muzzle loading season means lots of questions

Muzzle loader season starts in NY Mon 12/13. As usual, I'm going to be the only guy in the club with a .62 cal. flint fullstock. Most every one here shoots an in&^%e. After the round of questions I will be answering, Maybe I can convert a few. The WOW factor of my .62 usually gets a few people interested. How does it feel to be in the minority?

Since I hunt only by myself - I guess I constitute a majority of one. Anyway, even when I consort with other muzzleloader hunters - we are all carrying flintlocks so an in line shooter would be uncomfortable. :thumbsup:

My crowd shoots only sidelock cappers. When I started using a 50 cal flinter, they thought I might be a little nutty. A year later when I showed up with a 62 cal flinter, they knew it! :rotf:

When I first moved to where I now live I met a neighbor in the woods during regular season. I had my flinter. Two days later he shows up with a rear-half of a deer as a "present". Guess he felt sorry for me.

...up here (NY too) some of us traditionalists call those in-lines an "almost a cartridge" gun... a .62 flinter is a great cal... i'd be proud to carry it... best of luck hunting :thumbsup: ...the wind and rain kicked up today... nevertheless it was fun getting out there...
...almost forgot to ask - is it smooth bore?...

A side lock ML hunter is at no disadvantage with modern rifle or @*%_ hunters. Others simply don't understand that.

It is rifled and coned, I picked it up at a gun show used 4 yrs ago for $400.00 with a Lyman .610 mold and handles. L&R lock and trigger. Sharon barrel, 1-60 twist. Steel furniture.

There is a very good thread going over on Historical Trekking on the subject of "I" guns. I just wish we could have a real "primitive" firearms season again like the good old days.

I have been muzzleloading hunting since 1973, Before there were special seasons, I got some weird looks back then. When NY started blackpowder season the rules were, you had to use a round patched ball, min. 44cal. open sights only. Now its anything you can dump powder in from the front, any projectile and any sights. Its funny, you take a scoped in%$#e shooting a 250 grain sabot, sighted for 250 yards and when you ask the guy how far was the deer when you shot him? more times than not it's under 75 yds. Go figuire.

I know how it is to be in the minority when using a sidelock or a flintlock. Everyone at work who hunts with a muzzleloader uses an "I-line" type of muzzleloader. However, they think its great I hunt with a traditional gun and are thrilled to hear when I get a deer with one of them.

On the other hand, I get a sense they don't have any personal pride or satisfaction in the type of muzzleloader they use and have never talked about enjoying going to the range to have fun shooting it. Oh well, to each there own.

hanshi said:

A side lock ML hunter is at no disadvantage with modern rifle or @*%_ hunters. Others simply don't understand that.

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so true.

X2 for hanshi and 451whitworth. Sidelock capguns give up nothing to the inline 50'06 types. It's when you add a scope or such that things get interesting. OTOH, at the end of the season, it seems that i'm the only one at work who has "tagged out" multiple tags. Irregardless of choice of weapon, woodsmanship wins out in the end.

50'06!!! :rotf: :rotf: That's my new favorite word! Bill

...and you can bet you're having a lot more fun!!

Stubert said:

How does it feel to be in the minority?

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Minor.