first full day of shooting, and 2 dry balls

[carolina cowboy]

Took my new(used, but new to me) flintlock to the range Sat, all week I was working on a system of loading, to ensure I did not dry ball......well that was a waste of time :rotf: , I dry balled twice, :cursing: the first after making maybe 20 shots(was getting cocky, but took my pick and got enough powder behind the ball that I was able to shoot it out).....then after about 20 more, I did it again, but this time drove the ball in so tight I could not get any powder behind the ball to get it shoot it out..... I had been trying different loads, and was using a .445 ball(that is the size he said he was using and there was 200 with the rifle, it is a 45 caliber) and a .018 patch, of course I had a hard time seating the ball, well needless to say, had even a harder time getting that ball out of there :surrender: ...had to quit shooting, go home and work on it for about an hour before I could get it to move any at all, finally screwed the jag all the way through the ball, took my vice, and wrapping the ramrod with leather was able to slowly pull the ball out...
Good news is I went yesterday and did my clubs woods walk, shot 20 shots and NO Dry Ball :thumbsup: , but only hit 10 out of the 20 targets :idunno: ......
I bought Dutch’s system, but was never able to get a very good group from the bench at 50 yards on Sat.... of course I was also just spending time getting to know the rifle, and flintlocks again in general, since it has been over 36 years since I had shot one up until the last couple of weeks since I purchased this one....I shot about 40 shots(except for the two dry balls, had not a single misfire), all were in the black (six inch circle), and most were within a four inch circle, but could never get it to close up to say an inch or so.....going back out next weekend to try it again...I have ordered some .440 balls, some different patching and patches, and will reread his small book again and go back and try this again.....but would any of you guys have some suggestions to try to shorten my training time, or the method you used with Dutch’s system to find that sweet spot the quickest? I was using .445 balls because that is what came with the rifle, but one of the guys in the woods walk gave me a couple of .440 to try, hit the two targets with them, but both targets were fairly close and fair size, so that really didn’t tell me anything, just that he uses .440 in his 45.....he uses .018 pillow ticking lubed with fake sperm whale oil........any and all suggestions would be much appreciated

 

[jethro224]

One of my shootin' buddies hollers out "POWDER!" every once in a while to help keep himself from dry-balling. :hmm: ...or maybe to make everybody else flinch a little. :haha:

To help tighten up those groups, I would recommend a smaller aiming point. Try a 1" or 2" dot instead of that big honkin' 6"er. "Aim small, miss small" really works.
An inverted triangle works well for some guys. Aim at the very point at the bottom of the triangle.
Then remember to concentrate and follow thru. Your groups should tighten up.

 

[carolina cowboy]

thanks jethro
I was just over on Dutch's site reading his Q&A section and that was one of his suggestions as well....will do that, and might try the hollaring "Powder", the guys with me would ask if I had put the powder in, but always right after I had tamped the ball down :haha:

 

[ohio ramrod]

Some guns shoot better with larger balls, some better with smaller balls and thicker patches. That is what makes this game what it is so many variables. And no absolute "right or wrong" Except for some basic safety rules! Such as NEVER prime before loading, NEVER load dirrectly from horn/flask. And a few others. :hmm:

 

[jtmattison]

It may help to lay your loading components on the bench in the order you need them. That will help you establish a routine so you don't forget anything.

CONSISTENCY is the key to accuracy. Dutch's system will help you if you are consistent. Take your time. Change only one variable at a time until you nail it down.

The best part about load development is you get to shoot a lot. Don't rush. Be consistent. But the most important thing is HAVE FUN.

Best of luck!

HD

P.S. Maybe you should buy a Co2 dis-charger. :wink:

 

[Skylinewatcher]

My brother was bad about dry balling. What I done with him was never let him put up his rod or ball starter. I would make him put them by the horn which was on the table behind him. We never had range rods or anything, but the same procedure would hold true. As it applies to fishing, you are not going to do much with out your rod.

 

[Sunkmanitu Tanka]

I was so tired of all that dryballing that I got myself a bunch of speed loaders... just a hollow tube with patch and ball on one end, and powder and a stopper on the other end. Remove stopper, pour powder - push down patch and ball with ramrod - ready - no more dryballs!

 

[Skylinewatcher]

Good idea, that would have been easier for us. Its amazing how you can forget to put powder in but we all have done it. I'll probably do it again just because I talked about it. :rotf:

 

[carolina cowboy]

LOL, I am going to have to try something for sure, it seemed in the woods yesterday, it was easier to go from one step to another, but at the range, there was 5 or 6 people all coming over and looking at the gun and offering advice :yakyak: , so I did get distracted, but not their fault, but I am going to try that and see if it works, the darnedest thing was I KNEW I HAD PUT POWDER IN :youcrazy: , but it was still a blast and I am looking forward to more shooting, and will try to be a little more methodical about my loading at the range to try to both stop dry balling and get that grouping where it should be

 

[Tony Logan]

That sounds like you had a good day, I am sure you will get that group where you want it.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Don't Change MORE THAN ONE VARIABLE AT A TIME. If you are going to shoot .440 balls, now, instead of the .445 balls you have been shooting, USE the same patch you were using with the .445 ball to test the .440 ball, FIRST. If the groups don't Shrink, Then, and ONLY THEN, Try a different thickness of patch with the .440 balls.

Always read your spent patches. This is particularly necessary whenever you decided to Test a New Patch Thickness. Don't Fix "What Ain't Broke". If an existing patch tells you( READ THE SPENT PATCH) that its sealing the bore well around the new diameter, DON'T Go changing the patch thickness.

You'll be chasing your own tail, doing this!

