How to create more interest in traditional muzzleloading.

[HiDesertHunter]

This thread has really got me to thinking.

While I am a new member here - I am not new to muzzleloading and am in the somewhat more 'mature' category !

There have been a lot of good opinions and ideas expressed about the interest in muzzleloading - some I have already thought about and considered and some entirely new to me and have made sense.

Personally I tend to believe one enters into a sport or hobby that relates to their lifestyle and interests.

With regard to muzzleloading everyone I know who is involved with it is typically very outdoors oriented and has an interest in history and traditional 'Americana' in general and muzzleloading is simply an 'extension' of this.

The movie 'Jeremiah Johnson' has been mentioned often and many of us in the 'age category' when the movie was made were no doubt influenced by it. Let's face it, the movie is a bit cornball in some ways but the important parts are the scenery, the clothing, the hunting scenes, the talk - are the aspects that appealed to us who 'identified' with the characters and in a way wanted to emulate them.

An important part of this is having a way to 'extend' this interest into a certain amount of 'reality'. For some (like myself) I have always had the outdoors close to me - minutes literally and vast amounts as well as in National Forests. So I have never had to limit myself to shooting at ranges only, driving long distances or paying any fees.

Not only muzzleloading, but any outdoor interest, sport or hobby can be seriously inhibited if one cannot regularly partake in it.

I have read of the serious limitations gun owners and shooters have in some countries and quite frankly if I were faced with some of the restrictions I have read about and the limited shooting opportunities I might not shoot at all.

Bottom line is I believe part of the limited interest in muzzleloading is due to a dwindling interest and appreciation for history with younger people, less outdoor opportunities and considerably less 'generational' hand down of any outdoor sports or hobbies in general from parents to children.

As I said however in one of my first posts I was glad to read posts from those who are expressing interest and getting into muzzleloading and this has restored my faith in the sport and that it may not be 'dying off' as dramatically as I once thought!

 

[LuVerne Schumann]

This thread has really got me to thinking.

While I am a new member here - I am not new to muzzleloading and am in the somewhat more 'mature' category !

There have been a lot of good opinions and ideas expressed about the interest in muzzleloading - some I have already thought about and considered and some entirely new to me and have made sense.

Personally I tend to believe one enters into a sport or hobby that relates to their lifestyle and interests.

With regard to muzzleloading everyone I know who is involved with it is typically very outdoors oriented and has an interest in history and traditional 'Americana' in general and muzzleloading is simply an 'extension' of this.

The movie 'Jeremiah Johnson' has been mentioned often and many of us in the 'age category' when the movie was made were no doubt influenced by it. Let's face it, the movie is a bit cornball in some ways but the important parts are the scenery, the clothing, the hunting scenes, the talk - are the aspects that appealed to us who 'identified' with the characters and in a way wanted to emulate them.

An important part of this is having a way to 'extend' this interest into a certain amount of 'reality'. For some (like myself) I have always had the outdoors close to me - minutes literally and vast amounts as well as in National Forests. So I have never had to limit myself to shooting at ranges only, driving long distances or paying any fees.

Not only muzzleloading, but any outdoor interest, sport or hobby can be seriously inhibited if one cannot regularly partake in it.

I have read of the serious limitations gun owners and shooters have in some countries and quite frankly if I were faced with some of the restrictions I have read about and the limited shooting opportunities I might not shoot at all.

Bottom line is I believe part of the limited interest in muzzleloading is due to a dwindling interest and appreciation for history with younger people, less outdoor opportunities and considerably less 'generational' hand down of any outdoor sports or hobbies in general from parents to children.

As I said however in one of my first posts I was glad to read posts from those who are expressing interest and getting into muzzleloading and this has restored my faith in the sport and that it may not be 'dying off' as dramatically as I once thought!

Not to beat a dead horse, but that very dwindling interest and less outdoor opportunities can be flipped to work in our favor. There are folks who seek out weird and extreme pastimes just for their rarity.

Our family used to do traditional farming, and it has changed from people looking at us as weirdos who never kept up with the times, to people travelling the world to attend Thresherman's events, and paying into the six figures to own a team of horses or running a gas or steam antique tractor.

