bronko22000

the hot water method will not hurt the barrel at all and the soap will neutralize the corrosive black powder residue. just follow the instructions from the post above and you will have no trouble with your rifle and it will last you for years. Don't rely on a smokeless powder solvent to clean your rifle as you may just end up with a pitted bore.
Sort of like Muley, I've been in this game since the early 70s. There are a lot of us old timers on here and we are constantly swapping ideas and tricks. So stick around and you just may learn something. We even do once in a while. Its remembering them that's the hard part!

Triple Se7en

Dish soap and water does not remove copper, lead, plastic......etc.....

Also, water (moisture) is what some of us try to keep out of bores, not put in. You don't need to be doing this since the 70s, to figure it out. You only need to be doing this for one day, to realize water is a gun nemesis..... from centerfires, pistols..... even MLs.

You can recommend it all you want. But I sure don't. Don't rely on dish soap and water to clean your rifle, as you may just end up with a pitted bore. So if you desire to talk trash about smokeless gun solvents, then Ill talk trash about soap and water.

Triple Se7en

The same can be said about smokeless solvents. Plus, there's no reason to use / add Ballistol with my Birchwood-Casey Bore Cleaner. Also, let me add another to lead, copper and plastic buildup. That being carbon. Soap and water struggle to remove carbon.

Not sure why anyone wants to use water inside their ML at home, but don't want that gun anywhere near water outside -- don't want that gun stored with high humidity. All soap & water-flushing is good for, is aiding sidelocks with frozen, stuck bolster screws. That's about it.

I'm done discussing this...... do whatever you like to your MLs.

Muley Hunter

I didn't put down your method one bit. I simply explained how i've done it for 35 years, and don't get any rust, or pitted barrels.

I don't know how you can clean out the breech channel/bolster without flushing? As for copper, lead, and plastic? I thought we were talking about the OP's gun which is a sidelock. I shoot a PRB in a sidelock, and nothing builds up in the bore.

Water does no harm to metal as long as you get it dry, and oiled.

Semisane

BINGO!

toytruck

I believe the last time I cleaned my Renegade (again triple seven powder) I just used the same method with citrus patches I normally use with the inlines and after taking the nipple out I used several pipe cleaners soaked in the citrus to remove what fouling in the bolster too.

If I were to use black powder (want to try Swiss) or pryodex (never again) I would use the soap/water method. Guess I'm just spoiled with the simplier method.

Semi, you got that right too...getting older is not getting any easier!

Muley Hunter

Interesting that Hodgdon uses this line to advertise the T7 powder.

"Hodgdon’s revolutionary granulated muzzleloading propellant that cleans up with water alone. "

If we were talking about an inline I wouldn't use water either. The difference is the breech plug comes out on the inline.

I've never found a good way to really get the breech channel clean on a sidelock other than flushing. A pipe cleaner mat appear to get it clean, but i'm not sure it gets it all. A little at a time it will build up until you start to get slow fires, and then misfires.

Of course some guns are easier to get them clean than others. The patent breech isn't one of them, is is quite common.

I just bought a Pedersoli Frontier rifle. The only instructions it gives for cleaning is flushing. They must know what they're talking about, and I think they'd recommend the best way to clean the gun.

Oldtimr

People have been using soap and water since black powder guns were invented and some of those old rifles can still be used. They used water to clean cannon barrels as well and some of them are still being shot. If it was good enough for them, it is good enough for me. No copper of plastic has ever seen the inside of my flintlock barrel.

Blackpowdersmoke

I've owned and used muzzleloading firearms since 1971 and I've been a flusher since day 1. You're free to come and inspect any of my muzzleloaders any time you'd like!

BPS

Semisane

I have funny things bouncing around in the back of my head.

I'm a flusher and I'm proud
I'm part of an original crowd
And if you look around you say
There seems to be a flushing craze
I'm a flusher
He's a flusher
She's a flusher
We're all flushers
Wouldn't you like to be a flusher too