Shooting sporting clays with muzzleloader

[Onojutta]

Do you shoot modern sporting clays with muzzleloader? I would never show up at my local club for 5-stand trap night with muzzleloader because reloading on the line while everyone waits would be an obvious issue, but at the sporting clay course where you go at your own pace it might be possible to find time to reload without holding everyone else up on a not-so-crowded day. But does a 20 gauge fowler with no choke lend itself to any success at modern sporting clays? Certainly not looking to be competitive with the CF guys, but it would be nice to get it some practice for hunting. Just curious if this is something others do, or if front-stuffers should be reserved for blackpowder only events. Thanks.

 

[Feltwad]

Most sporting clay layouts do not allow muzzle loaders on the site it is best if a few fellow shooters get together in an open space of some field with a trap and some clays ,This method if using a electric trap can give you all types of game shots from going away birds to high driven
Feltwad

 

[Griz44Mag]

Agreed with Feltwad.
Find a range where they have really slow days and set up on a trap field. If you take a couple of friends with you the range can stay busier than a solo shooter taking up a station. That would encourage the range to allow muzzleloaders more readily.
That sounds like a lot of fun and a great way to spend a few hours making white smoke.

 

[fleener]

Come to Friendship IN at the National Muzzle Loading Rifle Association and you will find all sorts of things you can shoot with your shotgun, and slow loading is a way of life, not an obstacle.

Fleener

 

[Rifleman1776]

I have done it. Using a 20 ga. flint fowler. And I hit some. I'm not the best shotgunner but did have fun.

 

[RP3543]

IMO, traditional Skeet works best with muzzle loaders. We shoot a singles-only round then do a round of doubles.
If your group has folks that are experienced at reloading, it only takes a minute or two to be ready
for the next station.

 

[Lorne Johnson]

I shoot skeet and five stand regularly spring summer and fall. I'm the only muzzleloader involved. Skeet I shoot two shots each station and can keep up with most squads of 5. 5 stand, not so much,with a good squad, but since I manage set-up, take down, and the bulk of pulling and scoring, folks are pretty good about putting up with me. Since I set the targets, there aren't many long one's. I've use 20 gauge, 14, 12, and 10, usually about 3/4 to 7/8 ounce of 8.5 shot, or 7/8ths of 8 under duress. My best rounds of 5 stand have been 19/25, and I've shot 15/16 at skeet, but not recently. I think that I've been accepted because I've been shooting with people I already knew and get along with.

So, yes, it's doable in low key groups.

 

[Capt. Jas.]

We used to have a small clays range nearby that specialized in presentations that were more compatible with hunting shots. You went by appointment and a fellow went around with you to pull the traps as they were manual traps. Beautiful set up with good presentations.. It was never too crowded and laid back. It worked best with a muzzleloader to view a pair and the shoot the pair and move to the next presentation instead of reloading multiple times to shoot sets.. Most clays courses today are set up for the competitor with "can you hit this" targets. The closer shots can be had with a cylinder bore muzzleloader but the venue is not set up for the muzzleloader nor is it cost effective to the owner or convenient for the other paying clientele.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Do you shoot modern sporting clays with muzzleloader?

I have, and I've hunted birds "European Stand" style beside modern breech loaders.
You are right..., the loading process can be very slow and irritate the modern shooters. So the solution is to get faster by simplifying the process.

I make preloaded, paper cartridges.

I go to the Dollar Store, and buy a book with good paper, and I buy that day's newspaper. THEN I make paper cartridges out of the book-paper to hold my powder charge, and out of the newsprint to hold my shot charge. I also have a "capping tool" that holds caps and allows me to apply a new cap to the nipple on each barrel of my SxS in short order.

So..., I take my shotgunning bag, which has two internal pockets, and I take out a powder cartridge, tear pour, and then I ram down the now empty, book-paper cartridge on top of the powder to form a wad. Then I remove a shot cartridge, holding an ounce of #6 shot, and gently push that down to rest on the newly formed wad of book-paper. Finish by capping the nipple and ensuring the hammers correct, and I'm ready to shoot.

No worries that the newsprint will interfere with the shot groupings.

It's a very quick process, but as everything is premeasured, as long as the cartridges are a proper size to fit into the muzzles, there is very little chance for an error.

LD

 

[Many Klatch]

I saw a guy who mounted a modern shotshell reloader on an old two wheel golf cart. He could reload his double barrel shotgun fast enough to keep up with the Skeet crowd