The perils of modern convenience...

[Henry Miles]

I had quite an experience yesterday. It was 95deg outside and I wanted to make smoke! I have a home field advantage of a backyard shooting range as well as an airconditioned basement 30yds from my shooting bench. It's 70deg in my basement, 95deg outside. I have noticed in the past with these temperature differentials, condensation would form on the barrel when I walked outside. My scopes on modern rifles would fog up as would my glasses. Then yesterday, after about 6 shots, with some fouling in the breech, I had a failure to fire. I thought I had a clogged nipple so I picked it and tried another cap. Still no BOOM. Tried another cap, no BOOM. Decided to pull the nipple and clean the fire channel and prime with 3F. Black goo oozed out of the fire channel! The fire channel was completely fouled with this black tarry substance, apparently a mixture of powder residue and condensation. It was impossible to clean out without contaminating the powder charge so I had to pull the ball, which luckily came out easy enough (on the 4th attempt). That's the first time this has ever happened to me. I learned to leave the gun outside for reloading and not carry it into the cool basement, where all my powder, bullets and equipment live.

 

[mushka]

Same as with a cold weather hunt. Leave the gun outside. All guns, so the water doesn't condense on them.

 

[deerstalkert]

mine never come into the house during the late hunts. have never had any problems with them firing but they sure sweat if i bring them in.

 

[azmntman]

LOST a huge bul elk first time out with BP, kept the gun loaded in the tent. Now the gun is fired after each evening hunt and reloaded and fired with 1/3 load and load for the morning. Also works I hear to just leave it in the truck, car, garage....

 

[ML48]

Never had that problem here in South Central Colorado. Humidity is so low we don't get that problem. I know the problem you talk about though. When living in Texas or back in Ohio, walk from an A/C building to the outside heat and my glasses immediately fog up...hated it! At 7350' elev. the nights are plenty cool, and the days are pretty bearable with the ceiling fans going....haven't required A/C since house was built in '74.

 

[deerstalkert]

this summer it's been hellish hot here with humidity in the 80% range. come February i will be begging for it to return!
fans running all summer and i had to set up dehumidifiers to keep stuff from rusting. keep the house below 50% and it's safe.

 

[longcruise]

@ML48 is right on. It has to do with humidity.

 

[Woody Morgan]

Dear God. Can we please just jump straight to mid-Fall?
Thank you.

wm

 

[SDSmlf]

LOST a huge bul elk first time out with BP, kept the gun loaded in the tent. Now the gun is fired after each evening hunt and reloaded and fired with 1/3 load and load for the morning. Also works I hear to just leave it in the truck, car, garage....

Might work in Nevada or Arizona low humidity, but here in the Carolinas you are really taking a chance if you reload a fouled gun and let it sit for any length of time. Learned lesson when I first started hunting here after I had shot a deer early in the day and reloaded. Tried to fire it off late in the afternoon to unload the gun. Had to pull the removable touch hole liner, clear the soup, pack it with powder and reinstall the liner. It then fired with a notable delay. Since then have carried a single shot ‘field cleaning kit’ that lets me clean the gun in the field before reloading. Learned this from a long time forum member and North Carolina resident Roundball.

If a clean muzzleloader doesn’t go off immediately on the first trigger pull, it is either poor cleaning methods or something like powder was forgotten.

 

[hanshi]

Once at a rendezvous just after finishing a trail walk I set up to clean the rifle on a bench. Before I started I let the barrel tilt downward as it shifted under my arm. Imagine my surprise when black goo poured out of the muzzle. It was very humid but that experience was a first for me.

 

[azmntman]

Might work in Nevada or Arizona low humidity, but here in the Carolinas you are really taking a chance if you reload a fouled gun and let it sit for any length of time. Learned lesson when I first started hunting here after I had shot a deer early in the day and reloaded. Tried to fire it off late in the afternoon to unload the gun. Had to pull the removable touch hole liner, clear the soup, pack it with powder and reinstall the liner. It then fired with a notable delay. Since then have carried a single shot ‘field cleaning kit’ that lets me clean the gun in the field before reloading. Learned this from a long time forum member and North Carolina resident Roundball.

If a clean muzzleloader doesn’t go off immediately on the first trigger pull, it is either poor cleaning methods or something like powder was forgotten.

