Loading technique for hunting

[awreis]

So this will be my first year deer hunting with my flintlock. It has a chambered breech so for reliability, I always plug the touch hole and pour a little alcohol down the barrel to flush any oil out. My plan was, load the powder, use a dry patch over the powder to avoid the lubed patch (TOW mink oil) from fowling the powder then, load patched round ball.

1- Should I be worried about possible rust in the barrel after cleaning with alcohol or would the lubed patch be enough to avoid this?

2- if I need to worry , could I use a slightly oiled patch a swab the barrel after loading for temporary rust prevention?

3- Am I over thinking all of this?

The rifle could be loaded for upto a week before being fired.

 

[2 shots]

#3

 

[Newly O’Brian]

Congratulations on making the commitment to hunt w a mzldr!

First, just relax and enjoy the hunt.

Swab your bore w one dry patch, no need for alcohol.

DON'T change your pet load, there's not enough lube on a patch to contaminate your powder charge.

Leave your mzldr outside/cold for the hunting season to prevent condensation.

 

[Buff1958]

forget the oil…….

clean your rifle and run a patch with bear grease . When you get ready to hunt run another bear grease patch and load. The bear grease will not eat your powder or rust your barrel.

 

[RobertIN]

I use @Frontier's bear paws lube on my hunting patches.

 

[Grenadier1758]

Since @awreis is using an oiled patch for loading, there will be some oil on the bore that will provide protection from rust. One can always put a small balloon over the muzzle after loading to prevent rain getting in the bore. After the alcohol rinse, use a small pipe cleaner or dental floss brush to dry the flash channel. And, yes, awreis is overthinking all this preparation.

 

[Flint62Smoothie]

No need for anything between the powder and TOW mink oiled patch, it won't contaminate the powder.

FWIW one friend leaves his unfired MZL from either the late Nov VT or early New Year PA deer season loaded until the MZL Biathlon held up in VT in mid-February. Every year, he takes it out to the practice range and it fires swift & sure and he nails the small gong, whether that charge was in there for many weeks or months ...

Since he's been doing that for the 15+ years we first hunted PA together ... so I'd say that's a pretty good 'real world' test!

 

[mrd]

Forget the alcohol as it's water base and oil doesn't mix with water. Run a dry patch down it to remove any oil, pour your powder down and top that with a lubed patch and ball, and you're good to go.

 

[Grenadier1758]

Sorry, @mrd, alcohol and oil are miscible which means that they do mix which is why you use a patch dampened with alcohol to remove oil from the barrel.

Yes, rubbing alcohol will have water mixed with the alcohol, but that does not stop the alcohol from mixing with the oil or displacing water left in the barrel after cleaning.

 

[mrd]

Sorry, @mrd, alcohol and oil are miscible which means that they do mix which is why you use a patch dampened with alcohol to remove oil from the barrel.

Yes, rubbing alcohol will have water mixed with the alcohol, but that does not stop the alcohol from mixing with the oil or displacing water left in the barrel after cleaning.

You know what you're right. jumped the gun there.

 

[J.D.]

Soak your patching in a Ballistol rich mixture, of about 50-50 mix of ballistol and water until they are soaked through. Let those patches dry for a few days, and your all set. The "dry" patches will have a coating of ballistol, which will provide all of the lubrication necessary for a hunting load that will not contaminate your powder.

 

[Flint62Smoothie]

Soak your patching in a Ballistol rich mixture, of about 50-50 mix of ballistol and water until they are soaked through. Let those patches dry for a few days, and your all set. The "dry" patches will have a coating of ballistol, which will provide all of the lubrication necessary for a hunting load that will not contaminate your powder.

That works too, just be aware that it will lose its lubricity in weeks to a month or so - all depends on storage conditions - unlike the TOW mink oil that will not lose it (at least up to 2-months from our actual use/testing, as per a post further up).

