Howdy again! I haven't posted in awhile, but I've got a good question... I was recently at a black powder meet and was told I couldn't blow down the barrel after a shot. I've got a .45cal CVA Kentucky rifle I rebuilt a bit beefier and have asked around to many shooters and maybe 3 out of a hundred say: "DON'T DO IT!... IT COULD BACKFIRE AND BLOW YOUR HEAD OFF!!" The other 97 said they've been shooting for years and have heard about it, but don't know of any actual victims of such an incident. I've heavily researched everywhere ,but can't find any proof of it ever happening!... Any actual proof of this being really dangerous or is it basically urban legend?.. Your comments welcome.........Pat
-
Friends, our 2nd Amendment rights are always under attack and the NRA has been a constant for decades in helping fight that fight.
We have partnered with the NRA to offer you a discount on membership and Muzzleloading Forum gets a small percentage too of each membership, so you are supporting both the NRA and us.
Use this link to sign up please; https://membership.nra.org/recruiters/join/XR045103
blowing down barrel
- Thread starter patd3985
- Start date
Help Support Muzzleloading Forum:
The concern is that a person may have a hangfire and think their gun went off. The shooter puts the muzzle in his mouth and instant lobotomy. Hangfires are real, they do happen and I have experienced them. The counter arugment usually goes like this: A muzzleloader can only go off once. A person ought to know if his gun went off or not. I have seen individuals bust a cap and turn away to leave the line thinking their gun went off. There are some basic gun safety rules that would address the issue without even mentioning blowing down the barrel.
All guns are loaded until proven otherwise.
Never point a firearm (proven empty or unknown status) at any person (self included) at any time.
Never place any body parts over the muzzle of a firearm empty or otherwise.
Never point a gun at anything that wouldn't look good with a hole in it.
If anyone feels it is necessary to blow down a barrel just get a section of aquarium tubing or something similar that fits the bore. put one end in your mouth and the other in the barrel. It's been many years now but I seem to remember Baird in his magazine "The Buckskin Report" citing documented incidents of individuals receiving the Darwin Award.
All guns are loaded until proven otherwise.
Never point a firearm (proven empty or unknown status) at any person (self included) at any time.
Never place any body parts over the muzzle of a firearm empty or otherwise.
Never point a gun at anything that wouldn't look good with a hole in it.
If anyone feels it is necessary to blow down a barrel just get a section of aquarium tubing or something similar that fits the bore. put one end in your mouth and the other in the barrel. It's been many years now but I seem to remember Baird in his magazine "The Buckskin Report" citing documented incidents of individuals receiving the Darwin Award.
I've done it for years since Davy Crockett did it in the 1950's...figured the day I can't tell if my gun went off is the day I need to take up knitting.
Having said that....considering our present day society with it's insurance regulation insanity and litigation two-step, it's hardly surprising all public ranges and shooting events have made it a hard and fast rule. Considering what I've seen people do with muzzleloaders, I have to support it for everyone...well, nearly everyone! :wink: :haha:
Having said that....considering our present day society with it's insurance regulation insanity and litigation two-step, it's hardly surprising all public ranges and shooting events have made it a hard and fast rule. Considering what I've seen people do with muzzleloaders, I have to support it for everyone...well, nearly everyone! :wink: :haha:
I suppose in all fairness I should mention that we know it's happened twice, with revolvers. I submit two examples from "Tombstone Humor" by the late and great Earle Tempel.
1880 Dodge City epitaph:
"Here lies a man whose crown was won
By blowing into an empty gun."
Carson City, Nevada epitaph:
"Under this stone lies Horace Blue
Owner of a pistol, a thirty-two.
To see if it was dirty, in it he blew,
The gun went off, and he did too."
And apropos of nothing herein, save that it'll make you smile....from Virginia City, Nevada:
"Here lies "Wild Bill" Hewitt who
shot it out with four horse thieves,
and killed three of them."
1880 Dodge City epitaph:
"Here lies a man whose crown was won
By blowing into an empty gun."
Carson City, Nevada epitaph:
"Under this stone lies Horace Blue
Owner of a pistol, a thirty-two.
To see if it was dirty, in it he blew,
The gun went off, and he did too."
And apropos of nothing herein, save that it'll make you smile....from Virginia City, Nevada:
"Here lies "Wild Bill" Hewitt who
shot it out with four horse thieves,
and killed three of them."
I'am going with the old saying,'Don't point a firearm at anything you do not intend to kill" Who knows you might be number three,,,you will miss the event but it will/could mean a lot to you and your family.
