With Dave Ehrig Joe Kosack Reclaiming Your Accuracy It can happen if you'll break some old habits when you clean and put up your muzzleloader for the season. W HILE we tend to remember the good times of a successful hunt, we also tend to forget the necessary care for the muzzleloader when the season is finished. Flintlocks burn black powder and that makes a huge amount of difference in the way we clean and put away our guns. The immediate care given a flintlock during the hunt is not the same level of care that is necessary for safe storage. Rust and corrosion are an ever-present threat to iron and brass. Even the load that was never fired at a whitetail poses a threat. Black powder possesses MAY 2014 a salt -- saltpeter - that can absorb moisture from the air and becomes the perfect catalyst for rust. Each year, you should do a thorough check and re-cleaning a few months after the deer season. I know this to be true, based on the number of flintlocks I "repair" for hunters, because they claim that "the flintlock just doesn't shoot like it used to." You need to do more than just scrub and lube the barrel. And nine times out of 10, the loss of accuracy is because the lock has never been cleaned right since it was bought! The biggest problems occur where 59