Just wondering if I am the only one

[rdwarrior]

Well I had an aww **** moment (*****) shooting this past weekend. We had a work day at our hunt property and afterwards I was doing some shooting to check out some loads I had worked up in various calibers. One of the guys stayed behind with me and was talking to me the entire time I shot over the chrono. The batteries died in the chrono so that ended that, even tho I had hoped to shoot a couple new to me cast boolits out of my muzzle loader. Well I was getting tired, and fired two shots from the ML, one each of two different cast boolits - one was 360 grains and one was 373 grains in front of 100grains of triple seven. All went well and I went to dig up all the projectiles to check them out. I found almost all but could not find the 373 grain ML boolit. So I decided to throw one more round into the bank and retrieve it.

This is where things went south. My lube had melted so I smeared on as much as I could to the boolit and went to load it. I couldnt find my palm saver to fully seat the bullet with the ramrod, and when I did find it, I finished the loading, all the while the other guy was talking to me and I was tired due to work and the incredible heat and humidity. Anyway, I touched off that round and the scope cut my nose wide open and it sat me on my backside from a kneeling position. All I could say is what the H happened. Got my wits about me again and went to retrieve the projectile. I found it and dug it out of the dirt and immediately knew what happened. I had failed to remove the ramrod from the barrel. The ramrod was fiberglass I think but it had a brass boolit seater on it that weighed 160 grains. I never found any part of the ram rod but the brass seater was fully embedded in the nose of the minnie. I figure I launched over 1200 grains of projectile in front of 100 grains of triple seven. It definitely was too much since it sat me on my butt and almost broke my nose on the scope.

Bottom line the only damage was my nose and my ego. Rifle was a TC Omega z5. It appears to be undamaged.

So my question is am the only one to admit this major mistake (*****) or have others been distracted when tired and done the same thing.

[Conditor22]

You are not alone.
In Asia, I did a bit of muzzleloader shooting. The particular guns you measured charge by how far the ramrod stuck out of the barrel. A friend loaned me a gun with a short ramrod and didn't tell me The preloaded shot was a bit soft so I tried for a stouter load ---- I'm a big man and not used to being sat on my backside

The gun was fine, his father used to shoot wild elephants with a similar gun.

[SSGOldfart]

Hope pretty much your mistake.



Thanks for the read,hope your nose gets better soon.

[RED BEAR]

Live and learn just glad you weren't hurt worse.

[dondiego]

I am still looking for that ram rod that I shot!

[bedbugbilly]

Hmmmm . . . . you invented the first jet propelled cross bow.

Glad you weren't hurt worse than you were . . . . and no . . . you're not the only one that things have happened to. I learned a long time ago not to load with someone else jawing at me.

Hope you find the ramrod . . . be interesting how it stood the flight.

[Tom W.]

Some years back my oldest son, a friend an I took our smokepoles squirrel hunting. This was at the time when there were reports of feral hogs in the area, so we were on the alert. My son was down in the bottom of the small gulley I was near the top by my tree stand. We had gotten a few squirrels when I heard a horrible noise following a shot by my son. I knew it was his rifle because the other guy had a .32 that hardly have any noise.
I thought that my son shot at a wild hog and it was thrashing around in the woods. I went down there and my son was looking confused. He said that he lost his ramrod. I asked what the noise was about want he said that he shot at a squirrel on the side of a huge tree. He showed me the tree and I found half of a squirrel tail pegged to the tree and shattered ramrod pieces all around. He wasn't hurt, but was plenty embarrassed........

[RED BEAR]

Well tom we have all had our moments. Just glad your son wasn't hurt.

[charlie b]

Well, I haven't shot a rod down range....yet. A couple of friends have. Nor have I fired a double charge...yet. I have fired a bullet on an empty chamber and fired a full charge without a bullet/ball. I always mark the ramrod with my preferred load. Yep, ignored the marks on the rod for those. I have come close to a double bullet charge. Discovered it when ramming home the second bullet. At least I paid attention that time and did not ignore the mark not being right.

[Hardcast416taylor]

And of course there is the famous blunder of seating a minie ball type boolet into a rifle that has not been charged with powder!Robert

[Winger Ed.]

Glad ya didn't get hurt.

It could be worse----
I was reading about a trooper during the Civil War that in the heat of battle,

He fired his musket, Then reloaded it, aimed & pulled the trigger,
reloaded, aimed & pulled the trigger,,,,, reloaded, aimed and pulled the trigger,,,,,,,, until the barrel was full.

That was when he realized he never pulled off the old one and put on a fresh cap.

[Wayne Smith]

Read the reports (USArmy) of the pickups off the Gettysburg battlefield. Five to seven charges in a barrel frequently reported.

[lrdg]

Seventy five years ago my grandfather shot a ramrod through the ceiling in the living room. I never did hear any real details.