Blowing down barrel

[mark davidson]

Food for thought: What about the example we set for others, new shooters and especially children, who are watching us. My four year old son trys hard to do everything with his toy muzzle loader he sees me do with my real one. I do not let him point even the toy gun at people, same with toy handguns.....my way of teaching muzzle safety and gun safety. Now what if he sees me put the end of my real gun to my mouth?  How about new shooters and non MLers at the range??  Again, I am new and not necessarily opposed to some of you blowing down the barrel. I would not however want you to do it in my backyard in front of my kid. In short, even if it is a safe practice, it sure seems to set a bad example. JMO

[rollingb]

Mark, I understand your concerns and what you're saying,.... but,.... I think it's each individual's responsibility to teach "gun saftey" to their own kids/grandkids. The fact is, traditional muzzleloaders "are a breed apart" from modern firearms, and (I think) it's up to us individualy to explain that to our kids.

Next thing we'll know,... someone will try'n tell us that we can't shave with a straight razor (in camp) anymore, 'cause a 5 year-old kid might see us and try it themselves.  

The new "rule" could even be posed under the false pretense that some adult at rendezvous actually sneezed while shaving and slit their throat back in 1982.

Another eample,... If I ride in to rendevous on horseback without wearing a riding-helmet,.... does that prevent someone else from teaching their kids to wear a safety helmet while riding horses?

..... or, will I be forced to wear a helmet while riding into rendezvous, in order to teach someone else's kids about "riding safety"?

..... what about the "safety" of kids shooting muzzleloaders and handleing "LEAD" balls with their bare hands while reloading,.... or, what about the safety concerns of teaching kids to handle "explosives" in the first place (after all,... that's what traditional muzzleloading consists of)?

..... when attending a shoot many miles from home, I'm much more concerned about getting into a traffic accident on the way there (and back), than I am about blowing down my barrel once I've arrived.

The list is endless where "safety" is an aspect of concern in this sport (or even "life in general"),.... and anybody that choses to avoid the risk of doing something dangerous, might just as well "play it safe" by staying home and watching tv.

I firmly believe that the "safety issue" of blowing down the barrel of a traditional muzzleloader should be a personal choice regarding the nature of the firearm itself (and traditional components), just like some other activitives in life.

[mark davidson]

rollingb, Very well stated. I must concede and agree. I was mostly playing the advocate and your points are above any refute by be. For what it's worth I hate motorcycle helmet laws and regular seat belt laws as well. I am indeed taking the responsibility to teach my little one about guns and knives and critters and such. That is my responsibility as you well stated and I do not need a bunch of laws and rules dictating how I should do it. Again, sir, very well put and I must agree and shut up. :-)

[tg]

Wow I havv not been here for a while  and when I see this topic go for this many pages it makes me wonder if all those who blow should just ignore the question next time it comes up and the poster can refer to an archive about blowing down the barrrel which simply says no right/no wrong but follow and rules in effect at any event, I like to see smoke comming out of the vent before I dump more powder down the tube, I also do not try to speed load. This topic really needs to be put to sleep mercifully. Something that is a matter of choice will never be resolved even if it goes 100 pages.Newcommers can rely on their own take on common sense to decide which way they go.

[cb]

Kind of like one of those old Sci-Fi flicks -

[size=150]"THE SUBJECT THAT WOULD'NT DIE"[/size][/b]

coming soon to a drive in near you..............

How about a new one - Boxers or Briefs??
I prefer a clout myself  :shock:  

sorry the meds must be kicking in.....

[Minnesota Mike]

Well having started this 'enthusiastic' exchange - I must admit it ran further and longer than I thought it might. Am encouraged that the discussion seemed to stay on topic for the most part and usually stayed fairly civil as well.

I guess the bottom line is that no one really has any hard core documentation of such an incident having ever occured, although from a safety perspective it probably is not overly dangerous, but then again not amongst the brightest moves when working with a firearm.

So it's up to each individual shooter to chose whether or not to blow down the barrel of a discharged muzzleloader unless they are playing by current NMLRA guidelines which call that a no-no.

I appreciate everyone's input and frank dialogue . . . I'll see what I can come up with for another provocative topic . . . maybe the instant replay rule in football . . . or real grass versus astro turf . . . or - wait - I got it!! Will post in new topic!!

r/
MM

[Hank in WV]

What about inter-league play? I thought that was what the World Series was for.