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Getting your Black Powder Rifle to shoot accurately!
by Bob Day
PATCH THINGS UP
One of the leading reasons blackpowder hunters fail to achieve the accuracy that their firearms are capable of is the failure to obtain a correct patch/ball fit. Round balls are made with a slightly smaller diameter than the inside diameter of the gun barrel. For instance, balls for a .50-caliber rifle come in .490 and .495 caliber. The purpose of the patch is to bridge that .01- or .005-inch gap, Besides preventing the ball from rolling out, the patch catches hold of the spiral riflings inside the barrel, causing the ball to spin as it travels toward the muzzle. Spinning stabilizes the bullet in flight. If the fit between ball, patch and bore is too tight, the riflings will cut the patch, lessening its efficiency. If the fit is too loose, the ball will "strip the grooves" and fail to spin properly, impairing accuracy. An indication of this problem is finding that your rifle does well with light loads but won't pattern consistently with larger powder charges. You can fix this with a larger ball or by changing to a thicker patch. It isn't necessary for the fit to be so tight that loading is difficult. If a reasonably tight fit doesn't fix the problem, something else is wrong.
STAY LOOSE
Most of your range work will be done under reasonably pleasant conditions, but when you head out on opening morning, it can be darned cold. Many patch lubricants that perform well in shirtsleeve weather grow unmanageably stiff when the mercury dips below freezing. Unlucky hunters learn this when they try to cram a tight-fitting ball-and-patch combo down the barrel on their tree stand. This can be particularly distressing when you need a second shot to anchor wounded game. When putting together a hunting load, stick with grease-based lubes. Those heavy on wax can be hard to shove downbore on chilly days. Water-based lubes can freeze in cold weather, and they contribute to rust bands at the point where the ball is seated for extended periods.
GIVE IT A STINGER
Sometimes the chosen patch material just won't produce good accuracy, regardless of bullet size. This often is due to "blown" patches. Simply put, a blown patch is one that fails to stand up to the rigors of getting jammed down the barrel and shot back out. A blown patch can't do its job of sealing ignition gases and gripping the rifling to spin the ball. You can diagnose this problem by firing several shots over a closely mowed area, retrieving the patches (they seldom travel more than 10 or 15 yards) and reading them. A blown patch may have frayed edges and be singed by the burning powder. The pioneers had a sure-fire cure for blown patches - a stinger patch. The paper materials from a wasp nest are practically as heat-resistant as asbestos. Insert several layers between powder and patch and your problems will be over. The materials are still available today. The paper wasps that live under house eaves work great, as do the big, teardrop-shaped nests of bald-faced hornets seen in the woods. Of course, use a bit of caution and a lot of common sense when attempting to secure your supply. Do not take paper from an active hive.
WORK UP TO IT
Too few muzzleloader hunters bother to methodically "work up" a load. This means settling on a combination of lube, patch, bullet and powder, then range-testing loads in 10-grain increments to see which performs best. For .50 caliber guns, start with 75 grains of blackpowder. Shoot three shots at a target from a bench rest with each load. Then lay the targets side by side, from lightest load to heaviest. In all likelihood, you will notice that the three-shot groups are larger at each end of the progression. Low-velocity loads often lack sufficient spin to stabilize the ball in flight. Hot loads frequently suffer from the same problem because the bullet comes up the bore so fast that the patch strips across the riflings, rather than gripping them and imparting good spin to the ball.
LIGHTEN UP
There's a point of diminishing returns when it comes to powder charge. Beyond about 90 grains of blackpowder, you get only minimal velocity and energy increases with more powder. I know several experienced hunters who have dropped more than one elk with .50-caliber round balls infront of 100 grains of powder. That load will push a ball right through both lungs and out the other side of any whitetail God ever made. On the downside, you get ballistic inconsistency and extra recoil that lead to flinching. Those two factors add up to diminished accuracy. Use the lightest load that yields good accuracy.
