Everything About Muzzleloading

Primitive hunting arms include the muzzleloader firearm, the bow and arrow, and the crossbow. Today, these hunting arms are sought both as collector’s items and used for sporting purposes.
Muzzleloader is the term given to early firearms because they are loaded from the muzzle or open end.

On these early firearms, locks played the role of modern-day actions. Matchlock and wheel lock muzzleloaders are rare and valuable, but they also may be unsafe to use. Flintlocks and percussion locks are the muzzleloaders typically used for shooting competitions and for hunting. They are generally less expensive, lighter, more reliable, and easier to load and maintain than matchlocks and wheel locks.
Muzzleloaders are most commonly rifles. However, there are also smooth-bored muzzleloaders—shotguns. Shotgun muzzleloaders can have either a single barrel or double barrels joined side-by-side. When loading the double-barreled muzzleloader, it’s critical to avoid putting the two loads down the same barrel. Double-barreled guns usually have two locks, one for each barrel. This allows the shooter to fire each barrel separately before the gun is reloaded. Most double-barreled guns were designed with two triggers.
Muzzleloading handguns come as both pistols and revolvers. Pistols are mainly singleshot. The revolvers contain multiple-shot chambers. Chain firing muzzleloading revolvers can be dangerous. When the chamber round is fired, it produces sparks that could accidentally ignite loads in another cylinder(s). Therefore, be sure to protect each load in the cylinder with a coating of grease to prevent sparks from entering the open end of the other cylinders.
Black powder is the only type of powder that should be used in muzzleloaders. However synthetic substitutes, such as Pyrodex®, also can be used. Don’t use modern-day smokeless powders in black powder firearms. Smokeless powders can cause serious injury if used in muzzleloaders.

Ammunition for Muzzleloaders

Three types of projectiles—the round ball, the bullet, and shot—are used in muzzleloaders. Most are melted and cast from pure lead.
Round balls

Used mainly for target practice but also can be used for hunting.

Bullets

Preferred for hunting because they are generally more accurate at certain ranges.

Shot pellets

Designed to spread, just as with today’s shotguns.

Black powder is made of potassium nitrate (saltpeter), sulfur, and charcoal. When ignited, it causes a dense cloud of white smoke. It comes in four sizes or granulations.

Fg: Coarse grain typically used in cannons, rifles larger than .75 caliber, and 10-gauge shotguns or larger
FFg: Medium grain typically used in larger rifles between .50 and .75 caliber, 20-gauge to 12-gauge shotguns, and pistols larger than .50 caliber
FFFg: Fine grain typically used in smaller rifles and pistols under .50 caliber and smaller shotguns
FFFFg: Extra-fine grain typically used as a priming powder in flintlocks
Pyrodex® and Clear Shot are black powder substitutes that can be used in amounts equal to black powder, but loading may vary.

Be sure to get instructions from a qualified gunsmith for loading procedures. Substitutes are not recommended for use in flintlocks because they may not ignite from sparks as easily.