I never cover my shotguns either. I guess I'm just old fashioned- I hold the barrels down if it's raining or snowing and don't poke it into the brush when I walk through it. Now, for muzzleloaders, I can see it. But like I said, I never was in to muzzleloaders, so that's why I asked. On the show I was watching, they weren't in the woods. They took a boat down the river, then walked along the river bank. So, I couldn't see any reason to cover the barrel to keep the brush out. And it wasn't raining or snowing. But, thanks for the answers. Good luck.