KEEP YOUR POWDER DRY
OK, we all know we need to do it; the real question is, how? Guys who have been at this game awhile know some tricks to keep their powder separated from its nemesis - water. Powder does you no good if it's compromised before it goes into your gun, so it's critical that you protect your propellent from the time you open the can. Put a packet of silica gel in each can. Put one in your powder flask, too. While you have the flask open, take a little automotive grease or petroleum jelly and seal the threads of the flask lid. If possible, use some grease to seal the edges of the mechanism that opens and closes the mouth of the flask when loading. Keep your flask in a dry, unheated place between hunts. Taking it outside and back into heated rooms can repeatedly cause moisture in the air inside to condense, eventually compromising it. This is just as important for premeasured charges in speedloaders. It's not critical for the powder in your rifle, since there's no air between the powder and ball. However, condensation can occur on the outside of the gun, causing rust and lock problems. If possible, it's best to keep it in the same place you keep your flask. Once the powder is in the barrel beneath a firmly seated patched ball, there are only two ways for moisture to get to it. One is through the muzzle. The other is through the nipple or flash hole. The muzzle is easy. Just slip a balloon over the muzzle and break its "neck" enough to let the front sight poke through. The nipple requires two solutions. One is a plastic sleeve just large enough to slide over the nipple with the cap on, sealing the gap where the edge of the cap touches the nipple. To seal the nipple when it isn't capped, take an ordinary toothpick and push it into the nipple opening until it seats firmly. Then cut the toothpick off a little beyond the nipple so you have something to grasp. The same trick works for the flash hole of flintlocks, or you may want to use a quill feather if you're really into historical authenticity. An alternative that works only for caplocks is to cut a leather patch 1/4- inch by 1/2-inch and run a bit of rawhide lace through one end. Tie the lace to the trigger guard of your rifle and, when not hunting, put the patch over the nipple opening and lower the hammer to hold it in place.
GIVE YOUR GUN A TUNE-UP
The longer the interval between pulling the trigger and the rifle's firing - lock time - the greater the opportunity for your aim to drift off target. If your caps sometimes fail to fire, change brands. If that doesn't work, make sure the size of the nipple and cap are compatible. If this also fails to work, remove the nipple and make sure' the hammer has smooth, easy movement through its entire arc. A more common problem is the hangfire. This can be a delay of several seconds before the main powder charge ignites, or it can be just a momentary hesitation. The sound of the cap (or the priming charge in a flintlock) going off should merge almost indistinguishably with the report of the main powder charge. Hotter caps, a new flash hole liner or other improvements may be required. Don't tolerate hangfires, however slight. Get the help of a gunsmith if necessary.
ALL WORK AND NO PLAY ...
Because there is more to the process of firing a muzzleloader than a modern rifle, range practice is especially critical to blackpowder hunters' success. You can spice up target practice by engaging in some of the shooting games that your muzzleloading predecessors enjoyed. This is most effective if you do it with other shooters. Meeting with a few friends gives everyone an incentive to shoot on a regular basis. You may be surprised to find that your little muzzleloader support group turns into an organized league. Shooting at a standard bullseye and keeping score to see who shoots best is the simplest option. If you're so inclined, each shooter can put down a modest sum at the outset of each shoot, with the pot to be divided between the top shooters. An old cast-iron skillet is about the size of a deer's heart/lung area and can be hung from tree limbs in different settings. A skillet that swings or twists in the wind is doubly challenging. You'll know when you connect by the resounding gong noise. To improve your understanding of how high to hold over targets at longer ranges, hang a strip of soft 3/8-inch steel inches wide by 18 inches long - and shoot from 50, 75, 100 and 125 yards. Hits will ring out and send the steel swinging vigorously. To build windage judgement, drive a wooden stake in the ground and fire away, confident that elevation isn't a factor in your hits and misses. When you're ready for a real test of skill, try to snuff a candle without damaging it. Or bury one side of a doublebitted ax in a wood log and hang a clay target on either side. Breaking both targets requires you to split a bullet on the exposed cutting. Playing cards make great targets for building extreme accuracy at short range. A hunter who can shoot all four comers off a card - even at 10 yards - is ready for the field. To test reloading proficiency, set up a dozen fairly easy, breakable targets and see which shooter breaks the most. Follow these tips, and you won't have to worry about bringing home the bacon. Any game that crosses your sights will be yours!
