.54 plains pistol.

[rawhide]

thinking of getting a lyman plains pistol in .54 whats the pros and cons on them? it will mostly be used as a rondy gun. maybe back up when hunting. the reson for .54 is all my rifles now are .54. thinking of going with a kit. is this a good kit to build? built one of there rifes a while back good gun kick my self for selling it...

 

[PaulN/KS]

I built a 50 Plains pistol from a kit and it was mostly an assembly with minimal fitting required. My wife bought me a factory built 54 and the fit and finish is quite good. The price difference is usually not that much between assembled-vs-kit guns. If you do a kit build you can drawfile off all that c#@& they put on the barrel though... :hmm:
YMMV...

 

[Pete Gaimari]

Get it. I have one in .50 cal and it's very accurate.

 

[2Barrel]

I have one in a .54 that I built. Easy to build and a great shooter. Heres a couple of Pics.

 

[willypete]

Awesome!

 

[Otter]

I've had a .54 Lyman Plains pistol for more than 15 years and got it for the same reason you want one. It is quite accurate, even with me pulling the trigger :idunno:. Not sure what the price of one is now, but I think I paid about $125 for the finished pistol back in '92 or '93. You'll like it if you get it.

 

[arcticap]

The only drawback that I've heard about from more than 1 owner is that some of their stocks are prone to cracking due in part to the grain of the wood. Apparently the wood is a little too thin behind the lock, and the .54's may be more prone to that syndrome than the .50's.
Here's one such recent thread posted by flibuste complete with photos:
http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/242535/post/808725/hl//fromsearch/1/

 

[rawhide]

nice gun! like I said my 2 rifles are .54 hawken and blue ridge. I want to keep all my guns the same. I do have a kentucky .50 pistol now. It's a great shooter. but I want a .54! and the lyman for the price seems to fit the bill... I would go with a TOW but money IS a ishue. thanks guys :hatsoff:

 

[matt denison]

The kits are pretty easy to build. Do what 2Barrel did and take the time to FIT the parts and define the lines rather than just screw it together and dab some finish on it. I have one in .54 that will shooot a one hole group from a rest and darn near that off hand. I found that reducing the reccomended load from 35 gr to 25 gr tightened group size from a couple inched to no inches @ 25 yards.

 

[matt denison]

OK, after looking at my post I see that maybe I need to qualify my statement about accuracy.

When I built it I used a few simple accurizing tricks. I squared and plumbed the breech end and soldered it to the breech block for rigidity and consistency. I slickered up the lock and trigger (might be best left to a professional? depending on your skill level) and I bedded the barrel which made the wedge fit tight and perfect. I don't ever remove the barrel once it is set and finished. Trigger breaks at about 1 lb. I shot it a bunch to arrive at the 25 gr. FFFg load which runs counter to what many will tell you about a .54 cal. pistol. Nothing fancy about the load: dump the powder in, spit patch a .530" ball with a .015" patch. Point and shoot.

 

[hawk]

nice 2barrel :thumbsup:

 

[buttonbuck]

this is the first kit and only yet I have any experience with and it was basically assembly work I plan one day to get it "right" and shiny. My teenage son and I built it he loves to shoot that gun. I loaded it hot for deer in Illinois with 45 grains of 3f it kicks like a 357 or 44 mag. I enjoy shooting it I would like to play with it. About 4 years ago they were 140 for a kit now they go for 200+ I dream of the day to harvest a doe with one.

 

[jethro224]

I have the factory version in .54 caliber and really like it. It has won matches and medals for me. :thumbsup:
Might take a doe with it some day if I can get close enuff to one during the late season.

 

[WALKERs210]

I picked up one of these at a flea market a few days ago. The barrel and hardware was painted with black and gold paint that was really thick but guess it worked to keep it from rusting. The only question I have is about who made it. The only marking anywhere on it is "50CAL" stamped on the barrel just forward of the nipple. It is missing the ramrod, thimble and rail to mount the thimble on. Looking at the Lyman it is very similar just wondering if those parts would work on this one.

 

[CaptainKirk]

Nice! I'm thinking about possibly one of these, or one in flint. (Traditions makes it's Kentucky in flint)

 

[bangfxr]

I have a .54 cal flintlock Petrasoli Plains / Mountian pistol kit. I went with it as I have both a .54 cal Petrasoli kit flintlock mountian rifle and .54 cal flintlock musket. This way I carry only one size ball and 1 size flint.

 

[F_Thomas]

You will love it if you get it. You will find that they are extremely accurate. I can out shoot guys with modern pistols at the range

A month ago an older gentleman came up to me and could believe that I had eaten the bull out of a target when the guy next to me with a .357 Colt.

Beat him hands down!

 

[ebiggs1]

If you intend, as I did, to use it in deer hunting, you should check your states regs first.
I didn't and found out later it wasn't a legal muzzleloader for deer in Kansas.

Muzzleloader: muzzleloading rifles or muskets that can be loaded
only through the front of the firing chamber with separate components
and that fire a bullet of .39 inches diameter or larger; muzzleloading single-
barrel pistols having a barrel length of 10 inches or greater that can
be loaded only through the front of the barrel with separate components
and are .45 caliber or larger. Only hard-cast solid lead, conical lead, or
saboted bullets weighing 210 grains or greater may be used with muzzleloading
pistols. Muzzleloader-only permit holders may not have a rimfire
or centerfire firearm in possession while hunting deer.

 

[rawhide]

I checked the state laws and I can use it while hunting. it mets up with all the regs. now I just got to get the boss(wife) to let me get it. :rotf:

 

[Slake]

Get it. I have had the PP in a 50 for a few years now and I love it. It's a great shooter, very accurate. I use it a lot, I would love to shoot a deer with it. I carry it un capped, but when I sit I set the rifle down for a spell, cap the PP and sit with that in my lap I would not hesitate to shoot a deer with it if it was close. I'm very good with it out to 25 or35 yards and then my accuracy trails off. In close, like 25 feet, I can hit a golf ball with it no problem