Ya, if you've read my other posts I clean em daily. Don't have to, MOST times our humidity hovers round 10-15% Been up to 100 tho recently with monsoons

 

[Boston Bill]

this summer it's been hellish hot here with humidity in the 80% range. come February i will be begging for it to return!
fans running all summer and i had to set up dehumidifiers to keep stuff from rusting. keep the house below 50% and it's safe.

Come February I am dreading the coming months. I detest months without an R in them

 

[Baxter]

Dear God. Can we please just jump straight to mid-Fall?
Thank you.

wm

And have it last until next spring!

 

[ML48]

If

Come February I am dreading the coming months. I detest months without an R in them

I could find a place that stays between 50 & 65 degrees, I'd love it. I like to work outside and the damned heat kills me. The intensity of the sun at 7350' elev. is miserable. I can dress for colder weather, but even running butt naked in heat is still miserable...and laughable at my age

 

[deerstalkert]

running period is laughable at my age!
Having Ms makes me very miserable above 65 degrees. this summer has been the worst i have had here.
remembering those hot days in the 50's and 60's in the central valley of California makes me shudder. though those were glorious times!!!

 

[ML48]

running period is laughable at my age!
Having Ms makes me very miserable above 65 degrees. this summer has been the worst i have had here.
remembering those hot days in the 50's and 60's in the central valley of California makes me shudder. though those were glorious times!!!

They send a man to the moon, land a rover on Mars, men stationed above the earth in a space station, invent all kinds of i-phones, satellite tv, satellite internet, figured out how to rig an election, but they can't find cures for MS, Cancer, Heart disease, etc.!! Take good care "deerstalkert".

 

[Terry Lightle]

The last week of October into the first week of Nov is muzzleloader season here in Okla.Can get pretty hot in daytime sometimes with cool to really cold nights.I leave my flintlock in truck at night UNLESS I have shot it that day.Always plug flash hole with toothpick and do not run heater in my truck if at all possible.Left her loaded for 5 days last year then shot a big doe ,no hesitation at all when I dropped the hammer.Do not know if it makes any difference but shoot 3F Swiss in my 54.Not an expert by any means but it has worked pretty good so far.

 

[SDSmlf]

Ya, if you've read my other posts I clean em daily. Don't have to, MOST times our humidity hovers round 10-15% Been up to 100 tho recently with monsoons

I was referring to your ‘fired with 1/3 load and load’ fouling shot before loading. Do that on some days around here and black goo will be running out of the touchhole by noon. Rather balmy here today, 88° and 75% humidity right now. Rarely see humidity below 35%, even on the driest days.

Now the gun is fired after each evening hunt and reloaded and fired with 1/3 load and load for the morning.

 

[kje54]

If

I could find a place that stays between 50 & 65 degrees, I'd love it. I like to work outside and the damned heat kills me. The intensity of the sun at 7350' elev. is miserable. I can dress for colder weather, but even running butt naked in heat is still miserable...and laughable at my age

When I lived in CO it could be 20 degrees out with no wind or clouds and I could go outside in shorts and t-shirts. Granted if the wind picked up or the clouds blocked the sun I'd be heading for warmth as fast as I could move..........

When we left CO we moved to El Paso, it would be 59 degrees and I'd still be wearing shorts and t-shirts, all the El Paso natives would be wearing winter coats.

 

[ML48]

When I lived in CO it could be 20 degrees out with no wind or clouds and I could go outside in shorts and t-shirts. Granted if the wind picked up or the clouds blocked the sun I'd be heading for warmth as fast as I could move..........

When we left CO we moved to El Paso, it would be 59 degrees and I'd still be wearing shorts and t-shirts, all the El Paso natives would be wearing winter coats.

Very true. I worked at a heavy diesel shop In Steamboat Springs, CO. back in the 80' and early 90's. I had insulated Carhartt Bibs and Jacket. I was at the mine changing a front seal, on an Allison trans. in a 200 ton haul truck, temp close to -35. About 2 hours after the sun was out the jacket came off, and very comfortable. I set the seal up in the bore of the front cover and hit it with my hammer, damned thing just exploded and fell apart. I had it laying outside while I disassembled the drive line, etc. Had to dig up another seal.