Swiss 1.5 ignition in a Side Lock

[Idaholewis]

I am gonna give this Swiss 1.5 Powder another go around, This time In this new Rice 1-24 Twist .50 Cal

The reason i use, and swear by Swiss 2F is due to it’s IMMEDIATE ignition, and obviously awesome Performance i get from it in my Muzzleloaders. The last time i tried Swiss 1.5 i got Slight hangfires from time to time. Accuracy was great when it ignited right, But the slight hangfires were annoying as hell. There is nothing much worse than settling in on your Target, Squeezing the Trigger, POP..............BOOM A Wasted Shot

This time i will spend a little more time Tapping the Wrist of the Stock to Settle the Powder under the Nipple better, This Can of Swiss 1.5 is Quite Noticeably Courser powder than my Trusty 2F, I plan to use RWS 1075 PLUS Caps this go around, Give it every chance i can

No doubt Swiss 1.5 is AWESOME Powder, Especially so in Cartridge Guns, hence why it is used so much by them Guy’s. But i am not convinced of it’s Greatness in my Sidelock Muzzleloaders using #11 Percussion Caps, With tiny .025 to .028 Nipple Flash Holes, So i open up a Nipple to .030-.32 to get more Reliable ignition, What did i Gain?

 

[deermanok]

Is 1.5 something you typically use or for just once in a while?

 

[MSalyards]

Maybe too coarse to get down where it needs to be?

 

[45-70]

I am gonna give this Swiss 1.5 Powder another go around, This time In this new Rice 1-24 Twist .50 Cal

The reason i use, and swear by Swiss 2F is due to it’s IMMEDIATE ignition, and obviously awesome Performance i get from it in my Muzzleloaders. The last time i tried Swiss 1.5 i got Slight hangfires from time to time. Accuracy was great when it ignited right, But the slight hangfires were annoying as hell. There is nothing much worse than settling in on your Target, Squeezing the Trigger, POP..............BOOM A Wasted Shot

This time i will spend a little more time Tapping the Wrist of the Stock to Settle the Powder under the Nipple better, This Can of Swiss 1.5 is Quite Noticeably Courser powder than my Trusty 2F, I plan to use RWS 1075 PLUS Caps this go around, Give it every chance i can

No doubt Swiss 1.5 is AWESOME Powder, Especially so in Cartridge Guns, hence why it is used so much by them Guy’s. But i am not convinced of it’s Greatness in my Sidelock Muzzleloaders using #11 Percussion Caps, With tiny .025 to .028 Nipple Flash Holes, So i open up a Nipple to .030-.32 to get more Reliable ignition, What did i Gain?

some long range guys use it but you are right you can get hang fires but i always snapped cap between shots, it worked good in my 24 twist Knight but has hotter ignition

 

[451whitworth]

I use a lot of Swiss 1.5F, it might be my favorite powder. But I have gotten a few very slight hang fires after 5-6 shots with #11's. Never had a hang fire using Swiss 1.5F when using rifles that came equipped from the factory with musket nipples a la Whitworth/Volunteer repro's or October Country big bore RB rifles. It may sound silly but I started bringing a portable air tank when I shoot at the farm so I can give the nipple and flash channel a quick high pressure blast after every 3-4 shots. Blows out any crud and no hang fires no matter how long the shooting session. I'm so cheap I don't want to waste caps by popping them off between shots.

 

[Idaholewis]

Is 1.5 something you typically use or for just once in a while?

VERY Popular with Black Powder Cartridge

 

[Idaholewis]

some long range guys use it but you are right you can get hang fires but i always snapped cap between shots, it worked good in my 24 twist Knight but has hotter ignition

I do the same Bob. Popping a Cap after i swab, Just Before i reload has been a Routine of mine from my beginning in Muzzleloading. In a Sidelock, Especially a Fast Twist it’s VITAL for consistent ignition. The faster the Twist, and Smaller the Bore the Worse it gets, They Choke themselves out (Foul out) in as little as 2 Shots. Take my .35 Bore, 32” long 1:15 Twist, I can get 2 Shots (Cold bore, and 2nd) If I don’t pop a cap after Shot #2 to Break the Crud Free, The 3rd shot will either be a BAD Hangfire, or a FAIL to fire. I have forgot to pop a Cap and had to pull the Nipple on this one and ad a little powder to get it to go off. The larger the Bore, and Slower the Twist the less you see this Problem

It’s amazing how much Crud is left behind in the Fire Channel, Patented Breech of a Sidelock. Since Accuracy is my #1 Goal in this Stuff, I Swab between shots for Consistency, Then i pop a Cap off straight through with Muzzle pointed at the Ground, The concussion from the Cap breaks the Crud free, and with muzzle pointed straight down it allows the Crud to Trickle out on the Ground

If you have a Thompson Center Hawken/Renegade Breech Plug the above is even more Critical due to their ODD Ball Flame Channel, This Flame Channel chokes out (Fouls out) one look and you can see why

Green Mountain on the other hand has a Deeper Powder Chamber, and a Short, Straight shot over to the Nipple. These Green Mountain Plugs are a FAR SUPER Setup compared to the old TC’s

 

