Be realistic in your expectations in how well your muzzleloader should shoot. Test carefully, and if it produces decent groups, quit worrying and start hunting.

Claims of muzzleloader accuracy from hunting guns have an interesting evolution. When I started years ago, most people shot sidelock guns with lead conical bullets. I can recall a lot of shooters claiming they were getting two-inch groups at 100 yards, but I never saw any proof. Most of my guns struggled for that group size at half that distance.

In-line guns and sabot bullets raised the bar, and a few years ago one-inch groups at 100 yards were all the rage. But in my experience it was a rare gun that would do it consistently. A lucky group doesn't matter; a "one-inch gun" has to be able to produce that accuracy every time. I don't think I have ever owned a hunting-style muzzleloader I can make that claim about.

Now the chatter in hunting camps and on the internet is about one-inch groups at 200 yards--or half-minute groups from hunting guns. But it's mostly bunk. I am not denying that some muzzleloader rifles may shoot that well, but the world contains some honest politicians too--it's just that most people have never seen either one in their natural habitat.

What you can reasonably expect from your new high quality in-line muzzleloading rifle is about two- to three-inch, three-shot groups at 100 yards. If you are lucky you might have a gun that will do a little better. That of course assumes you are using good components and are familiar with how to load a muzzleloader for accuracy. It also assumes that you are using a good bench and rifle rest and know how to use them correctly.

The only way test a rifle is to shoot from a solid rest. It's not a test of your shooting ability; it is a testing process for a precision instrument. You must eliminate all human error and your skill, or lack of it, should not affect the outcome.

Use a rest and sand bags that will support both the fore-end of the rifle and the toe of the buttstock. This rest should be firm but with some "give." It has to hold the rifle perfectly still, and pillows or rolled up blankets fail to do that. The rest must be solid enough to hold the gun still against the forces of your body's functions such as breathing or your heartbeat. At the same time the support can't be hard, and it must be able to flex and move a little when the gun fires.

Sandbags are best. Commercial rests with dense foam between the gun and the rest are good as well because the foam provides a solid but flexible rest. Regardless of what you use, you must support the fore-end, never the barrel of the rifle. You must also support the toe of the stock near the butt.