Am i done now?

[Bushfire]

I am finally at the point of having nearly everything I need but I still have a niggle to build something someday, but what?

Our regs for big game are 45 cal minimum and 230grain minimum projectile. Effectively a 54 cal minimum for roundball. My Missouri river is my only fast twist sabot shooter that gets around this.

BP wise I have a

Ped 50 Missouri River Hawken caplock
Ped 54 rocky mountain hawken caplock
Ped 54 slow twist jäger (cap & flint)
GRRW 54 longrifle flint
Ped 20G indian trade gun flint
Centermark 20G fusil flint

I'll probably sell the rocky mountain, and maybe either the jäger or the trade gun.

I've thought of getting a smaller calibre but I just don't it getting used, I never pull out my 22lr so a 32 or 40 wouldn't get much more use.

Maybe I should hang out until Kibler releases a hawken, which they have said will come (not before an English smoothbore though).
I liked the idea of a woodsrunner but it won't be in 58. As you can see I've got enough 54's. The colonial just looks to big and wieldy to me, and pushing it for safe length.

I'd love to do a chambers EM rifle but it might be a bit tricky for someone with little skills and time constraints.

Do I really need another and if so what would people recommend?

 

[1950DAVE]

I fail to se a pistol listed.

 

[deermanok]

If allowed in Australia, a pistol would be a good addition.

 

[Master Blaster]

Brown Bess musket?

 

[Bushfire]

Pistols are allowed bit you need to go to 13 club shoots a year, I don't have time for that.

I have thought about a charleville one day. I've shot buffalo with my hawken, which was a great thrill. Expensive though!

 

[hanshi]

There must be smaller game there that would keep a .32, .36 or a .40 busy. Plus those are cheap to feed and fun to plink with. Small game or even larger varmints can be taken with all three.

 

[Dusty_Traveler]

There must be smaller game there that would keep a .32, .36 or a .40 busy. Plus those are cheap to feed and fun to plink with. Small game or even larger varmints can be taken with all three.

For sure!

I'm interested to know what all kinds of small varmints y'all have to shoot at down there.

 

[JamesA]

View attachment 155108

Brown Bess musket?

105 mm howitzer.

 

[Nobody85]

I like a large bore rifle or smoothie just as much as the next person, but I have a soft spot for the slender .36 long rifle. I got it just to have something that was easy on powder and lead, but it came to be my favorite plinker /squirrel gun. If you have an opportunity to shoot one, it might become your next rifle. Something to consider.

 

[springfield art]

I am finally at the point of having nearly everything I need but I still have a niggle to build something someday, but what?

Our regs for big game are 45 cal minimum and 230grain minimum projectile. Effectively a 54 cal minimum for roundball. My Missouri river is my only fast twist sabot shooter that gets around this.

BP wise I have a

Ped 50 Missouri River Hawken caplock
Ped 54 rocky mountain hawken caplock
Ped 54 slow twist jäger (cap & flint)
GRRW 54 longrifle flint
Ped 20G indian trade gun flint
Centermark 20G fusil flint

I'll probably sell the rocky mountain, and maybe either the jäger or the trade gun.

I've thought of getting a smaller calibre but I just don't it getting used, I never pull out my 22lr so a 32 or 40 wouldn't get much more use.

Maybe I should hang out until Kibler releases a hawken, which they have said will come (not before an English smoothbore though).
I liked the idea of a woodsrunner but it won't be in 58. As you can see I've got enough 54's. The colonial just looks to big and wieldy to me, and pushing it for safe length.

I'd love to do a chambers EM rifle but it might be a bit tricky for someone with little skills and time constraints.

Do I really need another and if so what would people recommend?

I did not realize that Kibler's will be making perhaps an Hawken! The English smoothbore sounds nice, but people are chomping at the bit for a nice Hawken! Oh, well, wait and see!

 

[Bushfire]

There must be smaller game there that would keep a .32, .36 or a .40 busy. Plus those are cheap to feed and fun to plink with. Small game or even larger varmints can be taken with all three.

