Can't get CVA Kentucky Rifle to fire????

You can order BP from https://powderinc.com/ and also from Graf and Sons. I believe powderinc may be the cheaper overall but you will need to order a 25 pound case to get the best break. If you don't need that much see if another person or two will split the shipment with you. Thats what I did the last 25 pound case I ordered.
 
Pyrodex is not only fouling/dirty it is also a corrosive powder too. Quicker to corrode than Black Powder Pyrodex is.
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That's simply not true. Pyrodex is no worse than bp. I go for several days at a time without cleaning either one.
 
I had a 50 cal. Mountain rifle that I built in 1977? It would not go off reliably either. At the time there was a good blackpowder fire arms store/ smith in my area. We narrowed the problem to the flash hole size thru the drum. We opened it up a bit and problem was solved.
 
We narrowed the problem to the flash hole size thru the drum. We opened it up a bit and problem was solved.
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A flash hole should be very small. Opening one up can lead to problems.
 
Many years ago I had a CVA Mountain rifle, it would misfire/hang fire once in a while, more so with Pyrodex than with FFG. I installed a Hot Shot nipple. No more problems. Try one if they're still available, best 5.00 you'll ever spend.
 
Mag Spark ordered . . .

I've ordered a "mag spark" which converts the percussion cap nipple into a well that takes a 209 primer. The well has a screw on cap with a little firing pin to hit the 209. I suspect it will do the trick, but we'll see. It was a bit more than $5.

Life is good.
Prof Young
 
I have owned and own several CVA/Traditions BP rifles and never had to resort to some strange aftermarket nipple to get my guns to fire properly. Do you not have anyone to help you? If not then get one of the black powder handbooks written by Sam Fadala and study it. This not hard to do. But an experienced shooter will go a long way towards getting you started down the right path.
 
I have a Traditions Pennslyvania flintlock with a patent style breech. I'll just say it's not a good design. Very difficult to maintain consistent ignitions, especially if your a new ML shooter. Here's a link to DIY tool I fabbed to effectively scrub the patent breech :

http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/f...305553/post/1653986/hl//fromsearch/1/#1653986

Lastly, i've done a lot of reading and the experts comment that Pyrodex is a poor performing substitute for real "Black" powder.
 
Lastly, i've done a lot of reading and the experts comment that Pyrodex is a poor performing substitute for real "Black" powder.
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Actually it is a good performing sub. All I use is either Swiss or Pyrodex.
 
Thanks to one and all.

Smoke pole shooters -
Thanks to one and all for the help and suggestions. This is what makes this forum so great. Lots to learn, lots to learn.

Life is good.
Prof Young
 
That's simply not true. Pyrodex is no worse than bp.
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Really. What experience do you have to share?
Just saying:
My experiences. A young fellow came to me asking why his Traditions traditional wouldn't fire. I found enough pyrodex residue in his breech {I believe} which over time had built up to a point the residue plugged his rifles firing channel. Only tool that came to my mind to resolve? >the need of a breech scrapper.< as I've never encountered such a disappointing powder situation before.

Took my range rod and spun & spun that scrapper until I felt no resistance. A white powdery hardened ash like substance was removed from the breech area. Quite a bit of it. I actually saved all by pouring into a ash tray and too held some in the palm of my hand. Once removed. The rifle functioned as it should.
I informed the young feller and showed him the ash. I asked him what powder he was shooting?_ "No more Pyrodex RS goes down that barrel!!" so I was informed in less than a kindly way.

I've been shooting my B/P rifles since the mid 80s and not once have I had to use a barrel scrapper to clear my barrels breech of Gorex 2-FFG residue.

I've also been shooting homemade {screened B/P} going on three years. Pounds made and fired in my rifles and You know as well as I {screened only} B/P is perhaps the most fouling of all. But not once have I even found a need to scrap its fouling.

I'm highly suspect a cleaning will totally remove all Pyrodex fouling without a bore bristle brush. Especially ~when setting the rifle aside for a couple days before its barrel cleaning.
"Pyrodex use guarantee's the hardest fouling crud a shooter will ever encounter." No doubt about it!!!
 
I've been shooting bp since 1969 and Pyrodex since it first came out. I don't even own a breech scraper or brushes. All I use are bore mops. I don't swab between shots. I sometimes let guns sit for two or three days before cleaning and they're no harder to clean than bp and there's no rust or corrosion. The only problem I have ever experienced with Pyrodex is slow firing in a 63 Sharps because of the two bends in the firing channel. It never failed to fire with it it just sounded like a poorly timed flintlock. So yes I have a lot of experience with it. I prefer Swiss but when I can't get Swiss Pyrodex is my go to powder and I use a lot of it.
 
My experiences. A young fellow came to me asking why his Traditions traditional wouldn't fire. I found enough pyrodex residue in his breech {I believe} which over time had built up to a point the residue plugged his rifles firing channel. Only tool that came to my mind to resolve? >the need of a breech scrapper.< as I've never encountered such a disappointing powder situation before.
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Thats not really a powder problem. Thats a cleaning problem and that can happen with real BP too. I bought a CVA off GB just a few months ago and it came with a load of BP and a round ball in it. I finally got the ball out but was never able to get the powder out till I dribbled powder down the nipple and blew most of the charge out. And the breech of the barrel was ruined it was pitted so badly. I told the seller and it scared him so bad he refunded my money and told me to keep the gun. I gave the gun to another guy for parts. Or saw off the front of the barrel and make a pistol.

I clean my patent breach the same way poster #11 recommended. And I use water soluable oil to clean my guns and use it as a patch lube. Thats all I've used for 20+ years and never had any rust.
 
I'm in SureShot's camp.

I cannot count the times that as a Range Officer I've been
called over to solve a can't-get-it-to-go-off problem -- only
to find Pyrodex under the ball.

Blow it out with some 3F under the nipple; load it back up
with real BP that I'm carrying; and he's off to the races for
the rest of the day w/ borrowed BP.....

When asked how to pay me back, I say "don't worry about it...."

But somehow when I next see those folks -- as often as not --
they come with an extra pound for me anyway.:D
 
I can only relate to my own experiences as I don't shoot at a range and have no idea how others lube, load or clean their guns.
 
With my patent breech design i'm learning that FFFG is better suited than FFG. Seems the slightly finer powder falls into the narrow portion of the breech and allows better ignitions. After dropping the powder charge a few palm thumps on the stock also seem to help get some powder down in the smaller hole. If I see a few kernels of FFFG in my primer pan that's a good sign i'll get a good ignition.
 
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