LET’S SHOOT A RIFLE
Inline...
Make sure the rifle is clean and empty. Also, be sure that you have taped up or greased the breech plug. If you do not take and grease the breech plug you might have trouble getting it back out at the end of the day. Now we will start to load and shoot.
You have already decided on the powder and projectile already. So take a patch, lightly apply some isopropyl alcohol and swab the bore of the rifle. When you swab, put the patch over the end of the barrel and push the ramrod with the cleaning/loading jag into the patch. As you work the patch down the bore, work the patch in short strokes. Work from the muzzle to the breech. This is done in the beginning to remove any gun oils in the barrel. Later, you do this between shots to remove the fouling from the bore. After the damp patch, then work two dry patches through the bore. This will remove additional fouling and also dry the bore.
At this point I like to push a dry patch to the bottom of the breech on the ramrod jag. Then put a 209 primer into the breech plug. Now fire just that primer off. This blows any oil, etc that might have accumulated in the breech plug onto the cloth. Also it will indicate when you pull the patch and see the burn marks on it, that your fire channel is clean. When you see the burn marks, that’s what you want. You’re ready to load and shoot.
Measure out the amount of powder you wish to shoot in your rifle. Most modern inline rifles handle 100 grains of 2f grade powder and a modern projectile real well. Your powder might be in pellet form. So in this case, drop two pellets down the bore. With loose powder, set your measure and then fill to the top. Level the load and then dump that volume measure of powder down the bore. Some people will tap the butt of their rifle on their toe to level the powder charge. It is not really needed with the modern inline rifles but does not harm.
Now select your sabot and bullet. Put the bullet into the sabot. Put the sabot/bullet combination onto the muzzle or into the false muzzle of the rifle. Now with your short starter, push then sabot/bullet into the barrel as far as you can. Now with the ramrod, seat the bullet down the barrel onto the powder charge firmly.
You then put a primer into the back of the breech plug, and you are ready to shoot. Have fun. After you have shot, you need to swab the bore again like described earlier. Then load as described. And shoot again. Just repeat this procedure.
TRADITIONAL RIFLE….
Make sure the rifle is clean and empty. So take a patch, lightly apply some isopropyl alcohol and swab the bore of the rifle. When you swab, put the patch over the end of the barrel and push the ramrod with the cleaning/loading jag into the patch. As you work the patch down the bore, work the patch in short strokes. Work from the muzzle to the breech. This is done in the beginning to remove any gun oils in the barrel. After the damp patch, then work two dry patches through the bore. With a dry patch pushed down to the breech, put a #11 cap or musket cap, which ever one your rifle takes, and pop that cap. Now pull that dry patch and check for burn marks on the patch. If you see none, do it again. Once you see the burn mark, I like to pop one more cap. Now you are ready to load the rifle.
Measure out the amount of powder you wish to shoot in your rifle. You can pour the powder from the jug into a powder measure, but never pour from the jug into the barrel of the rifle. So now you have a measured charge of powder down the barrel. Take a patch and if it is not pre lubed, apply the lube to it. Set that over the muzzle of the bore. Now put a round ball onto the patch. With the short starter, knock that ball under the crown. Now with the long nose of the short starter, push the patch and ball as deep as you can, into the barrel. Finish seating the ball and patch with the ramrod.
If you are shooting conical bullets, after you have dumped the powder, put the lubed conical (if the conical requires lube) and with the short starter, drive that conical as deep as you can into the bore. Now finish seating the conical onto the powder charge. Make sure you do so firmly.
Now **** the hammer of the rifle back. And place a cap or musket cap onto the nipple. Carefully lower the hammer down to half ****. Once you **** that rifle it is ready to fire.