Blackpowder Gun Cleaning

[Smokey]

I've never hunted with a blackpowder weapon so this may be old news to some of you pro's. I compete in a sport called Cowboy Mounted Shooting (kinda like SASS but on horse back). The ammo we used is .45 LC brass filled with black powder and crimped shut on the end. There is no projectile. The burning embers of the powder burst the balloon target. I shoot stainless steel Ruger Vaqueros and I have found that nothing removes the black powder residue like Hydrogen Peroxide does. The next best thing is baby wipes. Again, this may be old news to the black powder guru's out there....just trying to throw out some useful info.

 

[Flintrock]

1/3 Hydrogen Peroxide
1/3 Murphys Oil Soap
1/3 Alcohol
.
Cleans great and it is cheap

 

[Dub]

Thanks for the tip.

I've seen those competitions on TV and was impressed. You guys make the riding look like second nature. I would think it'd take a ton of work training a horse for that type of work.....cutting, gunshy, etc.

 

[Smokey]

Thanks for the tip.

I've seen those competitions on TV and was impressed. You guys make the riding look like second nature. I would think it'd take a ton of work training a horse for that type of work.....cutting, gunshy, etc.

Hey Dub, Thanks for the compliment. The sport is truly a passion of mine.....what could be better than guns and horses...aint America grand

 

[Nicodemus]

A few months ago a fellow history enthusiasist and friend of mine, and me were discussin` how folks in a wildernes area several hundred years ago took care of their guns. It`s obvious that they took extremely good care to see that the gun would stay functional, after all, their life depended on it.
Through trials usin` his own flintlock, he has come to the conclusion that a lot of times, these guns were cleaned usin` only cold water. Since that discussion, I have used this procedure myself and I like the results. It works as follows-

I place a bird feather in the flashhole, then pour about a cup of cold water down the barrel. I then plug the end of the barrel with my thumb and shake the rifle for a minute or so. I pour the now dirty water out and repeat a couple of times. The water gets cleaner after each shakin`. I then pour more water down the barrel, run a patch on a cleanin` rod part way down the barrel till the pressure is built up, reach down and in one motion, pull the feather and shove the rod all the way down to the end of the barrel. This forces the water out the flash hole under pressure. I then run a few patches down the barrel to remove any remainin` fowlin` and moisture. I then run a patch soaked in rendered bear oil down the barrel and use the same patch to wipe all exposed metal on the rifle. This procedure takes only a few minutes and the rifle is as clean as any store-bought cleaners that I have used in 20 years of shootin` black powder.

I can`t speak for any of the new substitutes since true black powder is all that I use.

 

[Smokey]

A few months ago a fellow history enthusiasist and friend of mine, and me were discussin` how folks in a wildernes area several hundred years ago took care of their guns. It`s obvious that they took extremely good care to see that the gun would stay functional, after all, their life depended on it.
Through trials usin` his own flintlock, he has come to the conclusion that a lot of times, these guns were cleaned usin` only cold water. Since that discussion, I have used this procedure myself and I like the results. It works as follows-

I place a bird feather in the flashhole, then pour about a cup of cold water down the barrel. I then plug the end of the barrel with my thumb and shake the rifle for a minute or so. I pour the now dirty water out and repeat a couple of times. The water gets cleaner after each shakin`. I then pour more water down the barrel, run a patch on a cleanin` rod part way down the barrel till the pressure is built up, reach down and in one motion, pull the feather and shove the rod all the way down to the end of the barrel. This forces the water out the flash hole under pressure. I then run a few patches down the barrel to remove any remainin` fowlin` and moisture. I then run a patch soaked in rendered bear oil down the barrel and use the same patch to wipe all exposed metal on the rifle. This procedure takes only a few minutes and the rifle is as clean as any store-bought cleaners that I have used in 20 years of shootin` black powder.

I can`t speak for any of the new substitutes since true black powder is all that I use.

Nic, I'm very much a cowboy -- an old west cowboy at heart -- after reading your post it really got me to thinking -- I'm gonna do a little research on the subject.

 

[Jim Ammons]

Nic,

I had an uncle that I thought knew everything about guns there was to know. He taught me many years ago to take a "black powder" gun and wash it with hot as you could stand "soapy water" . Rinse it in hot water-heat would then let it air dry quickly. Then swab the bore with a very,very light coat of oil. Also if you took the barrel apart on the old models-put a light coat on the threads when you put it back together. This also works with Hodgdon triple 7.
I'm sure there are others that work just as well.