Crockett rifle

[bigmike]

What about the Traditions Crockett rifle. Anybody have one? Are they good guns?

 

[jdkerstetter]

Don't have one but have handled a few when they first came out. One of the nicer if not the nicest Traditions offering. Nice little rifle. Not sure if their current offering is as good as the early ones....maybe someone else has some current experience? It has good feedback on Cabela's site.

Enjoy, J.D.

 

[pab1]

I really like mine. Its very accurate and a lot of fun to shoot. Excellent small game gun.

 

[BrownBear]

I've owned one for around six years, as have friends. One trait to keep in mind- The "chamber" in the breech is larger than the back of the barrel, so that if you use an oversize cleaning patch it hang on the back of the barrel and can easily jam the jag in the chamber. Not a problem if you stick to fairly small cleaning patches.

They're accurate as sin, but I found the lock on mine pretty creaky. The lock plate is soft, and mine developed wear in the surface the mainspring rides on after a couple of thousand shots. Now it snaps mainsprings for sport. I'm faced with replacing the whole lock. I need to do that someday, but simply haven't got around to it.

Oh, and I had to repair the stock. Once when the spring broke it knocked out a pretty good chunk of the wood. Repairs were easy enough, but it was something else to deal with.

Obviously I like the little gun, but it hasn't lived up to my expectations for durability. Many other owners most certainly have not had the lock problems I've experienced. It's probably fair to Traditions to use their experiences as more representative, and consider mine an exception.

 

[Rat Trapper]

The locks are not real good and plenty of guys have had problems with them. Getting patches and jags stuck in the barrel is also common.

 

[ebiggs1]

I decided I wanted one. So, I made the 65 miles trip to Cabela's to buy one. But after picking one up off the rack and giving it a look see. I put it back and left without one. They are just too crude but not surprising, about what one would expect from Traditions.
I may buy a kit and finish it and build it myself, someday but now I am inno hurry.

Of all the Traditions, (whatever) I have looked at I have concluded they all are kits whether you buy it assembled from the factory or build it yourself from a kit. :idunno:

 

[Rifleman1776]

BB, yer post is an exercise in contradictions.
Lebenty-leben dozen things wrong with it and yet you still like it?
Sorta like a wife. :shocked2:

BTW: Seriously, that breech larger than bore thing is super scary to me. Personally, I wouldn't go near one like that. Bad design flaw, IMHO.

 

[jdkerstetter]

..after picking one up off the rack and giving it a look see. I put it back and left without one. They are just too crude but not surprising, about what one would expect from Traditions. ....

What a shame.

As I stated, the EARLY ones I handled "appeared to be" nice little guns. I had no idea that they had a breech cavity that was over bore size! :shocked2: Why would somebody even design such a feature into a gun?

Whatever, J.D.

 

[Bob Riegl]

Ya know it is a cheaper gun, but mine is quite good looking. I have dulled the brass, removed the bluing, and gave the barrel a good mustard and vinegar bath. A good wipe down of the stock with a remover followed by some sanding and a True oil finish---she looks much nicer with a "traditional" look. She really fits in place with my other more expensive rifles. As for accuracy she has delivered quite a few tree rats, quite surprising for such a "cheap" gun. I love my little Elsie and she loves me. :v "Doc"

 

[BrownBear]

Ya know it is a cheaper gun, but mine is quite good looking. I have dulled the brass, removed the bluing, and gave the barrel a good mustard and vinegar bath. A good wipe down of the stock with a remover followed by some sanding and a True oil finish---she looks much nicer with a "traditional" look. She really fits in place with my other more expensive rifles. As for accuracy she has delivered quite a few tree rats, quite surprising for such a "cheap" gun. I love my little Elsie and she loves me. :v "Doc"

Ya been peeking into my gunrack? :wink:

I dressed mine up much the same way, but browned rather than mustard and vinegar. It really is a sweet looking little gun.

The bigger point, and the reason I haven't dumped mine rather than replacing the lock is handling. There's no other factory gun like it on the market, both in caliber and in size/weight. If you want a light, quick little gun in 32 cal that also looks good, the Crockett is it. End of story.

Here's a composite of side views of mine after the rework, compared with an online photo of the original factory paint job.

And here's a little detail.

What's not to like? It's a hunting gun with no factory peers, and the raw materials are there to make it look the way you want.

 

[Wayne/Al]

Like mine . Have had it for a long time. 10 years I guess. Had it bored out to a 40 Cal not to long ago and now I like it even better. Looks like its going to like 50 gr 3f . and 25 gr for the squirrel load. Good little gun.

Wayne/Al

 

[BrownBear]

Like mine . Have had it for a long time. 10 years I guess. Had it bored out to a 40 Cal not to long ago and now I like it even better. Looks like its going to like 50 gr 3f . and 25 gr for the squirrel load. Good little gun.

Wayne/Al

With a 30 cal (.290 ball) in the house now, your 40 cal rebore has sure been nagging at me. In that little gun, the 40 bore ought to be a really sweet field gun, while most of the 40's I see are heavier range guns. More thinking required. Thanks, I think.... :rotf:

 

[jdkerstetter]

Does your Crocket bored out to .40 still have an oversized "chamber" as it did with the .32?

Just curious, J.D.

 

[Wayne/Al]

JD, I'm not sure about the "oversized chamber". I just sent the barrel to Mr Rayel and he did the job. He removed the plug and reinstalled it after he rebored the barrel. I havent felt the jag go down into a chamber like I did when it was a .32 cal.
I might add that he does excellent work.The smoothest bore I ever felt.

Sorry for getting a little off topic.

Wayne/Al

 

[jdkerstetter]

Thanks for the info. I suspect your "chamber" is bore sized now. And, yes, Rayl does good work.

Again, thanks, J.D.

 

[BGRooster1]

How long is this "chamber" ? Sounds to me like it needs to have the barrel shortened from the breech end ,re-plugged and percussion drum moved forward as needed .
I am getting one about the end of the week . Will know if this is a good idea soon.

 

[ebiggs1]

..after picking one up off the rack and giving it a look see. I put it back and left without one. They are just too crude but not surprising, about what one would expect from Traditions. ....

What a shame.

As I stated, the EARLY ones I handled "appeared to be" nice little guns. I had no idea that they had a breech cavity that was over bore size! :shocked2: Why would somebody even design such a feature into a gun?

Whatever, J.D.

Some of the early guns I looked at are what made me decide to get one and I may still get a NEW one but it will be a kit.
Had the gun Cabela's had looked like BrownBear's, it would be in my gun safe now.
The one they had was just awful some places had the wood and metal off an 1/8th of an inch!
OH, BTW, it wasn't there last Saturday when I walked by the rack? It was OK for somebody and I hope they do like it. But it wasn't for me.

 

[GeekEGuy]

I don't own one myself (yet), but I just got back from a hunting trip with my Uncle and he let me carry his crockett. I was very impressed with the accuracy of it. So were the two grouse I ate later that evening.

I'm now in the market for one. Great small game gun.

 

[hanshi]

I've owned one for more than ten years and like it a lot. Performance is as good as it gets and it's a light, handy rifle to carry into the squirrel woods. Mine was fitted just fine though I may eventually redo the stock finish. Accurate as all get-out and builds up some serious smack. The one I have is always reliable and is a squirrel's worst nightmare. Mine's not for sale!

 

[Rev_William]

I put one together from a kit. Like hanshi said very accurate. My skills as a gunbuilder isn't that great but it still shoots better than me lol. As a matter of fact seeing a put together crockett is what got me back into shooting BP. Wouldn't get rid of mine for any reason.