O/T Black powder guns. Who has them and ???

old · Dec 4, 2010

Ok so I took both my Black powder rifle and pistol down off the shelf. I cleaned them before putting them up last winter but both where real dirty again. So how do you clean these thing so as not to have them get bad again and what do you clean them with and do you oil them when you put them back up etc.?? deer season has been so bad here this year that I will most likely go out with the smoke pole this year and see if I can get one that way. So far never taken a deer that way so maybe fun. I have a 50 cal. rifle and a 45 cal Navy pistol. Rifle it for the first and hopefully only shoot but the pistol is as a back up just in case I need one.
Thanks

RN · Dec 4, 2010

Clean barrels with boiling water and dish soap first, then a second pass hot water/soap. let dry, then Hoppes. Oil? Some special greases- Brownells Bear Grease(?) and Thompson Center has a blackpowder lube also- Dixie and Navy Arms had some of theirs with a silicone lube- can"t remember what they were named and oils for black powder--but WD40 sprayed in cleaned barrel and cleaned lock is good for a month, was standard practice for the re-enactors (Battery B, 2nd Tennesee voluteers) with Civil war replicas. Overwinter storage means the grease coats. RN

Ron Anderson · Dec 4, 2010

Hot soapy water is the best for cleaning them. This sounds off base to anyone that shots regular smokless powder but that works the best for us. Black powder is very corrosive and if you miss any it will cause rust. If you get it clean any gun oil will keep it in good shape.
Depending on what model you have we take the stock off and the primer nipple. Then have a coffee can full of very hot water and put the bottom end of the barrel in the water. Then using a cleaning rod with a wet cloth on the end of it push it down the barrel and pull back up a few times. This will draw hot soapy water into the barrel from the nipple and clean it from the bottom of the barrel to the top. Do this several times then dump the water and use fresh, clean, hot water. When you can't see any dirty water then rinse using hot clean water.
The hot water will evaporate - after the barrel is dry I spray it with any antirust and wipe it down with gun oil reassemble and you should be good. Oh clean the nipple using hot soapy water while you are doing the barrel After the nipple is dry oil it and the threads before putting it together.

trucker 40 · Dec 4, 2010

Take apart and put in a pan of boiling water with a little dish soap.Then I took my pistols apart as far as I felt good with after the soapy water,and cleaned them with gun cleaning solvent,then gun oil,then wrapped them in a towel.Been doing that a couple of years and it works good.I dont put a lot of oil on them though.If I use them I clean them again when I get them out,just not the boiling soapy water.Just a gun cleaning kit quick cleaning and take out the cylinder and look at it good,clean, before I load it.
The instructions that came with mine said to use boiling water and it works.One of mine was used when I got it and I took it apart way farther than the previous owner did and was surprised at how much cleaner I got it using boiling water with dish soap.I had to do it about 3 times since I dont think anybody had done it before,but it cleaned up good.I had to use a brush like a tooth brush on that one and scrub it, to get a bunch of crud off of the inside of it.

Catskill Pete · Dec 4, 2010

Depends on what kind of "black powder" you are using. For geniune black powder like Goex or Swiss warm soapy water works great. But I have read that it doesn't work nearly as well for some of the new synthetics. Can't remember the details since I only use the original type, but do a Google search or check the powder makers site and you should get good info. Also its a good idea to run a patch through again and reoil it about a week after you shoot it.

Longknife · Dec 4, 2010

Hot water causes flash rust. No need to boil it. Cold water with a little dish soap works just as well. Dry well afer cleaning, run a patch dampened with alcohol down the barrel and oil with WD40 or equivalent. You will need heavier oil if you plan on long term storage. DO NOT USE BLACK POWDER SUBSTITUES!!!!! They are more corrosive than the ole' BLACK!!!! Been shjooting then since '73---(thats 1973) Here is a good site to visit:
Untitled URL Link

John Harmon · Dec 4, 2010

I use dial liquid soap and hot water to clean the barrel inside and out. Use a 1/2" bottle brush on a rod to clean the inside of the barrel and the nipple area. After cleaning and swabbing with dry patches a final patch which has had Bore Butter rubbed into it down the bore 2-3 times and the barrel is good to go. The furniture gets a good rub down and oiling and if your stock has a finish I use lemon oil furniture polish to keep the hand rubbed mineral oil finish ship shape. I own a .32cal. flint lock varmint gun by Track of the Wolf with a Green Mountain Barrel,a .50cal hand me down Flint Lock with a Damascus Barrel made by an unknown gun smith in Ky I don't fire any more, A .50cal.percussion Kentucky style of my own making which I have attached a picture of. It shoots real well if you aim at the top of the 12"X12" target at about 50 yards with a 65 grain FFG charge.I also own my original rifle ,a 61Cal Percussion Browning Import. I have had it for a long time and it has been rebored from a 54.cal.Don't be afraid to use soap and water but dry it real good and oil it liberally,better yet load it up and do some target shooting. Once a year fireing is no way to treat a prize firearm.JH

John Harmon · Dec 4, 2010

Fofrgot to upload the picture.

al in ark · Dec 4, 2010

hoppes oil i wish they made a after shave that smelled like hoppes oil al

ASEguy · Dec 4, 2010

I haven't gotten one either Rich. Haven't even seen a piece of one. My older farmer friend jumped he said was the biggest buck and doe he'd ever seen on his ground sitting down amongst his cows which was about 20 feet from a two lane highway, and probably 1/8 mile from me. And of course when they jumped they ran opposite my direction. :>) Gerard

johndeereman · Dec 4, 2010

no need to clean them from just dust sitting around the dust will actually protect them as long as nobody touches it to wipe dust off

