buckfever37

My brothers gun is a traditions pursuit and mine is a cva accura and I do have the black horn plug. His gun has only fired 2 times on primer only. We kicked up some does this afternoon. He takes a shot but primer only goes off. So he takes a shot with my gun and it goes off like normal. After looking for blood its a complete miss. Temp was negative 2. So we reload my cva and head to our evening spot. I let him use my gun and I sit in stand with bow. Temp is negative 6. He has some deer get in range and takes the shot. Says it fizzles and burns powder. But bullet just go a few feet. So what caused this ?

d.winsor

I don't know if anyone can tell you what went wrong, but before they can even attempt it you will have to give more information. Like what type of primer are you using. The Kind of bullet or sabot you are using and what kind of pressure you had seating the bullet or sabot. Anything else you can think of no matter how small it seems to you.

buckfever37

My bullet is a hornady sst 250 grain with a red crush rib sabot. Its been the best combo cause my barrel seems bigger. Meaning with some sabots I can push down with a finger or 2. Not so with using the red crush ribs. My primer is the Remington sts primers. At the woods we reloaded with my brother combo which is the black crush rib. When we got to our evening spot I pushed out that load and reloaded with my combo. Some powder stuck to the breech plug so I did blow on but didn't I spit or anything like that. I shot 2 does on the 30th when it was 2 degrees.

My brother combo in his traditions is hornady sst 250 with black crush rib and a cci magnum primer. I think his is do to long of a flame channel.

d.winsor

I don't know much about the Remington sts primer but in that cold weather I would be inclined to use a Winchester ww209 or CCI mag primers. As long as your sabot loads with a fair amount of resistance I would think BH 209 would have gone off. Blackhorn needs a tight bullet on top of the powder. I have an Accura V2 and the black crush rib sabot falls down my barrel, I can't use it. I use the SST/ML 250 also with a T/C superglide sabot, very accurate and loads great. I know it has been said that a long flame channel cools the primer gasses a lot, but I have a T/C Pro hunter and it has a fairly long flame channel and I have never had any problems using WW 209 primers. As far as your gun I would go to a hotter primer. At home on a 2 to 6 below day load your gun up the same as when you were hunting, set it outside for a couple of hours and then put in a WW 209 or CCI mag primer and try to shoot it. If it was the primer being too cold your gun should go off.

When you have been shooting your gun have you been cleaning out the flame channel? you should use a 1/8" drill bit every 3 to 6 shots using finger pressure only, if you don't your flame channel could become restricted and cause a FTF. If you haven't been cleaning it wrap black electrical tape around the shank of a 1/8" drill bit until you can grip it firmly. Then use it to clean your Breech Plug. Not inferring you haven't but just wanted to check.

buckfever37

Yes I use a drill bit and torch tip cleaners. Every time I have brought it home from shooting the breech plug has always been dry. Pulled the plug out tonight and it definitely had moisture with some powder stuck in the bigger hole of the plug.

I was so pissed when it happened. Mainly due to saying that wont happen with my gun. I could have shot a doe with my bow. But wanted my brother to get his 2nd ever deer.

Blackpowdersmoke

??? He said it fizzled and the bullet only went a few feet... What in the h3ll does it matter what the bullet or sabot combo was? It sounds like a moisture problem to me!

BPS

Josmund

Rem STS is a good, hot, BH209 primer.

The moisture appears to be the culprit. How did we get a wet plug?

It has something to do with temp changes. My guess is the gun was cold, warm, cold, warm a few time.

Proposed solution: Leave the gun cold once loaded in these temps.

FYI.. I shot my deer last year at -5 with BH209 and a Winchester primer in a Knight Disc Extreme.

BarnesAddict

CCI209M or Federal 209A ....... and unless you fall in a creek, get caught in pouring rain with your barrel pointed up or, have the wrong breech plug, BH will go off if the bullet is seated tight. Keep the flash channel cleaned of carbon.
I've shot BH since I could get my hands on it, and in some pretty nasty, wet high moisture weather, including negative digit temps and never had a FTF or hangfire using magnum primers.

cayugad

Personally, and this is just me, I suspect the powder. Sorry but I do. While range time with the powder is fun, something about all the quirks of this powder just rub me wrong. One reason when my supply runs out, that will be fine.

Both of the rifles you mention, unless you were rolling in the snow making snow angels (but at -6º that's not recommended), or standing in a rain storm are very water resistant rifle models. A tight sabot should stop what little moisture might make it down the barrel And the closed breech design of the gun, should have kept that area good.

When I had problems getting BlackHorn to ignite in my Optima, I got the same gambit of excuses, wrong breech plug, didn't scrape the carbon out with a drill bit, too loose a sabot, weak primers, and by the way your STS Remington is a HOT primers...

Now the cold temperatures should not be a culprit. After all if a rifle can not fire in the cold then to me its of no value. Condensation in the powder area, although the rifle was loaded fresh after the shot you say... so this is confusing as normally there is a clear fire channel, and the powder is dry. If you shot a rifle and then reloaded it. Unless you used a soaking wet patch and swabbed, which, with BH209 you don't have to do.

I personally suspect the powder. And I can't put a finger on why. I would hunt cold weather when ever possible with Black Powder #1 tried and true, Pyrodex RS, or Triple Seven. In that order. But I know the BH209 readers will not like my answer. I would test my theory, after all the wind chill here was -40º so that should qualify.. but I don't want to shoot in that kind of cold anymore.

BH209 resulting in fizzle = loose sabot (which it sounds like, yours is not.) Condensation in the powder... which you fire the rifle before this and it shot fine, then reloaded with dry powder and same sabot and got a fizzle. So that don't seem to be it. You're using a hot primer and have the right breech plug... so what's left? I suspect the powder failed with the combination you have. So I would change powders. I'd rather clean a rifle five minutes more, the miss a deer.

Grouse45

With the proper breech plug BH209 will do anything any other powder will do and more!!!

Its very simple, take the breech plug to a local machine shop and have the flame channel drilled out to 5/32 and have it tapped for a ventliner. This procedure is BETTER for all powders not just BH209.