Yeah the Hawken thing is way overdone and when I tried to learn what a "real" Hawken was my mind glazed over! That being said I actually really like the half stocked Jonathon Browning rifle that I have that I think is supposed to be a Hawken-like rifle. That is what drew me back to the Jaeger as I like the stock better. Getting used to the pointy butt thing but still not a huge fan of it!Build anything you like and you are happy with , Just don't call it a Hawken
I am slowly being drawn to the long rifles but with a propellent such as black powder what are you really gaining with that long of a barrel? Just like a lot of things I think the Germans had it right with the faster twist to shoot bullets in a shorter more manageable rifle.
I always king of thought that originally the rifles were longer for bayonet usage during battle. As soon as guerilla tactics came into play, rifles got shorter.
Ok now let the tar and feathers fly!