[DESPERATE LEE]

Question for Lewis. I know you are a Swiss powder guy. Have you tried any Schuetzen powder and if so what are you comments on it? I found a dealer who has both Swiss & Schuetzen powders avaliable locally, around 40 miles, for local pickup only. The Schuetzen is $9.00 a pound cheaper than the Swiss. You can PM me if you want so as not to divert this thread.
DL

 

[Idaholewis]

Question for Lewis. I know you are a Swiss powder guy. Have you tried any Schuetzen powder and if so what are you comments on it? I found a dealer who has both Swiss & Schuetzen powders avaliable locally, around 40 miles, for local pickup only. The Schuetzen is $9.00 a pound cheaper than the Swiss. You can PM me if you want so as not to divert this thread.
DL

Hey there DL, I have a Full can of it here in 2F that i plan to do an accuracy Test with Soon, Stay tuned for it

 

[DESPERATE LEE]

Hey there DL, I have a Full can of it here in 2F that i plan to do an accuracy Test with Soon, Stay tuned for it

Good deal. Waiting for results.
DL

 

[Renegadehunter]

Hey there DL, I have a Full can of it here in 2F that i plan to do an accuracy Test with Soon, Stay tuned for it

I'll be curious to see what your results are.
If you've ever tried "regular" Goex 2f, I think you'll see the Scheutzen perform almost exactly the same.
For my PRB loads I've found that I can sight in with Goex and then as long as I use the same charge Scheutzen will shoot to the same POI.

 

[Bushfire]

I do the same Bob. Popping a Cap after i swab, Just Before i reload has been a Routine of mine from my beginning in Muzzleloading. In a Sidelock, Especially a Fast Twist it’s VITAL for consistent ignition. The faster the Twist, and Smaller the Bore the Worse it gets, They Choke themselves out (Foul out) in as little as 2 Shots. Take my .35 Bore, 32” long 1:15 Twist, I can get 2 Shots (Cold bore, and 2nd) If I don’t pop a cap after Shot #2 to Break the Crud Free, The 3rd shot will either be a BAD Hangfire, or a FAIL to fire. I have forgot to pop a Cap and had to pull the Nipple on this one and ad a little powder to get it to go off. The larger the Bore, and Slower the Twist the less you see this Problem

It’s amazing how much Crud is left behind in the Fire Channel, Patented Breech of a Sidelock. Since Accuracy is my #1 Goal in this Stuff, I Swab between shots for Consistency, Then i pop a Cap off straight through with Muzzle pointed at the Ground, The concussion from the Cap breaks the Crud free, and with muzzle pointed straight down it allows the Crud to Trickle out on the Ground

If you have a Thompson Center Hawken/Renegade Breech Plug the above is even more Critical due to their ODD Ball Flame Channel, This Flame Channel chokes out (Fouls out) one look and you can see why

Green Mountain on the other hand has a Deeper Powder Chamber, and a Short, Straight shot over to the Nipple. These Green Mountain Plugs are a FAR SUPER Setup compared to the old TC’s

Hey mate I don't want to drag things off topic, it do you know the style/shape of the breech on this missouri River I'm getting or of similar rifles to them?

 

[451whitworth]

I'll be curious to see what your results are.
If you've ever tried "regular" Goex 2f, I think you'll see the Scheutzen perform almost exactly the same.
For my PRB loads I've found that I can sight in with Goex and then as long as I use the same charge Scheutzen will shoot to the same POI.

Yup, exactly my results with Schuetzen.

 

[DESPERATE LEE]

I'll be curious to see what your results are.
If you've ever tried "regular" Goex 2f, I think you'll see the Scheutzen perform almost exactly the same.
For my PRB loads I've found that I can sight in with Goex and then as long as I use the same charge Scheutzen will shoot to the same POI.

RH
Does it shoot clean or is dirtier than Goex. I shoot Goex 3f in my revolvers alot. In my single shots i shoot Swiss 3f. Reason i am curios about Schutzen is it is almost $10 a pound cheaper than Swiss.
DL

 

[Renegadehunter]

RH
Does it shoot clean or is dirtier than Goex. I shoot Goex 3f in my revolvers alot. In my single shots i shoot Swiss 3f. Reason i am curios about Schutzen is it is almost $10 a pound cheaper than Swiss.
DL

I would give a slight nod to Schuetzen for having a bit less fouling in comparison to Goex, but it is mighty slight. This comparison is with 2f, haven't ever tried any Schuetzen 3f.
When I first started shooting, a nearby muzzleloader club did group buys and the first couple they did after I joined was Schuetzen powder. I had already developed a PRB load with 2f Goex, and found that I didn't have to adjust my sights at all when I went to burning the Schuetzen. Sadly, several members of the club had a falling out and about half the members left over it, and the club didn't last much longer after that.
I've been ordering from Graf's since then and have gone to Goex 3f for PRB for the very reason of less fouling in comparison to 2f.. I believe the Schuetzen would be just fine, but when I last ordered the Goex and Schuetzen were real close in price so I went with Goex since it is USA made.
I can't compare either to Swiss since I've never tried it, but I'd have zero qualms about using Schuetzen again.