Traditional Necissaries...

[sooter76]

So in a couple days I will be ordering a Lyman GPR with a 1:60 twist for round ball in a .54 caliber... Since there are some important differences in shooting and cleaning traditional muzzleloaders vs modern inline muzzleloaders and this will be my first foray into the traditional variety, can someone give me a rundown list of all the tools and equipment I will need to load and clean the GPR; cleaning tools, patches, ammunition, etc... Please, so I don't end up buying something I don't need or miss something I do, treat me like an idiot for this. Thanks.

 

[WestKentucky]

The big thing is a nipple pick. It helps get into the nooks and crannies between. The nipple and the chamber better to clean it out. Otherwise it's pretty much your standard stiff for both shooting and cleaning.

 

[Crawdad1]

Is it a flintlock or percussion?

 

[sooter76]

percussion

 

[Crawdad1]

Okay, you do not have to use these people but here is what I would suggest;

First a flask,

http://www.trackofthewolf.com/Categories/PartDetail.aspx/69/2/FLASK-PS

A rifle powder measure;

http://www.trackofthewolf.com/List/Item.aspx/85/1

Nipple wrench with pick;

http://www.trackofthewolf.com/List/Item.aspx/65/1

Powder, ball, wads and caps for a 54 caliber percussion rifle here;

http://www.trackofthewolf.com/List/Item.aspx/210/1

A bag of your choice to carry this stuff in. I shop at an Army/Navy surplus store for their canvas bags that I like a lot as they're very rugger but that's up to you.

But, all in all its best to see this stuff rather than read this stuff. I know what you mean I made all the mistakes of buying (possibles) that are still sitting there waiting for a reason to exist. Hope others will chime in and give you more advice also.

Good luck with your rifle.

 

[4v50 Gary]

Cleaning jag - used with a patch, you can pump water in/out of the bore to flush it.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

I made a cleaning trough for my BP long guns from a section of plastic rain gutter and two end caps. Make the trough about 6" longer than your barrel (you remove it from the stock for cleaning and I also remove the nipple) fill with hot soapy water (mine takes about a gallon and I use Dawn dish soap) and immerse the barrel in it for about 5 minutes. You can dip the nipple and clean it while waiting for the barrel to soak. You can also tilt the barrel from end to end to get gravity flow to help scrub the bore and to ensure there is not a air bubble at the breech end. Now using a rod and a cotton barrel swab plunge the swab in and out of the barrel with the breech end submerged and 99.99% of the fouling will be gone when you shine a light down the bore. I wipe the excess water off and blow out the breech and bore with compressed air, I then spray a healthy burst of WD-40 down the bore and blow it out of the nipple hole by using a compressed air nozzle in the barrel, swab it a few times with dry patches, and then give the whole thing a good wipedown using Hornady Dry Gun Cleaner which is a silicone based cleaner and protectant. I then give the lock, trigger assembly, and nipple the same spray and wipedown procedure and put the rifle back together. It took almost as long to write this out as it does to do it in real time. I can clean three or four guns before the water gets either too cool or too dirty to use further. A lot of folks will point out that hot water is not needed but in my opinion the hot water heats the steel and causes any water left after the wipedown to evaporate very quickly. At least it does at this altitude (5000')and humidity level.

 

[conder0289]

A good short starter and range loading rod (Track of the Wolf) don't use the ramrod that's with the gun, usually not durable enough, pillow ticking for patch material, a cheap rubber mallet for seating a patched round ball just below the muzzles surface and a small sharp knife to cut the patch material flush with the muzzle. Next use the short starter to push this combination down the bore as far as it will followed by the range rod to fully seat the patched ball against the powder charge.
I use Hoppe's 9 Plus to wet the patch prior to loading, it lubes the patch and bore and keeps the fouling soft.
Appropriate nipple wrench and a couple of nipples that match your particular gun (always have a spare nipple handy, don't wait until you need it) and of course a nipple pick, a sanded down paper clip works fine.
Of course some caliber compatible cleaning jags and bore mops for cleaning and a ball puller