Kibler SMR mysteries

[Sun City]

So I've been to the range 2x now with the newly finished 45 SMR. I had trouble with the trigger not wanting to set the front trigger. Pulled the trigger guard and readjust the screw and think I've got that covered now. Had trouble with the seeing the sights (I'm now 46 years old) and had a slight 45 cut in the brass and polished and man that helped.
My questions:
1. Safety- How far from your powder source is safe when shooting on the range?
2. Loads- I shot 50,55,and 60 grains of 3F goex with round balls and didnt see a huge difference.
3. Sights- The gun shoots 6 inches high with a dead on hold at 50 yards. The sights that came with the kit are relatively fixed. Any ideas besides holding low?
4. Consistent ignition - The first shots were crisp, fast and made that nice "crack". However as I shot I had every third shot or so sound like a "dud". It was weird. I did swab the barrel every 2-3 shots but I noticed a lot of fouling around the lock and on the flint itself with more shooting. How often do you knap the flint? Do you clean that area often? Other tips? I did clean out the touchhole pretty regularly.

Thanks in advance for the advice. I've hunted off and on with muzzleloaders for 15 years or so but its always been just a 1 month seasonal thing. After building this kit, I'm definitely more interested in improving my shooting and using the gun more. I'm primarily a deer hunter but I try to shoot pretty well. These inconsistent sounding shots were a mystery to me.

Take a 'finer' sight alignment aka put the top of the front sight farther down into the rear sight! Some rear sights have a V rear sight; others may have a square bottom horseshoe notch and may be flat across the top!

 

[Sun City]

Swab! Navy lingo! How about wipe!!

 

[IanH]

Swab! Navy lingo! How about wipe!!

"Wipe" is Hillary lingo, can we come up with a different term?

 

[user 61710]

Disclaimer, I am not a SMR expert, but I have 400+ balls through it.
I had the same trigger problem after 350 or so shots.. On a guess, I moved the screw until it did not set, then backed it off some (?) amount of turns. That seemed to fix it. I had no issues since then, maybe 50 rounds? Like you said it is a mystery, but somehow after it works again.
My flash hole area gets caked up in 15 rounds or so. I use 4F. At that dirt point I could have a flash and no bang. So I clean the flash hole area with a tooth brush, and poke the vent with a paper clip. That fixes it. I think the vent is a little low, but again I lack expertise. My flash pan is polished to help with cleaning.
For years I had misfires due to light swabbing cleaning. I quit swabbing, and reliability increased dramatically. I don't swab now, but I do blow down the barrel after every shot.
I had williams adjustable peeps drilled and tapped on the barrel. Factory sights were not really considered. I simple can't seem the factory sights well.
As far as powder, mine has a auto close valve, but I put it on a table behind the shooting bench.
I shoot 40 grains 3F goex for practice, and 70 grains to hunt whitetail.
I'll add 445 ball was better than 440. I use 445 and 0.015 prelubed patch.
My SMR is very reliable except for dirty flash hole, and the quirky trigger. I actually thought of calling Kibler, but somehow I have it working again. I wish i could get the set trigger to be heavier, it is pretty light for cold winter shooting. I have a single stage trigger on the woodsrunner, and it is probably 2 pounds and really great.
I run 5 or so patches with simple green and water followed by moosemilk patches at the range. I do the same at home, followed by a few balistrol patches. I toothbrush the lock with simple green and hot water.
I think my SMR is a crazy nice rifle, but it has the same "issues" you have stated.

Get taller sights that fit your eyesight in relation to your physical height and length of pull. People back then used much lower sights and for me at 6"5" my face lands farther up the stock requiring a taller rear sight than someone that is 5'7". Living outside of Anchorage Alaska, our humidity can be very low even though we are but a short distance from the ocean. I have had guns whose double set triggers would not work overtime, as you stated, or the lock refused to hold at half cock. Rifles sent to me from America, have wood often higher in moisture content and if builder inlets are at very close tolerances, the wood can shrink just enough to bind the triggers or sear bar. I have often had to remove a little wood that is contacting moving parts. Touch holes are factory made with a 1/16" hole. Drill yours out with a 3/16th bit and you will get rid of the old "flash in the pan" and 3FFF will not trickle from your barrel into the pan when loading. When deer hunting, for a faster reload without a short starter, experiment with a loading block, undersized ball and thicker patch. Example: In a fifty, I use a .460 or.463 ball and 10.5 oz denim precut and lubed patches, loading from a block with just the ramrod/wiping stick. Most quality jeans are made from 10.5 oz. denim. When your knees start showing, remove the worn parts of your pants and you have great patch material remaining. Remember, back in the day, short starters were not used. I did a study a number of years back and brain tanned deer with the proper sized ball is the very best because of how the leather compresses and exits the barrel under pressure. Got the idea from Lewis and Clark.