We have plenty of foxes and whatnot, but I don't shoot them as is. I do a little trapping with my boys and otherwise just big game for me.

Bear in mind, I know plenty of places in the states may have a 1 or 2 week muzzleloader deer season and you need to fill in the interval with something else. I have a 12 month season on deer with any weapon. I don't hunt deer when in soft velvet or with fawns at foot. In those times of the year I'm usually fishing. that leaves a big chunk, say Feb through october where my hunting time focusses on big game. When I do hunt/target shoot the summer months for foxes or hares, I'm keeping my eye in on my deer cals or running shot through my smoothy.

 

[Eric Krewson]

The balls I cast for my .54 come out at 226 gr, a little shy of the required 230 gr, my lead isn't perfectly pure as it is range lead that I separate into what the scratch test indicates is soft lead.

 

[sheriff john]

Really enjoy reading about M/L's in other countries. Thanks.

From what I've read, you fellers have critters (snakes, spiders, etc.) that can flat kill a person. Curious as to whether you hunt with dogs. Haven't seen anything about it that I recall. If so, what critters and what dogs?

 

[Bushfire]

Really enjoy reading about M/L's in other countries. Thanks.

From what I've read, you fellers have critters (snakes, spiders, etc.) that can flat kill a person. Curious as to whether you hunt with dogs. Haven't seen anything about it that I recall. If so, what critters and what dogs?

In the northern portion of the country we have Saltwater crocodiles, which are the biggest croc species in the world. Box jellyfish and irikanji lurk in the waters of northern Australia and they're bad business. Thankfully none down south! Plenty of great whites, bull and tiger sharks all around our coast. Dingoes have killed people, usually kids but they seem to be getting bold. They interbreed readily with dogs so there are some big ugly bad tempered ones getting around. Can be a little unsettling when you're hunting the mountains by yourself and hear a pack howling from back near your camp! Snakes are the main and worst thing in Aus. I think it's something like 7 or 8 of the world's top 11 most venomous live here. Every year I catch one or two eastern brown snakes around the house. I bloody hate it with little kids around but what can you do. We also get tiger snakes here, not quite as poisonous as browns (not far off) but a lot more aggressive. I actually know guy a little older than me that was killed by a tiger. They had him to the hospital within 10 mins of the bite and still couldn't save him. I don't go into the bush during summer unless I have snake proof gaiters.

In terms of dogs, there's two types of hunting. We have hound hunting which uses blood hound, harrier or beagle to hunt sambar deer through the Victorian high country.
The other one is using a "indicating dog" as a companion. I do this type with my German shorthaired pointer. Basically we train them to walk through the bush with us and scent deer and then to indicate when they're on to something. Because we don't hunt from treestands amd the bush is often thick and vast it can be very helpful. Downside is that kangaroos are a big distraction and Aus has plenty of them. Went for a deer hunt last night with my 54 flinter, saw no deer but around 100 kangaroos, 6 emus a handful of wallabies and a wedgetailed eagle.

A list of what we hunt in Aus
- sambar deer
- red deer
- fallow deer
- rusa deer
- chital/axis deer
- hog deer (my favourite)
- wild pig
- wild goat
- wild cattle "scrub bull"
- water buffalo
- banteng
- red fox
- rabbit
- hare
And in some states duck and quail.
Natives are protected but can be shot under permit. I used to do some culling but haven't renewed any permits in recent times.

Across the ditch NZ also have
- sika (my favourite along with hog deer)
- whitetail (tiny herd and hard to access)
- chamois
- tahr
- arapawa sheep
- elk (hybrid)

Bear in mind, on the east coast we're closer to NZ than some parts of Australia.

 

[William Sublette]

I've shot buffalo with my hawken, which was a great thrill. Expensive though!

This is a story that needs expanded on.

 

[bud in pa]

Looking at the pictures of your water buffalo I would prefer a field pieced.

 

[Ballshooter]

You need to get a kibler Colonial longrifle! Or SMR

 

[rich pierce]

I find that after 20 years with several guns with similar capabilities, I don’t need them all. So I build something new to hold my interest for awhile.

 

[Pete G]

You’re never done