We all have our own capabilities, as with technique's where as I can and consistently cut holes all day long with the modern rifles at 100 yds. and am not happy with a 1 in. group at 300-400yds. Always striving for tighter groups. Ring steel plates of various dimensions out to 6oo yds. I feel we must realize the capabilities of the muzzle loaders we are so fond of. As to the loading applications we vary as how a individual shooter loads, why would one shooter frown on another if they use a short starter or even what they patch with.. These are the things that make us unique and let us share the objective of knowledge and what works for me and perhaps you. For me the objective is to wring out the best loading procedure for the best accuracy with the muzzle loader while at the same time staying a ethical hunter, I would not attempt to make shots with a muzzle loader that I know can be achieved at distances with a modern rifle. Prime example is right now working on a 450 bushmaster that will be used at 200-250 yds. or less. After much research on this particular rifle the decision was made to as to sights and other limitations incurred with the caliber. Same issues should concern us with the old weapons. Kestrel should be careful of making challenges you never know will be on the line next to you, as a competive shooter with pistol, revolver and hi power rifle I like the challenge and it is always nice to leave the line a winner but if not search out the winner and talk to them you might just learn a thing or two. Never challenge it will make you look foolish, Not trying to bust anyone's chops just trying to shed some light. As the old saying goes be wary of the shooter whom only has one weapon.
I use a short starter, and believe ‘loading mallets’ were short started of the past. I think some smart boys used things that we would call short started before they are recognized.
Black Hand, who used to contribute on this forum a lot, found a reference to short started in 1847 or 49 as I remember. It was the earliest he could find after searching for it.
I’m of the opinion, and it is an opinion, that sans a patent or some such a item that slips in to general used was used before it became general.
When I go to shoot at a range I shoot in an historic fashion ... sort of.
My rifle gun has a modern brass tip, and I screw on a modern cleaning jag. I swab ‘tween shots.
My smoothies have just a plain rod, and I clean with a tow worm. And I can take time hunting to do that.
At a range I shoot my smoothies with a wooden rod tipped with a modern jag to swab ‘tween shots.
At a range or an event I talk about loading. When I have my rifle I will show my starter... but say that the tool was from a later date, maybe thirty years after the date of my rifle. Or take a smoothie that I load just with rod. I often shoot a PRB in my smoothies but shoot with wad and demonstrate a wad for public, even the interested guy at a range.
No one has any right to say a person can’t, or at least should not use one. Only that it’s not an historic tool.
Every one at some point, even the most’ dyed in the capote stitch counter’ has something wrong in his outfit.
The question is how you feel about it.
Are you on a path to ‘as close as we can get’ or are ‘this works and I’m going to do it historic or not’ and importantly how you portray it to an interested party who has little or no knowledge on historic stuff.
A TC Hawken or a GPR is not functional different then a bench copy of a ARW rifle. Their good guns and shoot well, but we should admit what they are and what they are not.
No ones a ‘bad guy’ for shooting one.
