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Cleaning and Accuracy

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Cleaning and Accuracy

Old 11-05-2009, 12:10 PM
  #1  
Fork Horn
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Default Cleaning and Accuracy

Guys,

I am brand new to muzzleloader hunting, so please be patient before you flame me too bad on my questions. I am also self taught in every bit of this, so if anything I say is just plain-out stupid, it is because I have never had anyone tell me otherwise.

Here is what I am shooting:
Rifle - TC Omega .50 caliber
Scope - Nikon Pro Staff 3x9x40
Bullets - 245 gr. Powerbelt Bullets - hollow point
Powder - 150 grains of Pyrodex pellets

I have shot the gun around 60 times total since I bought it this summer. I have it zero'd at 100 yards. Each and every time I shoot it I give it a very thorough cleaning when I get back to the house. I do the soapy water, solvent patches, wire brush, more solvent patches, dry patches, over and over until all patches come out clean, then I run a patch of Bore Butter. During my shooting sessions I swab the bore with Bore Butter between every shot. Every 5 shots I will remove the breech plug and swab the bore with solvent until clean again.

Here's the deal, my first 5 shots when I first get to the range after a thorough cleaning at the house the night before are pretty accurate. It will hold a 1.5" to 2" group on the bulls eye and I am very pleased with this initial accuracy. The issue is that as I continue to shoot more than 5 shots, even after removing the plug and giving it a thorough field cleaning, the accuracy starts to seriously deteriorate. Shots start climbing high and right. I don't expect this thing to shoot like my centerfire rifles, but I would like to know if I am doing something wrong and causing it to lose accuracy when I get up in the shot count.

After how many shots do you guys remove the plug and swab your guns out with solvent? What do you swab the bore with between shots? Is there anything that I should be doing in addition to the things I am doing now?

Any advice is very much appreciated.
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Old 11-05-2009, 12:56 PM
  #2  
Fork Horn
 
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Sounds like fowling is definately a problem. Some powders are worse than others so you mught try different propelents to see which works best for your rifle. I do not see the need to remove the breach plug every five shots to clean the bore it may help to swab between shots from the muzzle end. This helps a lot when I shoot the old charcole burners that I shoot.

When hunting this should not be a problen since you have the rifle zeroed with a clean barrel and you will be hunting with a rifle loaded into a clean barrel.

Hope this helps.
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Old 11-05-2009, 01:06 PM
  #3  
Spike
 
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In my opinion you might try "not" using
bore butter between shots.
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Old 11-05-2009, 01:41 PM
  #4  
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Just a tip with the Powerbelts. 150 grains of anything is too much. Even if they group nice for you, when the powerbelt hits the animal, it will fragment,or come apart. I would try np more then 80 grains of powder.
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Old 11-05-2009, 01:50 PM
  #5  
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HOnestly try another bulletmaybe work on a change in powder. But to be up front i am new to self taught besides huntingnet.com i have not got my triumph yet anyday though.Dam ups. First from what i have read again this is just reading and talking with some guys. Bore butter is out dated and needs to be put on the relic shelve. alot of the people are telling me that it is not needed for the new barrels like in your omega. I was also told not to use bore butter or oil between shots. That might be the issue. My plan for the triumph which is basicly a breech open omega. (TC words not mine) is to use 100 to 150 grains of 777 depending on what is need to set the bdc on my omega scope for a bullet i am going to usethe 250 grain shockwave. As some have said the powerbelts will break up at the high speed the omegas and triumphs shoot with 150 grains of powder. Honestly why drop from 150 to 80 grains when the bullet is the reason for the drop.
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Old 11-05-2009, 01:57 PM
  #6  
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Most definitly to much of a charge for the powerbelts.
Like said before drop down to 80 - 85 grains.

There are lots of choices today,not saying to dump the PB's but try some other stuff and try some loose powder so you can taylor your load to you bullet and game.

Have fun.
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Old 11-05-2009, 02:02 PM
  #7  
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yep 80 grains with the 245 is max. Its bad enough with 100gr of powder, 150gr is worse! LOL.

Seeing how your groups are very good right now. My guess is that the bore butter is gunking up. Just swab between shots with alcohol soaked patches or simply bring a bottle of windex and spray the patch down and swab away. You dont need that bore butter crap! Its no good.

I would get a bucket of HOT soapy water and pump it through the barrel until you get all of that bore butter oil.

Once you dry the barrel, use some Rem oil, dampen a patch and run it down the bore * using both sides of the damp patch* Give it a few minutes to dry and then run one dry patch to mop up excess oil.

Just get all of that bore butter out and scrub the barrel clean!
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Old 11-05-2009, 02:22 PM
  #8  
Fork Horn
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Great advice! Thanks a ton for all of your help.

The Omega will be getting another soap bath when I get home to get all of the Bore Butter out. I had no idea that stuff was no good, haha. Glad I asked.

I have a couple follow-up questions now:

1 - You have all suggested that I switch to using 80 grains, which I am more than happy to do because the recoil of 150 grains gets old after a while. However, should I stick with using the Pyrodex or should I be using another propellant such as Triple 7 or even something else?

2 - I will no longer use Bore Butter between shots or for any other application. It is going in the trash. However, when I swab the barrel between shots with Windex or alcohol, should I also swab it with a lubricant or is this unnecessary?

Thanks again guys!

Last edited by Crowkilla; 11-05-2009 at 02:25 PM.
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Old 11-05-2009, 02:28 PM
  #9  
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Nothing wrong at all with pyrodex. I use RS all of the time.

No need to apply the barrel oil between each shot. Just swab it clean, dry it and allow the barrel to cool down between each shot.
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Old 11-05-2009, 02:29 PM
  #10  
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Well as for the bore butter, I prefer it in my flinters that use black powder. But in my inline and my percussions, I use Montana Extreme Bore Conditioner. Also, for cleaning, I use the hot soapy water for all my traditional rifles but in my inline, I use T/C's T-17 solvent. This stuff is great.
But after a thorough cleaning with either method, I always follow up with an alcohol patch the a dry patch to get all the moisture out of the bore. Then a light coat of Monatna Xtreme (or any good gun oil).
When you get to the range, get that oil out of the bore with alcohol or windex or you will have a fouling issue.
And always swab between shots - even if its only with a spit patch.
As for the charge, I agree with everyone else, lower it down. Being that you are using pellets, drop down to 2 (100 grs). And when they are gone, get yourself loose powder so you can adjust the charge to get your rifle's sweet spot.
Good luck
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