Can anyone explain muzzleloaders to me?
 

I see all these commercials all the time and they have me a little confused. I have thought about trying a muzzleloader but I dont know the first thing about them and which type would be best,etc?

It looks like the old blackpowder ones would be a pain to load and very time consuming.

How long does it take to load one of the newer ones? It sounds like they are much easier to clean too.

Is there a decent one a guy could try without spending a fortune?

rick

RE: Can anyone explain muzzleloaders to me?
 

Dear brother , i have most likely forgotton more about MZ loading then i care to admit do to age and spunk. back when i got serious around the early 1970's muzzleloading was mainly a hobby of those wanting to connect with the past. a long rifle or plains rifle wascharged with a measure of ffg or fffg followed by a greased piece of pillow ticking, then a round ball , started down the barrel, cut flush with patch knife to the muz, then ramed home, then the ignition charged or capped. sounds like a lenghty process, but with practice can be prudently done. yes it was a smelly, messy cleanup. Today muzzleloading has changed to meet the market place to take advantage of all the conveniant short cuts todays muzzleloader wants.... thats not to say it's bad, just good marketing. we as hunters see a multitude of choices available if we have the cash to fork over. i was lucky enough to experiance the nationals at friendship in the early 1980's,took 1 first place at the tennessee state championship,even had my name misspelled in the NMLRA magazine once, took a few trophies in PA.& tn.those were the days of fixed sights...... that was then, now i welcome the optics,the sabots,pyrodex & 209 primers that will make your piece bark instead of click like the old #11 caps in wet weather. ...i'd say shop around, get good advise at the store leval. as long as you get one that fits your needs. i personally shoot a .45cal encore w/ an old weatherby 3-9 scope i bought off ebay.there are many good pieces out there that are much cheaper.i justify the encore because i canuse other barrels.did i sayi lovethe 209 primer,lol. get you a piecethats easy to clean (removeable breechplug)and work up a loaduntil you are confident you know what it will do at any given range. speedloaders help save time in the woods and are cheaper than the pellets. ...hope i haven't rambled too much and have shed some light for you *

RE: Can anyone explain muzzleloaders to me?
 

THERE OTHER CHOICES BESIDES BLACK POWDER SUBSTITUDES LIKE THE SAVAGE 110 MUZZLE LOADER, IT IS A LITTLE EXPENSIVE BUT IT USES REGULAR MODERN RIFLE POWDER THERE FORE VERY EASY TO CLEAN,HAS A LITTLE MORE VELOCITY AND REAL ACCURATE. THE STORY IS BETTER TOLD BY RANDY WAKEMAN AT www.randywakeman.com .GO TO THE LEFT SIDE OF THE PAGE AND CLICK ON "SAVAGE MUZZLE LOADING. THE MAN IS NOT PART OF THE SAVAGE COMPANY BUT HE HAS TESTED THE SAVAGE MUZZLE LOADER AND MANY OTHERS QUIT EXTENSIVLY. READ ALL OF THE ARTICLES HE HAS POSTED ON HIS WEB SIGHT AND YOU WILL BECOME QUIT EDUCATED ON THE SUBJECT OF MUZZLE LOADING

RE: Can anyone explain muzzleloaders to me?
 

You'd be surprised. I clean my sidelock " old one" in 5-8 minutes. Just take the barrel out of the stock "2 wedge pins" put the nipple end in the hot soapy water, get my ramrod with the cotton swab and pump the water through the barrel. Follow up with dry swabs, clean/dry the outside and you're done. Just remember that no muzzleloader is easy. Your best bet is to buy a cheap muzzleloader and build your skills off that until you're ready and want to update to a more appealing model. Cleaning your muzzleloader IMO is the best way to learn about it and take notice of how everything works.

RE: Can anyone explain muzzleloaders to me?
 

And when you read randy wakemans stuff, take it all witha grain of salt:D:D:D hes a real jack donkey.

RE: Can anyone explain muzzleloaders to me?
 

I tried regular muzzleloaders. Have three ranging from a 160 year old 36 cal to a 58 cal carbine called the "Buffalo Hunter". Never enjoyed shooting them because of the mess, fouling and clean up of black powder and the BP substitutes until I discovered smokeless muzzleloading with a Savage. The ML10-II costs a bit more than a CVA or the like, but is still affordable and is something you will keep for many years. Check out the following link for a bunch of guys that use them and love them. Mine is a stainless model that I bought from Natchez for under $500 including a 3x9 scope. Out of the box it would shoot 1 1/2" 100yd groups with a couple different loads.
http://dougva.proboards34.com/index.cgi?board=Savage

RE: Can anyone explain muzzleloaders to me?
 

Loading a muzzleloader is about the same as handloading a rifle cartridge or shotgun shell for a modern weapon. The only real difference is that with a muzzleloader, you are putting the powder down the barrel, followed by a projectile, and then putting the primer (cap or pan powder, in the case of a flintlock) into a mechanism on the outside of the breech instead of into a primer pocketin the head of the cartridge.

The Brown Bess smoothbore flintlock musket can be loaded and fired 15 times in 3.75 minutes by a trained "recruit in the Continental Army". Does this sound slow? The only advantage I personally can see to the "modern" muzzleloaders" is that the breech plug can be easily removed so you can clean the thing from the breech. Butthis is a definite advantage.