Great article. It confirms what I have observed and suspected over the years. I live in NW Colorado where the air is very dry (low relative humidity, <30%). Ideally, I start the cleaning process at the range and finish when I get home. I can go for several weeks before cleaning a muzzle loader when I get distracted and forget to clean after a shooting session, with no apparent harm to the bore - no rust when I clean the barrel finally. When it's moist out, the rules change. I was shooting at the local range this Fall under the covered benches with my flintlock during a rain storm. I could actually see the moisture forming in the pan after each shot within 10 seconds after a shot, just from the moisture the dirty pan was absorbing from the air. I had to wipe the pan clean and dry between each shot. During dry hunting seasons, I can leave a charge in a muzzle loader for a week and still get it to fire the first time, flint or percussion. When its wet out, even with the muzzle taped and the vent/nipple plugged, the load can pick up enough moisture in a day to misfire. That includes both Pyrodex and black powder. So....., clean your black powder shooter soon after shooting, and put a fresh charge in daily when hunting to prevent missed oppurtunities. My 2 cents.
