New Muzzleloader ( for hunting ) suggestions on components please...

M

Magnum Wheel Man

New member
my father in law had a couple traditional "looking" rifles ( both 45 caliber ) & had all the traditional accessories that are now mine... & I bought a lil 32 caliber flint lock, which I haven't had time to play with yet...

however, I got what I thought was a great deal on a new Knight KRB7 full camo rifle in 50 cal. to take advantage of the late muzzle loader season... I never really shot my father in laws rifles much, but they used traditional patched balls...

I was at the store yesterday looking at bullets, & I see there is a pretty huge selection ranging from a variety of 45 calinber bullets with the plastic thingies ( sorry, mental block, haven't had my morning caffine yet ) to "Power Belt bullets with built in plastic driving bands...

any suggestions for a newbie to the "modern" muzzle loader as far as bullets & accesories needed... I.E. a capper ??? I have one for the "old style" caps, but nothing for the 209 primers the new rifle takes... any 209 primer work, or are some better than others ??? I had heard the "rolling block" style was a bit picky on powders, but the instructions give me 6 or 8 options, including a couple pellets... I'm really not a pellet kind of guy, & plan on using loose powder...

am I better off buying a "starter kit" for the new 50 cal, or just a few pieces & using the bulk of the traditional acessories I already have...

any suggestions would be great, as I don't have all that much time to get it figured out & sighted in... thanks
 
If you can find it, Blackhorn 209 powder. It is absolutely the cleanest you will ever find but it was only introduced to the market a year or so ago and is still pretty hard to find. If you can't, use loose 777. 100gr is a good weight to start with.

For bullets, I like Hornady SSTs and I prefer the low-drag sabots (easier to load). I personlly would use Powerbelts if they were free. T/C shockwaves are the same bullets as Hornady (made by Hornady) but they have different color tips and they cost more.

For primers, I like the Winchester 777 primers. They are not quite as hot as a normal 209 shotshell primers so they don't contribute as much to the dreaded "crud ring".

If you go to the Thompson Center website, there are some good videos there about loading and shooting muzzleloaders. I generally agree with what they say except that I pull my breech plug and run wet then dry patches after EVERY shot at the range. That way, it prevents the crud ring from forming and it simulates what I will happen when I actually shoot in the field (first shot in a muzzle loader in the field is always with a completely clean barrel).
 
Thanks for the suggestions... when you refer to a "wet patch" what are you using to wet the patch ??? ( Father in law had some "juice" they called "moose milk" I can get the reciepe from his cousin, that I'll be hunting with this year... I was told what was in "moose milk" before, but since I hadn't shot Muzzle loader anywheres close to regularly, I've since forgotten :o )...
 
Had lots of trouble recently getting an older T/C Grey Hawk to shoot. It did pretty well last year with 90 gr FFFFg (it's what I had! Okay!) and a MMP .54 sabot with a .429 Berry's FP bullet. This year, it wouldn't even pattern at 25 yards! With the same load!
Finally, out of frustration, I dialed up the T/C Customer Service folks. They suggested their Maxi-Ball and reduce the powder charge to 80 grs. (I now have FFFg, thank you very much! LOL!!!) It worked! It will put three of those 430 grain lead bricks in a nine inch paper plate(about a 3 or 4 inch group) at 100 yards!
I suppose my point is..... either read the manual that came with the gun. They should have suggested loads for it. Or, call the manufacturer and ask about suggested loads. They know what the gun was designed to shoot and what kind of powder and powder charge to start with. Traditionally, start with the lightest suggested charge and work up until you find the "sweet" spot (load?).
Powders? Well, guns are alot like folks. Some prefer steak, some prefer baloney!
Bullets? See "Powders" above.
Basically, take some time, see what works. Then stick with it!
It's too bad that some powder MFG's don't offer maybe 500 gr trial packs. As it is, you gotta buy a pound and if it doesn't seem to work, you're stuck with a bunch of powder you can't (prefer) not to use. Either use it on the range to get used to loading and shooting or give it to a friend.
Just take your time. Don't rush. It will be worth it in the end!
 
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