 

[smoothshooter]

Since @awreis is using an oiled patch for loading, there will be some oil on the bore that will provide protection from rust. One can always put a small balloon over the muzzle after loading to prevent rain getting in the bore. After the alcohol rinse, use a small pipe cleaner or dental floss brush to dry the flash channel. And, yes, awreis is overthinking all this preparation.

Tape over the muzzle works as good as a balloon and won’t interfere with your sight picture if you need to fire quickly.

 

[smoothshooter]

Forget the alcohol as it's water base and oil doesn't mix with water. Run a dry patch down it to remove any oil, pour your powder down and top that with a lubed patch and ball, and you're good to go.

I use 70% isopropyl alcohol to get oil out of the bore. Everything evaporates in a minute or less.

 

[brazosland]

I use alcohol to wipe the bore, then load.

I use a non-petroleum based oil as a bore protection, so I don’t think it really matters, but it makes me feel better.

I lube my patches with Track’s Mink Oil. Again, not really required, but before I load a hunting load I run a patch with mink oil down the bore as a protective and to lube it a bit after the alcohol wipe.

Now I leave my guns loaded until they get fired unless I have been out in the rain. Deer season in Texas lasts two and a half months…so they may be loaded a while since I have 3-5 guns that I hunt with depending on my mood.

The one thing I do that I can completely recommend is using a paperwasp nest over the powder and under the patched ball. It protects the patch from the burning powder and I see better patches and better accuracy because of it.

As always, YMMV.

 

[SeaBee133]

Patch, healthy bead of T17, ball, pull sides of patch over ball, wrap end with thread. Looks like a smurf blue dumpling. Loads easy, shoots clean. Accuracy was decent at 60yds over 90gr of 3F Swiss and 90gr of 3F Triple 7. Minute of 1qt Powerade bottle.
I use dry rotted thread, shoots like a normal prb, but I can carry 15-20 ready to use in a little plastic box in my pocket.
YRMV

 

[Stykbow]

FWIW one friend leaves his unfired MZL from either the late Nov VT or early New Year PA deer season loaded until the MZL Biathlon held up in VT in mid-February. Every year, he takes it out to the practice range and it fires swift & sure and he nails the small gong, whether that charge was in there for many weeks or months ...

Since he's been doing that for the 15+ years we first hunted PA together ... so I'd say that's a pretty good 'real world' test!

I leave mine loaded for months at a time, sometimes close to a year if I’ve been too busy to shoot. I have the same results as your friend.

 

[morehops52]

Enough of oil, alcohol, jello shots etc. all valid and answers your ?? BUT Consider weather and humidity. I have no problem leaving a cap lock loaded forever and know it will fire. I live in W PA and humidity is a major factor in many things but has shown up in my flintlocks in deer season. You haven't lived until the deer you've been waiting for for hours shows up and upon the pan flash you get.... nothing more... or a fffffffsssst BANG! The first instance was a flash in the pan on a very reliable flinter. The second was ignition after about a 3/4 second fuse delay. Both problems corrected by firing off this days load and reloading next day. Remember to change your pan powder about every half hour or so or if damp out use 3F in the pan instead of 4F. good luck.

 

[Newly O’Brian]

Patch, healthy bead of T17, ball, pull sides of patch over ball, wrap end with thread. Looks like a smurf blue dumpling. Loads easy, shoots clean. Accuracy was decent at 60yds over 90gr of 3F Swiss and 90gr of 3F Triple 7. Minute of 1qt Powerade bottle.
I use dry rotted thread, shoots like a normal prb, but I can carry 15-20 ready to use in a little plastic box in my pocket.
YRMV

@Seebee133

Could you share pictures?

 

[Rifleman1776]

Not saying previous suggestions are wrong. But, my technique which I used for many decades proved reliable for me. Before loading I would squirt some carburetor cleaner into the touch hole then swab the bore to make sure it was clean and dry. Then I would load normally with my hunting charge and using a natural lube on the patch. Due to a serious event in the family I once had to miss a hunting season. When fired after two years it went bang just fine.