why I like shooting muzzle stuffers

It’s the craft of it all that gets me. Collecting scrap lead, smelting the scrap the casting the bullet, smearing it with fat and beeswax...it’s pretty basic stuff. Buying a PH Volunteer has been a real boost to me as eyes and grip have made IPSC pistol competition more of a challenge. Ive never come home from a BP session annoyed with myself.

I did once Nagantino. I forgot my horn. I had a bunch of stuff, but no powder.

Muzzleloaders don't waste ammo foolishly. Plus, you can have a conversation whilst shooting smoke-poles. It's the pinnacle of firearms sophistication, really.

Conversations while shooting your muzzle loader can lead you to all sorts of new experiences. The most common is how to remove a ball when you forget to use powder first. That makes for enlightening conversation. You can also enlist those around you to discuss your performance on target. One can discuss how to read the wind to minimize the adverse effects of wind during the flight of the ball. Most of the time a very civil process.

I've been a historical rifle collector/shooter for years (With focus on the first and second world war) and just only got into black powder due to a sudden interest in the american civil war. There is certainly something fantastic about muzzleloaders in comparison to your run of the mill centerfire guns of today. I'm still working on building confidence in shooting mine, so I haven't really gotten to that point of relaxed shooting yet. (I'm always worried about there being an ember or something that'll set the gun off when i'm loading. Just a bad habit of thinking about the worst possible outcome when I've got extremities close to a loaded barrel.)

I love 18th Century history and getting dirty. It was a natural fit.

It’s just such a charming and quaint retreat from everyday urban hell.

I live in Las Vegas, a place of disgusting excess and sinful vices. It sickens me here. One of my most favourite things is to head off into the desert and shoot my muzzleloaders. It’s just relaxing and comforting, I love it.

After spending my life in the fast lane, full speed ahead, it's just nice to slow down with my feet on the ground (literally) and let the lead fly, one load at a time, one patch and ball at a time.

Where I once said "I love the smell of avgas in the morning!" I now find the smell of black powder far more enticing.

To hear the clack of flint on the frizen and the blast of the charge, to feel gentle kick of the stock on my shoulder; what more could one ask for in life....except perhaps some meat on the fire and whiskey wetting my lips.

Grenadier1758 said:

Conversations while shooting your muzzle loader can lead you to all sorts of new experiences. The most common is how to remove a ball when you forget to use powder first. That makes for enlightening conversation. You can also enlist those around you to discuss your performance on target. One can discuss how to read the wind to minimize the adverse effects of wind during the flight of the ball. Most of the time a very civil process.

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So true.... I have forgotten the powder a couple times while conversing during reloading. But I probably have dry-balled a rifle even while not conversing, as well. It really comes down to having an established pattern. And don't let anything disrupt your pattern. Swab, pour, seat, stuff and drive it down. I always worry about using the short starter but forgetting to drive all the way down.

Another good reason to have a rod with you that is marked for proper depth so you can tell if there is powder under the ball or not.

As a kid in the 1960's I remember watching the tv series Danial Boone, we had an old Pt 53 Enfield over the mantle piece. I was 12 or 13 when I started shooting the old girl, still have her. Seems to be my undying passion. A love of history is often another common theme with black powder shooters. Just something so satisfying in filling the freezer using a muzzle loading gun. It just goes with my lifestyle, horses, wood stoves, straight razors, kerosene.............