Some BP questions

[RanchRoper]

Ok, I have to stop worrying about cleaning the BP rifle. I found this little video that seems to be something I can easily do that would clean it. Pretty straight forward. Still bothers me to pour water into steel barrel but looks like lots do.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRQ8RCtlTmc

[RanchRoper]

Also, how many times are you guys pulling the barrels off your BP guns to clean? Often?

[Team Roper]

Also, how many times are you guys pulling the barrels off your BP guns to clean? Often?

Yes. I remove my barrel every time so that I don't get water in or on the wood stock. I don't have full stocks though so I don't know how hard or easy it is to remove the full stocks. Also, the barrel alone is a lot easier to put in the wife's laundry tub.

[fortyshooter]

Don't forget Ballistol! Just mix with water and spray the bore or whole rifle/ revolver. Cleans up the BP residue and wipes off easily. Won't hurt the wood either. I use it straight for smokeless powder and a mix when cleaning up my 1858 Remington.

[Team Roper]

I like Ballistol myself. Good stuff.

[BigAl52]

RR Roper probably has rifles with what they call a hooked breech. There much easier to remove than what you have ordered. Yours has pins that must be driven out to remove the barrel. Its okay but if it was me I would refrain from doing it at all because everytime you drive those out the looser they will get. Dixie gun works makes a kit but you could make one yourself. It screws into the nipple hole. Has a clear vinyl tube on it. Tie a bolt to it and throw it into a bucket of hot soapy water. Wet a patch and use your ramrod to draw the hot water up into the gun. Another suggestion would be to use a gun vice and turn the gun upside down in the vice with the butt lower than the muzzle. This will keep the water out of the stock also. I shoot with a guy who uses gallon jugs of water and just pours the barrel full and he lets it run out of the nipple hole.

[Team Roper]

At the rendezvous we didn't have much time between shoots so often times and because we had to keep things Pre 1840 to be period correct, we boiled water over the fire in a bucket then used a make shift funnel and pored the water down the barrel and out the nipple hole. We did this without removing the stocks.

[RanchRoper]

Ok, thanks. My experience so far with my guns is the less I take them apart the better. Whatever I end up doing I will be relentlessly thorough every time. I believe this rifle has 2 screws under the ramrod that hold the barrel, and then a breech screw somewhere as well. But the Italian gun screws are notoriously soft & strip SO easy. I will figure out how to clean without removing the barrel if at all possible. Thanks for the great info. Also joined another forum that specializes in only old muzzleloaders and it is information overload there for sure. I am wired to be a keep it simple guy, so that is what I will do.

Ballistol is $40 C$ a spray can here....yikes.

[Team Roper]

Ok, thanks. My experience so far with my guns is the less I take them apart the better. Whatever I end up doing I will be relentlessly thorough every time. I believe this rifle has 2 screws under the ramrod that hold the barrel, and then a breech screw somewhere as well. But the Italian gun screws are notoriously soft & strip SO easy. I will figure out how to clean without removing the barrel if at all possible. Thanks for the great info. Also joined another forum that specializes in only old muzzleloaders and it is information overload there for sure. I am wired to be a keep it simple guy, so that is what I will do.

Ballistol is $40 C$ a spray can here....yikes.

Yikes is right. That Dawn dishwashing soap and hot water looks better and better.

[RanchRoper]

When the pyrodex arrives I think I will burn some little piles of it on some steel, let it sit for an hour then clean it with several things like water, windex, tc 13, hoppes etc. Science experiment.