54ball's Muzzleloader Cleaning 101, The way I do it.
Absolute essentials, Cleaning Jag, Nipple Wrench, Correct size screw driver, Cloth, Gun Oil, Tooth Brush
Impotant essentails, Muzzleloading bore brush," remember a muzzloaing bore brush is made so the bristles will reverse
themselves in the bore, a shotgun type brush may get stuck." range rod with a good handle and muzzle cone, " If a jag gets stuck you can slide the rod agaist something solid letting the handle grip a 2x4 stud, step, or something you dont mind marring up. Pull the rifle or barrel to you like a slide hammer with the handle of the rod sliding into the edge of the solid surface. Make sure your muzzle cone is out of the way or it will deflect the handle. This rarely happens but if you use a dry patch or have a rough bore you need a good rod to take this kind of abuse." A brass tool is made for this that grips the rod but I do not have one. ,Brass punch, Patch worm, hammer.
accesorries, a bore mop.
After the hunt into the cabinet cleaning.
Drive out the barrel keys with the brass punch. If they fall out with minimal thumb pressure they are too loose and need to be tightened up. A few taps with the hammer on the barrel lugs should tighten them up nicely. If this adustment was made you need to sight in the rifle again to make sure the point of aim has not changed. Accuracy will improve if the lugs were loose. Keep the keys in order. Unhook the barrel from the breech. Have a bucket of warm soapy water ready. Wet a patch in the soay water and run it down the bore. If you have a bore brush use it now first. After this intial scrubbing undo the brush and drop it into your bucket or discard the patch. Place the breech of the barrel into the bucket. I like to use a patch 2 inches wide and 6 inches long. Wet this patch and start running it up and down the bore. Keep pumping until the the water starts coming out of the muzzle. Reverse the patch and keep pumping. Sometimes I remove the nipple and snail screw before this step. Always remove the snail screw first then the nipple. Use a correct size screw driver on the snail screw. Change patches and pump some more. It wont take long for the patches to come out clean. Go to a bucket of hot water not boiling but hot tap water is hot enough. Pump again to rinse. Pull the barrel out ond start running dry patches down the bore. The first may come out red from flash rusting. Its OK. If the patch is black you made need to back to the flushing step. When the patch comes out clean. Oil a patch well with oil and swab the bore some more. Use a tooth brush around the nipple area. Make sure to clean well under the nipple and in the corners of the snail area. A nipple pick or pin can be used to scrape this fowling away followed by the tooth brush some more. Make sure the threads on the snail screw and niplle are clean. A Q tip or paper towel rolled up into a piont can be inserted into the nipple and snail screw holes to dry and oil this area. Oil the threads relace the nipple first and then the snail screw. With the right screw driver undo the lock screw take the lock out and brush it clean with a tooth brush then oil it and replace. Oil the outside of the barrle well. A thin coat of linseed oil on the stock is a good idea. A good furniture or paste wax will also work well on the stock. Buff stock and reassemble. It is a good idea to run an oily patch down the bore from time to time when the rifle is not in use. Remember to clean that bore brush if you dont only the stem will be left. I use the bore mop to clean out the oil before firing.