GordoSD · Dec 4, 2010

Rich, You will LOVE the MZ season. Almost no hunters around, good cold weather, maybe some snow there. Here's some tips after Muzzy hunting in SD for about 8 years
First, get some firesights. We can't use scopes and the deer move late, and iron sights are impossible after dusk.
Second. Do some target shooting at 50-100-150 yards. Just use the simple round balls. 90 grains. You shoud be able to hit a beer can at 50, a tomato juice can at 100 and a large pie tin at 150.
Use a rangefinder when hunting.
Use a bipod or tripod, those muzzys are heavy.
Lose the pistol
Load your rifle and hunt for 4-6 days. Don't bring it inside. Leave it where it will be cool.
After a week fire and reload.
You won't believe how deadly that muzzy can be, but you gotta practice, especially if you have the double set triggers

old · Dec 4, 2010

I have been hunting with the set up I have for 5 or so years just not a whole lot and so far never shot a deer. I have tried a few time but either missed or had a miss fire. Had a chain fire one time on my pistol which scared the heck out of me but didn't do any harm. Big problem in my area is there is so much brush that getting a good clean open shot is very hard to come by

old · Dec 4, 2010

I have taken one small doe so far this season, but that was back during the any deer part. I saw 4 does this evening but they where in my neighbors field with his horses so no way I could shoot at them. One guy who hunts my place did get a big doe around 4:45. I guess you know we have one more day then it is back to the bow and then on the 18th the smoke pole. Stupid little truck still will run well one time then the next act up. Wish a deer would jump out in front of it since I have uninsured deer on my insurance LOL

old · Dec 4, 2010

I use 90 grains FFG in my 50 cal and 25 grains in the pistol. On paper I do ok but so far all the deer I have pulled up on I have either missed or had a miss fire as in the cap popped but the charge didn't go off

teddy52food · Dec 4, 2010

Balistol is a very good oil to use for storage. I am looking for another bottle as mine is almost gone. I am not finding any locally. If I order online, the shipping doubles the price. Does anyone else use it?

John Harmon · Dec 4, 2010

Ok.not haveing much luck .So: as far as missing that could be your sights are not zeroed for the max effective range of the combo of the ball, the charge of powder,the wadding used and barrel condition. As for the cap misfire or no fire,first is the nipple hole completely clear? Foiled nipples are generally the cause of no fire if the cap does ignite. The frontiersman carried a feather from a bird to use to clear the nipple. I carry one that is from a tail of a mourning dove. I use Pyrodex RS FFG very dry powder,Hornady .490 lead round balls. 10 oz. Denium for patching.Bore butter for barrel lubrication And CCI Magnum 0310 Percussion caps for the .61 cal Browning and my home built .50 Cal Kentucky. Powder charges range from 60 to 80 as I only target shoot them.My targets are from www.mytargets.com and are available free to print out.I print them on photo paper so they are a slight more rigid. I suggest you spend some time on the range and rediscover your muzzleloader.After all they are what mostly helped make this great country we call the United States of America.

PreciseFarms · Dec 4, 2010

Can't help with the dust, but try the Pioneer powder. It has been great. No misfires after not cleaning for 3 years. Not recommended but with a stainless barrell and this stuff its possible. Used to with Pyrodex if you shoot today, you better clean before tomorrow if you want to shoot. Much easier when you do clean also. We also use the Thompson/Center pre-oiled patches that are perfect. We use the lube when putting the breech plug back in and everything comes back apart great the next time, even if its 3 years and a half dozen shots later.

old · Dec 4, 2010

Bullets I have are a 385 grain if I remember right conical. Heavy bullet but most shots in my area are less then 50 yards. Been a few years since I did hunt with it and it is a last chance gun/hunt for me. Time I had the misfire I had to pull the little screw of the side and put in a little powder to get it to fire and then all was well. Rifle I would really like is that 6 shot revolver type rifle but so far have not had to extra $$ to get one. Funny how I like to have that extra few shots but then in my area having 2 or 3 shots can mean 2 or 3 deer in the freezer or in other people freezers

Spotted Horse · Dec 5, 2010

(quoted from post at 19:11:16 12/04/10) Balistol is a very good oil to use for storage. I am looking for another bottle as mine is almost gone. I am not finding any locally. If I order online, the shipping doubles the price. Does anyone else use it?

I use Balistol on my .62 cal flintlock smoothbores, and on my .58 cal Early Hawken fullstock,... it also works good as a "patch lube" when mixed with a little water.

When I buy it, I get the biggest bottle I can and it lasts a long time, even when shooting 800 to 1000 rounds per year.

I buy my Balistol from "Track Of The Wolf", but I've never looked for it any place else.

Hogleg · Dec 5, 2010

Midway has Balistol. I think Cabela's has it also. I use it on my cowboy black powder guns. It works really well for lubricating/rust prevention after a good soap and water cleaning because it is water soluble. After the water evaporates, the oily residue it leaves prevents rusting. For cleaning, I make what is called Moose milk. 1 part balistol, 7 parts water, in a sprayer. Clean the heavy fouling, then spray with moose milk, wipe it down with a good clean rag. Then I use the balistol full strength in the areas around the trigger and lock to lubricate. Done. Using the moose milk makes the stuff last a lot longer. Buy a quart jug and it will last for years.

John

O/T Black powder guns. Who has them and ???

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