NEXT: What are the "Reasons" some leave Muzzleloaders loaded?

[roundball]

The other Poll on how many leave muzzleoaders loaded begs the next question of why ?
This is not a "pointed" poll, it is literally an attempt to get a statistical look at the reasons many leave them loaded, when most of those same individuals follow the common practice of not leaving a centerfire rifle/shotgun loaded.

 

[zimmerstutzen]

Other. I hunt my own property. I recieved a call that my daughter received a terrible injury and needed to be flown to a trauma center. I dumped the prime from my trade gun and leaned it in the corner. During the three days at the hospital, my FIL came up and put the gun in a coat closet. With dr visits and trips to the Children's hospital, etc. The neurosurgeon and plastic surgeon did a remarkable jobs. She is back to normal now. I totally forgot about the gun until the next year. I took the gun out for small game hunting. I always check the bore with a ram rod to make sure nothing was stuffed or fell into the bore and discovered the load. it all came back to me, that in my haste I made a grievous safety error. The amazing part was that I walked out side to my range, primed the pan and the gun fired flawlesly. I never leave a gun loaded not even over night. Honestly I usually just fire the gun and clean it at the end of a day, and I should have done that. But I was distracted and fell below even my own safety rules.

 

[Vaino]

A reason is missing...."Why not keep it loaded.....doesn't hurt anything".

Have always loaded and kept it loaded until either I shot an animal or the season ended. Never had a load that failed to fire irregardless of the load's time in the bbl or due to rainy or snowy weather. If a load had failed to fire under any of the above circumstances, I would have unloaded after every day's hunt...but, the perfect "track record" of leaving it loaded, found that to be a waste of time.

Of course, if one doesn't take certain precautions, eg....don't bring the rifle into a different temp and protecting the ignition from the elements, then all bets are off....Fred

 

[roundball]

A reason is missing...."Why not keep it loaded.....doesn't hurt anything".

Sorry, that would have nothing to do with this poll.
This poll is about the reasons people leave MLs loaded when common knowledge is that by far most people do not leave centerfire rifles/shotguns loaded.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Have always loaded and kept it loaded until either I shot an animal or the season ended.

WHY do you choose to unload the rifle at the arbitrary date set for the end of the deer season then?

It wouldn't hurt to keep it loaded until you went to the range for target shooting would it? How about simply leaving it loaded until you shoot a deer, even if that spans two seasons? True the changing weather and temps might cause a problem but you don't know unless you try it, right?

LD

 

[Vaino]

All your questions are irrelevant and nonsensical....my "system" works for me and has been tried and proven. I've hunted elk in Colorado and during one 9 day season, it rained for 7 of the days and having failed to shoot an elk, emptied the Hawken the evening of the last day and lo and behold, the gun "went off" as expected.

People can do that which works for them.....I'm not espousing what I do is the "only way", it's personally just "my way"......Fred

 

[Brian6396]

This is a loaded question.
Some would keep a ML loaded for the same reason others would keep a CF loaded and close by. Personal defence.
not looking to start a debate, just saying.

 

[azmntman]

I have had the reverse luck, I have missed too many nice roasts due to a misfire. As I've posted before at the end of the day I shoot the load and in the morning load a light load and shoot a tree and then load again for the day. Maybe synthetics are the cause but so far I have not changed. I plan to start going true 3fff and will see how it works VS pyro or 777 and may then keep it loaded.

And don't forget the safety aspect....whether center fire, rim fire or flash fire the loaded gun in the hands of a fool or child hand can be a bad thing. Not an issue at camp (my camp anyway) but grand kids n such are curious boogers.

I recall the scariest gun incident I ever had....my pop was a cop and a safety instructor and preached unloading yer gun and separating ammo under lock n key. Well the cousins from outta state came over and I saw his service revolver hanging in the closet and being a dumb 8 year old I took it out of the holster to be cool and promptly fired a round through the floor (carpeted luckily) and the shot scraped the cousins leg enough to bleed. I replaced the pistol and nothing said for 30+ years. I confessed my sins when my dad was too old to take the strap to me and he told me he always had a bank as the first shot? Why I have no idea, he claimed so if a guy got his gun from him he knew he had a single round to react??. Maybe that's where double tapping stated?. Anyway I was terrified a few years later when the carpet was being replaced and expected the hole in the hardwood floors to get me busted. Now I know the wad cut the skin and didn't make it through the carpet. A ROA loaded could have been the same thing or worse (smoke woulda got me a whipping at the best)

 

[roundball]

All your questions are irrelevant and nonsensical....

And your negative attack attitude is typical flehto
:grin:

Its a simple poll...if you don't like it ignore it.

If you want a different poll, start your own.

 

[Rod Lassey]

I do find the question obviously slanted---6 of the 8 choices are pejorative, at best. However, in the interest of research......I routinely leave my rifle loaded, feather in the touch hole, if I know I will be using it again shortly. I define shortly as within the next 2 to 3 weeks. I do not leave a fired gun loaded, if I have a load in one that has been previously fired, I'll fire it off to clean. Frugal as I am, I'll dig the lead out of the stump or dead tree, too.

"when common knowledge is that by far most people do not leave centerfire rifles/shotguns loaded."

