What draws you?

How to explain such deep feelings? The graceful lines of a southern mountain rifle compared to an AR-15 or AK-47? Getting up early morning after a night of swapping tales and friendship, the different aromas from the woodfires and others starting breakfast. The sulfer cloud drifting from the front of your rifle and another candle "snuffed" out by an accurate shot. Somehow a steak just tastes different when cooked over a bed of coals. The different colors and somewhat mystic shifting or those colors and shapes in a campfire.

:grin: :thumbsup:

 

[Johnny Tremain]

I'd have to agree

The Balistic coefficient

 

[ryoung14]

To be honest, I like most anything that shoots; but blackpowder shooting has so much depth and so many dimensions that it overshadows its modern competition. Everything that's been mentioned adds to the experience. And that now includes that fine bit of verse that Voyageur quoted.
Bob

 

[aragorn]

Because they're about the only things you can still shoot in Canada without being hamstrung by rules and regulations, and made to feel like a criminal ...
More seriously, for all the reasons of historical and firearms fascination cited above, but another big factor for me was moving to a rural property where I could create and use muzzleloaders in a really good context - we have a large tract of wetland wood and swamp which has never been cleared, and when I'm in there I know I'm seeing the same as the first settlers who cleared this farm in the early 19th century (except we probably have more deer and brush wolves now!). The first settlers on our property were pro-British war veterans from NY State after the war of 1812, so I like to think I'm not the first one here with an American longrifle.

 

[tnlonghunter]

Thanks for y'alls inputs. Another couple of things I've thought of:
1. Few tangible objects represent history to me like weapons. They seem to be able to embody changes in history and make it real. Whether it's a longrifle or tomahawk, longbow or broad sword, tommy gun or BAR; they make history come alive.
Now, in regards to muzzleloaders, the great thing is they represent a period of history before factory mass production (in the modern sense anyway). They are each an individual work of folk art, where the average person was able to personalize and express himself. This makes for a really cool juxtaposition of art and history.

2. I've been a Davy Crockett admirer since boydhood, and when I'm back home in TN and hunting across my folks farm, I can escape into my childhood fantasy a little bit.

 

[Gary]

The guns attracted me, the people and the camaraderie made me stay. Best gun people in the sport are the muzzleloaders. :hatsoff:

 

Like many others here, I was first attracted by the beauty of the longrifle (always having been a 'gun-nut'); but in the back of it there is also my love of history. My first MLers were obtained just to shoot, own, admire. Later I discovered that they could be combined with my love of history, especially American frontier history, in buckskinning, reenacting, or whatever...this step took me longer than for many of you; but now I am fully immersed in it.

 

[donk]

The rifle I cherish the most would have to be my .40 cal long rifle. The barrel was given to me by my father in law. The Birds eye maple that forms the stock came from a dear old freind of mine who I knew from my radio days. He was an engineer from way back and was some what of a hermit. He lived on land that had been in his family since before the turn of the century on what most people discribed as a junk yard but Ed called it his museum. His father had built violins back in the 10's and 20's and bought this wood to make violins out of but found that it was not acousticly suited for instruments so the wood remained on the farm in storage until I found it. A couple of months after he gave me the wood he was killed in a car accident.
The gun was custom made by my brother and was the first of many guns he made completly from scratch. My brother passed away 2 years ago Christmas.
The gun is very special to me, but it's not just the gun that draws me to muzzleloading, it is the whole lifestyle that surrounds it. It is going back to a simpler time and getting back to the simple essence of life, living off of what is around you rather than what you buy in the stores.
My brother introduced me to this way of life and that is why his memory is so special to me.

 

[hung load]

As someone new to Muzzleloading (though not to firearms) it's an entirely different experience. Though I enjoy rapid fire in other shooting situations, I find the slow pace of muzzleloading creates a certain anticipation. Each action I perform determines the success of my shot: how accurately I measure and load the powder, the trueness and consistancy of the balls I've cast, centering the patch and packing the load firmly with the rod. I've never picked up my binoculars to check out my target with such enthusiasm after preparing for a shot for maybe 3 to 4 minutes. And then there is a certain giddiness when I see that I'm grouping my shots at two inches at 50 yards with a technology this old. Words can't really convey the satisfaction of shooting an ML.

