What Muzzleloading Stuff Did You Do Today?

[Dwight Dutton]

a cva mountain rifle for 50$ ??????? watch for the cops! that was a steal!

Bought it from someone's wife.

 

[Dwight Dutton]

Tried to get the nipples off my Remington. Managed to get four off before the nipple wrench broke. Gave up and bought a replacement cylinder. Didn't fit. Apparently Pietta cylinders are 2.01 long and I have an ASM revolver, and they are 2.00.

Just got a Harpers Ferry 1805, one of the Belgian ones made in the 1960's. Seems fine except the mainspring is too weak to make a spark. I would just buy a new mainspring but now I'm leery about getting a Pietta part and just hoping it works. Of course this thing is over 60 years old and it may just be dirty inside.

And my Jukar Pistol is here with a ball still in it because my first batch of Black Powder that I made in 2019 using no binder and no size sorting (I didn't know any better at the time) and am still using clumped up in the flask and no powder went in the gun.

I did try reworking the powder as I now know mostly what to do, but I used too much water and my 30mm Dabpress die jammed, and I destroyed it getting it apart, so I can't puck anything at the moment.

I did manage to make some pucks before that happened, and then ground them through my coffee grinder I got just for that purpose. Didn't do that right either as it came out of the box set for fine grind and it turned everything into 4F.

 

[Kansas Jake]

Dwight, make a nipple wrench with a 1/4” socked by cutting a groove in it and use a drill press to remove the nipples. Use wooden dowels to hole the cylinder in the vise and maintain pressure on the socket and turn the chuck by hand. There are several good threads on this sight on removing stuck nipples. Try the search function.

 

[clarksvillejoe]

Nice shooting @clarksvillejoe
Was that offhand? VERY nice if offhand.

Your front sight is in backwards

@pacanis, thank you, it was offhand. And a big thanks for catching the front sight orientation. A local shooting friend pointed out the rear sight installation, I had that one wrong as well. As stated, first kit assembly.

 

[appalichian hunter]

Tried to get the nipples off my Remington. Managed to get four off before the nipple wrench broke. Gave up and bought a replacement cylinder. Didn't fit. Apparently Pietta cylinders are 2.01 long and I have an ASM revolver, and they are 2.00.

Just got a Harpers Ferry 1805, one of the Belgian ones made in the 1960's. Seems fine except the mainspring is too weak to make a spark. I would just buy a new mainspring but now I'm leery about getting a Pietta part and just hoping it works. Of course this thing is over 60 years old and it may just be dirty inside.

And my Jukar Pistol is here with a ball still in it because my first batch of Black Powder that I made in 2019 using no binder and no size sorting (I didn't know any better at the time) and am still using clumped up in the flask and no powder went in the gun.

I did try reworking the powder as I now know mostly what to do, but I used too much water and my 30mm Dabpress die jammed, and I destroyed it getting it apart, so I can't puck anything at the moment.

I did manage to make some pucks before that happened, and then ground them through my coffee grinder I got just for that purpose. Didn't do that right either as it came out of the box set for fine grind and it turned everything into 4F.

Damn, bad day for sure, maybe grab a cold one and sit under the tree for a day.

 

[Banjoman]

Made some pistol flints today. I’m not the best at making these, but they fit the gun and make lots of sparks. No cap shortage woes here.

 

[Kansas Jake]

Banjo man, your flints look like mine.

 

[Banjoman]

Also made a simple, sturdy 70 grain powder measure.

 

[Banjoman]

Another batch of wadding dried out, mashed down and ready to use

 

[BillyC]

Bollocks. Hope I am aloud to say that. I don’t like buying good guns , they are seldom that good after 175 years. Went for £1100 plus 30% buyers commision. A tatty one went for £400. Holts put on a sealed bid auction at end of month. There’s another .41 Swiss ml there might have a punt on that £?!!!! ???? It looks genuine in photos One with loads of engraving Need to somehow pay off

You seem like you would be a hoot to sit around a fire and chat with.

 

[TDM]

Took my SMR down to clean. Don’t know how but it was rusted up inside. Took it a part to clean. Oil was still over some of the parts but rust on the others. Anyhow on the trigger assembly (Kibler) there was a spring? laying loose in the trigger assembly. Straight with a bend on each end? Any ideas?

It should be the slightly curved flat spring that is held by a single screw at the rear of the assembly and applies tension to the set trigger.

 

[TDM]

I'm watching back to back episodes of Daniel Boone on utube.

 

[Tanker]

Setting up range boxes for each muzzleloader. Using 50 cal ammo cans. My idea is when it's time to go to the range or hunt. I grab the can. The can will go to the range with me. If it's hunt then I take out what I need for my possible bag.

