RE: best way to unload?without firing?
I finally had to unload my muzzleloader without shooting the other week. The second shot was not needed the deer was dead. I brought it home, and living in a subdivision I could not shoot it to unload it. So, I unscrewed the breech plug and started pushing the load through the breech, but only the pellets came out beforeIreached the end of the rod! So, I carefully used a broken screwdriver to tap the bullet out. Next time I will get a ramrod extension for this sort of thing.
The pellets were a little deformed; the edges broke off when they hit the floor, but still reusable at the range. They had a minor amount of grease on them. The powerbelt is still useable too. It just had a few land marks on it.