 

[ryoung14]

I can relate to that, hung load. Another way of putting it may be: 'It adds the instant gratification of shooting to the fascinating technical aspects of handloading'.

 

[hung load]

Absolutely, Short_Start!

 

[David Teague]

I saw one shot when I was 8 or 9 and had to have one.( That's back in the mid 60's) I bought my first at 13.

As I grew older and the styles and types of muzzleloaders came and went from my stable of firearms,
I realized I live for those sunny days at the range by myself
with the sun beating down on my face
the slow rhythm of the loading procedure
the sight picture
the slow steady press of the trigger
boom!

I've been calling it "Zen and the Art of the Flintlock Smoothbore" for years now.

Cheers,

DT

 

[hornetk4]

I agree with all of you guys , I have a room full of modern guns that make shooting acurately so easy to do it becomes a little boring sometimes . I used to get a kick out of puting 5 shots in the same hole and it took me quite a while to do that . When I did get to that stage I would go to another gun and try to do it again , the same goes for hitting things way off it's a real challenge but after a while it's not that difficult . especialy when you get into reloading to persue even better accuracy , reloading adds a whole new aspect to shooting it lets you enjoy the shooting hobby even when your not at the range also it teaches you about metalurgey , different powders , tooling temperatures , pressures and how they react to each other . Then my wife bought me a hawkin kit and everything changed . I've taken 30 years experience with smokeless powders and applied it to bp and its made me a decent beginer at muzzel loading . I've only got 7 bp guns but I've got my eye on a few more to round out my collection so this site has been my greatest aquisition so far in this hobby thats all for know.

 

[Wehrmacht]

It just comes naturally.No other reason.

 

[marwat06]

Maybe the same reason I don't use a modern compound bow with Fiber Sights. Something about doing the "old way". I don't have the right words to express ... that deep down feeling of accomplishment and pride when everyting goes right and you hit the bulleyes or get that deer. You know it was more than just loading a shell and "scopeing" in a deer or target from 200 yards and pulling the tigger.

 

[rifleshooter2]

The main reasion is I enjoy being different :v

 

[lyman]

I like the smell of black powder, the simplicity of the rifle, better hunting season and I never met a Plack Powder hunter I didn't like. I can't say the same for modern firearms.Also the steadyness of the rifle because of the weight.My biggest fear is the technowlegy of BP weapons turning it into something it was never ment to be.
Bob

 

[HistoryBuff]

I don't really have an explanation for my fascination with muzzleloading firearms. The history is rich, but so is the history of cartridge guns. Yet, I'm not at all interested in the cowboy action shooting or anything like that. Granted, if I had the money to burn, I would probably own several vintage Mausers, Enfields, Springfields and a couple of custom precision bolt action rifles with the latest scopes and goodies. But I have to make a choice and I choose flintlock MLs. The guns are beautiful and the challenge is compelling. I also like traditional archery for the same reasons. In fact, I was even thinking of constructing a sling or an atl-atl and giving them a try. Something about antique and ancient ranged weapons stirs my blood I guess.

HistoryBuff

 

Wow! It's as though you took the words right out of my mouth brother!!!

 

[HistoryBuff]

After reading some articles on another website, I have finally crystallized in my mind why I am drawn to traditional muzzleloading and all the wonderful things that go with it. I work in a cubicle and I don't want to be involved in something outside of work where the major players are people like So-And-So, Vice-President of Sales and Marketing for So-And-So Big Rifle Company. I like dealing with people like, for example, Mike Brooks, Gunsmith. Simple, eh? Relaxing, right? I like it when I catch my 21st century mind thinking things like "I need to find a blacksmith to help me tune this lock". Blacksmiths? I didn't know there were any within a days driving distance until last year. It's fulfilling. My Remington 700 is a great rifle, but it seems so much colder and impersonal than my 20 gauge fusil. I feel much more connected to my past and appreciative of my ancestors. That's all.

HistoryBuff