Doegirl75,

What happened to your sniper kitty avatar? The new one is cool too but so was the kitty.

Nchawkeye,

Unless I missed something allmost all muzzleloader barrels nowdays are made of some sort of steel, not iron. Even the iron ones could handle charges of over 100 grains according to some accounts, though most of those were only shooting round ball. Also, I don't find my sidelocks any more difficult to shoot than my inlines, flintlocks do add some new elements to the mix though. According to a muzzleloader gunsmith I know the main things that create trouble with a muzzleloader using smokeless powder is the design of the breach plugs and/or the design of the nipple, they are not strong enough to handle the added pressure and can burnout or blow out as a result. The barrels themselves will handle more pressure than the BP and nipples will. Then again, if someone short starts a bullet all bets are off, in that situation any barrel can blow, even with black powder.

This comment does not imply that it is safe to use smokeless and I urge everyone to stay within the recomendations of the manufacturer.