Small bore tc hawken?

I have been enjoying my 50 cal hawken and love the set trigger. That said, I tend not to love recoil and I hunt small game a lot more than big game, so I was thinking about a 32 or 36 caliber rifle. Did anyone ever make barrels in these calibers for a tc hawken, or should I just start sniffing around for a cva squirrel rifle or something similar?

Green Mountain used to make drop in barrels of many calibers for the Hawkens and Renegade models but they no longer do. You can sometimes find them on this forum classifieds or on Flea Bay, but the prices are usually at a premium. Good Luck.

Calibers that small might make that TC feel very muzzle heavy. Consider looking for a much more common .45 to drop in that rifle.

What charge are you using in your 50? I’ve had good luck with 50 grains ffg and a tight patch for 50 yards or less. You might even try a lighter load. The 45 caliber recommendations are good too. For smaller you will need to find a aftermarket as mentioned.

Look for a T/C Cherokee. They ain't cheap, but they're fine rifles.

My rifle shoots prb well with 50 grains, but I think that is a lot for squirrel and I am leery of launching anything that big into the air. If a barrel will be rare, what else is out there in 32 and 36 cal besides the Cherokee? Cva squirrel?

The T/C Seneca was available in .36, it’s a scaled down Hawken and I prefer them to the Cherokees. I’ve seen a couple .32 Senecas for sale on Gunbroker, maybe from the T/C custom shop? I also have a couple .32 Traditions Crockett’s, the quality isn’t as good as T/C’s but they fit me better and they shoot well. Traditions also made the Deerhunter in .32, but I’ve never handled one. The CVA Squirrel was available in .32 and I think also in .36?

Pedersoli also makes models in .32 & .36. There is one currently in the forum classifieds. I have to agree about the small caliber drop-ins for the t/c guns. I have drop-in barrels in .32 & .36 for my Renegade which has a 1" across the flats barrel dimension. The .32 barrel weighs over 6# by itself. I use it strictly as a target gun, cause lugging it around in the squirrel woods would require me to have arms like Arnold. The .36 is better, but still quite heavy. the 15/16 barrel on the T/C Hawkins would be lighter, but not by much.

Thanks for the pointers, folks. Sounds like I need to keep an eye out for a cva squirrel or tc seneca.

I've got a great .32 Pedersoli I got from Cabela's. I think it was the Blue Ridge rifle. It's very accurate. I replaced the brass furniture about 25 years ago with iron SM and it looks (to me) great.

You might send an e-mail to Rice, they were going to start making drop in barrels for T/C.

I have a Traditions Deerhunter in 32 and it is a light handy little rifle. It doesn't have a set trigger and mine it percussion. The nice thing about them is if you look you might find a barrel in 45 or 50 to drop in.

I also have a Traditions Shenandoa flint in 36 and it too is a nice rifle with a full stock and longer barrel.

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I once bought a T/C Hawken from a member here, that had a GM .32cal barrel on it.

Since the barrel was just as thick as a .50cal Hawken bbl, it made for a very heavy rifle - and was difficult for my fat fingers to load the .32 bore.

It was certainly too heavy for me to tote around when Squill huting..

I sold it & bought first an H&A .36 underhammer, then when I came across a .36 Seneca, I sold it & kept the Seneca - which ended up being the cat's meow.

The Seneca .36 was both much lighter than the Hawken, and the larger caliber was easier for me to load than the .32.