The flip side of how long
08-17-2014, 12:34 PM
#1
Dominant Buck
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Wisconsin
Posts: 21,193
The flip side of how long
The post about how long to leave a rifle loaded got a lot of response. Now I ask for actually real field experiences with misfires and what you did or did not do, that you feel caused them to happen.
1. Hunting with a T/C Renegade. Loaded fresh that morning. Hunting in snow and cold. Late that afternoon I had my first shot of the season. The cap went off, but no boom. Second cap... cap went off, no boom, buck ran off. Removed the nipple. Drizzled powder down the nipple hole. Replaced nipple. Capped. It fired. Reloaded... it fired again.
2. Hunting with T/C Black Diamond XR. Had hunted three days. Left the rifle loaded all three days. Powder was Triple Seven 2f. Sabot was XTP. Primer was Winchester. Changed primers ever morning. Used weather gear to protect the rifle. Never brought the rifle in at night, just stored it in the unheated woodworking shop. Fourth day of muzzleloader season, little three pointer finally appeared... primer went off... powder did not. Buck ran away. Came home, pushed out the powder and projectile. Powder was like a pellet when it came out. Somehow moisture got in there. No idea why or how.
3. Hunting with Knight LK-II. Powder was black powder. Cap was a CCI Magnum. Second day of hunting on same powder. Changed cap each morning. Small doe came out. Freezer filler I called it. Cap fired, powder charge did not. The rifle was stored in the wood working shop, unheated. Placed muzzle down in a corner on cotton cloth so any condensation would flow away from the powder. Picked the nipple. New cap... nothing. Picked the nipple again. Third cap... rifle fired but did not sound right. Swabbed the bore. Dry patched it. Fired off two caps. Reloaded. Fired fine.
4. CVA Staghorn Magnum. Loaded with Pyrodex RS. Second day left loaded during modern season. Had never seen rain or snow. Stored in the garage at night. Doe came out. Pulled the trigger and got a fud load... where part of the powder fired, but not all of it. Shot right under the does' belly. Swabbed the bore. Reloaded. Fired fine.
Never left a rifle loaded over night since. Never had a problem since. Example... fell in the creek with a T/C Renegade. Had weather gear on it. Walked home to change clothes so I would not freeze to death. At home, fired the rifle off as smooth as a summer's day on my range.
1. Hunting with a T/C Renegade. Loaded fresh that morning. Hunting in snow and cold. Late that afternoon I had my first shot of the season. The cap went off, but no boom. Second cap... cap went off, no boom, buck ran off. Removed the nipple. Drizzled powder down the nipple hole. Replaced nipple. Capped. It fired. Reloaded... it fired again.
2. Hunting with T/C Black Diamond XR. Had hunted three days. Left the rifle loaded all three days. Powder was Triple Seven 2f. Sabot was XTP. Primer was Winchester. Changed primers ever morning. Used weather gear to protect the rifle. Never brought the rifle in at night, just stored it in the unheated woodworking shop. Fourth day of muzzleloader season, little three pointer finally appeared... primer went off... powder did not. Buck ran away. Came home, pushed out the powder and projectile. Powder was like a pellet when it came out. Somehow moisture got in there. No idea why or how.
3. Hunting with Knight LK-II. Powder was black powder. Cap was a CCI Magnum. Second day of hunting on same powder. Changed cap each morning. Small doe came out. Freezer filler I called it. Cap fired, powder charge did not. The rifle was stored in the wood working shop, unheated. Placed muzzle down in a corner on cotton cloth so any condensation would flow away from the powder. Picked the nipple. New cap... nothing. Picked the nipple again. Third cap... rifle fired but did not sound right. Swabbed the bore. Dry patched it. Fired off two caps. Reloaded. Fired fine.
4. CVA Staghorn Magnum. Loaded with Pyrodex RS. Second day left loaded during modern season. Had never seen rain or snow. Stored in the garage at night. Doe came out. Pulled the trigger and got a fud load... where part of the powder fired, but not all of it. Shot right under the does' belly. Swabbed the bore. Reloaded. Fired fine.
Never left a rifle loaded over night since. Never had a problem since. Example... fell in the creek with a T/C Renegade. Had weather gear on it. Walked home to change clothes so I would not freeze to death. At home, fired the rifle off as smooth as a summer's day on my range.
08-17-2014, 12:43 PM
#2
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Jul 2014
Location: Near a lake with no fish
Posts: 1,077
Had a number back in the day when using side hammers.
I honestly haven't had a misfire since I was using the MK85. Rained during the day very hard and although inside the blind, it didn't fire that evening when it needed to. Was using 110grs 2f. Had a couple hang fires with that rifle also. Same charge of 2f and the German #11 caps.
Never had a misfire or hang fire in any of my Encore platform rifles.
Had two hang fires while trying to shoot BH209 from the Ultimate. Both times was my fault for not shooting a coupe cases prior to the first loading.
I honestly haven't had a misfire since I was using the MK85. Rained during the day very hard and although inside the blind, it didn't fire that evening when it needed to. Was using 110grs 2f. Had a couple hang fires with that rifle also. Same charge of 2f and the German #11 caps.
