling out. The slot is long enough for the wedge(s) to be pulled, and the barrel removed.

I have one rifle with no escutcheon plates and the pins are located in the stock.