What I've learned

[bronko220002]

Or what I've been told regarding to BH209:
Swabbing or not swabbing shows no difference at 100 yards (based on only 5 shot group)
When cleaning after the end of the day first run 1 or 2 dry patches down the bore to remove the majority of fouling.
Do not clean with a water based solvent (this I knew)
The tighter the projectile the better the accuracy (I need to verify this)
BP should be cleaned every 5-10 shots (again not sure about this)

Any other tidbits I should know?

 

[MrTom]

I think you'll find that the breech plug can go maybe twenty shots or so before it needs reaming. As far as swabbing between shots and accuracy, I haven't seen a nickels' worth of difference between shots on a clean barrel or the shots made thru a dirty barrel. When I hit the range I run one clean patch thru the bore and pop a couple primers prior to loading. I'll shoot upwards of 20 rounds without messing with the plug or farting around with patches between shots and my accuracy never wavers unless I do something wrong. I hunt a nine day season and load the night prior to opener and if there's still a charge at the end of the season, I just pull the plug and push the stuff thru. The only component I keep is the bullet. Then I clean the gun and plug thoroughly for storage having shot it or not.

 

[Bob G.]

I keep the bullet/sabot that I push out after the season and use it for a fouling shot when prepping for the next hunt.

 

[idahoron]

As far as bullet tightness goes.
I think it depends on the bullet.
My 50's like to be pretty snug. My 45 cal paper patched bullet likes to be lose. When I say lose, I mean set the bullet in the Bartel and the weight of the ram rod pushes it down.

 

[SteveH]

Agree with the above regarding shooting 20 or so rounds before you need to ream out the breech plug.

Ron, when you say your 45 cal PP bullets like to be loose, is that with BP209? I've always thought that BH209 performs best when it is compressed pretty tight behind the bullet/sabot.

 

[idahoron]

Agree with the above regarding shooting 20 or so rounds before you need to ream out the breech plug.

Ron, when you say your cal PP bullets like to be loose, is that with BP209? I've always thought that BH209 performs best when it is compressed pretty tight behind the bullet/sabot.

My loads use Pyrodex P