Who Hunts w/an Escopeta?

[R.J.Bruce]

I am curious as to how many forum members own a functional, safe-to-hunt-with escopeta? One with a patilla flintlock? And, of those members that own one, what bore size is it? Do you hunt with it at all? If so, what type of game do you hunt with your escopeta? Do you shoot patched balls, wadded balls, bare balls???? Do you shoot shot out of it?

I have researched as many threads online as I can find, but there simply is not a lot of information out there to glean much from. Most of the posts tend to be praise for an owner's acquisition, historically informative in nature, or else the owner explaining the build/acquisition.

Not very much info on how these Catalan stocked, patilla flintlock escopetas handle, how much they weigh, how they compare to other smoothbore fowling weapons, etc.

So, I am hoping with this thread to start a conversation leading to disseminatination of the type of common knowledge that is available for military & civilian smoothbores that are more common.

Thanks,
Bruce

By the by, if there is a shoulder-fired muzzleloader in my future, it's going to be a Spanish, frontier, St. Augustine, Catalan-stocked, 20 gauge, carbine-length (28" barrel), patilla flintlock, escopeta with a belt/sash hook.

 

[BillinOregon]

Watching this thread. Next time I am in Santa Fe or Taos I am going to keep a much closer lookout for museum specimens. I wonder if the Museum of the Fur Trade in Chadron, NE, has any escopitas in its collections.