.32 Caliber Loading Difficulty?

[Sharps Shooter]

I saw a beautiful .32 caliber muzzle loader at Sportsmans Warehouse last weekend. For the life of me, I can't remember what brand it was, but it's price was around $250.00. I'm concidering buying it - just for a fun gun to plink with and to hang on a wall.
In the "Caliber for Squirrels?" thread someone mentioned the .32 caliber is harder to load than a .36 caliber. Would you folks explain why that is? Would I be better off to look for the same gun in .36 caliber? I'm quite the novice when it comes to muzzle loaders and will appreciate any advice - including advice on which brands are good. Thanks.

 

[Chawbaccer]

In my experience it has to do with trying to stuff a tight fitting ball down a small hole, plus there will be fowling. The smaller the hole the harder it gets.
If you found a good deal on a 32 and you want it by all means go get it. Get the right sized ball and right thickness patching and swab the bore, you shouldn't have much more trouble than a 36.

 

[1911 guy]

Fouling

The fouling in front stuffers does get worse with smaller bores. That's one reason most military arms of the day were elephant size. The .32 should work wonders on squirrels, my only advice would be to run a spit patch down between shots to keep things going smoothly. I do this every shot with my .36. The extra ten seconds is worth it. No balls stuck in the fouling and no advancing redcoats to squeeze the timeframe!
BUY THIS RIFLE if it is any good at all. Good smallbores are hard to come by anymore.

 

[timuchin]

My father shoots a .36...

After about 6-8 shots, it gets so fouled that he has to take a bronze bore brush to it in order to load it. He switched to Hodgdon Triple 7, and now can go an entire day of shooting without cleaning. He still likes Goex for his big bores, but swears by the Triple 7 for the smaller calibers. It's kind of pricey, but lasts forever in a .36 or a .32.

 

[Tinker2]

I use a .32 cal flintlock.
I use Birchwood casey black powder bore solvent as my patch lube
and my bore is not fouled any more then if I only shot it once.
I can shoot it all day long and it is still easy to load and still accurate.

 

[arcticap]

If that's the rifle that I think it is, you were looking at a Traditions Crockett .32 caplock. It's a very popular rifle that I have been reading a lot of good reviews about recently. They are claiming that it shoots very, very well from 25 to 50 yards with roundballs and maxiball conicals. However, these are small balls and the relatively tiny nature of them makes them a little more tedious to load vs. any larger caliber, especially for the novice. If you are looking for a squirrel/rabbit/plinking rifle, caliber probably doesn't matter very much. Every state has different hunting regulations, but many state's muzzle loading hunters often use larger calibers like .40 (and up) for small game with reduced powder charges, and can put bigger holes in paper while plinking as well.
Barrel length is often as important as brand. Too short and you lose accuracy. Too long and it's more difficult to load, clean, etc... Pedersoli guns have a great reputation but can be somewhat more expensive. Dixie Gun Works has carried a .45 & .36 Cub for years that is a solid performer. Traditions also has a good reputation, I have several. Which caliber is probably your biggest decision. Would you be looking to shoot any game much larger than a squirrel? Is wind a factor where you are shooting? Overall, muzzle loaders are very mild shooting since you control the powder charge.
What usually makes the difference is what rifles are the most available at the time and place a person is looking when considering the rifle purchase. Good luck with whatever direction you decide to take.

 

[1911 guy]

Good advice

Articap had some good advice to consider when making a smallbore BP purchase. I use GOEX in all my rifles and like it, but some swear by Triple 7 or Pyrodex. If they work for you and you're not an anal retentive purist like me, use them. I run a spit patch down my bore every shot to keep things going smooth, as I mentioned earlier. The Pedersoli guns mentioned by Articap are great. My squirrel rifle is one and the fit and finish is top notch. Thompson center makes good quality guns, as does Traditions for the last few years.

 

[Sharps Shooter]

Thanks for the advice guys. Arcticap, you nailed it. It was a Traditions Crockett .32 and I remembered as soon as I read your post. It's sure pretty. It will be a few weeks before I can afford it.
I use Goex in my Sharps. I've used Pyrodex, but not Triple 7. I'll probably give it a try with the .32 caliber.
Thanks again.