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How to Prevent Cold Weather Firearm Condensation

When temperatures plummet to well below freezing, one of the most common mistakes hunters make is bringing their firearms indoors at night.

The indoor temperature and moisture in the air are vastly different than those outdoors, and condensation forms in all the important parts of your rifle when you move it from the cold into a heated house.

It's only natural to want to bring your firearm inside to protect it from the elements but, as many hunters have discovered the hard way, bad things happen when you head back out the following morning.

Scopes and optics fog up almost instantly when going from a warm environment and coming in contact with cold air.

Triggers can freeze on particularly cold mornings, especially in ultra-frigid regions like Canada. Most Canadian lodges have gun racks outside the door, specifically placed there for the purpose of preventing trigger-freeze and scope condensation.

Muzzleloaders are one of the biggest victims of condensation problems. Moisture can cause a sickening "click" when the hammer falls on a wet primer and powder. What's even more dangerous is a long, unexpected delay when moist powder finally ignites. As any smokepoler can tell you, moisture is the bitter enemy of blackpowder.

There's nothing more frustrating than having a shooter buck come by and not being able to see or shoot it. Leave your rifle outside or locked in a vehicle on those cold winter nights and you won't have that problem.

— From Joe Palermo

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