I think there is the possibility of muzzleloading to attain cult classic popularity.

 

[Carbon 6]

Our family used to do traditional farming, and it has changed from people looking at us as weirdos who never kept up with the times, to people travelling the world to attend Thresherman's events, and paying into the six figures to own a team of horses or running a gas or steam antique tractor.

I think there is the possibility of muzzleloading to attain cult classic popularity.

I'm a big fan of early mechanized farming.

 

[Carbon 6]

I think there is the possibility of muzzleloading to attain cult classic popularity.

Hasn't it always been that in our lifetime ? A cult classic or counter culture. That's partially why I thought a small game hunting focus would be a good inroad.

 

[LuVerne Schumann]

I'm a big fan of early mechanized farming.

http://www.albertcitythreshermen.comThere you go!

I don't think any of our family even participates anymore, but they'll take your money to go watch or participate.

 

[tenngun]

About a mile from our place is an old farm. Every sept they hold a grand steam engine festival. Folks bring in donkey engine and steam tractors. Unfortunately it’s always been when I was going to an event. And of course this year we were supposed to hide under the bed and quake in fear so it wasn’t on.
They always have a big crowd.

 

[LuVerne Schumann]

About a mile from our place is an old farm. Every sept they hold a grand steam engine festival. Folks bring in donkey engine and steam tractors. Unfortunately it’s always been when I was going to an event. And of course this year we were supposed to hide under the bed and quake in fear so it wasn’t on.
They always have a big crowd.

We have corporate big shots who own teams of horses, mules and old equipment that they have shipped there by semis, and then they fly in on their private jets to dress up in bib overalls and farm the thresherman plots.

Anyway. I think the rarity of our hobby will save it.

 

[TNGhost]

SO several thoughts here.

One, movies are a good platform to promote and create an interest in anything, and muzzleloading movies have done well by our hobby in the past. Unfortunately with todays' social engineering firmly in place in Hollywood, you are not going to se any accurate depictions, and probably not any real focus on the firearms of the period (which is what is needed) as there was in the past. Any movie made these days is going to focus on the "underrepresented" demographic facets Given your idea about small game hunting, well killing small animals is just not popular in today's Hollywood, thus no help there. So movies are not the answer.

A lot of trends and influence (they call them influencers too) are dictated by YouTube these days, and unfortunately they are party to the same social engineering agenda that infects Hollywood. You can find a lot of good content on muzzleloading there, but, you have to really be looking for it as YouTube actually tries to hide it from the general audience (cause you know "guns") and simply to stay alive muzzleloading content creators have to get inventive with their titles due to YouTubes infamous "algorithms" which rarely if ever offer up muzzleloading vids in the general recommendations. Back to small game, again hunting content is heavily scrutinized, censored and discouraged and you will not see it in the mainstream recommendations, as killing small animals = bad. You'd almost be better off there going with big game, as killing a big bad man eating bear, is more acceptable to most than killing a cute little rabbit or squirrel So that's another non starter that is big with todays populace and dictates their trends.

So given those two major social influences you can see why it is hard to get new people interested and why interest in waning It is intentionally being pushed in that direction.

That said, there are couple of possible bright spots on the horizon the probable most likely and easiest route to spreading interest would be video games. There are some first person shooter games that include muzzleloaders and it has been proven they stir interest. The variety of games such as the Call of Duty series and their emulator, has had a serious positive impact on the level of interest in owning and shooting military surplus rifles.

Writing and publishing a video game does not entail the same expense "social" hurdles as movies, nor the censoring of YouTube and creating a first person shooter one with interesting content, and a sufficient amount of satisfying gore beyond small animals (like the slaughtering of Indians attacking an early frontier fort, cutting down Redcoats going after patriots, and gunning down Mexicans attacking the Alamo, or a group of Rebs laying down withering musket fire and cannister shot raking advancing yankees) would definitely attract interest.

Add in some historical storylines, like the Alamo, the early days of the revolution, the French and Indian wars with their attendant brutality and a War Of Northern Aggression Battlefield and you could have a winner. Dress it up with the use of other hand weapons such as hawks, swords, axes, etc. (and their attendant amount of graphic gore( then throw in some crew served weapons like cannon or Gatling guns to up the action and body count, and you will have a better chance of keeping the attention of your audience, I think this area has real possibilities and video games are not subject to the same social pressures, thus making them ideal for promoting weapons.

