Is this true???


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I was reading on a guys website on how to measure the accuracy on your muzzleloader and he had a list of DOs and DON"Ts; on that list of DON'Ts was don't go hunting with a clean barrel cause it can shoot as much as 6" off at 100 yards!!! He said muzzleloaders always shoot better with a "fouled"/dirty barrel than a clean barrel!?!? I just can't make sense of this? Is it true???????

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Re: Is this true???

I always do a spit patch after each shot.

This gives me a semi-fouled bbl and it does seem to shoot better this way vs and clean bbl between shots.

Keys words there are: "For me."

Every gun is different, even being the same make and model. You take 3 MLs side by side, same gun, same loads, everything, and they will shoot differently.

You need to find what "your" gun will like and dislike.

Try it with a few 3 shot groups by cleaning really good between shots. If your all over the paper then try it again with another few 3 shot groups but this time try running just a single spit patch down and see what happens. If your still all over the paper try it without cleaning between shops (no more then a few since loading will become increasingly more difficult. Then how ever else you can think of.

Just like finding which sabot, weight, bullet type, loose powder or pellets, how much powder or pellets, etc... you need for your gun.

You will see a difference from one to the other.

Just pick the one that shoots best for you.

Its all part of the load developement which can be expensive up front but once you find it its great!

Good Luck!

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Re: Is this true???

Absolutely true. My Blackdiamond shoots about 3-4 inches high right out of a clean barrel. Since I know that the hunting I do in MN will require me to shoot backup rounds quickly without cleaning, I sight my ML in fouled. In order to foul it before going hunting I put a small charge of powder (maybe 30 grns-I don't measure it) through the barrel. That will foul the barrel suffiently.

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Re: Is this true???

I hunt with a clean barrel. If you foul a barrel how long would you want to carry it around with the residue eating away at the barrel? No way am I going to foul a barrel in the morning, clean it at night, then foul it again the next morning. I'm not lazy, but I wouldn't let my gun sit overnight with a fouled[dirty] barrel!

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Re: Is this true???

When I get to the range, with a clean barrel, the first thing I do is fire 3 or 4 primers through it, before I fire my first bullet. I then after every shot swab with a windex patch, and a dry patch. My first shot and subsequent shots group together. Before I hunt, I fire a few primers before I load up, and I'm good to go.

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Re: Is this true???

If you are going to hunt with a clean barrel, sight in with a clean barrel. Also, temperature can have an effect on your first shot. A gun sighted in on a balmy July day might shoot God knows where on a 20 degree late November morning....something to consider. When you get it sighted in, clean and load it, stick it in a chest freezer for a while, then see where it shoots. wink.gif

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Guest MZ_shooter

Re: Is this true???

Some bullets, Powerbelts are one I believe, state on the package that they must be shot out of a fouled barrel.

If I have all the does I want I might load my gun and leave it loaded for a month between gun season and ML season, so shooting with a fouled barrel isn’t a option for me.

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Guest RandyWakeman

Re: Is this true???

[ QUOTE ]

I was reading on a guys website on how to measure the accuracy on your muzzleloader and he had a list of DOs and DON"Ts; on that list of DON'Ts was don't go hunting with a clean barrel cause it can shoot as much as 6" off at 100 yards!!! He said muzzleloaders always shoot better with a "fouled"/dirty barrel than a clean barrel!?!? I just can't make sense of this? Is it true???????

[/ QUOTE ]

Absolutely.

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