manton

Having read through most of the material on this topic I find myself asking Do most of these people care about what anyone else thinks? The cat you shoot may be someones pet say a childs pet . Have you ever noticed the quite large rewards that people sometimes offer for the return of lost cats . If shooters do not adopt something other than the Dalek like "exterminate" mentality I fear for the future of shooting. I have been involved in sporting shooting for over 40 years and never found it necessary to shoot a cat.

I am afraid the streaks are plastic, remember that in most modern cartridges the shot is contained in the protective PLASTIC cup wad.I have scrubbed this stuff out and examined it and it has always been plastic.

I have never used a bore snake because I do not like the idea of using something which is already soiled with the residue from umpteen previous cleans . I also have serious reservations about a bore snakes ability to remove plastic . Nothing beats the good old phosphor bronze brush and a bit of elbow.

I do not agree with Sunday shooting for many reasons . Even a shooting mad character like Col Peter Hawker who is credited with being the founder of wildfowling as a sport and who organised a system of mounted beaters and markers to outdo his rivals in the early 19th century saw the benefit of one day when the birds would be left in peace. A considerable number of people in Northern Ireland wish to honour the Sabbath as a special day and quite a number of them are shooters .

Churchill xxv,s once had some dedicated admirers e.g. Gough Thomas the former gun editor of the Shooting Times. Recently the demand for 25inch and other short barreled shotguns has fallen of somewhat as 30 inch barrels are now the fashion again. Churchill was a first class maker and the xxv is a super gun for those who like the somewhat dated features that they incorporate.

W. R. Pape guns should be of a fairly high quality . Papes main claim to fame is that he is often described as the inventor of choke boring although W.W. Greener did most of the real development work afterwards.

In regard to cleaning a firearm with meths. Alcohol will remove all traces of protective oil and if there is any temperature changes in where the gun is stored a thin layer of water will form on the chemically clean metal which will cause rust and pitting .

Had a Greener G.P. for years . It shot well but was the most fustrating gun I ever used as the cartridge would only partly clear the chamber when you needed a quick reload.

Leaving the quantity of oil in a barrel required to produce bulges is just sheer madness. A high velocity bullet sees oil almost the same as an obstruction caused by mud or other thick substance in the bore . Disselling is rather different as the oil ignites under pressure similar to the action of a diesel engine but the pressures produced would not be high enough to damage a rifle barrel although they are high enough to damage the cylinder and piston in an air rifle.

Thanks for the info lads, however I dont think the terrorists needed much blackpowder as they appeared to have an adequate supply of Semtex. Maybe I should outline what I have already tried . I contacted Peter Dyson and other English dealers but was told that they had tried several times to organise transport to N Ireland without success. Problem appears to be that gunpowder is classed as an explosive not an not liable to explode in bulk reloading powder. I used to get my supply from CF(Derek) Beattie in Ballycarry but this has not been possible recently. All dealers here have the same transport problems although it is possible that some approved firms could transport it in large amounts or at a cost which would be prohibitive.

Hello, I would be greatly interested if some of the members in N Ireland could tell me where I could buy black gunpowder (not Pyrodex or other modern substitutes) suitable for use in percussion and flintlock guns.

When I get my certificate renewed it comes back dated to the old expiry date so why should I pay for a period when I cannot use my firearms. In ulster we get a letter which includes a statment that we can purchase ammunition and have it recorded on the back of the letter.