There is also the possibility as with past anniversaries and celebrations, that such events marking the Revolution and the War Of Northern Aggression will rekindle some interest as they have in the past, although with the current social engineering initiatives I suspect events such as we have seen in the past will become fewer and smaller.

Finally the last thing that may provide a bounce in muzzleoading use will be the success of those promoting gun control, as ideally they would like to get rid of all cartridge guns, so that would probably move a significant number of firearms enthusiasts into the realm of black powder giving the sport a boost. Albeit it is not a scenario I favor.

 

[Celt5494]

When I was very young family friends from the city would come up and spend the weekends with us in the mountains on our I guess at the time homestead. The daughter of those folks married a SEAL who liked shooting BP. It was mostly cap and ball pistols but I used to get super excited at the thought of those guns coming up to shoot. Even in the rain we would go into the barn and open the doors to shoot out of the rain. I have many memories of my youth but those BP memories really stuck with me.

Once I became a young adult and could afford to scrape together enough money to buy a CVA .45 caplock I was in heaven. I remember walking through the fields and orchards shooting it. I couldn't afford such things as a possibles bag which was something of a tent fly bag. My powder measure was a .38 casing with bailing wire tied around the base. I had a lot of fun.

Fast forward to growing up and having a family. I gave my son a Dixie Cub, flinter in .45 when he was 10 for Christmas and he learned it backwards and forwards. He became very proficient with it. My thoughts were he should learn the principals of shooting from the early firearms of this nation and her wonderful history. We used to attend the local Rendezvous and made many long lasting friendships along with learning many things that in my opinion we should know such as primitive fire making and the day to day work to keep a camp up and running and re-affirming many skills I grew up with such as preserving foods. Those Rendezvous events were really important for my son as he got to interact with a lot of folks who would gladly teach him whatever he wanted to learn. I never worried about him running off on his own because I knew there were eyes on him that would guide him along. I always got a lot of positive comments about him so as a father that makes you extremely happy.

He entered into a lot of competitions with his rifle and hawk and often did really well. I never saw him thinking he was some kind of big shot when he placed or won a competition he was just happy to be there. He's now an adult and about to enter into the military as an officer. I can just look back and hope I did everything possible to give him what he needs to forge his path. My point is with all of this is you never know who you might speak to with this business of BP shooting. When you think ah this kid is just having some fun and will forget about it tomorrow you might be wrong. I can tell you that over half a century later I'm still very passionate about this and thoroughly enjoy it and I see my son carrying that on. Who knows who any of us have affected in that manner through the years?

 

[Boomerang]

SHHHHHHHH! Don't tell everybody! If everybody knew how much fun we have they would make it illegal.

 

[Sparkitoff]

My thoughts are pretty simple. First, have a special hunting season. Second, have supplies and components available (like at box stores or gun shops). Third, have or promote some sort of regional recognition for accomplishments (Kind of like NMLRA Longhunter Awards). Fourth, advertise and promote a club with off-season activities for the whole family. Fourth, feature muzzleloaders in main stream media (movies have affected black powder and archery interest recently).

To attract newer generations, a Youtube channel featuring one of their peers seems to work pretty good. There are a bunch of young girls and some young men in my area that are getting into archery and hunting due to a Youtuber named Caitlyn Mausse. My son says she's a cute kid that is a realist and do-it-yourselfer and really appeals to her generation (teenager).


I short, all the above is what grew compound bow archery and then crossbows....

 

[Sam squanch]

Part of the answer may be cheap rebuilt loaner guns. A lot of young people who would like to shoot muzzleloading can’t justify the money for a gun , to them, is harder to shoot than dads 22.

