Thinking about a Canoe Gun

[Tinker2]

I do have a small two piece muzzleloader that fits under the seat.

I like buggy rifles and so having one for my Vino scooter makes sense to me.

I would have posted a picture of that gun but can only find half of it now.




William Alexander

 

[Alden]

My canoe gun gets stuck in the tangles if I'm not careful too...

 

[Rifleman1776]

Love it. Bolt action and resting the butt under his throat. :shocked2:

 

[jamesthomas]

Love it. Bolt action and resting the butt under his throat. :shocked2:

Also the bolt isn't locked down so it wouldn't fire anyway :shake: must be a newby!.

 

[ncmtmike]

What say you gents to a 20" RIFLE,not a smoothbore? could you still get accurate at 25-30 yds? say a .50 caliber? :hmm:

 

[Homesteader]

I'll admit I'd like to have a short barrel flintlock smoothie, just for fun. I don't believe it'd be much use other than to make smoke and noise, or maybe take a rabbit at close range. My thought was that I'd call it a camp or guard gun and keep it as a sort of sawed off shotgun. Just a fun gun, y'know.

Hopefully I'll get one soon. If I do, I'll let ya know what it's like.

 

[bpd303]

I have a .40 caliber rifle with an 18 inch barrel. It is accurate to 50 yards, haven't tried any farther.

 

[Monty369]

My Pedersoli .62 cal Trade gun fits just fine in my Gruman 19' cargo....maybe I need a longer barrel or a longer ore......hahahahaha!!!!

 

[Tinker2]

What say you gents to a 20" RIFLE,not a smoothbore? could you still get accurate at 25-30 yds? say a .50 caliber? :hmm:

I like mine




William Alexander

 

[Tinker2]

I'll admit I'd like to have a short barrel flintlock smoothie, just for fun. I don't believe it'd be much use other than to make smoke and noise, or maybe take a rabbit at close range.

:rotf: I think that’s funny :rotf:

I used to think the same thing about long barreled guns :slap:

I found out that the long ones shoot just as well, just not as handy.



:blah:
William Alexander

 

[Homesteader]

I agree that's it's funny, mi amigo. Still don't know what it's like to have one, though it's been 3-1/2 yrs since I've bought one. I'll let ya know how it is if I ever get it.

Love my 48" smoothie, btw!

 

[Tinker2]

I like my two brown Bess guns and my long rifles too.
A longer sight radius is nice but not needed to shoot well

Just a thought but while you are waiting for your gun to get done, why not just make one



William Alexander

 

[BillinOregon]

Pretty sure good old Mike Nesbitt wrote about using a canoe gun on ptarmigan some years ago in either the defunct Dixie BP Annual or the defunct Black Powder Hunting. Will try to find the article if I can.

 

[Grumpa]

Some of the most accurate ctg guns have barrels way shorter than 20", and shoot accurately (bench rest) hundreds of yard farther than you would ever use a muzzleloader hunting.

Many years ago, I bought a riot gun (18" bbl.) which quickly became my hunting gun, small game and deer. Others would ask: "But how far will it shoot?" I would answer: "5 - 12 inches less than yours."

I don't buy into the more accurate/longer sighting plane argument either, particularly as your eyes age. All my short barreled pistols will outshoot the longer barrels.

Admittedly, the above are cartridge guns, but modern made black powder supposedly does not require a long barrel to burn (or so I've read - I have no experience there).

As for the noise and recoil, muzzleloaders are much less annoying in that regard

If you want a short rifle or smoothbore, go for it. :thumbsup: You won't be disappointed.

 

[larryp]

My wife has a CVA Frontier carbine in .50. It has a 24" barrel and is quite accurate at those ranges. I haven't tried it yet at longer ranges but I'm seriously considering it as it's a lot lighter to carry than the T/C Hawken of mine.

 

[BrownBear]

Looks as though the concensus has shifted to allow short rifles into this thread about short smoothbores....

If so, I'll add my favorite shorty rifle. It's a Pedersoli Frontier Carbine. I don't see it listed on the Pedersoli site any more, but compared to the 39" barrel on the Frontier, the approx 28" barrel of the carbine feels like a real "shorty." About the lightest, fastest handling muzzleloader in our racks. And at least as accurate as the long barrel sitting beside it in the rack, if not moreso.

 

[Rifleman1776]

I didn't criticize accuracy, just perceived loudness. My wife's H&R Buggy rifle won stacks of medals for her. But, under range cover it was terribly loud.

 

[Supercracker]

There were plenty of short (18"-20") Jaeger Stuetzen(???) made in the 18thC. They can't have been too inaccurate.

 

[Grandpa Ron]

Unfortunately I have one foot in tradition and one in the modern world.

A short barreled gun has the advantage of ease of handling; whether at the range, in the field, on a stagecoach or aboard ship, hence the popularity of the blunderbuss; even today many carbine rifle barrels are less than 20". They cannot be too inaccurate. :shocked2:

What I do not like about short barreled muzzle loading gun is having the barrel at belly level when loading, the short sighting radius, or the sometimes whippy feel of a very light barrel. But these are all just my personnel prejudices. Others seem quite happy with them.

I also prefer the look and feel of the classic tradegun, longrifle of double barrel shotgun. Except for cutting the barrels for repair or use on horseback by the native populous for buffalo hunts, longer barreled guns were in vogue during most of the muzzle loading era in this country. Again my bias for the past is showing. :wink:

Coach guns, canoe guns, sawed offs, and brush guns are a more modern invention. When Wells Fargo ordered their breach loading coach guns from Ithaca, they wanted the barrels “shortened” to 32”. The 19th century canoe guns issued to the HBC voyageurs were 36” to 42” barreled.

All that said, when I buy or build a gun that is purpose driven, I would have no problems with a short barrel gun if it was what “I” wanted. :grin:

Enjoy the ride.

 

[Homesteader]

Yeah, I agree. I'm particularly fond of long barrel smokepoles of the flintlock variety. My smoothie is a .69 cal with a 48" barrel and my rifle is a .45 with a 44" barrel. I love 'em both. Both Flintlock inc barrels and put together by a very talented builder.

I change when I move to the 19th century, though. I like my Sharps cavalry carbine and my double barrel 12 gauge, both of which have pretty short barrels. Just a completely different style and feel.

The 23" barrel 20 bore flintlock I hope to eventually receive is very alien to me, but I think it'll be a lot of fun. And it should keep highwaymen and marauding savages at bay! :grin: