Anyone have any experience w/ blackpowder/muzzleloader rifles?  I just got one for free the other day from a friend of mine's dad.  He got an inline so he gave me his old muzzleloader.  It's a Traditions Firearms percussion cap model w/ twin triggers.  My question is simple, what all do I need to get and does anyone have any how-to's on loading/unloading/cleaning?   Thanks ahead of time.  I'll post pics when I bring my camera home from work.  

You need:

Powder
Powder measure
Balls
Lube
Patches
Caps
Ramrod (should be with rifle)
Time (black-powder shooting is slow, but fun)

Cleaning is really important with black powder.  That stuff is corrosive big time.  Pyrodex is cleaner, but you still need to clean, and I mean immediately after shooting.  Hot soapy water is best, really.  Just dry everything thoroughly and oil it afterword.

It makes for a very enjoyable, relaxing time if you have the time for it.  It's kind of the golf of shooting in my opinion.  Slow, relatively quiet, and takes up a whole afternoon.  

Use Hodgdon Triple Seven instead of Pyrodex. It's all I use and cleanup is fast, easy, and cleaner. Other recommendation is get a book on muzzleloading at the library or somewhere, as you really need a good reference if you're starting out. And remember, black powder is measured by volume, not weight.

go to your local gandermountain and for about 50 bucks you can buy a blackpowder shooters kit with everything you need except black powder to get you started. i  think that the kit include a video.

I've owned a percussion T/C Renegade and a flintlock Lyman Great Plains Rifle for a long time. Taken a few deer and other assorted critters with them both. They can be reliable and very accurate or aggravating as hell depending on how you treat them and how much you know about them. Do yourself a favor and get yourself a copy of "The Complete Blackpowder Handbook" by Sam Fadala. You can find older copies of it on eBay or new ones on Amazon or Barnes & noble. It is by far the best/most complete book on the subject I've come across.
Finnbear

Quoted: Anyone have any experience w/ blackpowder/muzzleloader rifles?  I just got one for free the other day from a friend of mine's dad.  He got an inline so he gave me his old muzzleloader.  It's a Traditions Firearms percussion cap model w/ twin triggers.  My question is simple, what all do I need to get and does anyone have any how-to's on loading/unloading/cleaning?   Thanks ahead of time.  I'll post pics when I bring my camera home from work.

Get one of the shooters kits with a powder flask, powder measurer, capper and a ball/bullet starter. You will also need bullets or balls/patches, lube (I like Bore Butter)and spare nipples. You will also need cleaning supplies such as, patches, pipe cleaners, toothbrush, a bore mop, bore brush, patch puller, bullet puller and a Jag. The ram rod should act as a cleaning rod as well.

Your Traditions threads are metric so make sure anything threaded is made for a Traditions rifle.

Then you will need powder. I also suggest the Hogdon Triple Seven and for a traditional cap lock, stick with granular rather than pellets. Don't forget caps. I suggest swapping your No. 11 nipple for a Musket nipple and use musket caps.

Then get a plastic tackle box big enough to hold all your stuff.  Add some tools. You will want to include a small slotted screw driver for adjusting your rear sight, a combination nipple wrench / tenan puller and a small pocket knife for G.P..

Incidently, I have a Traditions Hawken Woodsman in .54 Cal.. It's a great shooting and reliable rifle. It's become my deer gun. I use it during shotgun season as well. I find it to be safer and I've had better success than with my shotgun. I attribute both of those things to the fact that I have to set myself up for a sure shot because I only get one chance and I can take longer shots because the rifle is so accurate and has farther reach than my shotgun.


edit;

I also have a Knight DISC rifle. I rarely use it because my Traditions shoots so well and is lighter to carry. Really, the only time I use my Knight is when I am hunting open fields or sparse wood lots where shots over 100 yards are more likely.