Interested in getting one

[layusn1]

How accurate, fun, and expensive would a 50cal black powder rifle be?

[ede]

i won a complete .50 BP rifle and starter kit not long ago. price tag was 169$, i sold it for 100$ and from what i was told i don't do bad getting 100$ out of it.

[freakshow10mm]

Cast lead round balls for it. Just use a Lee 4# post and ladle for those with a cheap Lee twin holer. Setup for less than $50. Hell I got an RCBS ladle you can have if you want it.

[Mogollon]

When I was a kid, I shot muzzle loading rifles competitively. They can be very accurate-easily 1.5 MOA with the right load combo. What do you want it for, hunting or target shooting? Reason I ask is that hunting guns have a very fast barrel twist to stabilize a sabotted slug, whereas target guns usually use round balls, and require a much slower twist- at least 1-48", better 1-60" for 50 cal round ball.
Then do you want a traditional style or an in-line action?

[yammerschooner]

I have killed more deer with my 50 cal Thompson Center Renegade than all other guns I have ever owned or borrowed combined.

Accurate as hell, and I love the set trigger. The only thing that sucks is the cleaning.

Pretty too.

http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i54/yammerschooner/thompsoncenter.jpg

[layusn1]

I am kinda wanting a big thunderstick that is as reasonably accurate, a;ong the lines of at least Mosin Nagant accuracy. I think it would be a fun addition to the collection and something different to learn/play with. Yammer, that looks sweet. I was wondering about the synthetic stock Thompsons, somewhere in the $200 neighborhood. I would be fine with a good open sight shooter for 50yrds. I would like to be able to shoot the sabot ballistic tips from time to time also if possible. I really don't know anything about shooting black powder but would like to get a rifle and a revolver so any guidance/advice is greatly appreciated.

Yammer...isn't it supposed to be YOUR foot, not the dogs? Nice touch...marching to the beat of your own drummer...lol.

[RugerFan58]

http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item.asp?sku=000156031112 This is a lot of fun for the dollar. One of the best deal in muzzleloading IMHO. If you go to THR and do a search on these the back post will explain how long and how easy these are to put together. You'll be hard pressed to find anything out there this good for this amount of money. I've got a T/C .54 New Englander that is my main deer assassin tool and if I didn't already have it I'd buy one of these Lyman Rifles.:thumbsup::thumbsup:

[RugerFan58]

I have killed more deer with my 50 cal Thompson Center Renegade than all other guns I have ever owned or borrowed combined.

Accurate as hell, and I love the set trigger. The only thing that sucks is the cleaning.

Pretty too.

http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i54/yammerschooner/thompsoncenter.jpgI grew up in Rochester,NH where these are made. T/C used to make the Renegade in .54 but unfortunately I think they stopped making them right before S&W bought them out. I went by the store a few weeks ago and it almost looked like Fox Ridge Outfitters {Their Storefront} was going out of business. T/C also used to make a .58 called "Big Boar" which was really good for taking down monster bucks and Buicks alike. I use my New Englander all deer season even though I've got a safe full of modern rifles with plenty of ammo. BTW if you use Natural 1000 by T/C it actually does ease the cleaning process. Stuff really works.

[mbradst]

I have an in-line .45 cal muzzleloader. I haven't shot it in a few years. I killed one deer with it and that was enough. I got into bowhunting the following year and have not killed a deer with a firearm since. I like to whack 'em up close and personal with a compound bow.

You could kill a deer easily over 125 yards with a modern scoped in-line. I have seen video of Jim Shockey kill all kinds of bad-assed critters from much farther than that. If I was picking a hunting rig today for muzzleloading, I would go with a .45 for anything whitetail sized and smaller. They have a flatter trajectory. For anything bigger, definitely a .50 caliber. IME, you can put more powder behind it without screwing up your groups.

You could also go with a smokeless powder muzzleloader. Savage makes a smokeless smokepole, if that makes sense. You can load some pretty good thumpers out of that rifle.

[ISUSteve]

I'd go with a flintlock. If going BP, might as well go all they way.

[Seafarer12]

I'd go with a flintlock. If going BP, might as well go all they way.


There you go, here is my flinter

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/aa47/seafarer1976/Resizeofflintlock004.jpg


I also have a Cabelas Hawken. I enjoy shooting it more because it is easier to clean. It is not as good a shooter as my flinter but my flinter is a custom job and worth about 4 times as much as the hawken.


