Are .36 Rifles Fun?

[Iktomi]

I admit to being a relative novice WRT traditional muzzleloaders, but I think that what caliber is "best all around" largely depends on where you live and what your intended game is. My primary big game focus is elk, and using a .45 for an animal that can be the size of a horse and is very tenacious of life could be a very iffy proposition. From my own experience, I would consider my .54 with PRB about the minimum I would feel comfortable with. Personally, I would like to build a rifle in .58 or .62 for elk hunting. A .45 would be nice to have for the local blacktail deer that are about the size of slightly overgrown jackrabbits.

Regarding fouling, I assumed that .32 and .36 were more susceptible to fouling, but I note that some here disagree.  I do think the smaller bores require a bit more diligence, such as avoiding swabbing between shots (so as not to cover the vent with fouling pushed down the bore.)   I still believe, however, that fouling can be more problematic in smaller bores, because the fouling represents a bigger percentage of the area circumscribed by the bore (relative to the same thickness of fouling in a larger bore).

Another factor to consider is this:  what happens when you get to be really good with your rifle, and you decide you want to hunt with it?   A .50 caliber will take a deer whereas a .36 is probably not optimal.

I personally think the .45 caliber is the best all-around caliber for muzzleloaders... if you had to choose just one.

[Dennis Glazener]

I use Lehigh Valley Lube and have never had problems with fouling with either 30, 32 or 36. My problem is loading the smaller 30 and 32, so I sold them and built a 36 (also sold ) but to me the 36 is a far better choice for my clumsy hands. I will be building another 36, it just seems much easier for me and mine shot just as well as the smaller calibers and as an extra is a little lighter in comparably barrel profiles.
Dennis

[hanshi]

Although .45 is my favorite caliber, I shoot my "dainty" little .36 flint SMR the most.  Light, accurate and cheap to feed.  I use two lubes in all my guns; TOW mink oil and Hoppes #9 BP Lube.  I like mink oil for the bush and Hoppes for the range and sometimes in the bush.  Using either lube, I never bother with swabbing the bore at all until the rifle is cleaned.  It's merely a matter of shoot, load, shoot, etc, etc.  Just use the right patch, right lube and there you have it.

[iloco]

I am not physicaly able to hunt anymore so what fun I get is at paper targets with my 32 caliber rifle.  If I were young again I would still use a 32 for small game hunting.  I have large bore rifles but never use them any more. Will give to my grandson.  A friend and I sit on his back porch in the fall and shoot apples off his trees. Lot of fun.