How long do you leave your muzzleloader loaded?
#5
The buck I killed last year....my gun had been loaded for 11mos on a clean barrel. Fired perfectly, dead 9pt. (I don't typically do that, I just ended up not shooting it off last year for some reason...typically I unload and clean it before putting it away for extended time).
I probably would worry about it a little more if it wasn't stainless and kept in a safe. Never had an issue....been doing it this way for over 15yrs w/ pyrodex. Barrel is shiny new when clean.
#7
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: River Ridge, LA (Suburb of New Orleans)
Posts: 10,917
My Omega X7 was loaded with GOEX in a clean dry barrel on November 12th. Haven't got a shot yet this season. Right now it's sitting in the gun box behind the seat of my truck, still loaded. As always, it has a flag on the trigger guard like the one in the picture below.
#8
I will load my flinter on Christmas night for the following day's start of late season ML. I will keep it loaded until the end of the season which is sometime late January unless I shoot at a deer (or coyote) or if I suspect the charge got damp. Which is a good possibility during a PA winter. If any of these two scenerios occur I will clean and reload it. I've been doing this since around 1970 when I used my flinter during the regular rifle season prior to a ML season and never had any corrosion issues.
#10
From the BH 209 site.
We always recommend that you start with a fresh powder charge every day. Although Blackhorn 209 is far less hygroscopic than any other black powder substitutes, barrel “sweating” can put moisture directly in contact with the powder and may affect powder performance. Why take the chance of missing the next mornings great shot?
We always recommend that you start with a fresh powder charge every day. Although Blackhorn 209 is far less hygroscopic than any other black powder substitutes, barrel “sweating” can put moisture directly in contact with the powder and may affect powder performance. Why take the chance of missing the next mornings great shot?