clear the nipple before first shot?

Okay here goes,
Assuming I've cleaned and lubed my muzzleloader recently, I usually fire a cap before loading the first load of the day. The only time I didn't do that, I had to go through misfires with 4 caps before the charge actually went off. I thought I was going to have to pull my first bullet.
I can only guess that my cleaning/seasoning patch at the end of my cleaning session left some of the T/C natural lube gunked up in the nipple.
But, in a hunting situation, I can't rightly fire a cap, can I? Is there part of the process I'm missing, or should I run a nipple pick in before loading my first hunting charge?
If you can't tell, I new to this sport. I have shot during about 3 sessions, but never hunted with the muzzleloader.

Just FYI, I'm shooting a T/C Hawken .50.

bb

 

[hobbles]

But, in a hunting situation, I can't rightly fire a cap, can I? Is there part of the process I'm missing, or should I run a nipple pick in before loading my first hunting charge?
If you can't tell, I new to this sport. I have shot during about 3 sessions, but never hunted with the muzzleloader.

Just FYI, I'm shooting a T/C Hawken .50.

bb[/quote]
Mornin bbaxter
I fire a cap or 2 befor I load mine and I do it in the habitat befor I go outside to hunt, But I leave befor daylight, ( if there's a wrong way to do somethin,, give me time,, I'll find it )

 

[boar]

BBaxter Heres how I do it.Hot water&soap clean,dry, take out nipple and blow dry,clean with Qtip,replace nipple,lightly oil barrel,check it next day. I never dry fire a cap before I go hunting. This way gun is totaly clean and I can leave it loaded long as I want. Most all my friends fire a cap off .If I want to be real,real sure it goes off,I pull nipple and put in some fine powder.Each to their own this has worked for me. I use cloth patch with hot water then dry with paper towels. Dilly

 

bbaxter, I bust a couple or three caps before loading with an alcohol patch on my rod against the breech. This degreases the bore from muzzle to nipple. Pull that rod out and the patch will be blackened from the capflash. I do this in the cabin before I leave then right outside the door is where I load her up and go. If you're hunting in a situation where you want total guiet, use acohol to degrease the bore and take the nipple out and dry it off with alcohol. That'll do 'er.
Don

 

[paulvallandigham]

I go with using alcohol to dry everything, including the nipple before you go out hunting. If you are going to be hunting in below 40 degree temps, put our unloaded gun outside the cabin or house before for at least 1/2 hour so that it can cool to air temperatures. Then run a dry patch down the barrel to get any moisture that might condense in the process. Check the nipple again before loading. If you see any indication of moisture in or around the nipple, pull it and dry it again with alcohol. Same with the channel to the bore. Use a pipe cleaner for that chore. The reason we fire a cap or two is to burn out any oils that may be at the back of the chamber, or in the flashchannel to the nipple. You can take this out quietly with a liberal use of alcohol on a couple of patches run down the barrel, and by cleaning that nipple with alcohol, too. This is one time when you can't use too much alcohol. It will evaporate quickly, in less than a minute, so take your time before loading the gun. If it really damp out, you may want to cover the barrel with something, like oilcloth, or oiled leather, or plastic wrap, tied around the barrel with string, rawhide, or even a rubberband.

Oil and moisture from condensation have spoiled more first shots, than firing a couple of caps at your cabin door in the dark ever will. The deer know where the cabin is, or the parking lot, and they know you are there.I prefer to use the alcohol at home, before getting out to camp, or cabin. The lightest coating of 1000 lube will keep the lands and grooves from rusting. I leave the nipple dry. Depending on how your percussion gun is made, You may or may not be able to adequately clean oil out of the flashchannel. I had a drum and nipple arrangement, with a cleanout screw in the drum that allowed me to do this with pipecleaners. With some patent breeches, you can't do this easily. Wtih those guns, you had better fire some caps to burn the oil out. Follow that firing with cleaning the crud out of the chamber and barrel.

 

[SCATTERSHOT]

I always pop two or three caps and a squib charge before loading for the hunt. I tried to impress this on a new-to-muzzleloading friend one time, but he didn't do it, and it cost him a really nice bull elk.

 

Oooooouch! I bet that hurt! :cursing:

 

[boar]

BBaxter Heres how my one friend did his.My other friend went down to his house to go deer hunting,he had a 54 TC Renegade Loaded with 110grs 2ff-Max-ball He took it in house and stood it by other friends TC Renegade. After a while his friend said he was going to cap his off,friend pick up wrong Renegade(loadedone) Shot right thru house wall in to bank outside.Boy were they surprised. Moral of story Don't cap off loaded gun in house. Dilly

 

Thanks for all the help so far. I guess this brings up my next question which has to do with cleaning in general. The T/C natural lube 1000+ products all tell you not to introduce anything chemical or petroleum based into the barrel.
Stupid question of the day: does this include dishsoap? To date, I have only used very hot water in cleaning, and then used natural cleaning patches to finish up.

 

[Rebel]

No, in fact the dish soap will help to get the greases out of the bore from your patch lube.

 

[boar]

BBaxter The soap is up to you,I have cleaned them both ways,creek,mud hole,springs. You have a little more trouble with cold water but it will clean as long as you have a liquid source. If gun dosen't go off with 2 caps,you might as well pull nipple and put a little powder under it, they will go then. Dilly

 

[ossabaw]

Boar-dilly, I am also one of those that does not pop a cap or two to dry out the works. What I do is to remove the nipple and run a pipe cleaner down into the patent breach. Then I run a nipple pick through the nipple and replace it. I have never had a hang or misfire in either of my TC's in a hunting situation. I have a friend that put a new nipple in his Renegade and went hunting. He looked through the new nipple and it was clear. The problem was that some type of clear material from the manufacture or packaging was in the nipple. When we met up for lunch, he reported two nofires on deer. We removed the nipple and ran a pick through. That pushed out a clear round solid little plug. Go figure!

 

[quigleysharps]

I pull the access screw and nipple...run pipe cleaner through and dry patch the barrel before loading. Never have had a mis-fire that way.

 

[gmww]

If you want to know for sure if your getting a spark through try this.

On an UNLOADED gun run your ramrod with a synthetic patch down all the way. POINTING IN A SAFE DIRECTION snap off a cap. When you pull the rod out check the patch. If your getting sparks the synthetic patch will have nice little holes burnt through it. Sometimes I'll see crud being blown out onto the patch and I thank myself for going through this process. I'll continue this process until I finally get a burnt patch. Usually works the first time and occassionaly take two caps to clear.

I have been doing this for years on all my ML's accept my underhammer and have never see a rod move more than 1/8".

 

I rarely remove my nipples unless they need to be replaced. Too much wear and tear on the threads.

 

[TANSTAAFL]

The oldest and an efficient trick, is to point the muzzle of unloaded piece within a inch or so at very small debris pile of grass blades, pieces of tissue paper or etc. Then pop a cap, if the nipple is clear, it will blow the loose debris around a bit.

 

[strongarm]

Dilly is creating a fuse which will lead to a hang fire. Firing a cap before loading is an ideal situation. You can even do that the day before. Be sure to watch a blade of grass or a puff of snow that it moves when you fire. That is a sure way of knowing there is no blockage when you load your charge. If this isn't possible, I will clean the nipple and vent with a bristle pipe cleaner to make sure it is dry and clear AND THEN DROP 5 GRAINS of black powder down the barrel before loading my usual hunting load. It has never failed.