New Member Intro

[bstarkey]

Greetings all,
Just wanted to say hi and get some advice.

First, a little about me. I love the outdoors and have a passion for handmade items and most things traditional in nature. I've been hunting exclusively with longbows over the past several years and make my own cedar arrows. I also collect custom knives.

I've been thinking about deer hunting using something other than my longbows, or modern rifles so I've decided to check out muzzleloaders. I must say, things have changed since my father and I built our TC Hawken's back in the early 80's. I thought about building a kit from Sitting Fox, Track of the Wolf or TVM. But thought for a few buck more it may be more cost efficient to buy one already made.

So any advice on a caliber, or brand. I don't mind spending a few bucks to get something really nice and don't have a problem using it in the field.

Thanks,
Bob

 

[BrownBear]

"If I was only going to have one" it would probably be a 54 caliber. Heavy enough for moose or elk with good shots, but with light loads also a dandy head smacker for small game. I've got MLs ranging from 32 cal to 75 cal with a sincere fond spot for 58's. Haven't yet smacked any bunny heads with a 58 and reduced loads, but once I try that a little my preferences might nudge up to 58.

Lots of folks will point out the more readily available components for a 50 rather than a 54. Well yeah, if you're looking for conicals. If you're shooting RBs and shooting as much as I guess you will from your intro, then you're likely to be casting your own RBs too. After balls you're down to powder, patches, and caps or flints. Those are interchangeable between 50 and 54, so there's no shortage there.

Style of rifle is whole nother topic. Up to you. As for builders, I keep hearing really good things about TVM, but there are lots of others. If you wanted something really special, check out Steve Zihn up in Wyoming. I've handled a couple of his, and he's topping my list just cuzz I've handled them. But there must be a dozen other top notch builders here at MLF.

 

[D Sanders]

Welcome!

Hope you find a lot of good information here on the forum. My preference would also be a .54 cal. hawken, I shoot one all the time. As for kits, I generally like to find the ones with American made components. TOTW has some attractive kits that I wouldn't mind building but they are a bit expensive. The Great Plains Rifle from Lyman seems to be popular for a ready made. What ever you decide to get, I hope you have many hours of fun safe shooting. Again, welcome.

Hawken Hunter60

 

[Zonie]

Arkansas Bob
Welcome to the Forum.

For someone just getting into muzzleloading hunting, if you big and strong I would suggest the Lyman Great Plains Rifle.

Lyman also offers a slightly shorter and lighter sidelock that is also very well made.

A Thompson Center, either new or used is always a quality way to go.

I do agree that if you get a .54 caliber gun you will be set for just about anything you come across.

As for the kits, Lyman offers both of those guns in kit form. They are fairly easy to assemble and finish.

The "kits" offered by TOTW, Pecatonica River, Chambers etc are excellent but these are not a drop together kit that needs just a little adjusting and finishing.
They are a box of semi-finished parts like the lock and triggers, and totally unfinished parts like sand cast butt plates, trigger guards and a roughed out stock.
They can easily take a experianced builder over 100 hours to finish and a new builder can spend over 200 hours before he is done building one of them.

If you look at well made guns that were made from these kits you can easily spend well over $1000 for one.

 

[MSW]

welcome to the wonderful (and habit forming- now you've been warned) world of muzzleloading, where ramrods have a real function, where the powder is black, the smoke is dark gray, and all is right with the world.

i agree with Zonie. if you're on a budget, go with a Thompson Center or a Lyman in .54 caliber. if there's a chance that you might want to do anything with a smoothbore, i would give serious consideration to a .62 / 20 guage.

if you can only have one, i'd get the really good looking 20guage fowler from Jim Chamber's site, but that just one guy's opinion.

 

[Travis Gregory]

Welcome Bob. What part of the state are you from? Lots of great kits or finished guns to choose from. If you are in the Berryville area sometime you might want to check out Caywood arms. His stuff is expensive but completely hand made in the USA. If you call ahead you can have a tour of his shop and see the guns first hand. The only advice I have is dont degrade your traditional muzzleloading experience by trying to use "gadgets" made for modern inline muzzleloaders. Enjoy hunting and shooting with your new "old" equipment. :thumbsup:

 

[bstarkey]

Thanks for the warm welcome guys and some great advice. I may be better of purchasing one already built or take the advice of several others and go with an assemble and finish kit first off. I don't think I want to spend many hours building a gun starting off. Perhaps later though. I've read many good things about the Lyman kits.

Turkhunter, I work in Pine Bluff, and spend my weekends in Hot Springs. I don't get up towards Berryville much, although I probably should. I do like that part of the state.

Bob

 

[rkmeyer]

Welcome to the asylum. :haha: Keep an eye peeled for something here in the For Sale section. You might find something there you can't live without.
Dusty :wink:

 

[Little Wattsy]

"If I was only going to have one" it would probably be a 54 caliber. Heavy enough for moose or elk with good shots, but with light loads also a dandy head smacker for small game. I've got MLs ranging from 32 cal to 75 cal with a sincere fond spot for 58's. Haven't yet smacked any bunny heads with a 58 and reduced loads, but once I try that a little my preferences might nudge up to 58.

Lots of folks will point out the more readily available components for a 50 rather than a 54. Well yeah, if you're looking for conicals. If you're shooting RBs and shooting as much as I guess you will from your intro, then you're likely to be casting your own RBs too. After balls you're down to powder, patches, and caps or flints. Those are interchangeable between 50 and 54, so there's no shortage there.

Style of rifle is whole nother topic. Up to you. As for builders, I keep hearing really good things about TVM, but there are lots of others. If you wanted something really special, check out Steve Zihn up in Wyoming. I've handled a couple of his, and he's topping my list just cuzz I've handled them. But there must be a dozen other top notch builders here at MLF.

If I was only going to have one" it would probably be a 54 caliber. YEP!