I have always wondered about this. I took my Traditions Evolution out today with a scope, sighted in at 50 yards and took it out to 100 yards after a good cleaning.

80gr Pyrodex RS, 348gr Powerbelt Aerotip, Winchester W209 Primers. My first shot was low, next 2 were great. Maybe it just prefers a fouled bore while shooting 209s? Yes, i will adjust the scope later on. Just wanted to shoot for groups not not worry about hitting exactly where i needed it.




Fouling under the scope from 209s,





Next i changed out the 209 Breech plug insert and screwed in the #11 percussion cap insert.

Bolt Closed while capped,

Grayed out holes are the previous holes shot with the 209s,


Now on shot #3 i noticed a great deal of fouling the first 1" of barrel that gave me a hard time pushing the Powerbelt through. I did not get this with the 209's. So while my first 2 shots did shrink down in size with the #11 It seems the fouling is a good deal worse at the end of the muzzle with #11's.

Fired #11 Cap:


Fouling on scope after 3 shots with #11 caps. Very little difference between the #11 and the 209's.


Tomorrow i want to try the 247gr Colorado Thors out with 90-100gr Pyrodex RS and see how that groups with a scope.

What i learned:

I'll use whichever is the most reliable/Accurate in this rifle. That being the 209 primer.