Amusing/Ridiculous Muzzleloading Misconceptions...

[Griz44Mag]

I was at the range yesterday with my 54 GPR.
Since I was doing some load testing, I was at the 50 yard line, on the far right side - next to the 100 yard which was less that 5' to the dividing line.
A guy I see there often was sitting 3 chairs to the right at the 100 yard, he had hung 3 targets up (those shootnC kind.
He made the comment that he wanted to get a muzzleloader but just could not deal with the short distance they would shoot. He needed to be be able to shoot all the way out to 100 yards.
He was sitting there with a 300WM with a 24 power scope - shooting at 100 yards. (YUP one of those)
I politely asked him which target of his would he like me to shoot?
My GPR is much better than minute of deer - It will clover at 50 and easily keep 2" or less groups at 100.
I loaded, pulled a few degrees to the right and put a 54 roundball in the inner ring of his shootnC target.
Jokingly of course, I offered to give him lessons on how to shoot his "long distance" gun at long distance.
Next week we will be meeting again at the 800 yard course for his first lesson.

 

[Justin.44]

I’ve heard a bunch of good ones but my favorites are,

“It’s irresponsible to shoot a handmade gun. At least do the right thing and warn your viewers they’re not as safe as real ones”.

“If you’re going to make videos about how to do stuff at least wear your bag and horn on the correct side dummy. No one wore them on the right side”.

“Are you going to replace the barrels of folks you told to clean their guns with water?”

Yeah it should be pretty obvious to anyone viewing any of your videos that you're not gonna give any advice that would be detrimental to someone's gun or their safety!

 

[Griz44Mag]

My coworker offered to take me Turkey hunting a few years back; however, he changed his mind when he found out that I was hunting with a Muzzleloading shotgun. Said, “I can’t take you out there because it’s dry and you’ll burn my woods down with that thing.”

That's not all hype. I have seen smoking patches on the ground. In a high wind with dry grass, it's very plausible.
The match director stopped the match, and used a pump type yard sprayer to put the smoking patch out. He told us he had seen a grass fire started with a smoking patch. He also stated that the shooter that ejected the smoking patch was a spit patcher.

 

[Grenadier1758]

Well, @Justin.44, for a young pup, you certainly stirred up a lot of comment.

One of my favorite misconceptions is the one the the 1 in 48 twist is only for maxi-balls, REALs or other conical bullets. Round ball needs to be shot from a rifle with 1 in 60" twist or slower. Justin, you know quite well that your rifle with 1 in 28" twist can shoot round ball quite fine.

The other of course that smooth bores are inherently inaccurate. Takes a bit of practice to be consistently accurate on target or game.

 

[Sandy Jarrell]

That's not all hype. I have seen smoking patches on the ground. In a high wind with dry grass, it's very plausible.

Not hype at all. I built a dbl Pedersoli 10ga. kit. Took it out for a test firing. Made the mistake of bringing my wife along to watch. Took it to the stock tank to fire it so I could see the results. Loaded up both barrels (1F) and fired the first one. Wife is sitting on the toolbox in the truck and is laughing. I fired the second barrel and the wife is roaring with laughter. I turned and asked what was so funny. All she could do is point to the grass between me and the water which was all on fire. At least she stopped laughing long enough to help me stomp out the flames.

 

[Justin.44]

Yep @Grenadier1758 I was waiting for you to chime in.. I've been to the range a couple times this week trying out my .490 balls I cast and I've been really surprised at the accuracy with Ellen's little fast twist rifle. We've worked up a pretty good load for it.

 

[davidmc62]

I remember many years ago at a CW reenactment the 'Battle of Pleasant Hill' in Louisiana, the battle had to be stopped to put out a spreading grass fire in front of the Union Infantry line. Yes muzzle loading rifles can start grass fires.

 

[user 49399]

Here's another one I see every year right before deer season. I shoot my traditional muzzleloaders all year long. The folks around here that shoot modern muzzleloaders don't until two weeks before deer season.

It's always fun to shoot cloverleaf patterns with my longrifle at 50 yards while they struggle to hit the poster sized target at same distance with their scoped, plastic stocked modern whatever. Once they get two shots on paper they call it good. Gotta save some pellets for hunting and next year.

 

[tenngun]

Saw a you tube video as a historians guide to last of the Mohicans. I made a comment that in-spite of some inaccuracies I liked the movie. Then I made a reference to the ‘silk, another forty yards.’ Another person replied to my comment telling me they had silk then and yards was the measure for cloth in colonial America.
I replied back about patching, and the uselessness of silk as patching and how it would not add any range.
This other person replied back that all guns were smoothbores then, you could not have a muzzleloading rifle, and a hundred yards was all their top range.
I answered back explaining how an ml rifle worked, told him not to take my word for it but gave him some sites to look up, sites he could googol or you tube sites he could look at.
He never answered back.

 

[tenngun]

Here's another one I see every year right before deer season. I shoot my traditional muzzleloaders all year long. The folks around here that shoot modern muzzleloaders don't until two weeks before deer season.

