Powder fouling

[robinghewitt]

At a clay shoot on Sunday and my percussion gun started to misfire on the right. I had to pull the nipple and trickle some powder down behind the load to make it light. This happened twice before I gave up.
When I got it home I dropped a camera down before and after cleaning...

Maybe I got the wrong powder, I don't usually get this.

 

[Britsmoothy]

Good photos.
Very dirty indeed!

 

[Rifleman1776]

Puzzling pic. Looks like rifling in that 'smoothie'. Lot of gunk at the bottom. Bore looks very-very rough. Are you swabbing between shots? Normally, my experience, which is much less than many with smoothies, is swabbing is not necessary. The wads scrape away detrius and it gets shot out next round. If you are swabbing, I'll surmise your jag is too large and is showing gunk down the bore into the breech. Reduce the size of your jag, do not swab between shots. And if you are using wet wads, squeeze them to just damp.

 

[Dr5x]

At a clay shoot on Sunday and my percussion gun started to misfire on the right. I had to pull the nipple and trickle some powder down behind the load to make it light. This happened twice before I gave up.
When I got it home I dropped a camera down before and after cleaning...

Maybe I got the wrong powder, I don't usually get this.

ROBI,
WHAT YOU DESCRIBE WOULD INDICATE THAT WHEN FIRING THE GUN THE BACK PRESSURE WHICH ORDINARILY WILL BLOW GASES AND RESIDUE OUT OF THE NIPLE IS BEING PREVENTED A WAY OUT BY THE HAMMER HOLDING THE CAP OVER THE NIPPLE OPENING.

I STRONGLY RECOMMEND THE HOT SHOT NIPPLE WHICH DOES ALLOW SOME OF THAT manure AN OPENING AND WHICH TENDS TO KEEP THE IGNITION CHANNEL OPEN FOR THE NEXT SHOT.

DUTCH

,

 

[robinghewitt]

Hi Dutch, I haven't cleaned the nipples yet but there is one black one and one white one. Both got exactly the same load and shot count. However only one of them got pulled and had priming powder poured down under it. I presume that is the difference. One of the nipples is 180 years old, the other is about 5 years old. I doubt it would take a modern nipple without hurt.
Robin

 

[Historian]

What type of powder are you also shooting? Just curious.

 

[robinghewitt]

What type of powder are you also shooting? Just curious.

Tricky question. I have to keep my powder in a plywood case in the garage and the tubs get muddled up. I think it is probably Swiss #2.

 

[Feltwad]

I cannot understand why muzzle loading shot gun shooters get misfires for me it is a rare thing and I shoot up too a 100 shots in one outing .I always load with the hammers down with only card wads , I do not swab between shots I find that a gun shoots better when coked and if wads become difficult to ram home a bit of spittle in the bore will help. For cleaning I use hot soapy water I never take out the nipple s because doing this regular can damage the threads I dry the bore with paper towel on a jag and then oil the bore
Feltwad

 

[Dr5x]

ROBIN,
THE TWO NIPPLES PICTURED SEEM DIFFERENT, ONE IS HORTER THAN THE OTHER.

I ASSUME THE THEY BOTH ARE BOTH THE SAME AS FAR AS SCREWING INTO THE GUN IS CONCERNRNED.
ALL OF MY NIPPLE EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN LIMITED TO THE HOT SHOT NIPPLE WHICH HAS A TRANSVERSE HOLE DRILLED THROUGH IT WHICH EVEN WHEN THE HAMMER IS HOLDING THE CAP TIGHTLY ON TO THE NIPPLE ALLOWS ENOUGH OF THE BACK PRESSURE FROM THE EXPLOSION TO BLOW THE IGNITION CHANNEL CLEAR OF REIDUE RATHER CAPTURE IT ALL TO PLUG THAT IGNITION CHANNEL.

I DOUBT WHETHER THE HOT SHOT NIPPLES WOULD FIT THAT VERY OLD SMOOTHBORE.





I TRUST THAT ALL IS OTHERWISE WELL IN SUSSEX.

DUTCH SCHOULTZ

Hi Dutch, I haven't cleaned the nipples yet but there is one black one and one white one. Both got exactly the same load and shot count. However only one of them got pulled and had priming powder poured down under it. I presume that is the difference. One of the nipples is 180 years old, the other is about 5 years old. I doubt it would take a modern nipple without hurt.
Robin

 

[robinghewitt]

I DOUBT WHETHER THE HOT SHOT NIPPLES WOULD FIT THAT VERY OLD SMOOTHBORE.

I TRUST THAT ALL IS OTHERWISE WELL IN SUSSEX.

Hi Dutch

I live in a very pleasant corner of Sussex and it is always well here, hope all is well where you are. OTOH I keep getting messages from Muzzle Al which is odd because I am fairly sure he is dead. Spooky!

I made the replacement nipple with a slightly wider flange so I could tell them apart.

Are these two hot shots? They screw in two and a quarter turns then stop. Don't think I want to force it

best

Robin

 

[Rifleman1776]

I keep getting messages from Muzzle Al which is odd because I am fairly sure he is dead.

Haven't heard mention of Muzzle Al for a long time. He was an active member of the now defunct Yahoo ml discussion group. Going off-topic here. He frequently invited me to visit him in Florida. He said he would give me a rifle from his collection if I visited him. If circumstances had allowed I would have visited but not just for the rifle. Wherever he is now, I'm sure he is happy.

 

[robinghewitt]

Life never seemed to do Al any favours but he always came back smiling. I bought a Hall Mod 1819 flint rifle off him and he had enormous difficulty getting it out of the country. Would have been easier shipping yellow cake uranium. But Al kept on trying and I have the gun here to prove it. I liked Al Lehman, he was fun. Did you get his email dissertations?

 

[Dr5x]

The Hot Shot nipple has a hole drilled from side to side on the neck of the nipple below wheretheexpended cap would reach. It allows gases and some crud to escape as a result the back pressure of the gun'explosion.
Fouling generally can best be removed with the controversial quick wipe with a damp patch after each shot.

Dutch

Hi Dutch

I live in a very pleasant corner of Sussex and it is always well here, hope all is well where you are. OTOH I keep getting messages from Muzzle Al which is odd because I am fairly sure he is dead. Spooky!

I made the replacement nipple with a slightly wider flange so I could tell them apart.

Are these two hot shots? They screw in two and a quarter turns then stop. Don't think I want to force it

best

Robin