muzzleloader questions

[FLYEYEITCH]

What are you guys with side hammers doing to ensure ignition when the time comes to shoot? Will the first shot from a clean gun be much different than the next? Thanks for any advice given.

[Bogsucker]

We pray alot.
I have found that at typical hunting range, <100 yards, first shot or fouled shot doesn't much matter.

[fasteddy52]

Try using bore butter instead of your regular gun oil. And before you go hunting run a dry patch down the barrel to clean out any excess material. Make sure your nipple is clean and dry. Good luck!

[delmuts]

i agree with the bore butter instead of oil. and the dry patch. be sure to fire a couple of caps into the dry patch to be sure that the nipple is clean. del

[SCCO9803]

I agree with Delmuts, just fire a couple of caps first. This dries everything up. I've had my TC Hawkens for 12 years and never had a misfire while hunting.

[mwal]

To insure firing success in my T/C .54 side lock I do the following.
To keep my bp dry I clean the rifle making sure to run several dry patches thru the bore. I then load up and put masking tape over the muzzle of the barrel. Tape over the muzzle prevents moisture and foreign matter from entering the barrel and does not effect your accuracy. I also do it to my 7mm when hunting WI to keep snow out. After a days hunt if no shot is fired I put a small piece of leather over the nipple and lower the hammer over it. This keeps moisture from entering the powder charge .I then leave the gun outdoors until it is fired or the end of your hunt then it is fired and cleaned. I believe most of wet powder happens from condensation when bringing the rifle into a warm place or warm vehicle. I have followed the above procedure since '87 and have not had a misfire since then. I have hunted from rain to -0 with no problems. I use a T/c New Englander .54 with patched ball and 90 gr of FF BP. The only time I shoot a muzzeloader at the end of each day is when I use my flintlock. It is hard to plug the flash hole to seal out moisture. I have taken several deer with each. Good luck I tried pyrodex in the 80's had misfires and went back to BP and never looked back
Good luck on your hunts
Mwal

[TUMBLEWEED]

Also a thumbs up for da
bre butter!!

[FLYEYEITCH]

THANK YOU ALL FOR THE INFO.THE MUZZLELOADER SEASON IS GREAT,NO DEER IN THE FREEZER YET BUT THE WEATHER SO FAR HAS MADE THE TIMES I GET OUT THERE QUITE ENJOYABLE.I HAD A SHOT AT A BIG DOE BUT IT WAS A FRONT BRISKET SHOT AT 40 YARDS AND DECIDED NOT TO TRY IT. WOULD ANY OF YOU TAKEN THIS SHOT OR HAVE YOU? I SHOOT A .54 HAWKEN, 100 GRAINS OF CLEANSHOT FFG,AND A ROUND BALL.

[mwal]

I would of passed on the shot also. I took such a shot offhand with my flintlock and ended up losing the animal. Ball took out a rib found bone and big chung of fat. Good tracking snow very little blood. Live and learn. Take good high percentage shots.

Mwal

[Borch]

On the shot a lot depends on how you and your gun shoot. You'd certainly get more than enough penetration at that yardage. But there's not a lot of room for error in that shot.

I took a buck with a quartering towards me shot which sounds somewhat simuliar to what you described. I was 15 ft up in a tree stand and shot him where the neck and shoulder meet angling down into the vitals at 30 yards. I hit where I aimed and the deer never took a step. I was using a scope on my muzzleloader during the general rifle season. But I would have been comfortable with open sights at that yardage.

I'm shooting 295 gr power belts with 100 gr of 777. I'm shooting less than 2" groups at 100 yards.

Good Luck this weekend!

[korn_fish]

I would have also passed on the shot with a muzzleloader or shotgun with out a scope. My target wouldn't have been the front brisket. I would have gone for the head shot at 20 yards and closer.

[mtheis]

At 40yds I certainly would of taken that shot. Even though we must be selective with our shots using a muzzleloader, you can't let good ones pass either. My load consists of 2-50gr pyrodex pellets, and a 240gr Hornady XP sabot. I shot a big doe with a direct frontal shot into the front brisket (like the picture above) at about the yardage you describe last year. The bullet entered the front portion of the body and didn't stop until it buried itself into the rear of the buttocks. The bullet expanded beautifully. I usually don't recover too many bullets, because they pass completely through the deer. The doe didn't run more than 15 yds.

[FLYEYEITCH]

borch it was head on could not see any hind end.I HAVE SEEN THIS DOE A FEW TIMES AND SHE HAS NOT DETECTED ME SO I MIGHT GET ANOTHER CHANCE

[Borch]

No pressure then. If you weren't confident about the shot. It wasn't a good shot to take. Hopefully patience pays off for you. It did for my brother in law during the rifle season. He shot a massive 10 point buck with 1 minute left in his season.

Quite literally a last minute buck! He couldn't have been happier that his earlier opportunities didn't pan out. Maybe you've got something like that heading your way.

Best of luck to you this weekend.

Borch

[Borch]

Is this the shot you're refering to? Maybe more head on that this deer is?

Never mind the "X" It's a tad lower and right of where I wound aim. Certainly if the deer is undisturbed and likely going to give me a broadside shot I'll wait. But nothing wrong with this shot with a firearm. I'd never take this shot with a bow though.

Personally I don't do head shots. More likely to drill them in the neck. Again just my personal choice.

[This message has been edited by Borch (edited 12-10-2003).]