First time

[Hntm]

Shot a muzzleloader for the first time today! Friend took me to the range at a muzzleloading club where he is a member, and I loved it. Can't wait to shoot again, but now I gotta clean the darn thing. Hate cleaning guns.

 

[C Barker]

Shot a muzzleloader for the first time today! Friend took me to the range at a muzzleloading club where he is a member, and I loved it. Can't wait to shoot again, but now I gotta clean the darn thing. Hate cleaning guns.

Welcome to the joyous world of flintlocks. The great thing about it you never know for absolutely sure 100% that it will go off as expected everytime you squeeze the trigger. :shocked2: :blah: :idunno: It adds to the excitement! If you like the smell of rotten eggs, breathing in smoke, big bangs, getting dirty and fiddling with things to make them (hopefully) right and meeting some really great folks along the way :grin: , you'll love shooting bp especially flintlocks. Cleaning? What cleaning? Think of it in terms of time away from the Mrs. (or Mr. as the case may be) and the dreaded honey-do list. :rotf:

 

[MSW]

BWHAHAHA (mad scientist laugh)

another one turned to the DARK SIDE!!!

you're gonna have a great time, after a while, you will learn how to hold a rifle steady. if you hunt with it, you will learn how to track and stalk. (you will also learn why it's called "hunting" and not "going to the grocery store."

as regards cleaning, it is not a necessary evil- it is an opportunity to become one with the secret inner workings of the tool which might one day, save your a$$. (well, it would save your a$$ if you were in a different century)

clean any gun as though your live might depend on it, and that particular firearm will never let you down. i've always found cleaning the thing after a bit on the range to be relaxing.

Honey, would you mind [fill in the stupid chore here]

Yes, dear, as soon as i finish cleaning this cherished and very complex flintlock.

(note to thos ewho aren't supposed to be looking: you can clean a flintlock in fifteen minutes, or it can take hours and hours; see where we're going with this? :grin:

go forth, and make good smoke.

 

[Tony Logan]

Welcome to the addiction, you will not mind cleaning once you get a system worked out. The only thing I hate about cleaning is it means I am finished shooting. It might be a couple of weeks before I get to shoot again. Other wise I just sit around dry firing at small objects in the den wishing I was seeing, hearing, smelling that good old BP

 

[Hntm]

Got it cleaned, and it wasn't as hard as I had imagined. I scrubbed the barrel in a bucket of hot soapy water, and 8 or so dry patches later they were coming out clean. Yeah, rotten eggs is right!

One question, is there a right side to insert the escutcheon pin? I looked at the manual on line, but didn't see it specified. I put it in from left to right. Also, I scrubbed the lock with Hoppes #9 and a toothbrush, should I have immersed it in the water bucket, too?

 

[jethro224]

Welcome to your new addiction. :hatsoff:

Personally I would much rather clean a MLer than a centerfire gun. Seems easier to me. :idunno: I always clean the lock and the barrel with water.

The barrel wedge should go in from the right side. ...unless maybe it's a lefty rifle. Then I would think it probably goes in from the left side.

 

[Hntm]

Thank you, next question: had some ignition problems today. Got this rifle used, and it has a very rough frizzen--the flint strikes an area that is very scored, almost looks like a washboard. It destroyed the flints. Should it be resurfaced with sandpaper, or replaced entirely?

 

[jethro224]

That's a hard call without seeing it. Sounds like the flint may be striking the frizzen at too square of an angle. Pounding it instead of slicing across. Some locks have better geometry than others. What kind of gun is it? Can you show us a picture of the lock and the frizzen face?

 

[Hntm]

It is a TC Hawken made around 1985.

 

[jethro224]

Aha! T/C re-designed their hammer not so long ago for much better lock geometry.
Contact the T/C customer service, tell them you are having problems with it, and send in your lock. They have a lifetime warranty and will either replace the cock and frizzen or possibly the whole lock at no charge.

 

[Semisane]

Yep. Call TC for sure. They will take care of you at no charge.

 

[Hntm]

Thanks again, will definitely contact TC. 'Nother question: a guy at the range said consistency is the key to accuracy with bp. I noticed that some loads were very difficult to push down the barrel while some went much more smoothly. Is this because my patches were lubed inadequately? I noticed this inconsistency and it seemed random, not dependent of the amount of dirt in the barrel.

 

[jethro224]

Could be several things.

Are your patches all lubed the same?

Are your balls all the same diameter? just because they all came from the same box doesn't necessarily mean they all mic out the same. Some companies are more consistent than others... Some moulds throw out of round balls... :idunno:

Did you wait longer between loading sometimes? The fouling absorbs moisture from the air. I have noticed the time between loading can sometimes make a difference in effort required. Also in how easy it is to wipe the pan clean.

 

[ohio ramrod]

Welcome to the forum. As my oldest son said:"Leave it to dad to find a hobby yhat takes you one hour to do and two hours to clean up after." :idunno: :idunno: It is a simple fact if youy want to have a good quality muzzle loader you must clean it! The most expensive guns can be ruined by lack of proper cleaning and oiling! :hmm:

 

[Hntm]

Not sure about the diameter/origin of the balls, will have to slap a caliper on them. Some of the patches were very 'wet' while others had much less lube...was using an OLD tube of bore butter, that had some tiny hard grains in it, guessing it was too old. And how much lube should a patch have? Also, should I be wiping the pan after each shot? Seems I have a lot to learn.

 

[jethro224]

Probably the inconsistent lube then.
Sounds like your bore butter may be separating. Maybe you could warm it up and re-mix it?

Different rifles like more or less lube. You'll figger it out.

I wipe my frizzen, flint, and pan after every shot. Others don't. :idunno: