Let me preface this by saying that my son and I are pretty new to muzzleloaders. Last year he bought a CVA Wolf. Fired it many times in weather 20 degrees and warmer and NEVER had a misfire. Well this is Minnesota and 20 degrees in December is often a fantasy but thats when we have our season. The other day he had an opportunity at a nice 10 point buck. Put him in the sights at under fifty yards and let go. POP. Nothing. Try another primer. POP. Try a third. POP. By this time the deer was gone. He was using Blackhorn 209 powder with a regular 209 primer. Flashhole was clean. When he got back we tried a warm CCI Magnum primer. BOOM. Problem solved. Nope. The next day he had an easy shot on a doe and needless to say the same damn thing happens. You can imagine his frustration. Time for dad to get serious. I took out the drill and a 1/16" bit and made the flashhole a real flashhole. The primer now gets a little sooty but nothing serious. Finally yesterday he got a third opportunity at a nice doe. Temp was around -5 but finally everything went BOOM and she fell in her tracks. He's shot several bucks in the past but I don't think he's ever been more proud of himself. Would a different powder have worked better? I don't know. Flame me all you want for enlarging the flashhole. I'll probably get a new breech plug and test with some different powders before next year (any suggestions for extreme cold???) but for now I'm just happy we found a solution before the season was over.
Test your gun and Bubba fix
- Thread starter Eagle103
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Just a question... were you or he cleaning that breech plug thoroughly each time the rifle was cleaned? Did you use a drill bit on the smaller channel that sits beneath the primer cup? In combination with some good solvent, you'll be amazed at how badly that channel (I believe it is 3mm diameter) gets clogged when firing BH209.
Definitely replace that plug with a new one and keep that channel clean.
But always use one of the hotter 209 primers - Win209A, Remington STS, CCI 209M, Cheddite, or Federal 209A for BH209. The Federal 209A seems to be the most potent.
BH209 is the hardest of the subs to ignite. TripleSe7en FFg takes far less flame though it still doesn't hurt to use a standard 209. You'll just need to be sure and swab the bore (damp/dry) after each shot to eliminate the crud ring.
Swiss 3F will ignite with the least of ignition sources and shoots pretty clean for a true black powder. You would likely never encounter a misfire.
Definitely replace that plug with a new one and keep that channel clean.
But always use one of the hotter 209 primers - Win209A, Remington STS, CCI 209M, Cheddite, or Federal 209A for BH209. The Federal 209A seems to be the most potent.
BH209 is the hardest of the subs to ignite. TripleSe7en FFg takes far less flame though it still doesn't hurt to use a standard 209. You'll just need to be sure and swab the bore (damp/dry) after each shot to eliminate the crud ring.
Swiss 3F will ignite with the least of ignition sources and shoots pretty clean for a true black powder. You would likely never encounter a misfire.
yes
Not sure what you mean. On the CVA Wolf the channel starts larger and gets very small at the end of the breech plug. I ran the 1/16" bit through the whole plug but it only took away material at the end where it meets the powder.
I can believe that!
Thanks for the heads up. I'll try to get some before next year.
Underclocked
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Compare your plug to a new plug and make sure you are seeing the same thing. Blackhorn will clog up that channel with a hard carbon deposit that may fool the naked eye. A bit of good solvent and a drill bit will get it out. I'm not familiar with the Wolf's plug but it should be very similar to other CVA plugs and what you describe is a very narrow channel by comparison to those I've seen.
The drill bit is for that channel only and not the tiny (~.030" hole) at the nose of the plug. Don't drill into that.
The channel I refer to is shown in the image below... the darker inner circle.
That channel will accept a 3mm, 3/32", 7/64" and several wire gauge sized bits. I believe it is actually 3mm so that is maximum.
Pic is from a CVA Accura but I think the plug in yours would be the same.
The drill bit is for that channel only and not the tiny (~.030" hole) at the nose of the plug. Don't drill into that.
The channel I refer to is shown in the image below... the darker inner circle.
That channel will accept a 3mm, 3/32", 7/64" and several wire gauge sized bits. I believe it is actually 3mm so that is maximum.
Pic is from a CVA Accura but I think the plug in yours would be the same.
BHP FAN
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the flash hole costricts for two reasons,one is obvious,one less so.the obvious one is to control back blast,which in your gun's design isn't that important,other than maybe a primer backing out,but the less obvious reason is the constriction is supposed to direct the flame in a Venturi effect,like a shaped charge.
My first revolver back in 1974 or so was a '51 Reb Sheriff's Model.I thought the ends of the nipples looked like they were plubbed,so,being fifteen or sixteen,and being ''handy'',I drilled 'em out...and then wondered why the hammer went back to half cock every time I fired it...
My first revolver back in 1974 or so was a '51 Reb Sheriff's Model.I thought the ends of the nipples looked like they were plubbed,so,being fifteen or sixteen,and being ''handy'',I drilled 'em out...and then wondered why the hammer went back to half cock every time I fired it...
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