Muzzleloading Made Simple
By: Joe Byers
The author tested the new Traditions NitroFire rifle.
Traditions introduces the NitroFire Muzzleloader in their quality line of firearms. Finally, no more misfires or hang-fires, and loads that always go BOOM!
A muzzleloading rifle is like a time machine. It can transform a hunter from the crazy modern-day world to a time that was much simpler and more basic. Hunting was a fundamental part of putting food on the table and pilgrims took great pride in their woodsmanship and shooting accuracy, depending on one good shot to keep their family alive.
That one-good-shot principle resonates with hunting men and women today and the lure of muzzleloading rifles helps them to escape to an era gone by. Literally, back to the basics of hunting requires a bullet loaded through the muzzle and the rank smell of burning black powder to create results.
The Black Powder Challenge
As alluring as muzzleloader hunting can be, the challenge cannot be ruled out. At the range on a perfectly dry day, everything goes as planned. However, enter the deer woods where the wind howls like a hungry wolf, rain falls, and snow piles up and things change dramatically.
I can relate the time I laid my front-loading side-by-side in the wet leaves to work a box call to lure a big tom to 20 yards only to hear a cap pop and fail to ignite the powder charge. Or the time I had a hang fire on a great Western whitetail, missing the animal completely. Then there was the instance in New Zealand where a day sloshing through deep snow completely saturated my powder charge on a big red stag.
Regardless of your ignition system, there is always an element of mystery to the blackpowder rifle- will it fire? Thankfully, the engineers at Traditions, Federal Premium, and Hodgdon have teamed up with a solution.
Meet the NitroFire
I just picked up a Traditions NitroFire at my local gunship and yes it requires an FFL to have one shipped to you, like modern firearms. After testing the rifle, I’m so confident in it’s performance that I’ll be using it on opening day of our firearm season in favor of my favorite 30-30 lever action and 30-06 bolt action even though rain is forecast for opening day.
On the outside, the NitroFire looks much like other Traditions muzzleloaders. The difference is the invention of the Federal “Firestick” which encapsulates 100 grains of Hodgdon 888 powder inside of a plastic capsule (that looks like a shotgun shell) and load through the breech.
The loading process takes three steps. First, load your favorite bulled through the barrel as always. Both Federal and Traditions make .50 caliber bullets for muzzleloaders, but other brands will work. Ram the bullet down the barrel until it hits a hard stop. There is no guessing here as the bullet hits the solid metal of the breech.
Next, break open the rifle and insert the Firestick like you would a shotgun shell. Place a 209 primer in the Firestick, close the action, and you are ready to fire.
The heart of the new shooting system is the Federal Premium Firestick that's filled with 100 grains of Hodgdon 888 blackpowder.
A Safer Shooting Method
A frequent problem occurs as muzzleloaders are fired and not thoroughly cleaned. With traditional loading, the shooter must ram the bullet down the barrel and be sure that it is fully seated on the powder charge. Since ignition occurs at this junction, that portion of the barrel fouls quickly and soon the bullet stops above the powder charge a situation that can become dangerous and is detrimental to accuracy.
Likewise, in-line and percussion cap ignition rely on the spark from the cap or primer to pass through a tiny canal to reach the powder charge. One speck of fouling or unburnt powder can block this channel and either prevent firing (misfire) or delay it- a hang-fire.
The Firestick opens like a crimped shotgun shell so that there is no tiny channel to push sparks through. The capsule containing the 888 powder is completely waterproof and is ignited by a 209-shotgun primer.
Other Advantages
As mentioned above, this new rifle is a team project from three significant manufacturers. Traditions modified the barrels of their muzzleloaders to handle the Firestick, Hodgdon developed a second generation of their popular Triple 7 powder, termed appropriately Triple 8. Upon firing, you will notice a reduction of smoke from the barrel, so much so that for the first time you may be able to see where the bullet strikes and/or its impact on game.
Hodgdon says that this new powder burns cleaner with less residue. In my tests, I could see some residue in the barrel, but two alcohol cleaning patches had it shiny clean. Incidentally, another unique feature of the StrikeFire is the ability to look through the bore. Break open the rifle, point it toward the light and you can tell if the rifle is loaded or the barrel needs cleaning.
Federal Premium’s role in this partnership was to develop the capsule- the Firestick itself. Given the hundreds of millions of shotshells this company has produced I have complete confidence in that process.
Uniquely with this system, you can break open the rifle and look through the bore. I found that two alcohol patches cleaned the bore easily.
Final Thoughts
If there is one negative to this new system, it may be cost. The price for a package of 10 Firesticks at my local gun shop was $37.50 which makes shooting this new technology on par with premium ammunition. Add the bullet and primer and the cost exceed $4 per shot. On the positive side, this new technology makes shooting your rifle at the end of the day unnecessary. If that big buck did not show and darkness has fallen, simply break open the rifle and remove the Firestick. You can leave the bullet loaded in the barrel and by inserting the Firestick the next morning be ready to hunt again.
For some folks, blackpowder hunting is all about tradition and many embrace the most primitive of ignition systems like the flintlock. For others hunting with a muzzleloader is a ticket to special seasons where the woods are less crowded, and the limited range and single-shot parameters discourage many hunters. Whether you are an experienced muzzleloading shooter or someone interested in getting started, the new Traditions NitroFire is worth you time and resources.
Joe Byers is a life long hunter and outdoor writer. He is the current Executive Director of the Mason-Dixon Outdoor Writers Association.