What is the need/want to blow down the barrel???? What purpose does it serve??? If the pressure built in the barrel didn't clear the nipple/touch hole I don't believe you can blow hard enough to clear it.
What is the need/want to blow down the barrel???? What purpose does it serve??? If the pressure built in the barrel didn't clear the nipple/touch hole I don't believe you can blow hard enough to clear it.
curator
45 Cal.
- Joined
- Dec 28, 2004
- Messages
- 685
- Reaction score
- 126
Putting your head in front of the muzzle of a rifle, or worse, your mouth over the end of the barrel is a major violation of safe gun handling rules. HOWEVER, blowing down the barrel after each shot will keep the fouling soft and can help in the accuracy department. Many of the long-range black powder cartridge shooters do this and it works. To do this safely with a muzzle loading rifle you would need a long enough flexible tube and a plug to go into the muzzle. Obviously this apparatus would not be "period-correct" and might cause apoplexy among the range safety officers.
A disadvantage caused by blowing down the barrel between shots is that more powder will cling to the sides of the bore when poured from the muzzle. To get around this you need to use a "loading tube" that reaches to the breech. There is a school of thought among competitive shooters that believes a loading tube allows for more consistent velocity as the powder packs in by gravity the same way each time.
All this seems like a lot of work to avoid running a slightly damp patch down the bore between shots which works just as good and a lot easier.
A disadvantage caused by blowing down the barrel between shots is that more powder will cling to the sides of the bore when poured from the muzzle. To get around this you need to use a "loading tube" that reaches to the breech. There is a school of thought among competitive shooters that believes a loading tube allows for more consistent velocity as the powder packs in by gravity the same way each time.
All this seems like a lot of work to avoid running a slightly damp patch down the bore between shots which works just as good and a lot easier.
hanshi
Cannon
The reason some clubs have rules forbidding this practice is lawyers, lawyers and lawyers. Seriously now, insurance coverage may require this rule and, of course, there is never a shortage of fools. In this context it makes perfect sense.
I don't shoot formal matches so have never had to worry about it. I do blow into the barrel by cupping my hand around the muzzle and blowing into my hand. I KNOW when my rifle fires and there's not a line of shooters present to drown out the sound of my gun. I neither recommend nor advise against this practice. I take responsibility for my own actions and prefer the benefits accrued from the practice. Follow your own counsel and decide your own path.
I don't shoot formal matches so have never had to worry about it. I do blow into the barrel by cupping my hand around the muzzle and blowing into my hand. I KNOW when my rifle fires and there's not a line of shooters present to drown out the sound of my gun. I neither recommend nor advise against this practice. I take responsibility for my own actions and prefer the benefits accrued from the practice. Follow your own counsel and decide your own path.
ADDHOC question: What if a new comer see you blowing down the barrel but didn't know all the other steps to do/things to look for??? And/or how to do it in a safe manner!!!! I/We/You, could be indirectly responsible for a very bad day,for both them and us.
Just what is the purpose of "blowing down the bbl" and what does it accomplish?
I think it's a "carryover" form Hollywood...it lends a certain "homespun", down to earth romanticism to southern hillbilly movies. So some unknowing shooters adopted this practice because it "looks good" and impresses onlookers....wow!
I started shooting MLers in 1976 and have never "blown down the bbl" because it didn't make sense then and still doesn't. Some will undoubtedly come up w/ a justification for this practice, but after having shot 1000s of loads w/o "blowing down the bbl", I really would like to hear the purpose of doing this...and the glowing ember scenario isn't convincing...Fred
I think it's a "carryover" form Hollywood...it lends a certain "homespun", down to earth romanticism to southern hillbilly movies. So some unknowing shooters adopted this practice because it "looks good" and impresses onlookers....wow!
I started shooting MLers in 1976 and have never "blown down the bbl" because it didn't make sense then and still doesn't. Some will undoubtedly come up w/ a justification for this practice, but after having shot 1000s of loads w/o "blowing down the bbl", I really would like to hear the purpose of doing this...and the glowing ember scenario isn't convincing...Fred
How about blowing air up a barrel? I slip a short length of aquarium air hose over the nipple and blow. Seems safe and I don't get a nasty taste. Thoughts?
bubba.50
Barefoot Hillbilly
- Joined
- Aug 21, 2010
- Messages
- 3,837
- Reaction score
- 3,348
Gemmer said:
black powder cartridge shooters use a modified cartridge case with a short piece of tubing attached to do exactly what yer doin. since the purpose of blowin' in the barrel is for the moisture in yer breath to keep fowlin' soft, I can't see as it would matter which end of the barrel ya blow in.
