A Suggestion In Dealing With Newbies

[mongrel]

Reviewing several current and past posts, lately, I'm struck by how, when a new shooter asks for advice on what to buy, what to use, what works and what doesn't, there are liable to be eighty zillion replies each listing a different assortment of likes, dislikes, opinions, and occasionally cold, hard facts. This is fine -- everyone has their own set of what works and what is preferred and is honestly trying to impart good information. However....

I would humbly suggest that, when inclined to offer answers to the questions of newbies, consider a few points while determining not so much whether or not to answer, but the manner in which you word your answer.

To begin with, read the entire thread before posting your own answer. Not so much because you might repeat what someone else has said, which is not such a bad thing when it serves to reinforce good advice, but because it quite often happens that the newbie has stated some reason, in response to a previous answer similar to your own, as to why that particular item or method won't work for him.

Having read the entire thread, if what you intend to post would give the impression you're contradicting someone else's answer, either make it plain you consider the previous poster to be mistaken, and GRACIOUSLY explain why, or word your reply in a way that makes it plain that you're offering an alternative, not correcting others. This is a matter of common courtesy and also avoids causing a newbie to get the impression that only one of the twenty different answers he's gotten can possibly be right (but WHICH ONE? ) because each has given the distinct impression that this is the only correct way to do whatever it is he's asking for advice about.

Having read the entire thread (did I mention that already? Yep, and I likely will again), in offering a reply please do not assume or expect any degree of knowledge on the part of the newbie. He's asking because he DOESN'T know. If one has attained so lofty a height in our sport that he can't trifle with stating the basics, one ought not reply to any newbie's inquiries. The Hellhound Has Spoken.

Having read the entire thread, consider whether or not your reply might muddy the waters for our hapless student, and if so please lead into your reply with a clear recap of the basic good advice already offered, before adding to the growing pile of responses that each seem to the student like they say something different than all the others. Not only is confusion frustrating, when it comes to firearms it can be deadly.

Above all, having read the entire thread, be nice. Be courteous. Be aware that there is often a vast difference between opinion and actual fact, and be honest enough to avoid stating the one as though it were the other. Remember that the point here is to be safe, first, and to have fun, second, and after that it's purely a matter of whatever floats your boat.

Thank you all, and be safe. Have fun. And nothin' else matters....

[Swede]

Yes!

[Hawken50]

  As usual the hound from hades hath put into eloquent words what needed to be said.Good job Mike.

[pathfinder]

A much simpler way to put is,listen to Pathfinder,and Pathfinder ONLY!!!!!!!!!!

Good advice Mongrel! Too often folk's are just so darn egar to show how much they know,they get a little arrogant and pushy in the answers given. I've also found that LOOOOOOONNNNGGGG responces seem to be glossed over due to a lot of repetition,and the whole thread is ignored. Again,sound advise!

[Red Badger]

"A much simpler way to put is,listen to Pathfinder,and Pathfinder ONLY!!!!!!!!!! "  But don't follow him anywhere if you want to be on time for dinner.... 

Seriously I have to agree with Mike.  I noticed that the "what do I need to clean" plost has now 11 pages and we wandered off track a couple of times but got back (more or less) to answering the basic questions.  There was a lot of alternative information posted and after re reading all 11 pages I was a bit confused and dazed from information overload.

[gordy]

          Once again I find myself in agreement with Mongrel. Too often on several sites this seems to be a problem , NOT reading the entire thread before posting an answer or suggestion . In most cases this is just a minor annoyense , but on items relating to possible dangerous results . It might cause a newbie to be injured or killed by listenening and using the wrong proceedures. Thanks for posting this problem .
                                                                           

[crazell]

Sounds like a solid way to be.

[mongrel]

I have to agree in turn with Badger, an 11-page (12-page, actually, now) thread that allegedly deals with the basic equipment necessary to go out and shoot and then maintain the gun, is a bit much. I've lost count of how many alternative patch lubes, parts lubricants, and "accessory lists" have been posted.

I would throw out a suggestion that might simplify matters. It's only a suggestion, so I'm not adding it to my original post, above, which is actually a set of something resembling rules. This isn't a rule or guideline, just a suggestion. This is Traditional Muzzleloading On The Cheap and the focus here is sharing tips on inexpensive, easily-acquired items necessary to our sport, ranging from guns to patch lube to camp gear, and anything and everything in between. If there is a choice between a common item found in most grocery or hardware stores, that works just fine, and something that does the same job but requires ordering through a gun-specific outlet or a trip to an actual sporting-goods store that might be fifty miles distant for the individual seeking advice -- there is no need for a dozen pages of lists and suggestions that mostly involve gun-specific merchandise. Not only are there liable to be half a dozen or more very similar products offered by various manufacturers of the gun-specific stuff, odds are they're more expensive simply because each is a super-secret formulation with a label that clearly states this is the perfect item for whatever gun-related need the product is intended to meet.

I honestly believe that way too often certain products get trotted out by various posters not so much to help the newbie as to establish that the poster is an ol' bear of the woods and possessed of special equipment (and, yeah, you can take that as sarcasm with a variety of meanings). The vast majority of lubricants in particular can be more-than-adequately improvised with readily-available products from the local grocery or hardware store, and even if one or the other isn't quite as effective as some product produced only by a single cadre of muzzleloading monks in Central Mongolia, the fact is that if one practices prompt and thorough cleaning of his firearm, doesn't leave it loaded for weeks on end, and sheds the notion that there always, always, always has to be something better to use -- the commonly-available stuff works fine and is in keeping with the overall spirit of this site.