Wooley Runner,
I'm in about the same boat as you. I'm pretty new to muzzleloading, and I've researched a lot of stuff, but finding somebody who knows much about it is tough.
I visited the Cabelas store in Lacey yesterday, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that the guy in the gun section was very knowledgeable about muzzleloading, and he took quite a bit of time to talk with me about my concerns about ammo, which guns are legal here in WA, etc. He gave me some tips and pointers, and I was glad I took the time to drive down to Lacey and check it out. I see you're not terribly far from that store, so you may want to stop in. His name was John. He actually hunts muzzleloader season mostly with replica long rifles, but he knows quite a bit about the more modern styles like the in-lines, etc.
I've gone to quite a number of stores here locally, and the best the other stores could do up until I went to Cabelas was point me to the muzzleloading accessories rack and walk away. Let's face it, with help like that, I can do MUCH better shopping online, with a better selection.
I enjoyed the human connection, so I'll definitely go back to Cabelas. Pretty good prices on the Powermaster bullets, too.
I had a good experience there, and I thought you might want to check it out.
There are also quite a number of Youtube videos online. You can spend all day watching those! Usually when you get stuck on something, somebody else out there has gone through the same thing, and has made a video for others to help them through it. Very helpful at times.
Good luck!
JM
