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Excuse Me, I'm Loading

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Most ranges require a flint lock shield if shooting a flintlock.

Proper manners is to warn folks that you are shooting a flintlock so they can move back.

Some ranges have banned black powder shooters because of problems. Banning makes since before someone is injured, especially with your attitude..
For me being a lefty, i take the far left bench that way no one gets a face full. Attitudes go both ways. Treat me nice, i will be nice. Treat me bad, i will be plain and ignore. May think i am rude and i will say i am focused on loading so i do not make a mistake and need folks help. Some folks think they own the range when they bring friends and family. Some want to show off they are in charge. It is a members owned club. I am a member just like they are. I will respect them, answer any questions, let them shoot my rifle. Give me the same courtesy and lets all be safe and enjoy the day shooting.
 
Interesting what happens on a range with looke loows around you. Everyone worried about a dry ball..Besides our monthly shoots my wife and I go to about 15 Rhondys a year all on trail walks most with separate trails.
In groups going down the trails you’ll hear shooters laughing and talking continuously. Except when a person steps up to the line to shoot. After all as easy as it is to remove a dry ball what’s the big deal. And there’s no pink Cadillac to win so as my grandson says “chill out”.
Doc,
 
I have put into practice a procedure that has a visual sequence for each step of the loading process.

After I shoot, I wipe the bore and lay the dirty patch on the tray next to my place for the ball. I can look at the loading bench and see that the rifle is unloaded and I can look at the target. When I return, I measure the next load of powder and with a funnel in the muzzle, I pour the powder. The funnel remains in the muzzle. I take the soiled patch and it goes into the trash jar at the station. When I lubricate the patch, I pick up the ball and load. If I am called away, I will insert my sort starter in the muzzle. This shows me that there is powder and a patched ball in the barrel. When I am ready, I ram the ball to the breech. With the ball loaded at the bench I can see that I am ready to go to the firing line since there is no dirty patch by the balls and nothing is in the barrel. I will politely allow no further distraction until after the firearm is primed and the shot taken.

These steps also give me the opportunity to demonstrate the complete loading process without losing track of where I am in that process.
Your procedure works well when loading at a bench. What do you do if you are at a match and required to load from a pouch?
 
Most ranges require a flint lock shield if shooting a flintlock.

Proper manners is to warn folks that you are shooting a flintlock so they can move back.

Some ranges have banned black powder shooters because of problems. Banning makes since before someone is injured, especially with your attitude..
Strange they would ban powder burners while the semi-auto and black rifle crowd spews hot casings over nearby benches.
 
A few accidents caused it to happen. In one case someone left an open pound of powder, it managed to ignite and that ended black powder shooting.

Stuff happens when rules are not followed.
 
"STAND BACK OR I'LL BLOW US ALL TO SMITHEREENS!!"
Sam.jpeg
 
One problem I have is too much uneccessary stuff - everything I don't need along with what's needed at the time. Some folks won't leave other folks' stuff alone - gotta pick up, examine, criticize - you know the type. Generally, I leave my range box open and "use" out of it.

One know-it-all was showing his kid what percussion caps were by opening one of my tins. "OOPS" is not what you want to hear in a colostomy surgical room nor at a loading bench. FYI -#10 caps are hard to find (both at stores or spilled in gravel).

While I miss the social aspects of shooting with others, on my own shooting bench behind my farmhouse, not once has my Basset Hound spilled my tin-o-caps. He does pass gas upwind at times.
 
The guy apologized, offered to pay for the caps and he had his boy watching us. Sometimes it's hard for me not to express myself in jailhouse verbage. The three of us tried to find the spilled caps, but they pretty much scattered. Maybe the boy learned something.

I was using #11's that day, so it didn't ruin my shooting and learned me not to leave my range box open.
 
This happens a lot on the range I use, particularly when I am shooting my Ardesa 'Old Ironsides' cannon. So much so that I have once or twice forgotten to put the dummy fuse in when loading and I have ended up with a very reduced charge!
Some folks are so thick-skinned that even politely asking them to shut up doesn't work. It's a real pain especially if I am shooting a league card or competition target. I even bought a sleeveless reflective jacket with "Do Not Disturb" written across the back in big black letters but kept being asked why I was wearing it...???
 
One problem I have is too much uneccessary stuff - everything I don't need along with what's needed at the time. Some folks won't leave other folks' stuff alone - gotta pick up, examine, criticize - you know the type. Generally, I leave my range box open and "use" out of it.
And the black gunners bring 4 rifles, 2 each, lay the cases on the loading bench behind the firing line, multiple ammo boxes, range box, spotting scope box, lunch, dinner, drinks, chronograph, etc. All next to each other. We have a 10 bench covered range. 2 black gunners show up and they take up 9 lanes worth of back bench. "Do not touch my stuff" they say. Only reason that day did not take it all was i was there first and had my range box and rifle sleeve there. They asked me if it was ok to move my rifle sleeve for their cases. 2 guys! They bring trunk loads of stuff.
 
Your procedure works well when loading at a bench. What do you do if you are at a match and required to load from a pouch?
As I was describing my procedure, I was aware that it was very specific to a loading procedure at a loading bench and not from a pouch. The procedure does indeed change when loading from a pouch and does not have allowances for breaks to entertain questions and then resume loading.

Loading from the pouch, either at a match or woods walk which requires loading from the pouch should have a separate loading area separated from spectators. The procedure becomes a continuation of the steps to load the ball to prepare for the firing line. I will only have a just fired firearm or a loaded firearm. In all cases of course, the firearm's muzzle is treated as if the firearm is loaded. Once I start to load from the time I measure and pour powder until I prime to advance to the firing line each step is the predecessor to the next. The only break can occur if there is a wait at the woods walk station. Priming the pan or capping the cone is delayed until I advance to the firing line. I do look to my right to be sure that the flash from the pan will not disturb other shooters. I do have a flash guard on most of my flint locks, but I look any ways.
 
I joined my club where they have a dedicated black powder range.

This is probably why I'm spoiled by how nice it is at my club. We have a large and active black powder community and just this last year they built a big new pavilion dedicated to black powder shooters. When I go during the week I'm often the only one there but when they have a local shoot it can attract 25-30 entries, and a lot more if it's a regional type shoot. The first time I went to observe one of the shoots I was surprised to find almost everyone was shooting flintlocks.

One know-it-all was showing his kid what percussion caps were by opening one of my tins. "OOPS" is not what you want to hear in a colostomy surgical room nor at a loading bench. FYI -#10 caps are hard to find (both at stores or spilled in gravel).

I can't even imagine someone getting into someones else's stuff. That's just such an obvious no-no you'd think everyone would know better regardless whether it's black powder or modern gun shooting. I know I'd be really upset if someone did that to me.
 
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