I think it's important to state that Pyrodex and Triple 7 are both excellent products, but I don't believe their current iterations are best in a sidelock muzzleloader for hunting purposes. I used Pyrodex with great success in my Lyman Deerstalker and then my T/C for nearly 15 years. My dad used Pyrodex from nearly its inception in the '70s in his T/C Hawken and now White Mountain Carbine. There were no bigger proponents of good black powder substitutes than us.
We both started experiencing hangfires (not misfires, just delayed ignition) with both Pyrodex (RS and RS Select) and Triple 7 (FFG only) with powders we'd bought from 2007 onward. As stated previously, we shoot our rifles regularly and we maintain them well. (I use up about a pound of powder per year.) We use fresh charges each day and unless we shoot within an hour of loading, we can expect a hangfire. (Relative humidity where we hunt routinely begins at about 90%+ and then drops to around 60% as ambient temperature increases.)
I am very well aware of reduced charges of Pyrodex P and FFFG Triple 7 being easier to ignite than full power loads of RS or FFG Triple 7. However, it still requires a hotter ignition temperature than FFG black powder. For someone to state that a solution to reliable ignition is to use Triple 7 over Pyrodex or vice-versa is simply incorrect and ignores the basic properties of each powder. (Their ignition temperatures are virtually the same.)
My own personal belief is Pyrodex and Triple 7 have been optimized for use in the most prevalent muzzleloaders currently used: inlines with a 209 primer using a large charge volume.
I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass. And I'm all out of bubblegum.
I do tend to fit in well wherever I go in person.
The campfire is the most outside exposure I get. No TV, no newspaper.
