My Blackhorn findings

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In the past, I had tried Blackhorn, briefly. I say briefly because I was getting misfires or hang fires and said "no way" Can't have that going on when I get a crack at a big boy. I asked for suggestions and much of your advice was dead on! I am shooting a CVA Kodiak w/ T7 and Barnes TMZ's and more recently TEZ's. Always was looking for an easy loading bullet that was accurate so I could get a second shot loaded w/ out spit patching. Just in case. Well the first thing I tried today was to "crush" that bullet down into the Blackhorn! BINGO! Even though my sabot/ bullet combo was easy loading. If I crush that bullet down hard into the Blackhorn, it went off every time. Proceeded to shoot TEZ's, Shockwaves, and XTP's just for experimentation, and they all went boom and shot near same POI ! Used the Federal 209A primers. This is the first time for several things that made my range time more enjoyable. Never ran a patch between shots! Let alone 1 damp and 2 dry. Never felt any crud ring build up! When I was done, I could see light clearly thru my breech plug hole. I quickly ran a wet Hoppes patch and 2 dry patches when I was done, but the idea that my gun wouldn't corrode if I waited a day or two to clean it was cool. I have been getting rust spots from the T7 residue. Then I started flushing the whole barrel with warm water in the sink and that cleaned it up more thoroughly. Now I believe this is a great product. I think you can add the CVA Kodiak to the sticky list of proven Blackhorn compatables. Seat your bullets HARD. Even if your bullet doesn't fit tight. Because the bullets consistantly went down the bore, I can experiment with tighter fitting bullet/sabot combo's. But I do like the Barnes design. I believe it is dual purpose. If you shoot the heart/lung area , it opens wide and at low velocity. If you take the high shoulder shot, this bullet still packs the rear portion of the bullet design to crush through bone and stay intact. I like that option. Thanks again guys. Great place to learn the craft!

 

[SWThomas]

That's great news! Glad you figured it out. I have always compressed the sabot on the powder charge hard. Just seemed like the right thing to do.

 

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Ya know, I think it stemmed from my beginning with T7 "pellets" I think they warn you not to crush those? After just reading the other "Blackhorn thread" I am new at my love for Blackhorn. It seems like the next step in the evolution of black powder substitutes. Someone will come up with a similar product to compete and they too will make improvements. But I really appreciated the time spent shooting vs. spit patching between shots before loading again. If we could eliminate that precautionary 1 minute wait between loading again, I could heat that barrel right up! Cost difference for me is worth it. (won't shoot a jug a year) Am I correct in believing that BH is non-corrosive in it's unburned form as well as burned residue? Also after shooting my Rem. 1100 rifled barrel shotgun with Copper Solids at 14.99 for 5 shots. I really like shooting my ML! Even with Barnes bullets!!

 

[Lee 9]

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Blackhorn is not corrosive which is to say that it does not cause rust.
The fact of the matter is though it burns very hot and burns all the oil out of the pores in the metal because of that it is wise to use a good cleaner [I like a 50/50 mix of Hoppes#9 and alcohol ] and any time you use a bore cleaner a good bore oil should follow as the are a lot more corrosive than most powders [personal experance ] I like Montana X Bore protecter. it is a sinthetic and I found that if I fire two 209 and scrub out the bore then fire two more 209's that first shot will be right in the group or right on the 250 yd 6 inch Knock down target.
Hope this helps and good luck. Lee

 

[txhunter58]

I use it an love everything about it except the price!

Just returned from a hunt in Colorado. Lots of rain almost every day. Fired a fouling shot on Friday the 11th. Hunted in the backcountry for 4 days. Came out on the 15th and shot the gun, went off instantaneously. Reloaded, hunted for two more days when I shot my cow elk on the 17th, no problem. Reloaded after the shot just in case, but wasn't neccessary.

ran a dry patch down it before starting home, but didn't clean the gun until today (23rd). Still had a fouled barrel and was loaded. No problem! Barrel had no rust.

I agree, load needs to be compressed. I use conicals, and a couple of times, they loaded loose and I had a hangfire. However, with a relatively tight fiting bullet and some pressure, they fire consistently.

 

[archery]

I also hunted elk in Colorado. On the third day I had a broadside shot on cow at 120 yards. Pulled trigger and primer went off. There were 4 cows and 2 calves. They all looked my way. I was in edge of timber and they were in open belly high willows. It was light rain and they decided everyting was OK. I put in another primer and took another broadside shot. Primer went bang, delay and then charge went off. Needless to say I was no longer on target and missed. Never got another chance. Had a 6X6 bull in range, but no bull tag. This was my first muzzleloader hunt. I did call Blackhorn and they reccommended I reclean breech plug and switch to CCI 209M primers. I was using CCI shotgun 209 primers. Breech plug had very little carbon in it and I could see light. On last day I hunted, I fired gun at tree and fired perfect.
I did get a good 5X4 mule deer with my bow, so it was a great trip. Saw lots of elk during first part of bow season, was hunting high, 1100 ft. plus with my two sons, but when they went home I only got my old body back up high one day.