Shooting without wiping

[jamesthomas]

I was wondering about you folks that say you can shoot all day wiping. What kind of grooves does your rifle have? I have square grooves on mine and there is no way I can shoot more than 5 times without wiping my bore. I'm using Hoppes No. 9 plus (a good amount), .015 ticking (.018 has the same result) and a .395 ball in my .40 cal. I'm thinking it may be that you folks have radius groove rifling that allows for less wiping. So let us folks know what you have and your set up. It might help some of us less enlightened people, and cut down on the amount of material used to wipe(swab) our barrels out during a day of shooting. Thanks.

 

[crockett]

I think 5 is about average. I am assuming you shoot, then pour the new charge, then ram down the PRB.
Try this instead: Shoot, then pour the charge, THEN a wad, then a PRB. The wad ought to push down some of the fouling which makes seating the PRB easier and the wad ought to take out fouling while being shot. See if it makes a difference.

 

[roundball]

That's interesting...especially where you live with what I suspect to be pretty high humidity.
IMO a few things enter into the situation:
1) How soft the residue stays after a shot;
2) Type & amount of powder;
3) Type and amount of lube;
4) Weather / humidity

While I always wipe / recondition the bore for every shot when doing load development or sighting-in for hunting so each shot will be exactly like a first hunting shot...my normal year round range trips for fun/plinking/practice, etc, I shoot 30-40-50 shots without wiping between them using Goex 3F for range work like that.
Late spring into early fall, the humidity is high enough here that I use regular Oxyoke patches prelubed with Natural Lube 1000. When conditions get drier during the cold winter months I switch to Hoppes + BP for patch lube, squeezing 2-3 squirts into a bag of patches.

Have done this a number of years with several calibers using T/C's shallow groove barrels, T/C's deep cut round ball barrels, GM's deep cut round ball barrels, and in recent years some GM and Rice round bottom groove barrels...works the same in all of them...ie: my moist often used range plinker is a .40cal GM square groove barrel, .018" patch, .395" ball.
You might try a thicker / tighter fitting patch.

For me, the key is a combination of components and/or weather that will keep the bore wet enough / fouling soft enough, so that each next tight fitting PRB seated down wipes the bore walls clean of the preceding single shots worth of fouling...never builds up past one shots worth of fouling.

 

[Rifleman1776]

In honor of your Baby Doll, I'll refrain from pitching in on this :stir: :stir: :stir: subject. :v :surrender: :surrender:

 

[gard72977]

I shot without wiping. I use a sloppy wet patch. I sure there is some loss in accuracy and velocity from getting the powder damp. I shoot a lot of woods walks and have gone to the same method for all my shooting to help improve my woods walk scores.

Key is a sloppy wet patch and liquid lube.

I have done this with several guns all square grove and deep rifling.

 

[coloradoclyde]

I use to shoot pyrodex P and use spit for lube on a .015 patch in my 45 and I could shoot all day.
Now I use 3fff and beewax/olive oil and wipe after every shot....but the gun is a whole lot easier to clean. I use to hate swabbing after shots..but now I don't mind so much.

 

[Trot]

I never touch the bore until I take the gun home and clean it. My present rifle has a Long hammock barrel, square bottom grooves. I use ballistol for lube .490 ball and .020 patch. I also have Lyman, CVA, Investarms and various others and don't wipe the bore in any of them.

 

[coloradoclyde]

Just curious....but what powder are you using and how many shots in a day?

 

[azmntman]

I started wiping per the Dutch system, as per prior posts I am now used to it, takes just 30 seconds. Prior to that I would shoot all day with Hoppes #9 plus as patch lube. Hoppes works with pyrodex, 777 and Goex equally as well.

 

[azmntman]

...except in my .32 crocket which has always required swipe in between shots no matter what the load combo

 

[AZbpBurner]

Wiping depends on the particular rifle I'm shooting. One of my .50 cal's can go 5 or more rounds before wiping is needed, while I wipe all my .54 cal's after every round or 2.

 

[jamesthomas]

My patch is tight enough that it forms a ring around my barrel with lube, and the charge is .40 grains of 3fff KIK. I believe it may be the KIK as it seems to leave a hard dry ring of fouling after 3 shots or so. Oh yea, and it took 20 patches to get her clean last night :shake: . I have some 2ff Olde Ensford I use in my .50, I might try it just to see how the fouling is with it and if its not as bad I'll include some 3fff on my next powder order.

