The
Magnificent Savage Breechplug
The breechplug
of the Savage 10ML-II is remarkably different from generic breechplugs
commonly seen in inline muzzleloaders. Just being different in and
of itself means that the reasons for it are normally not appreciated.
More than a few times, I've been asked why "other" manufacturers
don't take the same approach: the short answer is that they can't,
as it is patented. Old habits die hard, it seems.
At this stage
of the game with seven years of continuous production of the Savage
10ML, it is hardly radical (or perhaps newsworthy) to consider
smokeless powder muzzleloading. We can all consider how common
shotguns have functioned for the last century: 209 primer, smokeless
powder that is not corrosive, wad or sabot, and projectile or projectiles.
Whether we push a saboted bullet out of a shotgun with a rifled
barrel or shoot a Savage 10ML-II, the mechanics are the same-- no
news there. What is newsworthy is that the Savage 10ML-II
was designed, tested, and manufactured from the very beginning to
use moderate to slow burning non-corrosive smokeless powders. The
Savage was expressly designed and engineered for this, and the Savage
breechplug is a fundamental reason behind its superior function.
Breechplug
holes ("flash holes") erode and enlarge in any
inline. Henry Ball took note of this some sixteen years ago, Doc
White was aware of it long ago as well. Even recently, Hodgdon Powder
noted that within one hundred shots or so, Triple Se7en eroded T/C
Omega breechplugs. Hodgdon's testing was directed at trying to kill
the Triple Se7en hard "crud ring" fouling. What Hodgdon
took note of was already common knowledge to Henry Ball and Doc
White. Breechplug flash hole wear is a normal occurrence; I've personally
shot out both Thompson and Knight breechplugs to the point where
accuracy was gone. The 'fix' is to screw in a new breechplug.
As normal erosion
is related to pressure and heat, the hotter charges of the newer
subs amplify what was already an established occurrence. Henry Ball
wanted to resolve this issue before it affected accuracy, so that
was why the Savage breechplug has a "ventliner" on the
powder side. Without resorting to rare, brittle, or hard to machine
metals, a 10ML-II shooter need only replace the ventliner, a screw
with a hole in it that is a "replaceable flash hole,"
every box of primers or 100 shots to enjoy brand new gun ignition,
performance, and accuracy. The ventliner is simply a replaceable
flash hole, and as mentioned you won't see it on other muzzleloaders
as it is protected intellectual property.
"BLOW-BACK"
is talked about relentlessly. There are two different types of problematic
blowback in a 209 ignition muzzleloader: internal and external.
The external type is the easiest to observe as that is the type
that burns scopes and in the case of a few muzzleloaders I've tested,
your face as well. The Savage has none. The same can be said for
a few other muzzleloaders, more or less.
Internal blowback
is what you don't see from shot to shot. Internal blowback coats
your bolt or break action with rock-hard primer and powder residue
that must be cleaned out to prevent misfires, blocking of the firing
pin, and operation of the action. It is the internal blowback that
means the bolt of a Knight, Austin & Halleck, or what have you
must be continually disassembled and cleaned. It is internal blow
back that may gum-up the action of most every inline muzzleloader
made today, except for the Savage 10ML-II. The bolt of a Savage
10ML is never disassembled for cleaning; in fact-- Savage gives
no instructions for doing so, as it is not necessary. Let me mention
why that is.
When a 209
primer is ignited the significant mass of primer compound has to
go somewhere, and it does just that. In conventional inline muzzleloaders,
the primer is pointed in the general direction of a nipple or center
of a breechplug by a plastic fixture, held in place by a spring,
or allowed to flop around a bit in an oversized primer pocket. There
is no seal, so whatever makes it through the flash hole does just
that, the balance blowing back into the action or perhaps leaking
through it, toasting scopes and the like.
No such issue
exists with the Savage 10ML-II. The primer is attached to the bolt
by the horseshoe metal fixture, and positively located not just
next to-- but actually inside the primer pocket as shown in the
illustration. When the primer ignites, it instantly puffs out to
seal. No significant primer mixture goes anywhere but through the
breechplug. The primer attaching to the bolt is such a great idea,
I'm often asked why the "other companies" don't take this
obviously superior approach. Well, again, they can't-- as this innovation
is protected by patent.
With the primer
sealing in the primer pocket, the residue in a Savage 10ML-II does
not migrate to scope or bolt, so cannot affect the operation of
the rifle. No scopes get crispy, and the bolt never needs disassembly
for cleaning as it doesn't get dirty to start with.
The primer
crud stays in one place, that being the breechplug. So, after every
100 shots the ventliner is removed and a 5/32 in. drill bit is used
to drill out the hard primer matter, going all the way through the
breechplug starting at the primer pocket. The drill bit is self-centering,
so you just hold the breechplug by the unthreaded portion with a
set of pliers and drill all the way through with an electric drill.
This is the only maintenance unique to the Savage, and your reward
for this couple of minute operation is no external or internal fouling,
and new gun performance. Most hunters drill out their breechplugs
and replace the ventliner once a year whether it needs it or not.
Though the ventliner should be coated with Mil-Spec 907E Anti-Seize
compound, including the base of the flat-head screw, it does not
need to be torqued down as it supports nothing but itself. Just
screwing it down until it makes contact with the breechplug is all
that is required.
This breechplug
service is best performed before you ever shoot your new 10ML-II
for the first time. When you get a new rifle, it is only natural
to want to shoot it right away-- of course that is understandable.
If you take care of your breech plug first, it will most likely
take good care of you, and need very little care from you.
I've always
had more motivation for doing things when I understand why they
should be done; that's why I've sat on that cold rock and learned
from Henry Ball and Doc White. I hope this article removes whatever
mystery there might be about the Savage system-- it is a simple
but superb premise, and is why the Savage 10ML-II has remained the
only truly internally and externally sealed action production muzzleloader
available today.