Never had a misfire or hang fire in any of my Encore platform rifles.
Had two hang fires while trying to shoot BH209 from the Ultimate. Both times was my fault for not shooting a coupe cases prior to the first loading.
08-17-2014, 12:53 PM
#3
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: River Ridge, LA (Suburb of New Orleans)
Posts: 10,918
I've had one "hunting" misfire with a Renegade loaded with a bullet/sabot combination on a rainy day hunt. I'm pretty sure I let water get into the muzzle and it migrated past the sabot to the GOEX. I don't think that would happen with a tight fitting ball/patch combination. Regardless, since that time I always reload after a rainy day hunt. Otherwise it stays loaded.
08-17-2014, 01:38 PM
#4
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Idaho
Posts: 11,703
The post about how long to leave a rifle loaded got a lot of response. Now I ask for actually real field experiences with misfires and what you did or did not do, that you feel caused them to happen.
1. Hunting with a T/C Renegade. Loaded fresh that morning. Hunting in snow and cold. Late that afternoon I had my first shot of the season. The cap went off, but no boom. Second cap... cap went off, no boom, buck ran off. Removed the nipple. Drizzled powder down the nipple hole. Replaced nipple. Capped. It fired. Reloaded... it fired again.
2. Hunting with T/C Black Diamond XR. Had hunted three days. Left the rifle loaded all three days. Powder was Triple Seven 2f. Sabot was XTP. Primer was Winchester. Changed primers ever morning. Used weather gear to protect the rifle. Never brought the rifle in at night, just stored it in the unheated woodworking shop. Fourth day of muzzleloader season, little three pointer finally appeared... primer went off... powder did not. Buck ran away. Came home, pushed out the powder and projectile. Powder was like a pellet when it came out. Somehow moisture got in there. No idea why or how.
3. Hunting with Knight LK-II. Powder was black powder. Cap was a CCI Magnum. Second day of hunting on same powder. Changed cap each morning. Small doe came out. Freezer filler I called it. Cap fired, powder charge did not. The rifle was stored in the wood working shop, unheated. Placed muzzle down in a corner on cotton cloth so any condensation would flow away from the powder. Picked the nipple. New cap... nothing. Picked the nipple again. Third cap... rifle fired but did not sound right. Swabbed the bore. Dry patched it. Fired off two caps. Reloaded. Fired fine.
4. CVA Staghorn Magnum. Loaded with Pyrodex RS. Second day left loaded during modern season. Had never seen rain or snow. Stored in the garage at night. Doe came out. Pulled the trigger and got a fud load... where part of the powder fired, but not all of it. Shot right under the does' belly. Swabbed the bore. Reloaded. Fired fine.
Never left a rifle loaded over night since. Never had a problem since. Example... fell in the creek with a T/C Renegade. Had weather gear on it. Walked home to change clothes so I would not freeze to death. At home, fired the rifle off as smooth as a summer's day on my range.
1. Hunting with a T/C Renegade. Loaded fresh that morning. Hunting in snow and cold. Late that afternoon I had my first shot of the season. The cap went off, but no boom. Second cap... cap went off, no boom, buck ran off. Removed the nipple. Drizzled powder down the nipple hole. Replaced nipple. Capped. It fired. Reloaded... it fired again.
2. Hunting with T/C Black Diamond XR. Had hunted three days. Left the rifle loaded all three days. Powder was Triple Seven 2f. Sabot was XTP. Primer was Winchester. Changed primers ever morning. Used weather gear to protect the rifle. Never brought the rifle in at night, just stored it in the unheated woodworking shop. Fourth day of muzzleloader season, little three pointer finally appeared... primer went off... powder did not. Buck ran away. Came home, pushed out the powder and projectile. Powder was like a pellet when it came out. Somehow moisture got in there. No idea why or how.
3. Hunting with Knight LK-II. Powder was black powder. Cap was a CCI Magnum. Second day of hunting on same powder. Changed cap each morning. Small doe came out. Freezer filler I called it. Cap fired, powder charge did not. The rifle was stored in the wood working shop, unheated. Placed muzzle down in a corner on cotton cloth so any condensation would flow away from the powder. Picked the nipple. New cap... nothing. Picked the nipple again. Third cap... rifle fired but did not sound right. Swabbed the bore. Dry patched it. Fired off two caps. Reloaded. Fired fine.
4. CVA Staghorn Magnum. Loaded with Pyrodex RS. Second day left loaded during modern season. Had never seen rain or snow. Stored in the garage at night. Doe came out. Pulled the trigger and got a fud load... where part of the powder fired, but not all of it. Shot right under the does' belly. Swabbed the bore. Reloaded. Fired fine.
Never left a rifle loaded over night since. Never had a problem since. Example... fell in the creek with a T/C Renegade. Had weather gear on it. Walked home to change clothes so I would not freeze to death. At home, fired the rifle off as smooth as a summer's day on my range.