 

[rrebuck]

My perspective has been that some people come to shoots or try to get more info about it and, at some point, one or more of the super hard core people often jump down their throat, demean them, make them feel bad or unknowledgeable, etc. and many of the newbies don't return. This should be a bonding activities not clan warfare. I don't know if the know it alls are trying to make themselves feel better by criticizing others or what, but it really turns off some potential newbies when they encounter this. It's nice to share your knowledge, but don't do it in a condescending way. Impart your knowledge like you're trying to teach your friend, not a competitor. I'm trying to add more shooters and interest in this, not make it an elite group. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar, but a dead squirrel works well too, according to Woody on Cheers.

 

[Sam squanch]

When it comes to SAFETY, sometimes you have to jump down people’s throats.

 

[Dale Lilly]

I went to a rendezvous in Oklahoma three years ago. It was my newly married wife's second. The first person who spoke to us said "Your dress is made of cowhide splits." Said with disdain. That is true. I made it. I suppose she could have worn her doeskin wedding dress , hand beaded beautifully, and worth a considerable amount of money ... but she chose a dress I made for my deceased wife long ago before I could afford doeskin. Betty [Li'l Sparrow] did not need that sort of introduction to our sport. I wonder ……….

 

[stink koat]

You're probably right.

For MOST young people today, "If you can't play it while sitting with your 3-D glasses" on they are just not interested.

 

[Bob McBride]

My general thoughts are that there is a deep seeded need in many folks to experience ‘nature’, which is so foreign to most people anymore, even if most don’t know it. Our farm is the hub for our circle of friends from the city and several of them bring their whole family to spend the weekend and expose their kids to just going outside and roaming the woods, playing in the creek, and generally just being free. Once they get here they want to do everything related to a place like this. They want on the 4 wheelers, they want a turn on the tractor, and they want to go to the range. Even the ones who don’t own guns or even vaguely don’t approve of them want their turn at the line and BP guns are all of their favorites. Even those of us who don’t have access to a place like this would be better off with a weekend spent here. It’s almost like the old summer camps for a lot of folks and it recharges them in a way I fully understand. It’s what makes the Friendship, IN shoots and Rondys so special. I think that’s the draw, but I don’t know what the answer is for exposing more folks to it....

 

[tenngun]

You can jump down throats lightly.
My daughter got an internet friend in England. They were e-pen pals when the net was pretty new. His business some sort of computer thing brought him and his wife to KC. We invited him down to see us in Arkansas, and they came in spent a few days with us.
I had a range in my front yard and let him shoot. His wife was a little nervous and joined the girls watching.
He waved the loaded gun around, I was standing behind and to his right and I caught the barrel and pushed it upwards.
it’s loaded, I said softly, remember to keep it pointed down range and no where else. By the end of our day he was pretty safe and sane, and finely after watching my daughter shoot his wife took a shot.
She had been watching all along and ran through loading like a champ.
I had a bunch of old milk plastic bottles filled with water for targets. I had not added a rear sight yet to the gun and he shot over. But his wife shot right on center
He left telling me how he would contact one of England’s clubs and see if he could shoot there.
I don’t know what they ever did, or if they were just polite.
One of my work rules is make haste slowly and the more dire the situation the more calm you have to be.

 

[Dale Lilly]

I went to a rendezvous in Oklahoma three years ago. It was my newly married wife's second. The first person who spoke to us said "Your dress is made of cowhide splits." Said with disdain. That is true. I made it. I suppose she could have worn her doeskin wedding dress , hand beaded beautifully, and worth a considerable amount of money ... but she chose a dress I made for my deceased wife long ago before I could afford doeskin. Betty [Li'l Sparrow] did not need that sort of introduction to our sport. I wonder ……….

Just for your info … This is the dress she wore

 

[Carbon 6]

muzzleloading content creators have to get inventive with their titles due to YouTubes infamous "algorithms" which rarely if ever offer up muzzleloading vids in the general recommendations.

You simply have no clue what the Youtube algorithm is or how it works.

How many muzzleloading vids would show up without the algorithms ?

You would likely never ever see one, because you would be reduced to "random chance" and the mathematical probability would literally be 1 in millions if not billions.
89% of YouTube’s views are from outside of the U.S., there are more than 1,300,000,000 users, 500 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute, almost 5 billion videos are watched on Youtube every single day and YouTube gets over 30 million visitors per day.

Imagine trying to find a needle in that haystack without the algorithms.