Guest
Did you see this three page thread pinned to the top of this category?wayne davison said:
http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/211292/
Last edited by a moderator:
Pigpopper
32 Cal.
Flehto,
What's wrong with being a Southern Hillbilly???
I think I resemble that remark! :grin:
What's wrong with being a Southern Hillbilly???
I think I resemble that remark! :grin:
Harriet Simpson Arnow in her book 'Seedtime on the Cumberland' states that it was common for skilled riflemen in the late 1700s and early 1800s to blow down their barrel during reloading. She also states that it was common for the riflemen to wipe their rifle's bore after shooting and before reloading, using dampened tow on a tow worm which seemed to improve accuracy and also ensured that the rifle was not loaded. The dampened tow may have extinguished any remaining glowing embers in the bore but this is controversial and subjective. Blowing down the bore followed wiping the bore to make certain that the flash hole did not become plugged during the wiping operation. Somehow, in the last 75 years blowing down the bore has been falsely used to 'extinguish' any remaining embers in the bore before adding the next charge of gun powder. This is not safe. Blowing down the bore and adding the powder, theoretically, might encourage any glowing embers to flare up (addition of fresh oxygenated air) and ignite the gun powder as it falls down the bore. Maybe. Blowing down the bore should only be used to make sure the flash hole is not blocked and only after wiping the bore with a dampen plug of tow on a tow worm. Otherwise, skip blowing down the bore. Consecutively loading and shooting in match shoots does not really give the fouling sufficient time to dry and harden.
bubba.50
Barefoot Hillbilly
- Joined
- Aug 21, 2010
- Messages
- 3,837
- Reaction score
- 3,348
flehto said:
in the opinion of this southern hillbilly if it were just "romanticism" & old wives tales and if there wasn't some actual benefit from the moisture in yer breath actually helpin' to keep fowlin' soft, I doubt places like Buffalo Arms & others would sell blow tubes for this express purpose. and if they didn't help I doubt enough people would buy them to keep them in the catalog.
I think I may have asked this same question here a few years ago.
I got into the habit of doing it, theory being to dampen (via moist breath) the fouling and to make sure the nipple was clear. Probably read it in an old book.
See no actual harm in doing it.
Some people overreact and take great pride in showing everyone how much safer they are than everyone else around them.
It's an attention getting device.
Also, researched weather anyone had actually blown their head off doing it. Even wrote to the NMLRA.
No instance could be found.
The Urban Legend I was told as fact was that a husband took a rifle from his wife to reload, not realizing it had hang fired.
I wanted to find the wife to see how much life insurance he had and the size of his gun collection. (no luck)
If you can't tell that your gun just did or didn't go off then you have more serious problems and shouldn't be handling guns at all, or driving a car or even voting.
Guess you could wear an army helmet around all day because a meteorite might hit you in the noggin too.
And don't forget to check your tire pressure before you get in the car each time!
I got into the habit of doing it, theory being to dampen (via moist breath) the fouling and to make sure the nipple was clear. Probably read it in an old book.
See no actual harm in doing it.
Some people overreact and take great pride in showing everyone how much safer they are than everyone else around them.
It's an attention getting device.
Also, researched weather anyone had actually blown their head off doing it. Even wrote to the NMLRA.
No instance could be found.
The Urban Legend I was told as fact was that a husband took a rifle from his wife to reload, not realizing it had hang fired.
I wanted to find the wife to see how much life insurance he had and the size of his gun collection. (no luck)
If you can't tell that your gun just did or didn't go off then you have more serious problems and shouldn't be handling guns at all, or driving a car or even voting.
Guess you could wear an army helmet around all day because a meteorite might hit you in the noggin too.
And don't forget to check your tire pressure before you get in the car each time!
robinghewitt
62 Cal.
- Joined
- Jun 26, 2004
- Messages
- 2,605
- Reaction score
- 22
If hang fires were really common I would not do it. A hang fire is supposed to come from smouldering. After trying to light modern black powder in a matchlock with smouldering, I feel 100% safe blowing :thumbsup:
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2005
- Messages
- 439
- Reaction score
- 46
I realize everyone has their own habits and practices in this highly individualistic sport, but just because some of our forebears may have carried on some unsafe practice is not a reason for us to blindly follow. It's one of the basic rules of gun safety to always keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction. The idea is to follow this (and other) safety rules religiously to the point where they become automatic behavior. Good rules to follow, especially when any kids may be watching..........we don't want to be teaching that it's a good idea to stick a gun barrel in your mouth!
