# Muzzleloader Miss Fire !!



## jdman (Feb 9, 2005)

My Nephew Has A Winchester Apex .45 Cal Muzzleloader.. That On About Every Other Shot The Primer Fires But The Load Doesnt Go Off... He's Pissed And Wants A New Gun... We Tried Different Primers And Bought Fresh Powder ( They Use The Triple 7 Pellets) , And The Same Thing, The Gun Gets Cleaned Every 3 Or 4 Shot ... 

Question Can I Ream The Breach Plug A Little So That More Fire Hits Load????

Should He Switch To The Powder ??? ( He's Only 13 Years Old And We Try And Keep It Simple)

Any Other Suggestions ????

Thanks
Jeff


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## mike the pike (Mar 11, 2008)

Sounds like a breach plug problem
The breach plug could be plugged or semi plugged. In the powder box is a pipe cleaner...that pipe cleaner is used to clean the breach plug and keep it open. Stick it in from the cap side and run it back and forth a few times...you should beable to see light thru it.

After cleaning the plug and the gun, shhot a few caps down the gun to dry any moisture and or oil that may be in the barrel. That should solve your problem.


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## DEDGOOSE (Jan 19, 2007)

Soak your Breech plug a while in TC #13 bore cleaner for a while than run the pipe cleaners through it. 

Or purchase some CCI Magnum primers, may make a difference.


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## jdman (Feb 9, 2005)

I Always Thought That Pipe Cleaner Was To Pick The Pellets Out Of The Box.......

Jeff


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## ART (Jul 7, 2004)

If you are using too much fluid when you clean, it will not easily leave the breechplug. The fluid can also make a paste out of the fouling. Use a patch rolled on the end of a smaller caliber brush to clean right in the middle of the plug. Look through the plug to make sure you can see light.
It doesn't need a large hole through the plug ,but it needs to be clear and dry.


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## sourdough44 (Mar 2, 2008)

1st off you need things clear,clean, & dry before loading. I leave a little oil on things while stored but make sure it's bone dry before loading. A 'welding tip cleaner' is good to ensure the BP hole is clear. When you start a fire in your woodstove do you use cedar kindling or 2 chunks of sugar maple? In general loose powder will ignite easier. It's not that hard at all to use. I recently shot 5 deer with my Knight, 3 in one sitting over about an hour period. All you need is a powder measure & a few speedloaders or other container to hold the pre-measured powder. 

Nothing worse than pulling the trigger on the M-L & not having it go off.


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## ENCORE (Sep 19, 2005)

jdman said:


> ....Question *Can I Ream The Breach Plug A Little So That More Fire Hits Load????.....*
> 
> Thanks
> Jeff


*POSITIVELY NOT !!!* 
*DO NOT TAMPER WITH THE SIZE OF THE HOLE IN THE BREACH PLUG!!!!!!!!!!!*
Opening up or enlarging the breach plug hole can cause EXTREMELY HAZARDOUS CONDITIONS. It will increase the pressure coming backwards, which can create very dangerous conditions.

I was shooting with some guys, back in the day before in-lines. One of the guys got the BRIGHT IDEA that he'd increase the size of the hole in his nipple. BAD MISTAKE!!! We were standing there, when the very first round that he fired, drove the hammer back and through his hand. COMPLETELY THROUGH between the thumb and finger. Considerable damage to his rifle. 

Keep it cleaned as explained above. If you still have problems, change primers/caps. Ignition is more reliable with 209 primers. Or, purchase a new breach plug.
*Never, never increase the size of the breach plug hole !*


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## fightem (Sep 21, 2008)

It is definitely the breech plug .It needs to be soaked in black powder solvent. I use a strait pin and work it in the small hole.Not to much pressure with the pin just enough to clear the small pin hole .Make sure the strait pin is a smaller diameter than the breech plug hole and like it was mentioned before use a pipe cleaner to clean out the inside of the breech plug. Also when you put the breech plug back in the bore put either breech plug grease or white lithium grease only on the threads not the whole breech plug and do not block the small hole with grease.It is not the gun it is the person who cleaned it. Hey good luck eh?:coolgleam:coolgleam


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## TrekJeff (Sep 7, 2007)

Keep a garbage bag tie tie handy. Strip one end down to the wire. After every shot just run the wire through the breach plug hole. This simple step takes a lot of hassle out of muzzle loading firing.


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## fightem (Sep 21, 2008)

Thats a good idea trekjeff


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## UP2IT (Feb 11, 2009)

jdman said:


> My Nephew Has A Winchester Apex .45 Cal Muzzleloader.. That On About Every Other Shot The Primer Fires But The Load Doesnt Go Off... He's Pissed And Wants A New Gun... We Tried Different Primers And Bought Fresh Powder ( They Use The Triple 7 Pellets) , And The Same Thing, The Gun Gets Cleaned Every 3 Or 4 Shot ...
> 
> Question Can I Ream The Breach Plug A Little So That More Fire Hits Load????
> 
> ...


 I had similar problem last season with my muzzle loarder i was using cci 209 primers and had terrible fouling. I found winchester triple 7 209 primers made for muzzle loaders and that made a great improvement on the fouling and loading of gun and have not had a miss fire since.


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## BallsRdragn (Jul 21, 2005)

Does this gun have a bolster?

If so, take the nipple off and throw a little powder in and tighten the nipple back on. I still have my old side hammer with musket cap... just shot it this weekend for fun. It can be frustrating.


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## GuppyII (Sep 14, 2008)

I have one of these and have the same problem with pellets. A freind and his father have them also and have no problems with pellets. I switched powders and went to Blackhorn 209 and mag primers and haven't had any problems with this stuff. P.M. me if you cant figure it out, I dont live to far away and have a range about 5 miles from my place to shoot, I might be able to help. Kevin


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## jmoser (Sep 11, 2002)

I keep a wire gauge drill bit [forget the size #] in my MZ kit to clean the breech plug flash hole. It does NOT enlarge the hole but scoops out all the crud without pushing it into the bore. Pipe cleaners are gret but they will push some of the crud forward into the bore, not the end of the world but not the best either.

When you remove the plug use a spray can of auto parts brake cleaner to get that hole good and clean.


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