The THREE Minute Clean

There are probably as many different ways of cleaning your muzzleloader as there are different muzzleloaders. We have nine different guns in the shop and an additional six to eight barrels. In a typical "test" shooting session, it is not uncommon for us to foul four or five of them. As necessity is the mother of invention, we had to come up with a quick, no-mess way of cleaning our guns. As many of these guns have received dozens of hours of custom 'smithing to enhance accuracy, the clean had to be thorough so their performance could be counted on day in and day out.

We start by squirting some of our "Blackpowder Cleaner #1" in the barrel and in the nipple hole. Next we squirt a cleaning patch and swab the barrel. Throw the patch away and repeat with next patch. Within four or five patches, the patch should come out almost as clean as it was before you used it. Next run two dry patches up and down the barrel, flipping each one over for double the use. Your gun is now clean. If you quit here, you will have a rusty, worthless barrel in a very short time.

The final step is to select a rust protective lubricant to squirt down the barrel and down the nipple hole. Our preference is Ballistol but WD40 also works fine. I squirt it down the nipple hole and then down the barrel. I squirt a clean patch and run it up and down the barrel several times. You will notice the Ballistol mist being sprayed out the nipple hole as you do this. I generally take the lubricated patch off the jag and use it to coat the outside of my entire gun. This not only protects the metal but it also protects and restores the wood of the stock. Check out the Ballistol if you are unfamiliar with this product. It is great addition to your gun care products. My three minutes are up and I have several more guns to clean.

I do welcome your comments on the subject and will be happy to add them to this question.

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