Lucky's Trekking Tips - Muzzle Blasts July 2025

Gun Care: Taking care of your firelock in the field is imperative and something people overlook or overload their bag with items to maintain it. I always get a chuckle out of the people that carry a mainspring vice with them to the field. As you all know by now, I tend to be a minimalist and like to carry things that have multiple uses.

When it comes to caring for my rifle I carry one product, but I will cover a couple ideas. My “go to” is a small tin of bear grease. Before I head to the woods, I apply a nice coat of bear grease on my rifle to make sure I don’t help mother nature start the rusting process. In addition to that, I don’t pre-cut patches since I tie a one inch wide and 12-inch-long piece of patch material from the strap on my bag. I cut patches as I go and if it gets wet, all the better for loading.

My go to for cleaning the pan is to wipe it clean with the end of the patch material as needed. Same with the hammer (frizzen), if it gets dirty or damp, the patch material is my handy rag to wipe it dry. Also on the strap of my bag is a vent pick which we all know what that is for, cleaning our teeth after dinner. Beyond that I might have extra patch material in the bottom of my shooting bag to wipe the rifle off but more often than not, I use the bottom of my shirt.

Buy yours here.

I have seen other people carry a small oil bottle and I own and have used a couple, but I find them useless in the woods. They never carry enough oil, and the oil doesn’t stay on the barrel as well as bear grease. Plus, mine leak. TDC Manufacturing does make a “never leak” oiler I do recommend at: www.tdcmfg.com.

A tin of bear grease can be wrapped in pillow ticking and if it gets warm and leaks a little you have pre-greased patches or a greased rag for cleaning!

Bear grease also has other uses like sealing your mocs, chapped lips, burns, rashes and moisturizing dry skin and cooking. I am sure there are other uses. In the picture of me, dressed for a very cold five-day hunt I was on, you can see my patching/cleaning material hanging off my horn strap. My trail pard Bryan Knapp and I ate that whole raccoon for dinner and the hide went to good use!

Pack light, enjoy the trek and I’ll see you by a fire!

Written by Gerry "Lucky" Messmer. Reprinted with permission from the author.

Code: guns01

Lucky's Trekking Tips - Muzzle Blasts June 2025

Comfort From Home: Not every trek has to be painful! In fact, if you are not comfortable trekking on foot or by horse you need to rethink a few things. First, why are you doing it? Is it to test your gear, test yourself or to have fun? In my opinion it should be all three. This is a hobby, and we do it for the love of it and to have fun.

Most people are miserable over one big thing that I have been hitting on for a long time: they carry too much gear. They spend too much time packing and unpacking and the loads are heavy. But one thing most people overlook is to have some small thing that is a comfort of home, something to savor around the fire or spruce up a cup of coffee on a cold wet night.

For me that “go to” is chocolate! In the colder months you can carry a bit of hard chocolate to melt in your coffee or to break off and savor while riding or sitting by the fire. I have managed to keep chocolate from melting in extreme heat if it is deep in your pannier on a pack horse. Short of that you can carry a small tin with powdered chocolate to mix in your coffee or just with water. Here is a great website on the history of chocolate: Editor’s Note: Click here:

You would be surprised how something so simple can put a nice cap on a miserable day and sends you off to sleep more relaxed! Another thing I have carried is a small tin of hard black licorice to suck on while riding in the heat. It helps stave off your bodies demand for water and passing the tin around unexpectedly to your trekking mates is a nice surprise. You can find what I have used at: thecandylady.com. Every trek you should have something like this or try different things, even the fur trappers in the Rockies got something, if available at the rendezvous and enjoyed it until it was gone. Every trek in the woods should get better for you and more comfortable as you improve your skills.

For those that do Rev War trekking, try carrying some cone sugar for that “go to” treat. I am sure if you are clever enough you could use the cone sugar and water to make a paste to coat some meat for cooking over the fire! Leave the cone sugar nippers at home, use your knife or hawk to break it off. No sense adding that extra weight. You can always chunk it before you leave. Historicenterprises.com has some very accurate cone sugar. See you around a fire or on the trail! 

Written by Gerry "Lucky" Messmer. Reprinted with permission from the author.

Code: trk01