so last year I joined a NMLRA club in Charleston, SC and it opened up a whole new wonderful shooting experience with friendly and knowledgeable black powder shooters.
First I got my Russell Klotz-built Isaac Haynes 40 cal flintlock tuned and it shoots great, but quite a different experience from skirmishing: flints, patches, flashes, longer holds, but you do get the CRACK of the rifle as it breaks the sound barrier, really cool!
They also allow shooting of muskets in the monthly competitions: so I set up my 55 springfield with the large/harmon barrel for patched round ball.
25/50 yards: 50 grains 3f goex (100 yards: 60 grains) with a hornady .570 swaged roundball (I don't even have to cast!!) 15 thousands pillowticking
2in groups at 50 yards with no kick and the really neat thing is that I do not need to clean my gun at all during a 50 round competition, the patch lightly soaked with soapy water seems to keep the barrel very clean and no scraping the bottom of the barrel necessary, the best part: the cleaning process at home is very quick as the barrel never got very dirty.
so any chance you have to try this patched round ball stuff, try it.I still love skirmishing, but as Bill Newton says, do both!
the bill large barrel (8 lands/grooves) is just perfect for the job, don't know if other rifling configurations will do better.
yours,
mike arthur, hart's battery, csa
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