My first smokepole..... new untried journey

[Mad Mucus]

Just put a deposit on my first smokepole, a Lyman GPR percussion .54 cal

Awaiting a permit to acquire through local gov weapons licensing before completing the purchase.
It will come with a minnie mold of which the boolits apparently shoot well, though I know this rifle is meant for patched ball.

Hmmm, where to start & what accessories will I definitely need for loading & cleaning?

I'm a darksider..... very familiar with blackpowder.

Looking to get the Reloading Manual Lyman Black Powder Handbook 2nd Edition.

[Grenadier]

For cleaning you are not going to need much more than hot water, if you plan on shooting Holy Black. I suggest you pick up a couple brass cleaning jags in .54 caliber, a proper range/cleaning rod and a pile of old T-shirts to cut up for cleaning patches.

Lots of people use various formulas for cleaning their muzzleloaders, but in nearly 30 years of shooting the stuff, I have never found anything that works as well as old fashioned hot water and following up with your favorite lubricant. My favorite is Ballistol.

You will certainly want to make/purchase a proper powder horn and a possibles bag for bullets, patches, caps, turnscrew and various other items....think of it as purse that matches your rifle 

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

And, a spare nipple and a good nipple wrench. I like the little shortie from Thompson-Center.  

When you have forgotten the mantra; FIRST THE POWDER THEN THE BALL you can remove the nipple without dismantling the rifle to feed in a bit of powder through the nipple channel, replace the nipple and re-cap, to eject the "Dry-Ball".

And a proper leather shooting bag.  Not the cordura wussy-bags they sell with a starter kit.

It's a small point, but a "possible bag" is for stuff essential for life on the trail.  A Shooting Bag is dedicated to the items required to fire your piece and keep it in good order.

Buy a blackpowder manual. 

[Tsalagidave]

I agree with the rest on using warm water to flush the barrel. After heavy cleaning, I always boil a gill of water to do the final flush. This will really heat up the metal fast and make drying the bore easier.  (Hint, I run my ramrod's bare end down the bore so I can support the barrel by the rod while pouring. I wrap the part of the barrel i'm touching in a cloth when pouring out the water. Both steps will save your hands from being scalded.)  Once you pour it out, its easier to run your dry patches and then finish up with a lightly oiled one.

The basics for your shooting kit should be a turnscrew (screwdriver), cone wrench, wiper (coiled prong end to retrieve lost patches or loose fibers), and ball puller (screw-appendage which you will eventually need to use).

Other handy items are spring vice, punch, vicegrip (non period but useful).

Have a horn and powder measure or a self-measuring flask. For that gun, about 60-75 g of FFg works. I typically use about .55 of  FFFg or 75 to 120g of FFg in my custom .54 plains gun.  Conical balls aren't the best with this type of rifling; I prefer a patched round ball.

Get a ladle with a round mould (.530 pref but some match shooters use a .535 with a fine patch that won't blow out). Make a bullet bag and a good capper to facilitate loading.

...and keep it all in a hunting bag.

-Dave

[James Hunt]

+1 on all the expert advice above. What worked for our ancestors amazingly has not been improved upon. Water to clean, then a cloth patch with tallow. I found this not only to work as well, but was in most cases superior to all the commercial stuff out there. When I started I did not have all the resources you are going to find here, in other words I product tested everything.

You will love your new GPR. Many of us started down the path of 19th century ruin with that fine gun. I still have mine, and it brings back fond memories. We all "need a Hawkin gun - .50 would be better" and in reality - .54 is better yet. Keep us updated on your enjoyment.

WARNING: This new affinity may not stop with your GPR, it can get much, much worse. Don't look to us for help, I fear we are the enabling crowd.

[Professor Marvel]

Greetings My Good Mucus

regarding your need for a shooting bag -

One must decide if one desires a shooting bag or "possibles bag"

The point of the shooting bag is to have everything you need for your gun in one set, ready to hand.

The shooting bag ( aka "hunting pouch" )  is small by design and intended to carry only what was needed
for the one or two day hunt: a pouch of balls, tin of caps, greased shooting patches, a few cleaning patches
and cleaning jag, lost ball screw, nipple pick, turn-screw, fire kit, patch knife, and perhaps lunch.
on the outside of this one can have the hatchet or hawk sheath and the "hunting horn"  ( smaller horn for enough
powder for say 50 shots) and measure.

One usually carries other  accessories not required for the care and feeding of your rifle in your pockets- we discussed those in another thread some time back, and I still owe Dave some pics....

Whilst the larger "possibles bag" is more like an over-the-shoulder haversack, intended to hold all one needs
for many days on the hunt or the trail - one would typically add a bullet mold, folding ladle, lead bar(s) , more tools such
as a hoof knife/pick (unless afoot) , pliers (if one was mechanically inclined) , spare knife, "other spares" , coffe cup or mucket, "housewife" (sewing kit), razor, soap,  sinew,  thread, spare cloth or leather for mending, essential medicinals, thongs,  cordage, and considerably more dried trail food such as pemmican,  jerky, parched corn or sofky.

The Possibles bag is supplemented by the bedroll, which is wrapped with your "waterproof" or tarp (and  in which spare dry clothing & spare mocassins are carried). The bedroll is a good place to carry your rope.



here is a pair of classic, plain 19th C shooting bags
http://rockymtncollege.proboards.com/thread/480/st-louis-style-shooting-bag

here is a nice plain small possibles bag
http://www.trackofthewolf.com/Categories/PartDetail.aspx/50/1/BAG-CANADA-D

here are a variety of good solid bags
http://www.possibleshop.com/p-g-terry-pb.html

if you google
leather muzzleloader "shooting bag"
and select "images" you will find a plethora of eye-candy

yhs
prof marvel

[Mad Mucus]

Thanks pards for your time & input..... truly appreciated.

