Question about Fouling an in-line and powder charge?
 

I have done some reading here and google on whether to foul an in-line muzzleloader barrel and what I should do to foul it and I am getting different answers.

What do you think is best use a cleaned barrel or a fouled barrel when you head out to the feild? If fouled how do you foul your barrel and if fouled do you need to run a patch down the barrel to "season" it.

I have a 50 cal Winchester Apex Mag. with fluted barrel.

777 loose powder

Bullet 300gr Hornady FPB

What charge of 777 would you start out with using this combo?

I know these are basic questions but if you don't know then it's not a stupid question.

100gr 777 to start but your rifle will tell you what it like as you increase or decrease accuracy will go as well.........
No foul shot
Start with clean barrel and swab every shot
That way your gun is sighted in on first clean bore shot

SO when I sight my ML in I should clean it as if I was putting up for each shot until it is sighted in, correct?

There are two theories on this. A lot of them shoot them clean. They basically remove the oil from the barrel, maybe pop one or two primers and sight them in on a clean barrel. And yes, when sighting in, you do have to clean the bore to where you get a clean patch before the next shot. Once you have it sighted in on that clean barrel, see where it hits on the second shot and third, and adjust for that.

Others foul the bore, and then sight the rifle in on a fouled bore. Swab between shots but sight it in on a fouled bore. Then before they go hunting, if the difference between the first clean shot and the second fouled shot is not too bad, they do nothing, they hunt on a clean bore. But if it is a large difference, they dump 20 grains down the bore, then push a patch on that. Shoot the 20 grains off outside, then swab the bore and hunt on the fouled bore.

Depending on the powder and weather conditions you might have to clean the rifle every night on the fouled bore. But if your shooting a less corrosive powder you can get away with a couple days before having to clean the bore.

Some MLer's will shoot good on a Clean Barrel and other will do better on a Fouled Barrel.
I have a CVA Kodiak Pro with a Fluted Barrel, I think it's pretty much the same as your Winchester Apex Mag. I shoot the CVA Kodiak Pro on a Clean Barrel, it shoots as good on a Fouled Barrel as does My ACCURA.
Shoot your Win Apex on a Clean Barrel, then shoot it on a Fouled Barrel and see where each hits, if there cloase use the Clean Barrel, if there off a few Inches use a Fouled Barrel.
But I will say a fouled Barrel is the Most Consistant because as you sight it your sighting in on a Fouled Barrel even though you swab it, it's still Fouled somewhat. So as you sight in and your shots group tight you know when you Hunt with your Fouled Sighted in Tight Grouped Barrel you'll not have to worry where your shot will be as it will be right where you left off when you were sighting in, right on the money.
This is what I do when I sight in on a Fouled Barrel and reload to Hunt with it. I just swab the Barrel as I do when sighting in with a Windex Patch, just one Patch down and out, then I take a Very Lightly Coated Patch of Montana Extreme Bore Conditioner and go down the Bore with that, then Load.
Now I also have a Stainless Steel Barrel, to me a SS Barrel can take more abuse than a regular Blued Steel Barrel. I would'nt Hunt as Long befor Cleaning on a regular Steel Blued Barrel as I would on a SS Barrel.
I have gone a week or more on a Fouled Unshot SS Barrel befor shooting and cleaning and when It's done being cleaned it looks Perfect. I give most of the Credit for it being this way because of the SS Barrel, but the reat of the credit goes to the MX BC for the Conditioning it does to the Barrel.
You and only You will know exactly what your MLer Barrel Like's, you'll find what she likes then do what you think is best. Hope this made some sence......
(BP)

I'd start with 90gr T7 and see how she does with swabbing between shots.

The gentleman who got me into muzzleloading in the early 60s was over 80 years old when i met him. Uncle Joe Gray started hunting with a muzzleloader when he was 10 years old: He never fouled a barrel; and i don't either.

Ask the rifle what it likes.
To do this fire a round on a clean bore, then fire another through the fouled bore. Are they close?
I've had rifles that would print both within an inch at 100 yards, and others that would put the two rounds several inches apart. No way to predict the results I know of, just try the rifle and see what it does.

I guess we all dream of firing another shot with a frontstuffer if we miss, but to date I havent been able to get another shot off if I miss. What I am shooting at is way out of range by then to even think about another shot.. Plus if you are shooting 777 good luck getting past the crude ring with out swabbing....Clean bore every shot predicts same accuracy results.....

Remember its all about consistency repeating everything the same shot after shot...

I use to have a Winchester Apex in 50 caliber. Mine shot very well with 85 grains of 777 2f. Back then I was using 295 grains powerbelts and they shot very well. I didn't like the performance on game so I started shooting 300 grain shockwaves out of it and they shot great too with basically the same POI.
Keep your eye on the stock, when my first stock started getting a crack radiating out from the lug I sent the gun to CVA and they sent it back with a new stock. When the second one did the same thing I got another new stock and then sold the gun.
It was really a pretty good shooter.