I am an idiot. Frustrated to the point of wanting to quit.

[maillemaker]

As to the trying 3 different Powders, the three powders I was talking about were , 1 Goex FFg.... when I was in college my fraternity had a cannon that we would dry fire at home football games, and I brought it home and shot i a few times at a pig roast we had at the farm, when I did I had about four pounds left over.... The can had never been opened until recently and in the 10 years since it was purchased it has been stored in a dehumidified gunsafe so I assumed it would be fine, I dont know if the age has anything to do with it.... I also thought that maybe it was too course to prime with so I ground smaller amounts of it in a mortar and pestle to a finer grade to use for priming but that didnt help.
I also tried using Hogdon Pyrodex Muzzleloading propellant "P The FFFFg Equivalent", but was advised by someone in the club I am in that it wasnt what I wanted for a flint gun.... that it would be good for a cap gun but not flint
And the third powder i tried was some either FFFg or FFFFg (not sure which) that another club member gave me when I was having trouble and I said I wasnt sure if my powder was suspect or not. It worked fine in his gun that day but I only had about a medicine bottles worth and it did shoot some with the gifted powder but not perfectly.

As you were told, black powder substitutes are not idea for flintlocks. The reason is that Pyrodex has a higher ignition temperature than real black powder. So, it's harder to get it to go off with a spark.

While 4F or 3F may result in a quicker ignition, you can prime with 2F all day long. I do it with my Brown Bess where I am priming with the main charge as it all comes out of the same cartridge, just as it did in period.

Unless there is some reason to remove the touch hole liner, such as to replace it, it shouldn't be removed regularly. It is hard to tell from your pictures, but the threads appeared chewed to snot so I would recommend chasing them with the proper sized tap and making sure you have good threads before you re-install the liner. Last thing you want is to launch the liner out the side of the gun into someone.

I agree with others that the very first thing that needs to be done is a rigorous cleaning. There is clearly junk in that bore/breech. I don't know if your gun has one, but some guns have a "patent breech". This is where the bore gets smaller at the breech. What this means is your regular cleaning patch may not go all the way down to the bottom in that small patent breech chamber. You'll need a smaller tool to get down in there.

This thread seems to indicate you probably have a patent breech:

https://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/threads/patent-breech-in-investarms-cabelas-lyman-etc.88040/

Cleaning patent breeches can be a pain in the butt.

I recommend putting that breech end of the barrel in your utility sink or a 5 gallon bucket of warm soapy water and piston the heck out of it with a cleaning rod and a patch. That thing should be spotless. When you look in that hole with a flashlight all you should see is nice, shiny metal.

But eventually, you may get hard fouling in the breech and you'll need some kind of breech scraping tool to get down in there to remove it if water pumping does not do it for you.

You might wish to invest in a CO2 "ball puller". Generally much easier to use than a screw-type ball puller. You can buy CO2 cartridges in bulk off of Amazon.

Here is an example: https://www.3riversarchery.com/bid-co2-muzzleloader-discharge-kit.html

 

[maillemaker]

should you have a static charge......BOOM!!.

Here is a video of trying to set off black powder using a stun gun:

 

[ronaldrothb49]

OK guys the OP has contacted me and we will be making arrangements for him to bring the rifle to my shop. PLEASE don't make anymore suggestions until I can get the rifle in my hands.

 

[Terrier]

wrong thread.

 

[Mike in FL]

Quit yelling!

All caps ought to be illegal. Distracting and rude.

Quit yelling!

 

[sturmkatze]

When you pour in the powder you rap the side of the barrel and powder should be right at the touchhole. If it doesn't then your patent breech is gobbed off.

Bob

Exactly the opposite. You want your priming powder away from the touch hole so that it “flashes” through and doesn’t burn like a fuse. Don’t use a lot of priming powder either.

 

[sturmkatze]

GOOD SUGGESTIONS BY OUR FLINT BROTHERS. I WANT TO ASK YOU TO NOT USE A BRONZE BRUSH TO CLEAN YOUR BORE. THANKS!

Ed, on the internet, it is considered to be yelling when you use all caps. It’s hard to read.

 

[mikesto44]

Only time I'm concerned with yelling, is when I can hear the wife ...LOL

 

[Tomahawk Taxidermy]

yeah the information overload is a bit overwhelming ... I dont really know anyone personally who shoots traditional BP.... I just always thought it looked cool so I bought one and decided Id figure i out as I went. I did join a club but have only been to two of their monthly shoots, I hate to really ask a lot of questions and get help during the shoots because everyone else there is there to participate in the shoot, they didnt come just to miss out and work on some charity cases gun. I am just trying to figure all this stuff out.

 

[Hermit Tim]

yeah the information overload is a bit overwhelming ... I dont really know anyone personally who shoots traditional BP.... I just always thought it looked cool so I bought one and decided Id figure i out as I went. I did join a club but have only been to two of their monthly shoots, I hate to really ask a lot of questions and get help during the shoots because everyone else there is there to participate in the shoot, they didnt come just to miss out and work on some charity cases gun. I am just trying to figure all this stuff out.

The black powder community is one of the best groups of people around. No matter where you are. If you ask some of those guys at your club I'm sure some of them would be glad to give you some help and pointers after the shoot. You won't find a more helpful group than a bunch of buckskinners and wannabe mountain men.

 

[ChuckJonesWagon]

Oh give us a break
How many times does this static charge BS need to be debunked before people will stop posting this dung?

I think it was debunked right after I posted it. So the point of your additional post is to what?

 

[French Colonial]

GOOD SUGGESTIONS BY OUR FLINT BROTHERS. I WANT TO ASK YOU TO NOT USE A BRONZE BRUSH TO CLEAN YOUR BORE. THANKS!

I do not do it very often and it is usually not needed but at times I do use a bore brush, either start moving it up and down when it is about halfway in or start twisting it when it is about halfway in and you will not have a problem.

You get the bristles so they lay over when you start and no problem.

I picked up a Dixie Tennessee Mountain rifle early this spring that had not been shot in a couple of decades, did the usual cleaning and then bore brushed it for quite some time, then regular cleaning again. Turned out the inside of the barrel is in really good shape, won the last match I shot in with it.

 

[longcruise]

I sometimes use a bore brush and do as @French Colonial advises with no problems. Also note that there are nylon bristled brushes out there that are more forgiving.

 

[Grenadier1758]

Oh give us a break
How many times does this static charge BS need to be debunked before people will stop posting this dung?

The static charge misinformation had been debunked before I first started posting on this Forum. It will have to continue to be debunked as long as this Forum exists and as long as flour mills blow up because of a "static" charge setting off an explosion.

 

[SDSmlf]

Dude,

I don't spend my life on the internet.

For stuck balls, I've read where shooters use a CO2 discharge kit. It's not recommended to use an air compressor as you are "compressing" more oxygen into the barrel and should you have a static charge......BOOM!!.

Interesting. Please post the reference where you read this.

 

[R Ellis]

All caps ought to be illegal. Distracting and rude.

I do not see it as rude or distracting and have no problem with caps so lighten up folks

 

[Mike in FL]

I do not see it as rude or distracting and have no problem with caps so lighten up folks

Lighten up because it doesn't bother you. Oh, okay.

 

[hanshi]

Three different powders? BP substitutes? Real black powder is the only powder for use in flint guns. Otherwise it sounds like Nit Wit is the go to person on the forum.

The first rule of flintlock shooting.

 

[Tomahawk Taxidermy]

The first rule of flintlock shooting.

I used 1 bp substitute but the others i meant different grades/sources

 

[TarponStalker]

We have so many arguments going on here that I forgot what the original thread was about.