RE: Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading!
 

I've never found it to be necessary .
It's probably not a bad idea though .

RE: Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading!
 

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Kevin

Explain "not necessary" please?

I'm aware of how to avoid it... but most posters reading your reply don't.

RE: Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading!
 

I forgot to do it at the range last time out, but luckily, it fired. Running a dry patch is important, but it won't get oil out of a nipple or breach plug. Caps will blow the oil out and possible burn some of it up. If, by the second cap, you don't see a puff of smoke come out, it could mean there is an obstruction.

RE: Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading!
 

Pretty much everytime mine has missfired it was because I didn't fire a cap after I cleaned it. And in most states a ML isn't considered loaded unless it has a primer or cap in it. I load mine before I leave and just don't prime it until I'm ready to use it.

Paul

RE: Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading!
 

Fireing a cap is a great thing to do,also after cleaning store your gun muzzle down . this will help keep oils/solvents from seeping into the breech. good hunting

RE: Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading!
 

In 20 years of hunting with these I've never fired a cap after cleaning or before loading. I don't think it's necessary either. But it doesn't hurt anything. I've never had a misfire in the woods. A lot of the old guys with sidelocks, that used to do the hot soap and water method, will agree. I never used solvent on my sidelocks. Simply laid them up with a heavy coat of oil after the season then cleaned them again before hunting the next year. I use T/C solvent and occasionally a brush on my new inlines and a lot of dry patches. Typically my rifle stays loaded for 3-5 days before I get a shot. Never a misfire. I think the thing that gets a lot of newer hunters is rapid temperature changes for the rifle. Leave the rifle loaded and uncapped in the truck. Also carry the rifle in a soft case as it allows the rifle to heat up/ cool down a lot slower and less of a chance for condensation. These are a lot of things that the old timers have learned the hard way over the years and are being lost. The ease of hunting with the newer, more forgiving inlines, have made a lot of people make simple mistakes that cause misfires. I know it's a PIA but a black powder rifle or handgun can never be "too" clean.

RE: Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading!
 

Just sudsy soap & water with a "once-in-a-while" brushing is a kiss of bore death if you are using plastic and copper. Also traces of leading could build-up unsuspectedly.... sending comatose barrels to places like auctionarms.com -- where I buy them from soap & water folks - give them some life-restoring solvent medicine & re-sell them.

Don't be skimpy with your investment! Use a "proper" solvent & use a hard shell, air-tight, poly-foam gun case for best protection from open air & temperature changes.... not a non-siliconed soft case.

RE: Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading!
 

it seems like with a muzzleoader everyone has there own practice of voo-doo or something(DO THIS DONT DO THAT) and now i will tell you my thoughts after 10 years of hunting with one. i dont think it hurts to fire a cap or 2 but i like to put a rod with a patch down the barrel to catch the gunk and oil residue when i fire off the cap. i use a thompson center newenglander caplock muzzleoader and have had the gun NOT FIRE in several hunting situations and i think i know why. i think firing the cap can clog the nipple. im thinking that the gunk -particles and paper from the cap can build up and close or constrict the nipple on occasion. i think the best way for myself to insure ignition it to run a nipple pick down through the nipple hole after you have loaded it. i used to think that un screwing the nipple and poring powder in the hole would help but sometimes the gun still wouldnt go off. ever since i started runningb the nipple pick throught the nipple hole after loading i never get a cap that goes off and a gun that doesnt fire. just a thought ;)

RE: Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading!
 

I only use soap and water with the sidelocks. My 30 year old T/C Hawken still shoots ragged one hole groups at 50 yards. The only bullets the sidelock sees are all lead conicals. I inspect my bores with a bore light regularly and after 30 years the Hawken barrel still has a mirror finish. No lead buildup. No pits. If you read my last post you will see that I do use solvent in my inlines. I don't use the soap and water method with the inlines as it is not necessary. Like I said I am very particular when it comes to keeping my B/P guns clean. My B/P guns are cleaner at any given time than most peoples centerfire guns. I think the one thing that gets a lot of people is using T/C Bore Butter. That stuff is just about as problematic to the barrels as the powder. T/C no longer recommends to use it as a lube for conicals in their guns. I use T/C Maxi Hunters (unlubed) in the sidelocks and PowerBelts in the inlines. A lot of guys are using the Bore Butter in my area to lube the sabots and PowerBelts. Since they switched over from sidelocks, and you practically need a hammer to push a sabot down the barrel, they use it in the newer guns. They are trashing their barrels this way and don't even realize it. My dad was unaware of this and has been using it in his new Encore. He has stopped now and switched to PowerBelts with no loss in accuracy. Bore butter cruds up the barrel, nipples and some people say seems to"wet" the powder it is in contact with. I'm not skimpy, 30 years and probably a 1000 shots / about a dozen deer later and my T/C Hawken has more than paid for itself. That doesn't count the other three dozen or so deer with other rifles. Two 8 points and two does so far this year. 30 years and 10 guns later and they all still shoot as good as they ever did. I'm not an old timer resistant to change. I simply find methods that work consistently and stick with them till a better one comes along. The original question was "Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading?" The answer is no. Does it hurt anything, no. I feel comfotable in knowing that my attention to detail when cleaning means that there is never a question whether my rifle will go off, even on damp days. I know a lot of guys that swear by the "better" solvents and continue to pop caps at and lose deer. The 209 primers are great but they've made a lot of people lazy when it comes to cleaning. A lot of guys have carried the old bad habits that they had with older rifles over to the newer ones, but now some of them are getting away with more than they could before. A guy, at work,[:@] last week popped a 209 primer at a deer and I didn't think that would be possible. A 209 primer should be an insurance policy not a requirement to make someones gun go off.

RE: Is it necessary to fire a cap prior to loading!
 

My 1st smoke pole was a CVA side lock. Haven't used it in years,but did have couple misfires using #11 caps and the factory nipple. Had somebody way back tell me put a hot shot nipple in the gun,buy a nipple pick, and always but always fire 1-2 caps after cleaning. I followed his advice and never had another misfire.Now I have a T/C using musket caps and a Knight using 209's. I always fire 1-2 caps in either of those inlines. It makes me feel warm and cozy. I sleep much better the night before a hunt knowing I fired those caps.

I don't ever need to wonder if gun might hangfire while looking thru scope at that prize buck. Seems like cheap insurance to me.