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Cleaning a Brown Bess

This is a modern process for cleaning the Brown Bess musket. The process is not period correct but the 21st Century way to keep your musket looking and working like new. This is how I clean my Brown Bess. All of the cleaning tools are attached to the ramrod with a female/female adapter. The cleaning tools must be sized for the Bess. Don't use a smaller diameter (caliber). The barrel is never removed from the stock - on a Brown Bess you take too much of a chance of loosening or losing the pins.

1. I start by running a breech scraper down the barrel. When you first pull this out do it over a pail because a lot of residue powder is coming out with it. The first time it is hard to pull out and it gets easier the second and third time.

2. Now use the breech scraper to clean the breech plug. Put it down the barrel again and turn it on the plug - when it hits bottom you are scraping the plug. Remove the rod and tip the barrel into a pail and more powder reisdue will pour out. Do this a few times.

3. Now remove the lock from the stock - just unscrew the two screws on the back and be careful not to drop the lock off the musket. It all goes back together easily so don't be concerned about taking it off.

4. With the lock off you need to plug the touchhole. I use a dowel sharpened in a pencil sharpener. Fit the point into the touchhole and push it in gently. It should just stay in.

5. Now get a funnel and bring the musket over to a slop sink or go outside and get a bucket of hot water. Don't do this in your kitchen or your bathroom as you will find a nasty black stain on the porcelain when you are finished. (I know because I cleaned the Bess once in a hotel room and I am not sure how they cleaned the sink the next day.) I once tried boiling water and found that rust formed in the barrel as I was cleaning. After being advised to use the boiling water I was told just to use hot water from the tap to avoid the quick rusting action. You are going to now pour water into the funnel and down the barrel with a cup or container. Don't put too much in or it will overflow the barrel and wet the stock too much. I hold the top with a paper towel wrapped around the edge of the barrel to avoid spills. Make sure your touchhole plug is holding or you will get a wet leg. Let the water stand in the barrel for a few seconds and them pour it out. I give the musket a little twist as I pour so that the water touches the entire barrel inside. Do this until the water comes out clear.

6. I next set the Bess into a stand with padded edges that I built onto a workmate and get a cleaning patch. I soak it in water and drape it over a cleaning jag or "pump" on the end of the rammer and send it down the barrel. Despite the clear water in the sink, this comes out black. Do this a number of times until it comes out fairly clean - mostly it stays grey - with luck it is white. I have also used two layers of paper towel ripped to the size of a patch to clean with instead of cloth patches - they work just as well and are cheap.

7. The next step is optional - I use a commercial bore cleaner on a cloth patch next just for the extra cleaning. I use Thompson Center No. 13 Blackpowder Bore Cleaner. I run a few cleaning patches with

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this and sometimes it picks up more powder residue.

8. Now to dry the barrel I run two layers of paper towel patches down the barrel. I keep doing this until they come out completely dry. The paper towel also has a very, very fine abrasive action and it polishes the inside of the barrel with no harm.

9. Now remove the touchhole plug and wet a towel and clean the outside area of the barrel where the touchhole is, the stock around the touchhole, and the outside end of the muzzle. Dry these off well.

10. Next put some Bore Butter on a cloth patch. Drape it over the jag and run it down the barrel. Do this a few times to lube and protect the inside from rust. I use the green mint scent as my good wife complained that the regular's odor was not pleasant in the house. WIpe down the ramrod with a wet towel, dry it off, and then put some bore butter on it to keep it from rusting.

11. Next you have to clean the lock. Remove the flint and take the lock over to the slop sink. Hold the outside of the lock under running hot water. Concentrate on the pan and the frizzen, but there is powder residue hiding under the hammer, near the frizzen spring, etc. The inside is going to get wet but keep the water running mostly on the outer chrome. Scrubit down with a wet paper towel. I work the action and all the moving parts to make sure I get it all clean. The little black bar sticking out the back is what is tripped by the trigger and you can move this to release the hammer. It will jump when you release the spring and the hammer jumps forward.

12. Now dry the lock off very well - move the mechanism and dry under everything. Again paper towels do a nice job. I next use three in one oil to lube all moving parts - inside and outside - especially inside. Work and move the parts with the oil. Do not use too much oil or it will drip out later, long after you set the musket down waiting for next use. Wipe all the excess oil off.

13. Put the flint back. If you use a leather flint wrapper replace it with a new one. If you use a lead one then clean that off under water, dry it and put it back on the flint.

14. Screw the lock back on the Bess. Just set it into the cutout, gently push it in and allow the screws to set it into place. Do not over tighten the screws.

15. I next use a metal polish and go over all of the metal and the brass. I use the type that is already in the wadding and rips from a can. Next, hand buff the polish to a shine.

16. I now use Gun Stock Wax and put it on everything - lock, stock, and barrel. It will give a protective coating and leave the Bess looking good. Buff this off with a soft cloth. This also oils the wood en stock in the areas of high heat around the touchhole where it gets scorched and drys out from the powder charge, in addition to where it got wet in the cleaning process.

In the end I keep my Bess looking new. Yes it takes a long time - sometimes it seems too long when you have spent the whole day at an event. I get a lot of comments from guys about my "new" Bess. It is five years old and still looks new and it gets a lot of use. For a $900 investment I am going to keep it in as best condition as I can.

In 1776 the musket looked new and a soldier was punished for not

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keeping it looking that way. Guys with muskets that look 225 years old - when the mustket is just as new as mine are not period correct - as they think they are. Over time even with cleaning it will still show some rust and corrosion - but it will not turn black as many renenactors muskets have.

If you don't care how it looks then stop at step 14 - to clean it and keep it working you have to go that far. The rest only takes a few minutes more.

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