Muzzleloader Safety -Using pellets

[yoderjac]

What do you do when you have a misfire? A misfire being the cap or primer going off but the main propellant not igniting. The standard advise for years has been to replace the cap or primer and try again. Even one of the recent Hunter Education videos we use in class advocates this as a first step.

Here is an incident that happened to me a few years ago that made me rethink this. I was using Pyrodex pellets at the time with a Thompson Center Omega inline with a 209 primer. I hunted one day and forgot to take my muzzleloader from my ATV rack and parked the ATV in an unheated shed after the hunt. It was a very wet day and night with high humidity. I did not discharge the muzzleloader after the hunt. I just removed the primer.

The next day, I replaced the primer and headed out to hunt. I had a slam dunk shot at a mature doe and decided to take it. The primer when off but the Pyrodex pellets did not ignite. I replaced the primer and tried again. FORTUNATELY, the Pyrodex pellets again did not ignite. Rather than dealing with it in the field, I decided to take the Omega back to camp to deal with.

What I found scared the daylights out of me. The cleaning rod made it about 1/2 way down the barrel before hitting the bullet and sabot. What had happened is that the 209 primer ignition had enough force to travel through the holes in the pellets and push the sabot and bullet down the barrel. The pellets had absorbed enough water that they did not ignite. With the air gap created by the first primer pushing the bullet down the barrel, had the pellets ignited on the second attempt the Omega would have exploded in my face.

Perhaps with a cap and ball type setup with a non-inline, this could not happen. And perhaps even with a 209 primer and inline, if one was using loose powder this may not happen. However, the combination of the 209 and pellets with holes down the core make this a real threat.

I have not had a misfire since, but as I was sitting in the stand this evening with my muzzloader, I thought about this incident; and since it is that time of year for many, I thought I send out this warning.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Bill]

I bet Mista Paacha's muzzle loader always fires.

Good advice though.

 

[Mista Paacha]

As inconvenient as it is one should really pull the BP and reload.

A witness mark on the ramrod and a quick barrel check also is good insurance that everything is where it should be and not double loaded.

 

[Mista Paacha]

I bet Mista Paacha's muzzle loader always fires.

Good advice though.

I’ve had a few squibs. It’s easy to forget what step you’re in when loading a muzzy if you get distracted. Smokeless is far more forgiving when it comes to ignition if the bullet is not seated. Smokeless won’t split a barrel it will go PFFT and nothing. Blackpowder or any of the substitutes are dangerous as the OP mentioned. The bullet sabot must be tight on powder column or bad things can happen.

 

[Peplin Creek]

I have a mark on the ramrod to show me where the bullet is and where it needs to be. The other thing I do once I have it pushed all the way down is I lift the rod about 3 inches up and then toss it down to the bullet. If it’s seated against the powder, the ramrod bounces. If it’s not it’s a dead stop. As for misfires, this happened to me once and the powder was extremely wet from condensation. I did as the OP stated. Eventually after I figured it was safe and the powder wasn’t going to eventually burn from the first primer. I left the stand for the morning put another primer in and shot it. Remember two things pretty vividly about that experience. One, it actually kicked harder than normal, and two, only a portion of each of the two powder pellets ignited and it looked like traces coming out of the barrel that went. 40 yards. I have no idea if I had the same thing happen as the OP but I pretty much always check the barrel before each hunt if I haven’t discharged the round now.

 

[S.T.Fanatic]

I have limited experience with my muzzleloader so thanks for posting this.

 

[yoderjac]

I have limited experience with my muzzleloader so thanks for posting this.

Thanks. It is not just good info for those with little experience. One reason I find it so dangerous is that we have been teaching to fire a second cap or primer since hunter education began. It was the recent introduction of the combination of in-line and pellets that makes what was a relatively safe practice in the past quite unsafe.

As Mista says, the best practice is to remove the primer/cap and then tear down and remove the bullet and power and clean it. For old style muzzleloaders they make a device for the end of the ramrod that can screw into a ball for removal. You can also use compressed air on the nipple. For modern in-lines with a breach plug, you can remove that and push the projectile out the muzzle.

