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cva hawkins

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boker

40 Cal.
Joined
Oct 8, 2010
Messages
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bought a cva hawkins today off another site, i havent even seen the gun yet .i got it in a packaged deal on another gun.i am looking for info on the gun . avg price ? how good are they ? and any other info y'all might want to share. thanks
 
They can be worth $25 to 400. They made a few models and condition is of course is a big deal.
So you'll hafta wait-n-see.
In the Hands of a poor shooter they don't shoot very well.
If a guy is a good shot and he spends some time working up a proper load combo they shoot really well.
All BS aside their an inexpensive reliable gun if cared for. The factory assembled lock parts have some ruff spots and a full disassembly and polishing of all the componants can leave you with a smooth suprising fast lock.
The drum breech can be problematic as it's a wonderfull place for fouling to build up, and left un-checked can lead to miss fires.
DO NOT TRY TO REMOVE THE BREECH PLUG ITSELF.
 
Mine isnt the prettiest thing out there, but it shoots as well as anything else I have with open sights. If I'm doing things right, that can mean the occasional 1.5-2" group at 100 yds, with 4-5" being my normal off a bench, but then I occasionally have a 8-9" day too, so it all depends on the shooter. Most people consider them to be entry level rifles, with many recommending something better like a TC or Lyman. I gotta say I prefer the way my Lyman GPR feels, but I also cant shoot it any better than the CVA and I am not getting rid of that old "St. Louis Hawken".

Like has been said, worth in dollars can vary by quite a bit. Mine was about $150 as a kit brand new, but prices have risen on them, so you may be able to get more if you sell it, or maybe not. Either way, if it was being delivered to me, I'd go shoot it first before deciding as it may really surprize you. Most people either love them or hate them, but many of us had to start cheap, and I for one haven't been disappointed by performance once I worked the bugs out of it as it had a few rough spots.
 
$150 +

I sold one a couple years back for $275 but the wood on it was just beautiful after i refinished it. The wood grain is really hidden under the ugly orange color stain they used.
 
I think they actually called it a Mountain Rifle in an honest attempt to not deceive and pretend it was a Hawken. Personally, I believe it is/was the best factory made rifle ever. Good appearance and well made. As others have mentioned, the drum locks the breech to the barrel. Do not dissassemble or let a non-muzzleloading gunsmith tamper with it. Good rifle, you will enjoy.
 
About four years ago, I bought a .54 CVA Hawkens for a friend of mine. It was an older model with fixed sights. I paid $100 off one of the auction sites. That rifle was very plain, simple, rugged and a straight shooter (wish I kept it for myself :cursing: ). My friend was so impressed, he turned around and bought a newer .50 CVA Hawkens with the adjustable rear sights. Back then, you could find a CVA Hawkens on the auction sites for $100 all day. If you check those sites today, a CVA Hawkens will run almost the same price as a T/C Hawkens. Of course, as mentioned, the rifle condition is everything. Good luck :thumbsup:
 
ok i got the cva , its looks good i would rate it a 7 out of ten but i am pretty picky about my guns. any way now i need y'alls input on loads. fpr the gun.thanks
 
Congratulations on your new gun. :)

Before anything about loads can be given, we will need to know what the caliber of your gun is.
 
Model and twist rate would be helpfull too, I'm sure there are guy's here that have the gun we just need to know what it is.
 
Rifleman1776 said:
I think they actually called it a Mountain Rifle in an honest attempt to not deceive and pretend it was a Hawken.
Nope. CVA Mountain Rifle was a different gun.
 
Try a .490 diameter roundball patched with a .015-.018 thick patch loaded over 60 grains (by volume) of black powder or a synthetic black powder. Lube the patch with either a commercial patch lube or some vegetable oil or Crisco.
If you don't have any of these lubes you can use spit if you plan on shooting within 30 seconds after loading.

After shooting 5 rounds to determine the size of the group, increase the powder load by 10 grains and shoot another 5 shot group.

You can keep on doing this up to 110 grains but I'm betting somewhere around 70-80 grains of powder will give you the best accuracy.
 
Last year, I bought two older, used CVA Hawkens percussion cap rifles, both in .50 caliber.

