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buying muzzleloaders, if you had to do it all over what would you have bought and not bought

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I'd have bought every original, complete, uncut and functional military Musket and Rifle-Musket back when you could get them for $1-200 at flea markets and gun shows. I'd honestly probably have kept most of them

I'd also have bought more of the cooler repros that were cheap, back in the early 2000s. $500 EuroArms JP Murrays, etc
 
A Euroarms 2 band Enfield, bought used but in near new condition, have never gotten consistent groups. It needs to be someone else’s problem !
Send it to me, I'll shoot it with my own Minies , etc and get it to group, then send it back to you . Just for fun and I like a challenge of "solving the riddle" of a rifle that won't group.

I'll do a write up on the forum of our joint project and hopefully find something that works in it
 
Almost to date i have bought every reasonably priced/cheap ML offered to me. Also bought as many parts and parts guns as well. The latter have been the best!!
 
never saw a muzzleloader i didn't want to buy. except those funny inline thingy's.
there have of course been many i didn't buy, but i would have under the right circumstances.
When customer came in shop with and inline the look on our faces said it all. Recently saw an offer for a 12 piece lot of used inlines. When it finally sold i'll bet shipping was more than high bid.
 
never saw a muzzleloader i didn't want to buy. except those funny inline thingy's.
there have of course been many i didn't buy, but i would have under the right circumstances.
right circumstances being winning the lottery or selling my first born.
I tried selling my first born; they brought him back !
 
Saddens me to see what' happened to "primitive weapon" deer season. Originally limited to single-shot muzzle loaders in the 60's, it's morphed into AR's with "braces", scopes, even silencers. Not trying to change thread, but darn few reasonably-priced, authentic repo rifles/shotguns available. Bettter keep what we have.

I'd like to see muzzleloaders accepted here in UK for game larger than rabbits - even then, it's smoothbores only. How I envy capandball over there in Hungary, where they have a whole county-sized area dedicated to the hunting use of BP firearms of a traditional kind - nothing else is permitted.
 
Darned interesting & fun thread. Going through attics & gun safes, decided "herd thinning" will focus on unmentionables for awhile. Too many great memories with the muzzle loaders. Not quite sure why I saved all those factory boxes but sold the guns. Oh well.
 
I have a couple of inlines.
We have a hunt here in my area that is a river hunt. My plan was to use my inflatable pontoons. I.got the inlines to use on that hunt so I didn't risk losing one of my good rifles.
I have never purchased a ml that I thought I needed to get rid of.
I would like to pick up another Renegade stock with two triggers.
 
Biggest regret- not buying the Steve Zihn Hawken I happened upon for the proverbial song.
I had the money at the time but was reluctant because:
1- wife’s car needed some work
2- I wasn’t familiar with Zihns work at the time.

Yeah, I’m a dumba$$
 
I kind of regret buying my NAA Super Companion. it's rather tedious to load, it cap jams quite a bit, and really isn't very functional.
I have to amend my answer since I switched to #10 Remington caps and modified the grips, the little revolver runs pretty well. My current regret is the Baker Cavalry shotgun I bought recently. The single trigger is not ideal.
 
Can't say that I ever really regretted buying any black powder gun. The CVA brass-framed revolver kit gun was my first purchase. It was pretty much junk, but I learned quite a bit with it. Since then I have stuck with better quality guns like T/C and Pedersoli. I do have an Austin & Halleck inline.... which I probably paid too much for, but the John Browning Mountain Rifle I probably got cheaper than I should have, so it all works out.

I would say stick to T/C traditional side hammer guns and you'll have no real regrets.
 
I do wish I'd bought an early like new condition Zoli Zouave when I had the chance. It was around $500 and some change if my memory serves me correctly. Now, I just dream about owning one!
 
Only regretful purchase was a mail order Cabela’s Blue Ridge .54.
The wood looks like paint and the lock and frizzen do not align! it shoots ok though.
 
Guess I’m easy to please, I like all the ones I have. Though I’d still like to have more.

Edit: should have added that I did trade and sell guns 40-45 years ago. Didn’t have enough money to keep them all then. I do have maybe 2 unmentionables that I’d maybe part with now since they’re so heavy I can’t use them. But probably won’t. Luckily my Sons can divvy up everything one day, really already given them a lot of them. I’m only a caretaker.
 
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