My brother recently relearned this old lesson. A year ago, he tested different diameters of balls in his .45 cal. rifle. He had been shooting .440 balls in his .451" diameter bore, using a teflon coated patch that is .018" thick. He changed just one variable- ball diameter-- and tried, in order, .445", .451", .454", and .457" balls, using the same patch. However, he didn't read the patches!

This year, he found, painfully, that his patches were being shredded, and his accuracy was all over the place. They did not shred last year. He still doesn't know WHY the patches changed, but it may be nothing more than the material has deteriorated over the year's time( dry rot). So, he has gone back to shooting .440 or .445 diameter balls( I don't recall which right now) and is getting much better accuracy, with the same patch material.

 

[satwel]

Jethro224 mentioned follow-through. Proper follow-through will improve your scores more than finding the right ball, patch, powder combination. There's nothing like a flintlock to expose improper technique. If you can hit consistently with a flintlock, you'll be a good shot with any firearm.

Aim, fire, aim again. Don't relax and take the rifle from your shoulder as soon as it goes off. Your arm muscles begin to anticipate your trigger finger and you unconsciously start lowering the barrel as the gun is going off. If you train yourself to re-align the sights with the target immediately after the shot, you'll find your scores will increase dramatically.

Practice and don't get discouraged, once you get it, you'll have even more fun.

 

[Heavy Eagle]

:wink: Welcome to the club. Dry Ball Syndrone (DBS) affects everyone from green hoprns to gray bearded veterns of blackpwder. Anyone who says they have never 'dry-balled' a gun is either a beginner or a liar. You have successfully taken your first step in muzzleloading--the next 2 are 'double charging your rifle' (there are two forms of this: that where you have forgotten your have already loaded your rifle and put another load down-powder and ball or your put 2 powder charges down the barrel) and then there is shopoting your ramrod. Your will load your rifle and forget to remove your ramrod and then shoot the rifle. Your will realize something is wrong because your rifle will kick like a mule and when you go to reload, no ramrod. :rotf: There other items that will happen--forget yopur powder at home, forget possible bag at home, flint will fall out, if using percussion caps--will either run out or forget them too. Muzzleloading has a built humility dispensor to keep all shooter humble and to cut all down to size if someone get to full of themselves. That why shooting blackpowder is so much fun.

 

[leslie]

Oh YES,

 

[Renegade Dan]

I'm also a member of the DBS :thumbsup:

 

[jethro224]

I shot for several years on private land, mostly by myself, and never dryballed.

Then I joined a ML shooting club, so I'd have plenty of witnesses around, and did it a couple of times. :idunno:

Then I did it with a shotgun. Dry-shotted? :haha:

Then I fired a short-started ball. :shocked2:

...:surrender:

Muzzleloading has a built in humility dispensor to keep all shooters humble...

:thumbsup: :rotf: That's a fact.

 

[carolina cowboy]

DBS, do we get a badge :haha: , you guys are helping me feel a little better....and as a newbie I have got a lot to learn, and this site and you guys are the best...next I want to earn the NDB(No Dry Ball) award...but I'll be honest with you, once I fired that first shot, and it went "Flash bang" I was hooked....there is a %@#* pot of things to learn, and I realize it is going to take some time, but from a Cowboy Action Shooter, this is way COOL...and once you are finished shooting, there is no reloading :thumbsup: .....that is soooooo Cool.....here I am shooting a rifle that uses a rock, that you only shoot once a minute maybe,and I am still trying to figure out which side to wear the frigging purse on, and which side the "Horn" should go on,I am shooting a used gun that the stock is about an inch to inch and a half to short, trying to keep up with "IF" I have put powder in the barrel,trying to decide if I want to "Blow" or not,using something so primitive that it is funny, and I find myself trying to figure out why I can not be at work tomorrow so I can go to the range and get better with it....which garments to buy, which shoes are PC or HC,which hat to buy(my wife is still laughing about my struggle to buy the right hat)....and all I can think about is not Dry Balling, and getting my grouping into an inch or two...all of this stress from such an ancient weapon...I am hooked, and see no cure, but I am glad to know there is so many like minded junkies :rotf:

 

[Many Klatch]

danial, when I am loading I sometimes can't remember whether I put in the powder or not. Now I have been shooting for close to 30 years and I still dry ball on the odd occasion (like a couple of times a year). One thing that helps is before I put the ball into the muzzle. If I have any question whether there is powder in there, I take the ramrod, lick one end and drop it down the barrel. If there are grains of powder stuck to the ramrod, I'm good, if not, better add the powder before ramming down the ball.

Many Klatch

 

[curator]

Working up a load with Dutch's system assumes your rifle is in good shape and you are doing your part behind the butt stock and on the trigger. When shooting a long rifle off sandbags, I have found that I needed to rest the forearm where my hand would naturally hold it but not have my non-trigger hand holding it. Good bench rest/sandbag technique is essential. Perhaps you can get some one from your club to coach you while shooting watching for follow through, trigger pull, etc. Consistancy in loading is also an important part of accuracy as is the quality of your componants. If you are using store-bought balls these could also be part of your accuracy problem.

 

[Robert Scheffler]

I purposely had my rifle built with a bit shorter pull than normal because I do a lot of shooting in the winter wearing my capote and the heavier clothing for deer hunting. It's a mite short in the summer, but it doesn't really bother me much. If you get the opportunitycome out to some of the shoots just north of you. There's the Linden fun shoot in late June, and Multi-lakes has their rondy in June I think. They also have a winter league woods walk starting in Nov. There's a lot of good folks there that'll give some good pointers on shooting. Rob