Im probably doing some dernfool thing wrong....

[WhiteBlanket]

I was shooting my ERA French Trade Gun
yesterday at the range, and had a problem I've not had before.

I have always prided myself on being able to make a flintlock shoot, even in bad conditions, but yesterday, when conditions were damp but not raining, I was just unable to make my gun discharge.

I'm talking about the main charge.  I was working with a load of 80 grains of FFg Goex powder, a greased wonder lube wad, a .600 round ball, and a double square off brown paper to hold the ball in place.  

I had no difficulty making the pan flash, and I was priming with more FFg; I must have tried 15 times to discharge the gun, and it just wouldn't fire.  It hadn't been raining; it was a little humid, but not terribly so.  I have shot in the rain with less problem I was having this day.

The only odd thing I noticed when I was cleaning the gun, having blown the charge out with CO2 gas, was that there seemed to be an awful lot of black powder (unburned of course) at the back of the chamber.

So I'm thinking that when I  greased my gun before putting it away last time, I may have not put enough energy into wiping it before shooting.  I actually don't remember if I used Ballistol or Wonder Lube.  I'm thinking that a layer of grease might have prevented a charge from getting hot enough fast enough to discharge.

At first I thought it might have been a problem with the geometry of the touch hole, but I haven't had a problem with it all before yesterday, and then comparing it to my other fusil de chasse, the touch hole on the Trade Gun under discussion is actually wider than the other.

Any rate it is still a mystery to me as to why had a problem all of a sudden.  Any ideas?

(Aside from the little forest folk.. you all know who I mean.)

[Uncle Russ]

That layer of "grease" you hinted at?  
Something has killed the main charge.
Here in the Pacific Northwest we know what rain / wet / damp can do to the prime, just as we know what a dead main charge won't do, and, from the conditions you described, I would be very apt to bet my few pennies on the main charge being dead......

Uncle Russ...

[vermontfreedom]

I think  you've diagnosed  your problem. I've made that mistake a few times, myself. Now I try to remember to swab with a dry patch or two thoroughly before loading for a range shoot or hunt. I also take care to wipe down the pan, frizzen, etc.

A couple of other things it could be: fouled flashhole and just gunk buildup in the breech.

I've found that even with a clean bore and using clean-burning powder, sharp flint and reknapping, I have main charge ignition difficulties after 15 or 20 rounds. A spit patch between rounds seems to wholly take care of this.

Lastly, a too-densely packed 'fuse' in the flashhole. I have to pick my flashhole, which is fairly small-diameter after loading, before each shot, to ensure fast ignition. I have an off-the shelf flashole pick, steel, very small diameter, that I push all the way into the main charge. Works like a charm.

This is not necessary on every flintlock (nor is the spit-patch), as I'm sure others here will think or say.

My wife's Trade Rifle, for example, and a different one I used to use, never needed the flashhole to be picked.

But if you don't do these - consider giving them a try, regardless of weather.

They do make the reloading sequence a bit more cumbersome, but it's worth it for me.

[Two Steps]

Any rate it is still a mystery to me as to why had a problem all of a sudden. Any ideas?

Well, my first guess was going to be the Little Forest Folks...but you nixed that

Seems that you may have found your problem...excess lube in the breech area.
If I use a bore butter type lube for storage...I use an alcohol patch or two in the Bbl before loading.  I'll also use one on the flint...the hammer (frizzen)...the pan and pan cover.  That's 'cause if I use bore butter down the Bbl..I also wipe everything else down with it...from one end to the other.  I will also use a vent pick to make sure I've gotten all of the lube out of there.

I'm sure that there will be other ideas here...but the lube thingy is the one that has bitten me the most.
Al

[mike rumping]

before going to the range, but especially before hunting, run 1 or 2  patches soaked with rubbing alcohol through
the barrel of the gun, letting it even come out your touchhole, than 1 dry one.  it'll go off after that.

[Sir Michael]

I'm going to go out on a limb and ask a "dumb question".  When you put a cleaning patch down the barrel does it go all the way to the touch hole?  If it doesn't you need to be careful when shooting in damp weather to periodically run either a very small bore mop down the barrel through the channel that leads to the touch hole to dry and clean it out.  If your patches do go all the way to the touch hole you might try as others have said and run a slightly damp cleaning patch down the barrel after a few shots and a pipe cleaner through the touch hole to make sure they are not gummed up.  You might also want to try after running the damp cleaning patch down the barrel wadding up a dry cleaning patch and pushing it down the barrel followed by using a breach scraper to twist it around a few times against the face of the breach.  You can pull it out with either a patch puller or ball screw.  You should follow this with a pipe cleaner through the touch hole to make sure you haven't pushed some gunk into the touch hole.  Also make sure you dry the pan before priming and pick the touch hole and push a small amount of priming into the touch hole some times helps.

Best of luck.  As Uncle Russ said shooting in the PNW teaches one a raft of tricks to get a flinter to fire in the rain.

[WhiteBlanket]

Thanks so much!  I'm going to start trying the alcohol thing.

And yes, I have been swapbbing down to the touchhole.. I think it may have been the bore butter... which  i refered to above , due to the lateness of the hour, as wonderlube.

 Thanks all!

[Sir Michael]

Just had a thought (no jokes please) when it is cool and humid, water condenses on hot surfaces as they cool down.  You may need to run a dry patch down the bore before loading to dry the breach.  You may also want to run a pipe cleaner through the touch hole to make sure it is dry as well.

[Mitch]

Thanks so much!  I'm going to start trying the alcohol thing.

Just make sure you don't mix blackpowder and alcohol-it's makes the powder hard to shoot and the alcohol taste funny!!

[Minnesota Mike]

The other thing with bore butter too is that when it is cold it will congeal down in the breech and not come out very easy when swabbing. So making sure you get it all out is important.

r/
MM