I would guess that one should avoid the ammonia based products?
Ammonia will lead to corrosion of left in the bore for more than a short while and if you don't get it out of every nook and cranny. I don't know if that would be a problem over a short range session with a cleaning right after firing but I suspect it is better to be safe than sorry.
I've used black powder, Triple 7, Pyrodex and Blackhorn 209 in my standard muzzleloaders but usually shoot a Savage smokeless powder gun.
As already stated, BH209 does not need swabbing between shots. It is what I've used for 4-5 years now in standard muzzleloading rifles for everything but round balls.
For the other powders I've always used the traditional spit patch. A cotton patch dampened with a little spit has been traditional for centuries. Run it all the way down to the breech plug and if you are using Triple 7 be sure to get the crud ring down near the breech plug. You'll feel the swab break through it. Then use short strokes near the bottom of the bore until you don't feel the resistance of the fouling and start using increasingly longer strokes to get the rest of the bore until you reach the muzzle while going all the way to the breech plug with each stroke. You might be surprised how much more fouling is on the patch when you swab this way as opposed to using full length stokes from the start.
With this method you'll spend most of the swabbing effort in the breech area which is where most of the fouling is concentrated.
I have used patches with a little Bore Butter on them for particularly tight fitting sabot/bullet combinations but usually just switch to a different thickness sabot to be free of the hassle.
If your patches are coming out with a lot of particulate matter or a lot of the glassy looking Triple 7 crud you would be well advised to snap a cap after swabbing and before loading to be sure you didn't push crud into the flash channel of the breech.
If you rifle loads hard with a sabot/bullet and a clean or freshly swabbed bore you should consider changing sabots. There is no standard for bore dimensions in the muzzleloading industry and bore diameters are all over the place. Companies like Harvester Muzzleloading with their Crushed Rib sabots and Magnum Muzzleloading products make sabots that accommodate varying bore diameters. You can order directly from both companies.
I know your question was about range cleaning but since you are new to the process I'll add this:
After the range session BH209 cleans with regular powder solvents such as Hoppe's.
For the other powders I boil 2 quarts or so of water in a saucepan and pout half into a second pan. I put that pan on a folded towel set on the kitchen floor. The towel keeps the pan from sliding around and catches any spills. I add a little dish soap, submerge the muzzle and swab the bore with a mop until the bore is clean and the steel is screaming hot. I then use the clean hot water pan to rinse the soap out and confirm that the bore is truly clean.
The residual heat dries the steel in a minute or so and insures that there won't be any cleaning related corrosion after the fact. The whole process takes about two minutes after the breech plug is out and the water is hot. I then ream the primer fouling out of the breech plug with a hand held drill bit and clean the plug in the still hot water with an old toothbrush. BTW, I recommend wearing gloves if you have to touch the steel during cleaning. (Don't ask...)
If you can switch to Blackhorn 209 both the swabbing at the range and the water clean up will be a thing of the past. It makes very little smoke so you won't loose sight of your target either.
In any case, buying a separate "range rod" with a T handle on it will make life more enjoyable for both loading at the range and cleaning afterward.
Hope this helps.
Good luck and welcome to the sport.
Lance
