HuntingNut » News » How do I load my Muzzle Loader?

Home • Community Forums • Photo Albums • Register

Modules

• Home - Top 30
• Treasury
• Tell a Friend

Articles: Submit New
• Articles: Topics
• Contact Us
• Community Forums

Members List
• Photo Albums
• PointBlank Ballistics
• PointBlank Online
• Privacy Policy
• Private Messages

Reloading Database
• State F&G Agencies
• Statistics
• Your Account

User Info

Welcome Anonymous

(Register)

Membership:

Latest: IPutMoInYoA

New Today: 0

New Yesterday: 0

Overall: 13131

People Online:

Members: 0

Visitors: 192

BOT: 1

Total: 193

Who Is Where:

Visitors:
01: Forums
02: Forums
03: Home
04: Forums
05: Forums
06: Forums
07: Forums
08: Home
09: Forums
10: Forums
11: Forums
12: Forums
13: Forums
14: Forums
15: Photo Albums
16: Forums
17: Forums
18: News
19: Photo Albums
20: Photo Albums
21: Photo Albums
22: Forums
23: Forums
24: Your Account
25: Forums
26: Forums
27: Forums
28: Forums
29: Forums
30: Your Account
31: Forums
32: Photo Albums
33: Forums
34: Forums
35: Home
36: Forums
37: Forums
38: Forums
39: Forums
40: Forums
41: Forums
42: Home
43: Forums
44: Home
45: Forums
46: Home
47: Your Account
48: Home
49: Photo Albums
50: Forums
51: Forums
52: Home
53: Forums
54: Home
55: Forums
56: Home
57: Forums
58: Photo Albums
59: Forums
60: Forums
61: Photo Albums
62: Forums
63: Your Account
64: Forums
65: Forums
66: Forums
67: Your Account
68: Your Account
69: Forums
70: Home
71: Your Account
72: Forums
73: Forums
74: Forums
75: Forums
76: Forums
77: Forums
78: Forums
79: Forums
80: Forums
81: Forums
82: Home
83: Forums
84: Home
85: Forums
86: Home
87: Home
88: Forums
89: Your Account
90: Forums
91: Forums
92: Forums
93: Forums
94: Home
95: Your Account
96: Forums
97: Forums
98: Forums
99: Home
100: Your Account
101: Forums
102: Photo Albums
103: Forums
104: Home
105: Forums
106: Forums
107: Forums
108: Photo Albums
109: Photo Albums
110: Forums
111: Forums
112: Forums
113: Forums
114: Forums
115: Forums
116: Photo Albums
117: Your Account
118: Home
119: Forums
120: Home
121: Home
122: Forums
123: Forums
124: Forums
125: Home
126: Forums
127: Photo Albums
128: Photo Albums
129: Forums
130: Forums
131: Forums
132: Photo Albums
133: Forums
134: Photo Albums
135: Forums
136: Forums
137: Forums
138: Forums
139: Photo Albums
140: Forums
141: Photo Albums
142: Home
143: Forums
144: Home
145: Forums
146: Forums
147: Photo Albums
148: Forums
149: Forums
150: Photo Albums
151: Forums
152: Forums
153: Forums
154: Statistics
155: Forums
156: Home
157: Forums
158: Home
159: Forums
160: Photo Albums
161: Photo Albums
162: Forums
163: Photo Albums
164: Forums
165: Forums
166: Forums
167: Forums
168: Your Account
169: Forums
170: Forums
171: Forums
172: Home
173: Home
174: Home
175: Forums
176: Forums
177: Forums
178: Forums
179: Forums
180: Forums
181: Forums
182: Forums
183: Forums
184: Forums
185: Forums
186: Forums
187: Forums
188: Forums
189: Forums
190: Forums
191: Forums
192: Forums

BOT:
01: Home

Staff Online:

No staff members are online!

Coppermine Stats

Photo Albums

• Albums: 308
• Pictures: 2452
  · Views: 824590
  · Votes: 1316
  · Comments: 86

How do I load my Muzzle Loader?

Loading a muzzle loader is a relatively simple process. The first step is to gather the nessasary components (some unneeded depending on projectile type): Gun, powder, projectile, patch, cap, powder measure, bullet lubricant, ramrod, and short starter.

First, safely inspect the rifle and make sure it is already unloaded. An easy trick to determine if a rifle is loaded or not is to place the ramrod into the unloaded barrel and to mark with a pen or marker where it exits the barrel. A loaded gun can then be determined by placing the ramrod into the barrel and seeing if the mark on the ramrod lines up with the barrels crown. If the line is above the crown then there must be something already in the barrel.

Next prepare your powder charge. Muzzle Loaders use either Black Powder or Black Powder substitutes like Pyrodex. Using smokeless powder in a muzzle loader will destroy the rifle and probibly cause serious injury or death! Black Powder or a substitute requires measurement by VOLUME not by Weight. This is because not all powders weight the same amount. They are manufactured however, to take up the same amount of volume. Set your powder measure to the amount you desire (example: 80 grains) and carefully fill it up with powder. Next carefully pour the contents of the measure, into the barrel of the muzzle loader.

Now prepare your projectile. There are 3 basic types: conicals, roundballs and Sabots which we will describe how to load here.

Conicals come either pre-lubed or not. If your conicals are not lubed, apply a coating of bullet lubricant to the flat sides of the conical. Lubricant is not needed on the base of the conical nor the front. Take your lubricated conical and place it squarely over the crown of your barrel. Skip down to the section on starting the projectile.

Round Balls require a lubricated cloth patch. Patches come either pre-lubed or not. If not, saturate your patch with lubricant. Place the patch evenly over the barrels crown. Push a roundball into the exact center of the patch (which should also be the exact center of the barrel as well) with your thumb. Skip down to the section on starting the projectile.

Sabots are usually plastic and resemble a shotgun wad. It acts as a carrier for a smaller caliber bullet such as a jacketed handgun bullet. Push the bullet into the "fingers" of the Sabot until the flat base of the bullet is flush against the bottom of the sabot. This will usually push the fingers outward from the bullet which is normal. Next, carefully start the sabot into the barrels crown keeping the bullet facing upwards. Press the sabot unto the barrel with your thumb until the Sabots "fingers" are pressed against the bullet, holding it in place.

Starting the projectile is usually done with a short starter but can be done just as well with the main ramrod. Push the projectile into the barrel carefully keeping it aligned with the barrels bore (conicals/sabots). Once you have pushed it as far as possible with the short started, switch to your main ramrod. Push the projectile the rest of the way down the barrel with a steady motion. Once you feel the projectile contact the powder, apply more pressure to seat the bullet tightly against the powder. Generally, tight pressure from the projectile against the powder will result in better ignition. Hodgdon who makes Pyrodex recommends a minimum of 40lbs of pressure for best ignition and accuracy.

Finally, point your muzzle loader in a safe direction and pull back the hammer to the half-*****ed position. Place a cap snugly on the nipple. That's it! Your muzzle loader is now loaded and ready to fire. Take aim at your target, pull the hammer to the fully *****ed position and shoot!

It should be noted that with each shot, the powder burns and leaves a residue on the barrel wall. Each projectile will appear to be harder and harder to load and accuracy will deminish. At this point the firearm must be cleaned. For utmost accuracy with some muzzle loader, cleaning between shots is mandatory.

Posted by DallanC on Tuesday, May 10, 2005 (23:29:57) (31397 reads) [ Administration ]