I've got a loaded shotgun by the bedside stand, that stays loaded, all the time----for obvious reasons. :wink:

Likewise, I believe that historically speaking, a rifle or smoothbore would have been kept clean & loaded, especially on or beyond the frontier. As I try to emulate that aspect of muzzleloading, I do as they did, to give me insight into how their guns functioned, how they dealt with problems with their guns, etc.

Others, who are not so "history focused", will have different reasons for leaving loaded or not. I do what works for me, and expect others to do what works for them.

Rod

 

[Dphar]

I think its a good question.
To me it wastes a ball and some at least of a powder charge to pull it. Shooting it out is proctice. I have one loaded right now but I need to do some shooting as soon as weather permits, wind has howled for a week now its snowing. Snow is not bad but trying to shoot a RB for a test in 40 mph wind is kinda pointless.

People who have misfires from long loaded guns have some other issue besides the length its loaded.
I I am hunting in the wet or have been out with the rifle 2-4 times I usually shoot it out and clean and reload. Lets me check zero, and gives me a practice shot or sometimes 3 or 5 depending.
If the pistol/rifle is safe loaded its not a problem with quality BP. The synthetics I am not so sure of and some of the "sugar" powders had a tendency to liquify if not perfectly sealed. I have no truck with any of them so how they perform after being loaded for 6 months I could not say.
NOTE!
Percussion guns that have been capped need to be shot to make them safe. If ANY compound has escaped from the cap while the gun was capped or when the cap was removed its probably more dangerous with the cap removed. The slightest jar or movement of the hammer on the nipple can cause a discharge. Even putting on another cap is scary. People have had ADs that they mistakenly attributed to static when handling a capped then decapped ML. I seem to have read of a recent accident where a man was shot in the arm removing an uncapped rifle musket from the vehicle muzzle first :shake: This is why I just do not like percussion guns that may need to be carried "safe" but loaded in a vehicle or such. I often hunt 3-4 different areas while driving 100 miles or so in my county shooting the load out everytime I get back to the pickup is not a good option. So being able to make the rifle safe for travel is important.

Dan

 

[Travis Gregory]

If my gun is clean and loaded it stays loaded untill the next time i go to the range. By law here if it is uncapped it is "unloaded". Many may disagree with my practices but most of my cf guns have the magazines loaded even if the chamber is not. Thats how I was raised and how I raise my kids. All guns are "loaded" even when they are not. Then there is no question as to how to handle it.

 

[roundball]

I've got a loaded shotgun by the bedside stand, that stays loaded, all the time----for obvious reasons. :wink:

As do I and I suspect a number of people do...however that's different...the poll is oriented towards hunting guns and what we do with them after a hunt.
(ie: I've been under the impression all my life that most people unload a centerfire rifle/shotgun after finishing a hunt...some states even require it before transporting in a vehicle)
So no, the Poll is not slanted, it's literally a set of questions trying to understand the theme behind "choosing not to unload", ergo the questions of possible reasons why the difference between MLs and hunting centerfires

 

[Dphar]

In reading some of the responses I wonder why people can get their panties in a wad over such a thing. Things like this can often lead to interesting discussions. I certainly see no harm in them.
In this I suspect the RB simply put in questions as they came into his head.
Answering "wrong" is not going to get one kicked out of a program for a PhD in MLing after all.
If the questions somehow offend a person its not RBs fault, people might want to ask why they are offended.


Dan

 

[No Deer]

I responded "other" because I do not feel it is necessary to unload it each night (unless it had been fired during the day), and is a waste of powder and shot. I have never had a misfire due to this, or I might have a different opinion.

I unload my center fire guns because it is so easy and does not waste the load.

If I had kids around to worry about, I may also approach this differently.

 

[Captjoel]

Well, I consider this a one sided question. First of all, muzzle loaders and cartridge guns are two totally different animals. As a matter of fact, even by the definition of a "firearm" by our own law makers, a muzzle loader isn't considered a fire arm. As long as the cap is pulled or the prime is dumped, the piece can be transported legally from place to place or saved for the next days hunt. Round Ball, I think you are trying to preach to the choir here.

 

[Rev_William]

I usually unload it at the end of each hunt, however the last hunt ended very quickly do to an accident by one of the hunters I went out with we went home and I didn't have a chance to discharge it so it's been sitting til I go out next, hopefully dec 24th. it been sitting for about 4 weeks.

 

[necchi]

A reason is missing...."Why not keep it loaded.....doesn't hurt anything".

Sorry, that would have nothing to do with this poll.

:shocked2:

:youcrazy: :shake:

 

[swathdiver]

A reason is missing...."Why not keep it loaded.....doesn't hurt anything".

...when common knowledge is that by far most people do not leave centerfire rifles/shotguns loaded.

Not around here they don't. An unloaded gun is useless. It's them unloaded guns that always go off and kill someone.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

I really enjoy participating in your polls. I don't understand why folks are itchin' for a fight about a simple question.

That all being said, this just entered my grey matter: Some folks may leave them loaded & unprimed? because they're a Prohibited Person (one who can't by law handle firearms due to reasons from having an ancient felony record to wife beating). The Feds don't consider muzzleloading long guns to be guns, and some Free States feel the same way. We've even had Felons tell us so here on this forum. They ask questions about it, somebody quotes the laws out of a book and the thread eventually closes. I'm not trying to take anything away from this poll question, just giving some additional insight. Not everybody is ALLOWED to handle center fire arms...

Dave