The first one I bought for $25 has a 28" barrel and is called a "Gamester Hawken" (Serial #717xxx). It was cheap 'cause it had really rough looking surface rust all over the blued barrel and looked pretty bad, but using an old gunsmith's "trick", I rubbed the barrel with 0000 steel wool wet down with WD40 and all the rust came off leaving the bluing bright and clean. Then I cleaned the caked-on "crud" off the wood which exposed a fine looking, nicely-grained walnut stock. Of course, I checked the bore which was still in excellent condition... the poor ol' thing just needed some TLC to give it "new" life.

Both rifles are pure "utility" rifles with no fancy brass, no patch-box and all the metal appears to be painted black... and the 28-inch barreled rifle is just a plain-Jane 7½ lb rifle, but fairly accurate.

I have been working up target loads for it and found it shot inter-locking ½-inch, 3-shot "cloverleafs" at 25 yards off-the-bench last year using 47 grains of FFFg Swiss powder, a .490 ball and a .016" denim patch.

However, I've changed lubes now and added vegetable fiber over-the-powder wads to my loads so I must re-work-up my "target" accuracy load again.

I call my new lube "Bee Lube"... (a bee's wax & salad oil mixture) plus I'm now using a pair of .060 vegetable fiber over-the-powder wads... this combination has shot some very tight groups so far and leaves the patches such good condition that they could easily be re-used. But I need to determine if that 47 grain load is still as accurate as it was prior to the changes I've made in my "target load".

Unfortunately, it's been so darned hot here (SW Ohio) this year that I haven't done much shooting the past few months. But I feel confident this old CVA Hawken will become my "target rifle" for our Club's monthly muzzle-loader shoots once I'm capable of shooting up to the rifle's standards.

The other CVA Hawken I bought & and paid $100 for is a CVA "Hunter Hawken Carbine" (serial #91-771xxx) which was in like-new condition, weighing just 6½ lbs with a 26-inch barrel. I purchased this rifle strictly as my deer hunting rifle and it should be handy in the woods & hills of south-eastern Ohio, but haven't even attempted to work-up any loads for it so far... something I need to do soon.

Both rifles have the following attributes: .50 caliber, double-set triggers, percussion cap ignition system with drum, rear sight adjustable for both elevation and deflection, nice wood and bright, clean bores with blued barrels.

I believe both rifles have 1:48 twist barrels, but haven't really checked that out as yet. However, since I already purchased 1,000 Hornady .50 caliber swaged rifle balls together with 1,000 standard CCI percussion caps, I plan on using ONLY round, patched, swagged lead balls in both rifles... if they're 1:48, 1:60 or 1:66, I could care less since I will work-up accuracy target loads for the 28" Hawken and accuracy deer hunting loads for the Hawken Carbine.

All-in-all, the older CVA Hawkens seem to be decent rifles. At least, I'm satisfied with mine (so far). :)


Strength & Honor...

Ron T.
 
whats the best way to tell what model cva i have ? my has the brass patch box in the stock a longer barrel.double triggers.adjustable sights . i am thinking maybe its a st louis not sure though .it only says hawkens on the barrel.
 
All of the CVA Hawkens I've seen have a 28" blue barrel with 1 in 48" twist and adjustable rear sight. That older .54 CVA Hawkens I bought for my friend is the only one I've seen with fixed sights. The CVA Hawkens also has a double set trigger, brass trigger guard, brass nose cap, brass butt plate and a simple brass patch box. Kind of like a poor man's T/C Hawkens. All the CVAs I've seen shoot just as straight as the more expensive rifles :thumbsup:
 
after a good cleaning , the gun looks pretty darn good to me. but i just cant like it , i am use to my 45 cherokee and the cva is just to heavy and long for my taste , so i am thinking of selling it . any thoughts on a fair asking price ??
 
I would say if the barrel is not rusted to death it should be good.CVA makes some nice muzzleloaders for the money. The average hawken from what I can tell in excellent shape 150-225, used average shape is 100-150,fair some what taken care of 65-90,in poor shape,45-65. That is the way I have seen bought and sold. but different styles and types are worth more or less depending on their condition. I had one years ago that was so bad that I had to take emery cloth type sand paper to it to see the rifling. The crazy thing of it was it still soot decent 3 1/2" groups free hand at 40 to 50 yards. I was using round balls and patch. Now those patches where hard to find at times being they were a bit chewed which was to be expected. Any how I think just taking your time in finding the right load try different ball sizes ,patch thicknesses, grains of powder,even types of conical's. Some rifles do not shoot round balls well but conical types very well. Its really kind of a learn as you go till you find what works for you and your rifle.. That is half the fun happy shooting. :thumbsup:
 
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