psst ... yea, over here ... now, you didn't hear this from me, but if you ever put the sprue facing down, the flintlock fairy will pee in your touch - hole, and then the perfect five shot group with the holes touching at a zillion yards will be spoiled at the very last shot by a flier, and then your dog will run off and you bank will reposess your pick up truck, and your mom will land in jail (yes, i
am making fun of country/western music)...
seriously, if you put the sprue facing down, it might or might not be centered, whereas if you put it face up, you're sure.
other good stuff to ponder: try a bit of fairly thick leather superglued to your range rod- this will keep the rod tip from deforming the front of the ball. i know, it sounds goofy, but it works for me.
also, if you want to avoid the sprue issue completely, try taking the polishing media out of your case tumbler and putting a bunch of roundball into the thing and let it run for a half hour or so. you probably want to set this up in the garage, and do it when your spouse or significant other isn't around, 'cause it's noisey as, well you get the idea... the sprues will be smoothed out. i know ... this sounds goofy, too, but give it a try.
lastly, (and kind of off the point) if you want to thumb start (as opposed to using a 'short starter') you might want to consider coneing your muzzle. Joe Woods makes a tool to do this, which will set you back (if i remember correctly) about forty bucks. his contact information is as follows:
The Firelock Shop
5311 Briar St.
Amarillo, TX 79109
806-352-3032
[email protected]
these are great tools: well made, bronze (how can you go wrong?) and really easy to use.
if you buy one of his tools in fifty or fiftyfour caliber, and you don't want it any more (for any reason) send me a PM and i'll buy it from you.
well, that's my tirade
du jour, and it's free advice, and no doubt worth very penny.
make good smoke!