 

[smokepolehall]

I took my rasp n worked over a ramrod til i got the taper correct for my jag tip on my Under-Hammer .40 cal. I picked up 3 tins of CCI's at $5.62 a tin yesterday at maulmart.

 

[Daryl Crawford]

I got to the range. Once I ran a sponge through the air between the bench and 50 yard target, I could see it pretty well. Yeah, that's a bad humidity joke.
I took the smoothbore fusil (.615 cal) today.
Tried 70gr 2F (Goex and then Graf) with .595 roundball and .015 patch. Tried the same with 80gr 2F. Was pretty tight after the first two shots. Tried 80gr 2F with a nitro card, ball of sisal fibers, .595 ball nested in the fibers and overshot card. Messed with two shots where fibers were replaced by a fiber wad. I swabbed after every 2 or 3 rounds because fouling was pretty serious with the high humidity. Both powders performed about the same.
I need to get more .01 patch material and try that with the 2F I have. With the 70gr I kept 6 rounds on a 5" target center and think the pattern will be a bit better with the thinner patch, but i was out of it. I also would like to get a couple .605 and .610 roundball to try bare. The fusil only has a front blade. I think I want to try a slightly different target with a simpler pattern than the one I was using to better "see" the front blade.
Right now I'm consistent in a vitals size area at 50yds, I just want to dial it (and my sight picture) in a little better.

 

[Grenadier1758]

I finally got off my procrastination mode and spent some time working on my 36 caliber kind of copy of a Dave Kenedy rifle made in July 1837. I've had some of the parts since my youngest daughter was born. She provided me with two grandsons so I guess I need to get some rifles ready for them before they provide me with great grandsons. Today was the staining of the stock that I have been working on for a few years now too. I have a lot of projects to do around the house, so gun making became part of my social activities where I take the parts to a shop where a group of us work on our guns and socialize. I have plenty to shoot, so I really don't need to be in a rush. Today was the day for staining the stock. A couple applications of aqua fortis and heat blushing has started the staining process. The curl is beginning to show up. I can barely wait to apply the finish to really bring out the curl. Because I am making the gun appear to be a nearly 200-year-old rifle, I am cold bluing the barrel and knocking the bluing back.

On to other tasks.

 

[JRBCo.]

View attachment 236002Another batch of wadding dried out, mashed down and ready to use

Pm

 

[Fisherking]

This is a 5 1/2” Dewalt circular saw blade meeting a 58 cal roundball with 65grains 3F at 50 yards rested offhand. Only shot taken tonight. We were too tired to play after a full day in the sun siding the shack.

 

[IanH]

I got to the range. Once I ran a sponge through the air between the bench and 50 yard target, I could see it pretty well. Yeah, that's a bad humidity joke.
I took the smoothbore fusil (.615 cal) today.
Tried 70gr 2F (Goex and then Graf) with .595 roundball and .015 patch. Tried the same with 80gr 2F. Was pretty tight after the first two shots. Tried 80gr 2F with a nitro card, ball of sisal fibers, .595 ball nested in the fibers and overshot card. Messed with two shots where fibers were replaced by a fiber wad. I swabbed after every 2 or 3 rounds because fouling was pretty serious with the high humidity. Both powders performed about the same.
I need to get more .01 patch material and try that with the 2F I have. With the 70gr I kept 6 rounds on a 5" target center and think the pattern will be a bit better with the thinner patch, but i was out of it. I also would like to get a couple .605 and .610 roundball to try bare. The fusil only has a front blade. I think I want to try a slightly different target with a simpler pattern than the one I was using to better "see" the front blade.
Right now I'm consistent in a vitals size area at 50yds, I just want to dial it (and my sight picture) in a little better.

Try 70 grains of 3F and a sopping wet .015" patch with your .595 RB. Those smoothies will blow the ball right through the middle of the patch if there's too much room, even with denim. 3F cut my fouling in half and a good dose of moose milk or Hoppe's 9+ patch lube lets me shoot without cleaning indefinitely at the range. My 20-gauge has a .620 bore and I use .600 RB and .018" ticking...and a short starter. Makes 3" patterns at 50 yards with just the front sight. Pretty much anything else, including a bare .613" ball with a small wad of green grass on top gets 8-10" at 50 yards. 2F was just too dirty for my liking no matter what I tried.

 

[Rebel bull]

I've spent the better part of the week (in-between farm maintenance chores) making replacements for the range accessories i keep selling them to other shooters. now we have a 2 day shoot coming up and I need to replace them. range rods and bench clamps (for when there's no notches on the edge of the loading bench keeps your gun off the ground)