every gun wants what IT wants. yer job is to figure out the "what" part. there are many Many MANY things that can be of concern with a muzzleloader and more so with a flint ignition system. patience and learning are key.
*IF* the gun is of offshore manufacture, it will most likely have a "double breech" aka a patent breech. this is an ante-chamber before the main chamber. there are very special concerns over loading and cleaning these kinda guns. thankfully, most onshore trad ml's use traditional flat breech plugs.
fouling control between shots may or may not be needed. however, when getting to know a gun, it makes sense to start off wiping between shots, mainly because of chamber concern. if a dry patch, or a dry lube patch wipe isn't sufficient, and you go to wet patch wiping, a dry patch or two will be mandatory. wet or moist or damp chambers are to be avoided at all costs.
when you run any patched jag down the tube, air will compress, crud will be pushed into the chamber and into the touch hole or bolster or nipple. you may see smoke pour out from an orifice, lingering from the shot just taken. that smoke should cease. if it doesn't, there might still be a moldering ember in the chamber and more jag action is required.
the bottom line is to get the *chamber* area, where ALL the real action takes place, clean and dry - the barrel itself doesn't much matter. this includes the ignitions system hardware - touch hole, or bolster/nipple. if it's a flint ignition gun, picking the vent is good insurance as is wiping down the hammer, and flint, and pan. failure to spark means knapping a new flint edge.
for such simple guns, there is much thinking and doing to do, if reliable ignition and good shots is the goal.