It's always fun to shoot cloverleaf patterns with my longrifle at 50 yards while they struggle to hit the poster sized target at same distance with their scoped, plastic stocked modern whatever. Once they get two shots on paper they call it good. Gotta save some pellets for hunting and next year.

Just a few months ago I was shooting, and a guy showed up at the range with a 30-30. I was shooting at fifty yards and he told me ML couldn’t shoot that far. He pooped off a load getting most on the paper, none in the black. Then he looked at my target. He was amazed but decided his ten inch group+ was good enough for deer.

 

[springfield art]

You know what I'm talking about.. You're at the range shooting BP or talking to a buddy at work about your muzzleloading hobby and you hear something stunningly inaccurate about muzzleloaders. Sometimes it's funny, other times frustrating..

I brought my rifles and revolvers with me to work yesterday so I could go straight to the range afterwards, so I showed them to a guy I work with on break. He looked at the rifles and said "Oh when you said you shoot Muzzleloaders I thought you meant the real ones they sell at Walmart." Another time my boss insisted a round ball couldn't kill a deer or even hit a target past 50 yards...

Anyway, I was just thinking about it and thought if I've heard several humorous misconceptions in the short time I've been in this hobby, then some of you veteran ML shooters have probably heard some doozies! I'd love to hear 'em! -Justin

Ha! Bet this will be good for a laugh...

 

[springfield art]

Saw a you tube video as a historians guide to last of the Mohicans. I made a comment that in-spite of some inaccuracies I liked the movie. Then I made a reference to the ‘silk, another forty yards.’ Another person replied to my comment telling me they had silk then and yards was the measure for cloth in colonial America.
I replied back about patching, and the uselessness of silk as patching and how it would not add any range.
This other person replied back that all guns were smoothbores then, you could not have a muzzleloading rifle, and a hundred yards was all their top range.
I answered back explaining how an ml rifle worked, told him not to take my word for it but gave him some sites to look up, sites he could googol or you tube sites he could look at.
He never answered back.

Yeah, I always thought the idea of silk giving extra yardage was purely a Hollywood movie-writer thing. It's silly to think the ball would be propelled faster out of the barrel just bexause silk is a bit "slick"...

 

[springfield art]

That will depend on the gun. The Enfield Indian conversions (that lead to the model 1859 I think) when new used to bulge/blow barrels.
Not unknown for a damascus to unravel.

But yes you can, in a newer firearm fill the barrel with REAL blackpowder and hammer in a couple of bullets. It may split the stock but the barrel will survive.

The Bevel Brothers recently did a scientific study of this in a recent issue of Muzzle Blasts. You can't blow a barrel even trying, for the most part. Check it out!

 

[tenngun]

The Bevel Brothers recently did a scientific study of this in a recent issue of Muzzle Blasts. You can't blow a barrel even trying, for the most part. Check it out!

Not ‘filled’ with powder but still huge charges. Sam Falada did some experiments. Inspite of over an ounce of powder and 1800 grains of lead his barrels held. It wasn’t until he obstructed the barrel that the barrel ruptured.

 

[biliff]

Trying to keep this short. Had a guy at the range look at my rifle and declare the tiger stripe maple stock to be fake. Stated he was a wood products expert and there was no such thing as tiger stripe maple. Proceeded to lecture me on the "burning rope around the stock" technique that he apparently read about in the Dixie Gun Works catalog. He annoyed me so much that I pulled the lock and showed him the matching grain in the lock mortise thinking that would shut him up. His response: "It's still fake, just a really GOOD FAKE."

 

[tenngun]

Yeas ago I used to watch pawn stars. A guy came in with a tiger striped gun and the shop owner told him that story. That was about the time I stopped watching the show

 

[Justin.44]

Yeas ago I used to watch pawn stars. A guy came in with a tiger striped gun and the shop owner told him that story. That was about the time I stopped watching the show

I stopped watching that show when I realized how utterly fake and staged it is. All "reality shows" are but that one is exceptionally bad..

The shop owner pretends to be an expert on everything, and the scripted dialogue is so bad it makes me cringe. Every item brought in could be on display at the Smithsonian.

If you wanted to make a real show about a pawn shop it would be people pawning a stolen tv for $15 or selling an old SKS to buy drugs.

 

[Sam squanch]

Some of the best entertainment can be found hanging out in pawnshops. I go every Saturday to listen to the morons top each other in gun knowledge....

 

[eggwelder]

Yeas ago I used to watch pawn stars. A guy came in with a tiger striped gun and the shop owner told him that story. That was about the time I stopped watching the show

wonder what they would call flame birch? can`t stand the show either.

 

[JeffG]

In the 70's I went to a historical re-enactment as a tourist. As the opposing "forces" commenced firing, I heard one man explaining to his wife, "They have to keep their muzzles elevated when firing. Lead rings build up in the barrel of the guns from firing live ammunition, they come loose when firing blanks and it could strike someone on the other side." I heard that repeated in another location, at a different re-enactment, and I was just amazed.