Hi everybody,
Fairly new to muzzleloading. This will be my first year chasing elk with my Traditions Hawken Woodsman. Love this gun, but I'm having issues getting my hunting load down. Quick history, bought the thing, changed out to a musket nipple (since musket caps were the only thing I could get my hands on at the time) and started off shooting PRBs over Triple 7 FFG. Seems like it did fine the first few times at the range, but then I started having ignition problems where the cap would go off but the charge wouldn't. I would have to unscrew the nipple and put some powder in the drum, and then it would set the charge off fine. I switched to Pyrodex FFFG just because I thought a finer powder would help. Worked fine, and I began trying to get my No Excuses 460s to group. Tried 60, 70, and 80 grains. 70 grouped best, but it was still like a 3.5 inch group at 50 yards. Used my powder scale to try and tighten that up, didn't really help. Decided to try the T7 FFG and it grouped beautifully at 70 grains, but began misfiring again. I'm kind of lost on what my next step should be. Is it possible I just have a bad batch of T7? Do I start investigating my flash channel some Anyone experience anything like this?
Early on I used T7 and experienced the same problems as you have had. Even went to a 209 primer set-up. T7 was the only powder that gave me a very painful hangfire as well. Here is my advice, free of charge. Your mileage may vary.
First, get real black powder. I use Goex and I order it. It's cheaper that way although it's
a 5 pound minimum. 2f for my .54 rifles and 20 gauge smoothbores and 3f for everything else, .50 and below. That is not a set in stone commandment, just a general recommendation. Get a new nipple, in Stainless steel. The Spitfire is good, but factory nipples are notoriously bad and don't last. I prefer the bronze nipples by Ampco. Longer lasting and won't rust. Try this place for your size needed.
https://www.dixiegunworks.com/index/page/category/category_id/385/name/Nipples?view_allNow, before you go shooting again, pick up a 1/2 yard of 100% cotton flannel at your local fabric store. Cut it into cleaning patch sizes. Also get a bottle of alcohol, 75 to 91 % is good. These flannel patches remove the majority of crud in one swipe so use them for cleaning and swabbing. These two terms are not the same as cleaning is for after you've gone shooting and swabbing is in between shots. Now, before shooting I run an alcohol dampened flannel patch down the bore to remove any left over oil or rust preventative the snap a cap or two to make sure there are no problems. I will occasionally place a small patch just inside the muzzle before placing a cap on then snap it in a safe direction. If the patch stays put then there's a problem. A word on alcohol and how much to use. Alcohol cuts the oil and breaks up powder fouling. Since alcohol naturally attracts water then you always have some in the mix. However, alcohol will render a fresh powder charge inert, so your patches need to be barely dampened. If you can squeeze a drop out of the patch then that's too much. Swabbing is not cleaning; it is just down and up then discarded. Since alcohol has a much lower boiling point it evaporates quickly and takes the water with it. That is why it works well for swabbing but again, too much and it will turn your powder charge into mush or worse, cause a hangfire, especially when using T7. Ask me how I know.....
Lastly, learn how to work up an accurate load in your rifle. Start with the same amount as the caliber if using traditional black powder; 50 caliber equals 50 grains. Shoot three times aiming at the same point on the target. Do not adjust anything! Increase by five grains and repeat until your groups tighten up to acceptable (by your standards) Take a notebook and right down your results. Trust me on this, it's something I wish I'd done from the beginning. Now, if using T7, reduce your load by 10% for 2f and 15% for 3f. A 50 caliber rifle would start with a charge of 42.5 grains of 3f Triple 7. Increase by 5 grains as above.
Conicals; depth of rifling has as much to do with stabilizing the bullet as does rate of twist. The 1:48 twist rate is NOT a compromise to be able to shoot PRB and lead Conicals equally well. It almost always is the rifle shoots one or the other more accurately. You will have to test various styles and weights of conicals to see which, if any, will be accurate in your muzzle loader. In my experience, the addition of a fiber was, lubed or unlubed, increases accuracy no matter what the design or weight is. My Lyman Great Plains rifle with it's 1:60 twist would group the Great Plains type bullets into about a 6 inch circle at 50 yards. Not acceptable accuracy for me. A PRB would shoot a three inch group at 100 yards all day, so being that it was a 54 caliber it would serve me for anything I would be hunting. I had a Lyman Great Plains hunter barrel mounted on a Cabela's stock. The 1:32 twist rate would send the .50 Lee REAL bullet, 220 grains, into one ragged hole at 75 yards all day. However, using 95 grains of 3f Goex was brutal on my shoulder. Accuracy is what is acceptable to you.
I received some advice on shooting practice before the hunt that goes for whatever you shoot. Take one practice shot per yard that is possible to shoot in the place you intend on hunting. If you'll be in the thick pine woods and 45 yards is the farthest unobstructed shot you might have then take 45 practice shots with the muzzleloader loaded with the most accurate load you worked up previously. If it's wide open but your self imposed limit is 80 yards then it's 80 shots.
I know that's a lot to digest but it's what I've learned over the years and maybe some of it will help you or someone else. What works for one person may not for another even if using the same type or model of muzzleloader so it's important to see what works for you and your rifle prior to getting out into the field. Again, I hope this helps and good luck.