 

[hanshi]

This is always an interesting subject because those who MUST wipe frequently, seem to feel that in all the world only they must wipe in order to load the next shot. Let me assure everyone that such is not the case.

I own both radius groove and square groove barrels and they behave exactly the same loading and shooting; round bottom does clean up a little easier, however. I use either Goex or Jacks Battle Powder. I usually shoot three to four dozen shots at each range session and rarely need to wipe before I pack up to go home. I much prefer spending my time loading and shooting than wiping. The chronograph shows that (not wiping) has no affect on velocities and the targets show that accuracy does not deteriorate. I've found that Hoppes #9 Plus BP lube, spit patch and Black Solve all three allow continuous shooting without wiping. My favorite is Hoppes as both Black Solve and spit patch dry out quickly and I dry out even sooner. Basically three things must be addressed in order to shoot (accurately with uniform velocities) dozens of times without wiping. These are:

1. Use one of the above mentioned lubes - there
are probably others but my experience is
only with these three.

2. Use enough lube; damp is not enough, WET is.

3 The ball/patch fit must be tight. Tight
meaning that the prb should go down with
enough protest that the rod has to be
gripped only a few inches above the muzzle
and seated in short pushes; no one or two
pushes to seat type grips. If you are
afraid to do this with your (quality) wood
underbarrel rod, then it's too tight.

That's it in a nutshell; no magic or special technique, bore, rifling, caliber, etc, etc.

About the patches; thicker is usually better. And they should be WET; not drippy but definitely WET. DAMP patches won't work. I like to put an op wad between powder and patched ball but it isn't at all necessary just to protect the powder. I load .311", .350", .390", .440" or .445", .490" and .530" balls in the respective calibers; but ALL are patched with a .024" (my measurement) ticking. Thinner such as .015" to .018" can work okay but thicker is better.

If you like to grab the rod half way or near the top to seat; DON'T; you'll break your wood rod and skewer your palm at the snug fit levels we're discussing.

 

[coloradoclyde]

A good wet patch!.....I see a recuring theme :hmm:

 

[stinkyfeet]

I use a wet patched lubed in bore cleaner I have shot a 30 shot woods walk, a 10 shot paper match, a tie breaker and novelty shoot all without running a cleaning patch down the barrel about 60-70 shots overall.

 

[longcruise]

Wet is the key.

spit, hoppes #9, Lehigh valley, moose milk, etc. All allow continuous shooting without wiping. Humidity, be it 10% to 100%, makes no difference.

grease lubes are a different story. The TC 1000+ seems to work too if the humidaddy is high enough. Usually not high enough here in CO.

If one of the wet lubes applied liberal won't work then there may be a barrel condition problem.

 

[M. De Land]

Standard square bottom, deep groove, cold weather window wash for lube. It contains water, soap and alcohol, all good ingredients for bore cleaning and it doesn't freeze in cold weather.
Shot all afternoon yesterday about 50-60 shots without cleaning and could still push a patch down the bore of my .36 caliber match pistol, with no pounding. Loads were 20 grains of 3F Goex.
One week ago I shot an entire 25 shot match with my .45 cal match rifle using 65grains of 3F Goex, same patch and windshield wash lube as the .36 pistol and a .445 ball.
I think a lot of it has to do with the thick and tough .018 cotton shirt felt patches I am using as not one of them was torn or cut. Mike D.

 

[Ohio Joe]

I usually take around 20 shots each outing to the range with my .45 flintlock rifle and I seldom find that I have to swab the bore (unless I take a break in the middle of my shooting). I attribute this to using a spit patch. Works for me. :thumbsup:

 

[Trot]

I use fffg powder, either Goex or Kik, and as many shots as I have time for, very often 30 or more at a time.

I never touch the bore until I take the gun home and clean it. My present rifle has a Long hammock barrel, square bottom grooves. I use ballistol for lube .490 ball and .020 patch. I also have Lyman, CVA, Investarms and various others and don't wipe the bore in any of them.

 

[Jacko50]

I have only had one afternoon's experience shooting a Muzzle Loader so everything's new to me. I was loaned the Gear so am short on detail but I remember the Patches where Wet with Dish Washing Detergent, the Patches where Thick and the Patch and Ball where quite tight to seat the first 1/3 of the Barrel but slide down with firm pressure after that. I must have shot 50 or 60 times and at no time noticed any restriction due to Fouling or loss of Accuracy as the afternoon progressed

regards Jacko