Breechplug

I have'nt used Goex 3f since they legalized sabots and scopes on inlines here. Back then I encountered a few problems with my MLer not firing, or having a half charge sounding load going off like you experienced. But back then I never covered the end of my muzzle like I do now with a round quarter sized pice of masking tape.
I dont know if Goex is more susceptable to drawing moisture then the Pyrodox RS that I use now is or not. But back in the patch and round ball days with Goex 3f I did have the ocassional Hang Fire too, I can remember at least a half a dozen times when the MLer did'nt fire, had a half sounding charge to the fire or a hang fire, all had a bad outcome to no Deer. I was'nt to pleased with the sport of MLing, then came the (I can use Sabots and Scopes) for hunting so I bought a Inline.
When I first started using a Inline I did fire off my load at the end of the day so I would have fresh charge to hunt with for the next day, I wanted to be sure everything was going to be good, I was new to inlines and did'nt want to experience what I did with the old side hammer. As a couple of seasons went on I got more slack and at times I did'nt fire off My MLer I kept it loaded for the next day, things went good, but if it rained or we had a heavy wet snow I'd fire it off and reload.
Then I started using a piece of masking tape on the end of the barrel to cover the muzzle from the elements. I hunted in the rain all day, to be sure my trick worked I'd test fired at the end of the day after a good soaking rain and it still fired with no problems, I got more confident.
Then I headr about moisture getting in the barrel after hunting in the cold (0 degreese and above) and then taking the MLer into my Truck wich was then warmed up from the heater then to home where it was warm and then back to the cold truck untill it heated up then back out into the cold again. After a day or two of hunting like this I test fired, all was good, I was more confident then befor.
The seasons went by and I got more and more confident in what I could and could not do, last year and this year really put what I could and could not do to the test. Last season it was COLD through the whole hunting season, temps around 10degreese and snowy all day long, this season was the total opposite with warm weather but tons of rain, I never had one problem in the past two seasons and if I was going to it would have been then.
I treat my MLer barrel with Montana Extreme Bore Conditioner, it's a SS Bergara Barrel and keep the muzzle covered with a piece of quarter sized masking tape after loading. Last season when it was really cold and snowy I hunted with my MLer and brought it in and out of the warm and cold many times with the same load and never had a problem with it going off.
This season with all the rain I hunted with it for 3 full days of pouring rain, I got worried and figured to be safe I'd take it apart. I removed the BP, poured out the powder and pushed out the sabot and checked the barrel. Everything was spotless clean and dry. I was impressed.
So I now have no worries about Moisture getting into my powder or my MLer not going off when it needs to. I have put it through more test of going from real cold to warm and back again to cold and warm again then most will ever do. I've hunted in heavy wet snow, blizzards and pouring rain, no moisture or signs of rust in the barrel at all.
Now back befor I had a SS Barrel and my MLer had a Blued Steel barrel on it Iwould get rust on the outside of the barrel, but this wiped right off with some oil.
Since I've been using a Stainless Steel Barrel I have had no problems at all. I also give a-lot of the credit to the piece of masking tape covering the end of my muzzle, this works great and if none of you have ever tried it then do so, you wont be sorry. It stays on in rain and snow and has never came off. I do the same to my wifes MLer and she has a blued barrel, no problems either, she uses Pyro Pellets but does'nt hunt in the rain either.
So now I dont worry at all if it's raining, snowing, cold or warm. If I dont shoot it that day it stays loaded and goes on the next hunt with no worries and fires just fine when It needs to. Is it the masking tape trick, the SS barrel, the Pyrodox Powder, the design of My MLer (Accura V1) or a combination of all of the above. Whatever it is I have found the perfect combination of fighting the effects of Mother Nature and She does'nt worry me any more.
Semi,
Sorry to hear about your misfortune with the Doe, I can feel your frustration after hunting so hard and so long to finally get a shot and to have that happen. Im sure befor it all ends you'll have a new Thread on here showing your Successful Hunt.
All My Best!
(BP)

HuntAway

I should clarify my earlier post. I clear my flintlock and caplocks after the day of hunting. My inline I replace the primer with a fired primer. The muzzle has a piece of electrical tape over it to keep moisture out. In the morning I just put in a good primer.

HA

bronko22000

Semi, first, sorry about your not being able to harvest your doe. But although I don't fire off my rifle every day and usually keep it loaded for no more than 2 weeks at a time. My exception to this is if there are a couple weather changes from cold to hot and back cold again. I normally keep my ML in the garage after hunting so it doesn't suffer any condensation from coming into the warm house after being out in the cold all day. Or if I get caught out in the rain or wet snow.

pluckit

I'm sorry to hear about your misfire. I keep mine (side locks) loaded until the end of the season or a deer presents a shot. I guess I will continue to do it until something like what happened top you happens to me. But since it never has I see no reason to change.

Semisane

I never thought it would happen to me either pluckit. Been leaving them loaded for twenty years or more with never a problem. But after this experience I got to thinking "what if that had been the buck of a lifetime?".

It's really no big deal to unload a gun. Even with my sidelocks I can pull a ball without a great deal of trouble.

I think Bronko nailed it with the weather change comment. This year our changes seem to have been more severe than normal. I remember hitting the sack one night about two weeks ago with the electric heater running in my little hooch because the temp was somewhere in the mid forties. During the night the cold front backed to the North and we awoke to temperatures close to seventy and a warm humid S.E. breeze. When I opened my truck to get the gun it was like opening a refrigerator. The inside of the truck was still cold and my scope fogged as soon as I took the gun out. That should have clued me in to the possibility of a problem. It's the old coulda` woulda` shoulda` thing.

One other thought. I suspect sidelocks with a tight patched ball are less likely to have a problem than a sabot round.

7.62NATO

Does plastic take on more water than cotton? I dunno...the load I am using now in the Omega requires a bit of muscle to get down the bore. I'd like to think the seal is pretty darn tight.\

But yeah, the weather change you spoke of is huge. That may have even been the one to kill it. I know what BP says about taking his gun in and out of the cold with no problem, but I still think a slow, gradual change is the key to keeping a load good.

7.62NATO

BTW, I tend to hate pushing a load out from muzzle to breech. Since I grease my breech plug, the powder sticks to the internal threading like mad and takes a good while to remove all of it (it actually might be faster to shoot the load and clean the gun like normal!). For those of you who don’t grease the BP and just use Teflon tape, I assume no grease is used on the internal threads and they remain dry, correct?

bronko22000

[quote=Semisane;3897269]. Been leaving them loaded for twenty years or more with never a problem. But after this experience I got to thinking "what if that had been the buck of a lifetime?".

Don't you think 20 years is a might long?

I remember hitting the sack one night about two weeks ago with the electric heater running in my little hooch because the temp was somewhere in the mid forties.
quote]

Mid 40s?! You big sissy. Heck that's darn near sun tanning weather for us northerners!

quake

Man, I know exactly what your talking about here!!!

I have often wondered if it wouldnt be faster and easier to just fire the dang thing off and then clean everything too hahaha.

Semi, sorry to hear your season has stunk so far. Hopefully you can turn it around in the late season.

Breechplug

As I mentioned above, I hunted with my MLer in the -0's to a cold then warm truck, into a warm house, back out into a cold then warm truck back out into the 0 degree weather. Along with this it snowed so hard I could hardly see, when I got back to my truck I brished off the snow from it and dried it off when I got home. No problems ever, and when taken apart to check after hunting for days like this the inside of the barrel was shinny and dry, the powder dry as could be. The same thing with my MLer after hunting for days with it in the pouring rain.
(BP)