need some helpful advise

[bigwillye]

I was given a jukar BP .45 cal rifle with a ball stuck in it. And I've never owned
any BP guns before, is there a removable breach plug and if so how do I get it out? It looks to me that the tang is one piece with the barrel and it comes down infront of what appears to be a breach plug. Also the previous owner while trying to remove the precussion nipple seriously scarred and chewed up the metal thing the nipple screws into and I can't get that to unscrew from the barrel to try a powder charge to expell the ball.......... Needles to say I don't have a bullet puller for the ram rod or any other BP tools....... CAN ANYONE GIVE ME ADVISE ON HOW TO REMEDY THIS SO I CAN SHOOT.................

thanks

[curator]

You don't need to remove the drum, only the nipple to discharge the ball. If you can remove the nipple, you should be able to get enough powder under the ball to shoot it out. Don't attempt this if the ball is not all the way down into the breech. Measure with a ramrod where the ball sits. If not in the breech you'll have to do this the hard way with a ball puller screw. Where there is an unknown charge/projectile in the bore I have had success replacing the nipple with an automobile grease fitting of the correct thread and pumping the bore full of grease with a high-pressure grease gun. This is a bit messy but safe and won't risk bulging the barrel. CO2 ball dischargers work best if you can get your hands on one but they won't always push out a stuck ball if its a bit tight.

[missionary5155]

Good morning
Well you can try compressed air. Dump some penetrating oil down the barrel to lossen things up. Kerosene also works nicely. Use One of those rubber tiped nozzle for blowing air on parts. Just fit it over the niple and start adding pressure. Point the barrel in a safe dirrection.
There is a breach plug or should be..

[northmn]

Generally you can remove the nipple and pour in a bit of powder. If the ball is not seated all the way seat it then pour in the powder.

Northmn

[R.M.]

I wouldn't try to shoot it out. You have no idea what's loaded in it.
I'd clean the barrel as best you can so the ball has as little resistance as can be, and then try compressed air though the nipple threads. There is a CO² dis-charger you can buy that can work well. Next I would get a grease fitting that fits the nipple threads and pump grease into it. It'll work well, but is messy.
Removing the breach-plug should be used as a last resort only.

[mooman76]

Does your Jukar have a powder drum or is it a solid piece with the end breech plug? A drum will be round with a place on the end you can put a wrench. I would go with the powder in the nipple idea but I am an experienced muzzle loader so I could check it out to make sure it is safe to do so. If you have a doubt that it is safe you can put the rifle in a tire and weight it down with sand bags and tie a string to the trigger and get behind something to protect you in case the worst happens but it shouldn't really be a problem.

[FL-Flinter]

DO NOT TRY TO FIRE IT! That's the quickest way end up mangled or dead! First things first, if the drum is damaged, more than likely the threads between the drum and barrel are also damaged/weakened and even if you get everything else un-done, the likelyhood that the drum will blow-out when shooting is very high (read as extremely dangerous and potentially deadly to anyone around the gun when it turns loose)

Do NOT attempt to remove the breechplug, they are cranked in tight and in combination with a thread locking agent, if it gets to the point where you think you need to remove the breechplug, it's time to throw the gun away.

You didn't state if the ball was stuck in a clean barrel or one that had been previously fired, if it was shot and the ball has been stuck for a while, more than likely the bore is wrecked from rust which also means the breech and/or drum may have weakened by rust to the point that it is no longer safe under any circumstances.

A stuck ball means the gun should be treated as a bomb just waiting to explode in your face because it is. An un-seated ball is a bore obstruction and a bore obstruction usually results in a blown barrel. Do I need to continue stressing the safety factor? Water is the best thing to use, try to get it in from both ends, nipple and muzzle. Water will break down salt corrosion locking and act as a lubricant and if you can get enough in through the breech end, hopefully it'll help kill the powder. You're going to need a good ball puller with a steel or stainless steel rod, don't mess with a ramrod or you're going to end up with the RR tip stuck in the bore too. If you can get the nipple out, you may be able to find a zerk fitting with the proper metric threads, with the muzzle pointed in a safe direction, a grease gun should produce enough pressure to push the ball out. Under NO circumstances should you attempt to drill or heat the nipple/drum because a spark or heat can ignite the powder.

SAFETY!!!
SAFETY!!!
SAFETY!!!

[docone31]

Lots of good advice here.
I am warning you however, DO NOT TRY TO FIRE IT UNTILL YOU HAVE VERIFIED THE BORE IS WITHOUT POWDER!
You can either get, or make a bullet puller. If you decide to make one, take a sheet rock screw, cut it off and screw the end into the ramrod. The threads on that will be slightly different from what it comes with. The threads will interlock and hold the screw.
My first black powder rifle was identical to the one you have, and it also had a stuck ball in the bore. The ball had been there for over 20yrs! I did not know it, but, with charge also.
I tried to pull the bolster, remove the breechplug, I finally made a ball puller, set the screw, and pulled the ball! It came out real easily! They are usually patched, and once you get the ball moving, it comes.
I then took the ramrod, and felt in the chamber for powder. I prodded, and scraped it around. Nothing. I cleaned the cap channel, poked for powder, nothing. I took a cap and put it on the nipple, pulled the trigger and the cap fired. I figuired the rifle was unloaded at this point. I then proceeded to put another cap on the rifle and fire another. I always keep the muzzle at a safe distance and direction. I pulled the trigger, and WHOOSH! lots of smoke, and noise.
The cats ran and hid. There was powder in the chamber! A full charge.
At any rate, we got it cleaned up. The bore was a mess! The blueing had turned into browning and the barrel was brown. I cleaned up the lock, trigger, and proceeded to cast some balls, and R.E.A.L.s By the way, the R.E.A.L.s work real well in the rifle. Real well.
To really clean the bore, I used valve lapping compound for lube on the R.E.A.L.s I fired about 20. Made a clean bore! No more resisitance spots loading. You will feel them.
Patched balls, R.E.A.L.s it is a good shooter! My wife likes it. She prefers it to the .54 Dimmick I got her. Lighter, easier to get a target picture.
That rifle will teach you a lot about muzzle loaders. We have had the cursory no powder loadings. I also ran a burr into the flame channel. The nipple was too close to the threads in the bolster, on the other side. Once I got the channel cleaned, positive fire every time.
I use the CCI #11 caps, with Pyrodes RS.
A good shooter now.
Good luck

[bigwillye]

thanks for all the info and tips, i'll let you know how it turns out ..............