Dirty barrel vs clean for hunting

[Elkextreme1]

who Hunts with a fouled barrel ? I have a bull tag in 2 weeks. I'm shooting awsome groups at 250. Next week I gotta put a few rounds down the ol smoke pole to get it dirty. My smoke pole shoots better when it's dirty vs clean.
Who also does this method?

 

[Idahoron]

I hunt with a clean barrel. I developed my loads and sight in for clean barrels. But I have tested those loads dirty and they perform perfectly.

 

[elkantlers]

I always hunt with a fouled barrel. My first shot with a clean barrel is always a surprise as to where it will go. After that shot it is dead on. One thing I have done is shoot my rifle a few times and then load it up. I come back later on or the next day when the barrel is cold and verify my POI.

 

[buckhorn]

With blackhorn powder I hunt with a fouled barrel. I shoot the older model Remington 700 with a stainless barrel and it gets its best accuracy on the third through seventh shots.

 

[greatbasin]

Target or hunt, spitpatch after every shot. Same thing every time, gives you a barrel that is always the same amount of dirty.

 

[BigChiefJ]

My rifle shoots the same either way, but find what works best for you.

 

[mickeyelk]

I noticed the same issue as above with dirty barrel when shooting. But that all changed when I started cleaning my gun differently. I now really clean the gun, not just three or four swipes thru it but cleaning til no residue on the swab at all. Plus I have started to use Sweat very gingerly. (It can cause damage to the barrel with prolonged use and incorrect use.) But my shots now are more consistent. My opinion!

 

[cannonball]

This is not for sabot nor round ball shooters, but only for bullet shooters and was told to me by a couple of long-range target shooters who have placed at the top of their matches.

The cleaning goes like this: dirty the barrel, add powder, place FLAT (cardboard or plastic) wad over the powder, one damp patch, one dry patch down to the wad to clean the barrel, then load the bullet(either paper patch or grease grooved.

A little time consuming for hunting, but when I am target shooting with black powder it sure eliminated mis-fires and hange-fires and was the best group combination when cleaning after every shot.

 

[DH56]

I use a TC Encore with Balckhorn Powder and it shoots well shot after shot without cleaning. Blackhorn is a low residue powder and has considerably less fouling and is cleaner burning. Every gun is different so if you decide to try it, you may want to watch closely the results.

 

[Barrera]

I clean after every shot when working a load and sighting in. I plan for accuracy on the 1st shot when hunting with a muzzleloader. But groups usually very well with a dirty barrel also.

 

[HIcountryman]

i clean my barrel (after target practice) and fire a couple primers off to remove any possible moisture... then load for the hunt.

 

[3TOE]

i clean my barrel (after target practice) and fire a couple primers off to remove any possible moisture... then load for the hunt.

I’ve done the same thing for 30 years. I just snap a few caps on a clean barrel & she’s good to go. While sighting in / practice, I clean after every third shot & snap a few caps before reloading.

 

[nfh]

Went out shooting this weekend and after reading this thread i thought i would test mine. Perfectly clean or 3 or 4 shots later it shoots the same. I even went up to 7 shots. That was a mistake. Breech plug was brutal to unthread...

 

[GoexBlackhorn]

who Hunts with a fouled barrel ? I have a bull tag in 2 weeks. I'm shooting awsome groups at 250. Next week I gotta put a few rounds down the ol smoke pole to get it dirty. My smoke pole shoots better when it's dirty vs clean.
Who also does this method?

Keep shooting the way it works best for accuracy and performance. Doesn't matter if the barrel is clean, semi-clean or semi-dirty.

What works for you may not work for the rest of the group of hunters with you.

 

[roadrunner]

I do a dry swab after two or three shots when shooting/sighting in.

 

[ThunderImpulse4]

To each their own as stated above.

I shoot 2-3 shots then clean, shoot 2-3 then clean. Hasn't failed me yet.

 

[buckhorn]

I killed this buck with a dirty barrel.
4 previous shots 2 days earlier.
I left the gun loaded even overnight in freezing temperatures.
Just be dang sure to keep your powder dry!

 

[dihardhunter]

Beauty buck buckhorn!

 

[kalielkslayer]

My gun shoots 2-3” high with a clean bore.

after one shot, the next 3 are dead on.

so at the range, I shoot a fouling shot, then a Group.

clean, fouling shot, another group.

I always shoot a fouling shot the night before the season begins, a tradition.

but I use BH209. A different powder might be different.

OBTW, I do the same with center fire rifles, range and hunting.