If you do get a misfire, be sure to clean and check the channel. A clog in the channel can minimize how much spark makes it to the propellant causing it to fail to ignite. This is rare but it can occur.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[jwill1776]

While pellets are certainly easy to use I have never been impressed with them, can be stubborn to ignite, the binding agent seems to absorb water, and they foul barrels. I stick with real black powder OR even better Buckhorn 209 which ignites well, is very consistent, and near non corrosive.

 

[nitro27]

Another safety tip. Measure charge by volume NOT weight. A fellow I know, an experienced rifle reloader with no experience with muzzleloader weighed out his loads on scale an shot it. Gun didn’t blow up but created quite the show. He luckily fired only the one shot. He went home did some research and found out how overloaded he was. He then contacted powder co. and they gave him a formula to convert between volume & weight of their powder.

 

[Mista Paacha]

Another safety tip. Measure charge by volume NOT weight. A fellow I know, an experienced rifle reloader with no experience with muzzleloader weighed out his loads on scale an shot it. Gun didn’t blow up but created quite the show. He luckily fired only the one shot. He went home did some research and found out how overloaded he was. He then contacted powder co. and they gave him a formula to convert between volume & weight of their powder.

You are not wrong... The "Fellow" being experienced didn't understand that weight and volume in grains are not equal.

Muzzleloader manufacturers all list recommended loads by volume. If you load 100 grains of BlackHorn 209 into a powder measure for 100 grains then place it on a scale it will weigh around 70 grains actual weight. Your "Experienced" rifle reloader was only doing what he thought was correct. He simply didn't know.

Many "Experienced" muzzleloaders that shoot BH209 weigh the charges. Weighing the charge is far more accurate.

 

[Maddog3355]

If the charge gets pushed up in the barrel very far at all the primer ignition will not reach it . I would say keep on keeping on.

 

[yoderjac]

If the charge gets pushed up in the barrel very far at all the primer ignition will not reach it . I would say keep on keeping on.

Perhaps you misunderstood the issue. The 209 primer discharges and goes through the channel in the center of the pellets. The pellets stay in place. The bullet and sabot are pushed about 1/2 way up the barrel by the pressure created by the 209. Thus, you end up with a condition where the pellets are still at the breach and have been warmed by the first 209 primer. If they ignite when another primer is used, the bullet/sabot act as a barrel obstruction. Bad things can happen!

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Maddog3355]

Perhaps you misunderstood the issue. The 209 primer discharges and goes through the channel in the center of the pellets. The pellets stay in place. The bullet and sabot are pushed about 1/2 way up the barrel by the pressure created by the 209. Thus, you end up with a condition where the pellets are still at the breach and have been warmed by the first 209 primer. If they ignite when another primer is used, the bullet/sabot act as a barrel obstruction. Bad things can happen!

Thanks,

Jack

Jack
Yes I misunderstood it. That is a safety issue.

 

[yoderjac]

Jack
Yes I misunderstood it. That is a safety issue.

Glad you posted. If it wasn't clear to you, it probably wasn't clear to others.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[buckdeer1]

Thats strange that they would be able to do that as I shoot a primer after cleaning before I load to make sure ignition holes are clear and the primer barely moves the piece of paper that I lay on the floor to stop any leftover cleaning fluid or particles

 

[yoderjac]

Thats strange that they would be able to do that as I shoot a primer after cleaning before I load to make sure ignition holes are clear and the primer barely moves the piece of paper that I lay on the floor to stop any leftover cleaning fluid or particles

It comes down to the physics. Once the pressure hits the muzzle it is no longer contained by the barrel. An inch past the muzzle the amount of pressure is hugely decreased from the pressure inside the barrel. A bullet/sabot combination are designed to seal and minimize any gas escaping around the projectile. Either the pressure from the 209 is completely contained or the bullet/sabot move.

Thanks,

Jack