MM

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

I just noticed you are from the Land Down Under.

I don't know much about OZ except our pard, Fourfingersofdeath is from there as are several other friends, and a least one old army buddy. I do know most of the words in Walsin' My Tilda.

In America they say "possibles bag" where the Jolly Swagman would say "tucker bag".  The bedroll described by The Perfessa was that poor sods "swag".

I'd love to hear more of the Australian shooting traditions prior to the cartridge age.  I have the impression it was a melding of Irish and English to start, with a gradually greater American influence as time passed.

[Professor Marvel]

Greetings Sir Charles & Mucus -

My thanks, Sir Charles for your assistance in translating from "American Plainsian" to "Ozzish" !

I too would like to hear more from Oz ... were the depictions in "Quigley Down Under" anything close to the truth?

yhs
prof marvel

[Mad Mucus]

I just noticed you are from the Land Down Under.

I don't know much about OZ except our pard, Fourfingersofdeath is from there as are several other friends, and a least one old army buddy. I do know most of the words in Walsin' My Tilda.

In America they say "possibles bag" where the Jolly Swagman would say "tucker bag".  The bedroll described by The Perfessa was that poor sods "swag".

I'd love to hear more of the Australian shooting traditions prior to the cartridge age.  I have the impression it was a melding of Irish and English to start, with a gradually greater American influence as time passed.

Don't quote me but to my understanding, a tuckerbag is as states for food. All other personal items would have been in the swag and carrying a firearm plus accessories wouldn't have been the norm for an average Aussie.

I think you are correct with the firearms implementation, mostly British to start with. Firearms were for troopers(law enforcement) and used by livestock station owners & drovers for stock protection. Of course bushrangers & outlaws had them but gathered what they could find or steal.

[Mad Mucus]

Greetings Sir Charles & Mucus -

My thanks, Sir Charles for your assistance in translating from "American Plainsian" to "Ozzish" !

I too would like to hear more from Oz ... were the depictions in "Quigley Down Under" anything close to the truth?

yhs
prof marvel

It has been years since I watched the Quigley movie so you'll have to be more specific with the depictions.

[Sir Charles deMouton-Black]

Another Australian movie of the early cartridge era days is THE PROPOSITION. Quite the brutal affair!

[Tsalagidave]

Mad Mucus,

(Your handle cracks me up every time.) In case it hasn't already been said, welcome. I wanted to digress back to the topic. As someone whose done a lot of overland trekking, road marches, campaigns, etc., I'd like to share a little of what I've learned about how to pack.

I have shifted everything but the essentials to my pack or bedroll. In the hunting bag, I carry the following:
*Patch knife that doubles as a skinning knife
*Bullet bag
*Flask (or powder horn on the outside depending on the impression)
*Primers (caps) with a reproduction capper. (or a flint wallet)
*Wadding
*Cone wrench (with a couple of replacement cones in a small bag)
*Turnscrew
*Compass
*Tinder box
*Single poke with 1/3 to 1/2 lb. sagamite and pemmican or jerked beef
(*Sometimes a small spyglass but I usually put that in my pocket)

In my pack or bedroll:
*Wool or homespun blanket
*Painted or oilcloth
*About 3-5 lbs of sagamite, with pemmican or jerked beef, dried apples, some figs or wild onions and a small poke of sassafrass all packaged up in a single bag.
*spoon
*A small tin cup/boiler
(*Rarely but sometimes a frypan or plate if bacon is involved but it is tastier/easier to roast small game)
*Pocketbook with almanac
*Cards & dice
*matchsafe
*housewife and hygiene kit (toiletries)
*some small medical items
*Bag mould with ladle
*Gun cleaning tools & oil bottle
*Small flask of spare powder
*Pliers
*Mittens
*Socks (sometimes moccasins)
*small belt axe

I have found that I never do a full gun clean unless I am going into camp or my long gun has been completely disabled (short start in a fouled barrel) but this has only happened at the range when I got sloppy. I never put out more than a few rounds when hunting (depending on the game and hunting regs). The only time I cast ammunition is when I bum/buy extra lead from a pard in camp. It is easier to cast your own rounds and dole it out to hunting buddies only if they need it an in more controllable portions.
I have all the greased patches I need in my patch box so oil bottles in my hunting bag is just an encumbrance. When going through heavy brush, I ditch all of my traps and just carry a powder flask, bullet bag, wadding and caps in my shirt pocket.

Here are some photos. I'll try to post more.

-Dave

[Tsalagidave]

Shot of the backside. This is a crude bag I made in camp a few years back. I based it on an original "chamois haversack" I came across but I personally never carry a military-style haversack unless I am doing a military impression or going to an event with a lot of camp cookery. I also carry only 12-20 rounds for a weekend trip. If I am dressed for "hostiles" I'll carry a militia cartridge box with 40 rds instead.

-Dave

[Mad Mucus]

Nice Kit, Dave. Thanks for the welcome.

MM is my family's pet name for me.
Suggested I use Mad Mucus Cascade as my alias but I go by Whitey Lamont.

Mark

[Tsalagidave]

Thanks Mark, (I was wondering about that.)   

Welcome to the group. Let us know whenever you visit the states. I have a business trip to Sydney coming up in August so I look forward to visiting Australia.

-Dave

[Mad Mucus]

Took possession if it today..... 'tis like new with beautiful timber.

[Tsalagidave]

So are you going to keep us in suspense Pard? ...or are you going to show it?

-Dave

[Mad Mucus]

Not the best pic but.....