Stuck balls!

[nhmoose]

Scopes let you look but don't get balls out.

I have had a bore scope for years, but stand on my post.

 

[Josephg]

Good for scaring the crap out of you. Came in handy before shooting my Hawken for the first time. I flushed that stuff out first.

 

[Josephg]

Don Fox had a shop at Poulsbo WA for many years. He never removed a breech plug or bolster either. Howard did that. Howard was his gunsmith.

 

[nhmoose]

20 year old load? I would not shoot it out that is insane. That would be pump it out.
I also take apart 100-150 year old guns but have yet needed to take a breech plug out to unload it.

Glad your friend knew his limitations.

 

[appalichian hunter]

jOSEPHG, Looks like a bit of smokeless powder got in there.

 

[Josephg]

Bead blasting media. Plastic beads,

 

[appalichian hunter]

That's weird, now is it not.

 

[Woody Morgan]

Don Fox had a shop at Poulsbo WA for many years. He never removed a breech plug or bolster either. Howard did that. Howard was his gunsmith.

Wow. I've been in Fox's Gun Shop when I was working for the shipyard in Bremerton a lifetime ago.
Manned the fireworks barge in Liberty Bay for a few years of Viking Fest.

wm

 

[Josephg]

That's weird, now is it not.

Not? Nope, not. The rifle has ten whole rounds through it now. They better be not.

 

[Josephg]

Wow. I've been in Fox's Gun Shop when I was working for the shipyard in Bremerton a lifetime ago.
Manned the fireworks barge in Liberty Bay for a few years of Viking Fest.

wm

I purchesed a few rifles and parts from Don. Got to know him perty well. I'd always try to get him to throw in a case with a rifle but he never would. Another time I started in on him about at least throwing in some cleaning patches. He finally said okay, you got cleaning patches! Talk to Howard, so I go over and there was Howard holding two dirty cleaning patches and saying here Joe, here's your patches. I did get into him one time for about 625.00 bucks and boy he didn't like it. I was all smiles.

 

[Woody Morgan]

Lived in Port Orchard from 1980-2002. Developed and ran the USPSA club at Kitsap Rifle & Revolver on Seabeck Hwy for years. Shot up at Poulsbo Gun Club every second Sunday too.
Good times!

wm

 

[drstrangelove]

Removing the drum access screw, nipple, or touch hole screw and putting fffg or ffffg inside and firing it out is way easier than pulling a ball. Even if you have to repeat it. Problem with the screw puller is it wedges the ball in tighter as the screw displaces the lead. Yes, the co2 works but fortunately I’ve never had to go there. The zirk grease approach is an ungodly mess.

 

[Bad Karma]

It appears that just of late we are getting a regular pattern of folks getting a stuck ball down the barrel.
It seems to me that ever since this propelling of near no lubricated patches and tight patch and ball combinations what has been created is a recipy for disaster!

When I were a mere boy we used thumb started ball and patches greased in an animal fat. Some of us used a grease cookie too. The day we forgot to charge the rifle was a mere inconvenience to reverse.
Accuracy was perfect but then again we kicked our ball up the ass with a hefty charge of fast powder to achieve obturation of the ball into the patch and rifling, something no one speaks off anymore!
Now the modern long rifle shooter has to swab every shot, carry a grease gun and carry a tool chest around! I'd give up if I believed that was involved !!
We simply shot our barrels in. Smoothed them manually until patches shot out could be reused and used hot water when we were done.
There was no discussion about various concoctions akin to a chemistry set of instructions or a percentage of this and a ratio of that!
I feel so sad for the new comer and even wonder how many have been deterred to go any where near a traditional muzzleloader!
What ever happened to keep it simple boys?

B.

If you’re gonna pop the load out with powder under the nipple, is it safe to use 4f or will it be a high order detonation?

 

[Walkingeagle]

If you’re gonna pop the load out with powder under the nipple, is it safe to use 4f or will it be a high order detonation?

That’s all I use for a dryball anymore. So simple.
Walk

 

[drstrangelove]

If you’re gonna pop the load out with powder under the nipple, is it safe to use 4f or will it be a high order detonation?

How much 4F you think you can get in there? Maybe 3-4 grains or a tad more, depending on if the ball is up against the breechplug. That’s far from enough to blow your rifle. The nipple would blow out before the barrel would rupture.

 

[Josephg]

Last summer I dryballed one of these 560 grain slugs. Pulled the nipple, worked some FF into the bolster and shot it out into the ground in front of the bench. Dug it out of the ground with an old screwdriver. That lead don't grow on trees you know.

 

[bud in pa]

I don't understand what the difficulty is in pulling a breech plug. when I got into shooting, back in the 60's I made sure that I bought the proper tools to service my equipment. Some of my friends poked fun at my choice of a vise with jaws that were 8 inches wide. I have taken apart WWI Mausers, Martinis, etc. with the proper tools and some decent manuals you can take apart almost anything.

 

[Bad Karma]

Last summer I dryballed one of these 560 grain slugs. Pulled the nipple, worked some FF into the bolster and shot it out into the ground in front of the bench. Dug it out of the ground with an old screwdriver. That lead don't grow on trees you know.

View attachment 70145

Lots of lead there!

 

[vintovka]

(This is an old story and hope i'm retelling it correctly). The only time we had no choice to pull a plug was on a TC hawken Caplock that came in on a trade, Like new outside and Bore/Rifling looked shiny and sharp plus price was right - too right. Rod test did confirm something was lodged at the breech. Tried the screw method and if felt way too hard to be lead. A small rare earth magnet on a rod confirmed a) it was steel b) it was stuck fast. Being steel we didn't want to chance further damaging barrel by shooting it out, . Later (after plug removal) we found a mostly shiny steel ball bearing had been tightly rusted into breech. Added a good witness mark and popped it loose on the "HFS" barrel vise. Knocked it out backwards with a steel rod. Only minimal damage to breech found. We guessed someone chose poorly and picked a ball too close to bore size to reflect light for inspection and got it stuck (or forgot it was there). I'm sure seller did it as he left quick and never came back, It did work as the ball really couldn't be seen with our bore light. Bore scopes were not available back then. Told this story to the late Joe Williams who laughed his derierre off and topped it with about a dozen stories of worse he'd seen.

 

[PADave]

I recommend that ball pullers be thrown away. They usually cause more problems that they solve