As far as how much it costs. It can cost as much or as little as you like. You can get used BP rifles dirt cheap there isnt much of a market for used production rifles. I got a good deal on both of my guns that are no where near normal. I paid 300 for my flinter if I went to the builder and wanted that gun it would cost me 1k, it was damaged in shipping and had a cracked stock. I paid about 40 for my Cabelas Hawken. I bought 3 from the bargain for 150 each then sold 2 for 225 each so all I have in it is tax. Not bad for a 300 dollar gun that just had a scratched stock. I wait to find a good deal before I buy anything. If you factored in the time I spend looking for good deals it probably isn't such a good deal but its worth it to me.

As far as the other stuff needed for BP shooting you really only need a powder flask, measurer, round balls, lube, patches, BP, caps, a way to clean your gun. All the other stuff is nice but not needed. You can get out cheap on lube by making your own, get muslin or pillow ticking from the fabric store don't waste your money on the precut stuff. You can buy enough fabric to make 20 times as many patches for the same price. BP is getting hard to find. Track of the Wolf sells it but you have to buy atleast 25 lbs. I am going to be doing that later this year. I will probably never have to buy BP again. Well at least 15 years. I don't mess with that fake stuff. You can cast your own round balls but they need to be pure lead. If you find lead shielding from an Xray save that for your BP. I just bought 60 lbs from a guy that will be a few round balls. I am sitting on a buch of round ball already so it will be awhile before I start casting bullets.

Just shop around it's a fun hobby to take up. You meet a lot of good people if you get into shooting at local matches and such. Good Luck

[layusn1]

Why is it hard to find BP? Is Pyrodex (I think thats what its called?) a replacement for BP?

[Seafarer12]

I dont use pyrodex. I use Goex BP. BP is hard to find because it is an Explosive and smokeless and the fake BP isn't. They are flamable.

[layusn1]

OK, is there an appreciable difference in performance or is it a purist/traditionalist thing? The only guy I ever saw shoot a muzzle loader pulled the trigger got a big bang and lots o really cool smoke, like a civil war rifle shooting. What do you reckon he was using? I didn't get a chance to talk to him, sure wish i had. People at my range are really friendly and, like me, will often offer to let you squeeze off a round or two if you want to try out their toy.

[freakshow10mm]

People at my range are really friendly and, like me, will often offer to let you squeeze off a round or two if you want to try out their toy.
I'm like that too. If you ask about my guns or come over to look at it, I won't let you leave without offering you a magazine to run through it.

Pretty sure the pyrodex doesn't smoke as much as straight BP, but I would be wrong.

[RugerFan58]

Pretty sure the pyrodex doesn't smoke as much as straight BP, but I would be wrong.I know it's cleaner. I can shoot mine all afternoon with BP or Pyrodex and the BP without question leaves more fouling. I like them both but I use Pyrodex because I got a good deal on 4 jugs of it.

[craig110]

OK, is there an appreciable difference in performance or is it a purist/traditionalist thing? The only guy I ever saw shoot a muzzle loader pulled the trigger got a big bang and lots o really cool smoke, like a civil war rifle shooting. What do you reckon he was using? I didn't get a chance to talk to him, sure wish i had. People at my range are really friendly and, like me, will often offer to let you squeeze off a round or two if you want to try out their toy.

I was shooting beside a muzzleloader once back in the late fall. He and I struck up a conversation about his gun which ultimately led to him letting me shoot it. Sweet gun! I was surprised at its accuracy (the hole was right where I was aiming) and what a great sense of history from pulling the trigger and having that big billowing cloud of smoke. I could see getting a BP gun some day.

[Brass Nazi]

You could also go with a smokeless powder muzzleloader. Savage makes a smokeless smokepole, if that makes sense. You can load some pretty good thumpers out of that rifle.



Damn straight,

I do not think that there is any coolness factor to the Savage when compared to a real smokepole. It is much more convenient at the end of an unsuccessful hunting trip to discharge the gun into the ground and not have to worry about cleaning it. You also do not have to worry about the cloud of smoke when you fire it at game. It can be difficult to see where your game runs off to when you use BP.

[Sixgun Symphony]

Don't go too cheap on the gun, you get what you pay for.

My advise is to start with a T/C Hawken rifle or a Lyman Great Plains rifle. You are spending about $500, which is not expensive but you get a decent quality "starter gun" for beginners.