 

[jtkerk]

The williams sight are drilled and tapped in the barrel. I added a Merit adjustable aperture so the peep hole is variable for a crisp sighting picture. The aperture is easy to adjust for light conditions. It closes to almost nothing to huge.

I’ve never heard of Merit adjustable peep. Where can that be purchased?

 

[painter]

I’ve never heard of Merit adjustable peep. Where can that be purchased?

https://www.meritcorporation.com/index-2.html

 

[Sam squanch]

Get taller sights that fit your eyesight in relation to your physical height and length of pull. People back then used much lower sights and for me at 6"5" my face lands farther up the stock requiring a taller rear sight than someone that is 5'7". Living outside of Anchorage Alaska, our humidity can be very low even though we are but a short distance from the ocean. I have had guns whose double set triggers would not work overtime, as you stated, or the lock refused to hold at half cock. Rifles sent to me from America, have wood often higher in moisture content and if builder inlets are at very close tolerances, the wood can shrink just enough to bind the triggers or sear bar. I have often had to remove a little wood that is contacting moving parts. Touch holes are factory made with a 1/16" hole. Drill yours out with a 3/16th bit and you will get rid of the old "flash in the pan" and 3FFF will not trickle from your barrel into the pan when loading. When deer hunting, for a faster reload without a short starter, experiment with a loading block, undersized ball and thicker patch. Example: In a fifty, I use a .460 or.463 ball and 10.5 oz denim precut and lubed patches, loading from a block with just the ramrod/wiping stick. Most quality jeans are made from 10.5 oz. denim. When your knees start showing, remove the worn parts of your pants and you have great patch material remaining. Remember, back in the day, short starters were not used. I did a study a number of years back and brain tanned deer with the proper sized ball is the very best because of how the leather compresses and exits the barrel under pressure. Got the idea from Lewis and Clark.

I’ve been saying this for years. What frontiersman would patch his ball with hard to get expensive linen when tanned deer hides were everywhere. Seals the bore and the leather is heavy enough to avoid burning out and ruining the gas tight seal.

 

[TerryK]

I think I fixed my trigger. The silver side spring was hanging up on the trigger frame. The trigger frame had a "lip/burr" at the top of the spring travel. The spring would grab and chatter up that lip. Sometimes it would stick. So i lightly filed off the burr and sanded with 1000X wet/dry sand paper. Now it works smooth. Pretty amazing that little extra metal, and probably compression of the stock made it so wonky. I shot it about 60 times since the fix, and it feels and operates great.
I can't say this is the original posters issue, but it was my issue for sure. Good luck.

 

[jtkerk]

https://www.meritcorporation.com/index-2.html

Thanks so much. I’ve got aging eyes might have to go to one at sometime

 

[reddogge]

Touch holes are factory made with a 1/16" hole. Drill yours out with a 3/16th bit and you will get rid of the old "flash in the pan" and 3FFF will not trickle from your barrel into the pan when loading.

3/16" touch hole? A bit large. Perhaps you meant 3/32".