In side hammers especially TC side hammers the two things I did to accomplish my goals were:
1. Switched from T7-2f to T7-3f which is a much fine powder.
2. The second and most important when loading for hunting - I dribble 10-15 grains with the rifle tip to the bolster side... Then I lift the tilt it almost full sideways and tap the opposite side of the stock to drive the powder out of the barrel and under the nipple. Then load the rest of the powder.
After making these two changes and in combination with a #11 MAG cap or a RWS 1075+ cap I have never had a problem.
One other important step for me is the rifle always comes in the house at night stands vertically in a warm place to allow warm air access to the load. I know that is against what everybody says but it works for me. The one thing I never do is bring a very cold rifle into a warm temperature without out warming it slowly. So after a hunt it goes in the cold cab of the pick up and warms slowly on the ride home then into the house, with all the rain gear removed. Out the next morning into the cold pickup again...
In my experience going from warm to cold does not present a condensation problem but the opposite really does.
There are of course other things you have to do correctly in the maintenance and preparation of the rifle bore and nipple to make all of this work.
Last edited by sabotloader; 08-17-2014 at 01:46 PM.
08-17-2014, 02:18 PM
#5
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Comance county, OK
Posts: 11,409
Got back into muzzleloder hunting in 1999. There have been three incidents that cost me a hog and a great buck.
i've had two misfires while hunting: The striker spring on my CVA Mag Hunter was too weak to fire the Federal caps.
i've had one long hangfire while hunting: The gun was loaded that morning. It was raining when a huge buck stepped into the trail. The rest is history.
i've had two misfires while hunting: The striker spring on my CVA Mag Hunter was too weak to fire the Federal caps.
i've had one long hangfire while hunting: The gun was loaded that morning. It was raining when a huge buck stepped into the trail. The rest is history.
08-17-2014, 02:33 PM
#6
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Nov 2004
Posts: 5,425
Believe it or not, I started hunting with flintlocks back in 1977 and have had one fail to fire in that time...I was squirrel hunting with my .40...I had shot several times and had stopped to clean and on the next shot I had a flash in the pan...Obviously, I had used too much spit and hadn't gotten the breech area fully dry...I dribbled a little FFFF Goex in the touch hole and she went off...
Same with my Knight, I always use FFF Goex and make sure my barrel and breech plug are dry from all oils and there is no grease plugging the touch hole...
The funny thing is, my buddies that started with percussion rifles never really mastered them, they got many more miss fires and hang fires than I ever have...They moved on to inlines and one who buys a box of Pyrodex pellets every 5-6 years or so still has hand fires...
Same with my Knight, I always use FFF Goex and make sure my barrel and breech plug are dry from all oils and there is no grease plugging the touch hole...
The funny thing is, my buddies that started with percussion rifles never really mastered them, they got many more miss fires and hang fires than I ever have...They moved on to inlines and one who buys a box of Pyrodex pellets every 5-6 years or so still has hand fires...
08-17-2014, 02:41 PM
#7
Boone & Crockett
Join Date: Jan 2004
Location: Eastern PA
Posts: 12,762
AS yet I've hadn't had a misfire with an inline or a percussion cap. Now my flinters are another story. But this only happened once with the main charge. The other times was because of the pan powder getting wet or damp or insufficient spark from the frizzen.
But our hunts with the flinter occur in Dec - Jan when we can get all kinds of weather.
But our hunts with the flinter occur in Dec - Jan when we can get all kinds of weather.
08-17-2014, 04:03 PM
#8
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Rapid City, South Dakota
Posts: 3,732
The only fail to fire i have ever experienced was when i was hunting with an Accura. The powder was Blackhorn, and the shot was a once in a lifetime, but the rifle didn't fire. It actually turned out to be a good thing, because it led us to develop a breech plug that reliably ignites Blackhorn.
08-17-2014, 04:21 PM
#9
Fork Horn
Join Date: Dec 2013
Posts: 205
When I first started hunting with my .54 renegade I used those water proof caps. I read to pop 1 or 2 caps before loading. While on my stand it started raining hard. I got soaked and it was cold, After getting down I was going to discharge the renegade before I went home to change so I could load a fresh charge. It would not go off after numerous caps. I went home and took my nipple out and noticed I could not see thru it. I took a small wire and poked it thru the nipple, out came two small cards from the caps I popped that morning. That afternoon before going home the gun fired fine. I quit using water proof #11 Caps.
One other time I was shooting my renegade at the range, all of a sudden it started misfiring and FTF. At home I looked thru the nipple and the flash hole was oblong. I replaced the nipple and never had another problem as yet.
Recently I was at the range and while swabbing between shots I probably got a patch too wet, I had a FTF. Now I make sure all my swabbing patches are barely damp.
One other time I was shooting my renegade at the range, all of a sudden it started misfiring and FTF. At home I looked thru the nipple and the flash hole was oblong. I replaced the nipple and never had another problem as yet.
Recently I was at the range and while swabbing between shots I probably got a patch too wet, I had a FTF. Now I make sure all my swabbing patches are barely damp.
Last edited by d.winsor; 08-17-2014 at 04:23 PM.
