FirstFreedom
Moderator
Just got back from the range sighting in my muzzleloader, and yep, I have questions (surprise)...
1. Do you guys *always* pop a primer-only shot to dry the barrel after every cleaning? I cleaned 4 times while at the range, and popped a primer before I began and after each cleaning before firing. Related question: during one of these primer shots, something flew out of the barrel about 5 yards, and landed on the ground, burning/glowing and smoking the whole way - made a whizzing noise too - just exactly like some kind of firework - like a mini roman candle - what the hell was THAT? How can anything of any volume like that get through the tiny flash hole?
2. Regarding fouling shots: I noticed that my groups were groups and not fliers after the fouling shot, which was a flier. My question is, do I have to put a bullet in, in order to get a fouling shot to do what it needs to do to help with accuracy - or do I have to waste a bullet in addition to powder? Dumb related question I should know the answer to: After I had it fully sighted, I cleaned and then shot 1 fouling shot to be ready for hunting next weekend. My question is, how corrosive is 777 - will leaving that 1 fouling shot gunk in there for one week cause irreparable damage to my barrel? Still a bit of a newb to BP equivalents.
3. More of a comment: Pyrodex seemed to be cleaner than Triple 7 - anyone else agree or disagree? It also seemed to be more accurate. Before I ran out of Pyrodex, I was getting sub-2" groups at 80 yards, and with 777, more like 4" groups.
4. I sighted in for 240 gr bullets (saboted), but by the time I got sighted in, I had run out of bullets. So, since I'll need some to hunt with, I decided to re-sight in with the only bullets I had left, 300 grain HPs (saboted) of the same brand. So, should hit lower at 80 yards, right? Nope, the 300s hit about 6" higher - how is this possible? Same charge - 100 gr of 777.
5. When it takes a tremendous amount of force on the bullet starter to push the bullet into the muzzle to get it started, at what point is the force so much that this is an indication of an unsafe narrowing of the bore? Or would it be impossible to manually push the bullet in, in the event the bore was so obstructed that it's unsafe?
1. Do you guys *always* pop a primer-only shot to dry the barrel after every cleaning? I cleaned 4 times while at the range, and popped a primer before I began and after each cleaning before firing. Related question: during one of these primer shots, something flew out of the barrel about 5 yards, and landed on the ground, burning/glowing and smoking the whole way - made a whizzing noise too - just exactly like some kind of firework - like a mini roman candle - what the hell was THAT? How can anything of any volume like that get through the tiny flash hole?
2. Regarding fouling shots: I noticed that my groups were groups and not fliers after the fouling shot, which was a flier. My question is, do I have to put a bullet in, in order to get a fouling shot to do what it needs to do to help with accuracy - or do I have to waste a bullet in addition to powder? Dumb related question I should know the answer to: After I had it fully sighted, I cleaned and then shot 1 fouling shot to be ready for hunting next weekend. My question is, how corrosive is 777 - will leaving that 1 fouling shot gunk in there for one week cause irreparable damage to my barrel? Still a bit of a newb to BP equivalents.
3. More of a comment: Pyrodex seemed to be cleaner than Triple 7 - anyone else agree or disagree? It also seemed to be more accurate. Before I ran out of Pyrodex, I was getting sub-2" groups at 80 yards, and with 777, more like 4" groups.
4. I sighted in for 240 gr bullets (saboted), but by the time I got sighted in, I had run out of bullets. So, since I'll need some to hunt with, I decided to re-sight in with the only bullets I had left, 300 grain HPs (saboted) of the same brand. So, should hit lower at 80 yards, right? Nope, the 300s hit about 6" higher - how is this possible? Same charge - 100 gr of 777.
5. When it takes a tremendous amount of force on the bullet starter to push the bullet into the muzzle to get it started, at what point is the force so much that this is an indication of an unsafe narrowing of the bore? Or would it be impossible to manually push the bullet in, in the event the bore was so obstructed that it's unsafe?