Shiloh Rifle Forums

I have an early model of 56 caliber 1863 Farmer. I've had it for about three months now but I haven't shot it yet. Ive used the tubes and some bullets that were provided by the former owner to load 20 shots for the weekend. Any advice?

What are you waiting for? Take it out and shoot it.

George

Clean, reload ,and go shoot some more

Be sure to strip and clean the breech block after each session, including the flash hole screw. Put some thread sealant on it when replacing it.

Thanks Todd

I slathered it with a lot of Ballistol thoughly, will have to do till the weather warms up as I live in an upscale RV and the wife isn't going to let me clean up in her sink

Took it out Saturday afternoon and after a few shots to figure out where it was hitting and how to aim I was able to group a nice three shot pattern at 100 yards. I only fired 12 total shots nine personally and three shots were fired by onlookers who were enthralled by the gun. All in all I was very pleased with the results. I need to adjust the sites as I was hitting about six inches right of aim point.

I'll give it a real cleaning when the temperature gets above freezing!

Cold weather or not it needs to be cleaned now. You let that go until it warms us and you will sure as heck wish you had endured the wifes bitvhing. Just tell her to make some egg salad sandwiches while you clean it. I once spent a Friday afternoon shooting a Remington rolling block, then headed to my weekend drill with the USMC reserves. By Monday or Tuesday when I finally made time to clean it, it was almost too late.

George

Thanks George for the advice and cautiousness, I am new to shooting this type of black powder gun, but not new to black powder shooting, been doing it for 40 years with cap and ball revolvers and several different smoke poles starting way back with a Kentucky rifle, graduated to a green mountain barreled hawken then 50 caliber custom made hawken and 5-6 years back gave my CVA carbine to my son in law. I've fired and field cleaned every one of them without water and without them rusting. I know some people are annal about throughly cleaning after shooting as this video below demonstrates, but the old timers didn't have Ballistol nor did they clean up like below after each time they shot. I have run Balistol through the bore and I also ran bore butter too. I throughly wiped her down with Balistol and insured that there was no loose powder or residue. It'll hold for a while and I will clean it up in a couple days. I also check it daily for anything.


https://youtu.be/ybShlQF766g

Suit yourself. I NEVER leave a black powder rifle uncleaned and always allow time for cleaning. It is just part of the game. I don't put much reliance on modern chemicals either. Hot soapy water does just fine.

George

I use one of those old brass pump style fire extinguishers filled with hot water and soap to clean my BP guns.With the sharps all you have to do is take the block out and fill up a small plastic tub and let it soak for a bit ,then put the nozzle in the breech pump a couple times and the bore is clean then dry and oil everything .Clean up takes no time at all and no big mess

A pan of hot water & soap, brush, gun oil, some rags to wipe, an old bath towel to put it all on and some time to clean it and you don't need the sink. and maybe a short time on the stove to dry the water out of the block, etc and you are done. I have shot bp for over 45 years and Never would put a rifle away without cleaning the bp residue off.

But as someone else said, suit your self.
Rob

I'm not using modern chemicals, Balistol was designed by Germans in WW1 because of the water, dirt and grime guns got into in the trenches. It is better then anything that is produced today. The US military has an equivalent used to clean and protect firearms without water. I finally cleaned it after a week, no regrets no rust no pitting, nothing except a little bees wax buildup that a brush will break once I get one.