Breechplug, you and I may be in the minority nowadays. I bought a TC sidehammer 50 cal. back in the early 80's. Found the powder and bullet combo that worked really well for my ML and I'm still popping caps on the same gun, still using black powder and the same conicals almost 27+/- years later and still dropping deer! I've got newer ML's and a variety of different ones but they're just for entertainment. It's not just my old ML that I stick with, I'm pretty loyal to whatever I find that works.

Now, if I were in marketing and wanted to attract your $$$$'s, I'd be coming out with new gadgets and promoting new angles on how you should be using my 'improved' products. 'Course, you already know that. I'm not really the kind of guy salesmen like to deal with!

Anyway, to answer your question, this forum is for the guys who like to try the new products and discuss their experiences, or, try differentthings with the proven equipment. Thanks to all those guys because they do guys like me a valuable service. Saving me time and money. So...it's not really a matter of keeping up with the Jones; it's more the thrill of experimentation and making a plan come together. Unless you're making a living at it, then it may be keeping up with the Jones.