 

[jtkerk]

Disclaimer, I am not a SMR expert, but I have 400+ balls through it.
I had the same trigger problem after 350 or so shots.. On a guess, I moved the screw until it did not set, then backed it off some (?) amount of turns. That seemed to fix it. I had no issues since then, maybe 50 rounds? Like you said it is a mystery, but somehow after it works again.
My flash hole area gets caked up in 15 rounds or so. I use 4F. At that dirt point I could have a flash and no bang. So I clean the flash hole area with a tooth brush, and poke the vent with a paper clip. That fixes it. I think the vent is a little low, but again I lack expertise. My flash pan is polished to help with cleaning.
For years I had misfires due to light swabbing cleaning. I quit swabbing, and reliability increased dramatically. I don't swab now, but I do blow down the barrel after every shot.
I had williams adjustable peeps drilled and tapped on the barrel. Factory sights were not really considered. I simple can't seem the factory sights well.
As far as powder, mine has a auto close valve, but I put it on a table behind the shooting bench.
I shoot 40 grains 3F goex for practice, and 70 grains to hunt whitetail.
I'll add 445 ball was better than 440. I use 445 and 0.015 prelubed patch.
My SMR is very reliable except for dirty flash hole, and the quirky trigger. I actually thought of calling Kibler, but somehow I have it working again. I wish i could get the set trigger to be heavier, it is pretty light for cold winter shooting. I have a single stage trigger on the woodsrunner, and it is probably 2 pounds and really great.
I run 5 or so patches with simple green and water followed by moosemilk patches at the range. I do the same at home, followed by a few balistrol patches. I toothbrush the lock with simple green and hot water.
I think my SMR is a crazy nice rifle, but it has the same "issues" you have stated.

You can always shoot it without setting trigger will give you a harder pull

 

[user 61710]

3/16" touch hole? A bit large. Perhaps you meant 3/32".

Yes, I did, I meant 3/32". Thanks for the correction.

 

[Mike in FL]

Disclaimer, I am not a SMR expert, but I have 400+ balls through it.
I had the same trigger problem after 350 or so shots.. On a guess, I moved the screw until it did not set, then backed it off some (?) amount of turns. That seemed to fix it. I had no issues since then, maybe 50 rounds? Like you said it is a mystery, but somehow after it works again.
My flash hole area gets caked up in 15 rounds or so. I use 4F. At that dirt point I could have a flash and no bang. So I clean the flash hole area with a tooth brush, and poke the vent with a paper clip. That fixes it. I think the vent is a little low, but again I lack expertise. My flash pan is polished to help with cleaning.
For years I had misfires due to light swabbing cleaning. I quit swabbing, and reliability increased dramatically. I don't swab now, but I do blow down the barrel after every shot.
I had williams adjustable peeps drilled and tapped on the barrel. Factory sights were not really considered. I simple can't seem the factory sights well.
As far as powder, mine has a auto close valve, but I put it on a table behind the shooting bench.
I shoot 40 grains 3F goex for practice, and 70 grains to hunt whitetail.
I'll add 445 ball was better than 440. I use 445 and 0.015 prelubed patch.
My SMR is very reliable except for dirty flash hole, and the quirky trigger. I actually thought of calling Kibler, but somehow I have it working again. I wish i could get the set trigger to be heavier, it is pretty light for cold winter shooting. I have a single stage trigger on the woodsrunner, and it is probably 2 pounds and really great.
I run 5 or so patches with simple green and water followed by moosemilk patches at the range. I do the same at home, followed by a few balistrol patches. I toothbrush the lock with simple green and hot water.
I think my SMR is a crazy nice rifle, but it has the same "issues" you have stated.

By

 

[reddogge]

Have cataract surgery. After mine, at age 80 I can see iron sights and targets at 100 yards like an eagle. I'm also the only one in the old man's golf group that can see all of the balls in flight.

 

[Mike in FL]

Just me, but I don't find anything good about a less than clean rifle. People say they get.

By

Accidental reply.

Have cataract surgery. After mine, at age 80 I can see iron sights and targets at 100 yards like an eagle. I'm also the only one in the old man's golf group that can see all of the balls in flight.

You are very fortunate in that regard. I'm 76. I got out of this grand sport when I stop being able to see the sights clearly. I couldn't bring myself to buy and install a tang sight, which would remove the authenticity of nice period rifles. For 11 years I didn't shoot muzzleloaders. The answer was there all the time but I couldn't see it. (Unintentional pun there.) Then I discovered cheap and weak reading glasses. Now my sights are crystal clear albeit the target is ever so slightly fuzzy, but not enough to prevent me seeing the center of a bullseye or the noggin of a squirrel. So now I'm back full force into the wonderous world of the 1750s wilderness.