kodiakmarine
40 Cal.
- Joined
- Jan 22, 2009
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I guess we all have run into problems while pursuing our love of ML, and learned some hard lessons along the way. I think it might be worthwhile to beginners if we can start a thread about some of the potential pitfalls and how to avoid them.
Hard lesson number 1: My first muzzleloader was a .54 caliber Lyman Great Plains Rifle in percussion. It was one fine old gun. It was easy to load using only the original ramrod, it was accurate, and had a much more authentic look to it than your typical factory "Hawken".
The GPR served me well for years, but I got a longing for something else. I wanted a longrifle, preferably in flint. I had heard a lot about Hatfield rifles and did some online reading about them. Unfortunately, I was only finding articles singing their praises (I was not yet a forum member). I found out about the dark side of Hatfields only after selling my GPR and buying a Hatfield online.
The positives of the Hatfield was that it had nice architecture and the loveliest piece of curly maple I had ever held in my own hands. The negatives were everything else. The rifle wasn't as well made as I thought it would be. The thimbles had holes cut in the bottom to be held in place by screws. This feature was an eye sore on an otherwise beautiful gun. The thing that really hurt was the barrel. It was constricted in more than one place and was difficult in the extreme to load, or even run a cleaning jag down the barrel. I had to use a cleaning rod for an old .22 to clean the gun before and after the only time I ever took it to the range and shot it. It just wasn't worth the trouble and frustration. I ended up needing funds for an emergency that came up and decided to sell (for a lot less than I paid) the rifle I had lost interest in and no longer used. This led to:
Hard lesson number two: I should never have sold the Hatfield. It was a beautiful rifle with great wood and a fine finish. I could have simply shopped around for a replacement barrel from a quality maker. I could have bought some new thimbles, tenons, and pinning wire to correct that issue. A convertible replacement lock from TOW and I would have had the rifle I wanted for perhaps $300 or a little more over a period of two or three months, which would have easily been manageable.
The moral of the story is:
a) Check out information on a gun thoroughly before purchase.
b) When purchasing a gun online, take it apart and inspect everything at delivery. Take a bore light and checkout the bore. Run a cleaning jag down it. If it is not the gun you thought you were getting then send it back for a refund immediately. Btw, the problem was my fault for not checking out the bore upon delivery, not the fault of the shop that sold the rifle.
c) Always look for simple ways to solve a problem before giving up on a gun. It will cost you a lot less in the long run.
d) Join the forum and be active! This is the greatest resource on the net for traditional ML. I will always feel like a beginner in company like this. I never cease to be amazed by the accomplishments of my fellow forum members in shooting, gun building, reenacting, and everything else associated with muzzleloading. Had I taken this step first, I could have avoided most of the problems I encountered.
Good luck to all, and never stop having fun with, imho, what has to be the greatest hobby a human being can have. - John
Hard lesson number 1: My first muzzleloader was a .54 caliber Lyman Great Plains Rifle in percussion. It was one fine old gun. It was easy to load using only the original ramrod, it was accurate, and had a much more authentic look to it than your typical factory "Hawken".
The GPR served me well for years, but I got a longing for something else. I wanted a longrifle, preferably in flint. I had heard a lot about Hatfield rifles and did some online reading about them. Unfortunately, I was only finding articles singing their praises (I was not yet a forum member). I found out about the dark side of Hatfields only after selling my GPR and buying a Hatfield online.
The positives of the Hatfield was that it had nice architecture and the loveliest piece of curly maple I had ever held in my own hands. The negatives were everything else. The rifle wasn't as well made as I thought it would be. The thimbles had holes cut in the bottom to be held in place by screws. This feature was an eye sore on an otherwise beautiful gun. The thing that really hurt was the barrel. It was constricted in more than one place and was difficult in the extreme to load, or even run a cleaning jag down the barrel. I had to use a cleaning rod for an old .22 to clean the gun before and after the only time I ever took it to the range and shot it. It just wasn't worth the trouble and frustration. I ended up needing funds for an emergency that came up and decided to sell (for a lot less than I paid) the rifle I had lost interest in and no longer used. This led to:
Hard lesson number two: I should never have sold the Hatfield. It was a beautiful rifle with great wood and a fine finish. I could have simply shopped around for a replacement barrel from a quality maker. I could have bought some new thimbles, tenons, and pinning wire to correct that issue. A convertible replacement lock from TOW and I would have had the rifle I wanted for perhaps $300 or a little more over a period of two or three months, which would have easily been manageable.
The moral of the story is:
a) Check out information on a gun thoroughly before purchase.
b) When purchasing a gun online, take it apart and inspect everything at delivery. Take a bore light and checkout the bore. Run a cleaning jag down it. If it is not the gun you thought you were getting then send it back for a refund immediately. Btw, the problem was my fault for not checking out the bore upon delivery, not the fault of the shop that sold the rifle.
c) Always look for simple ways to solve a problem before giving up on a gun. It will cost you a lot less in the long run.
d) Join the forum and be active! This is the greatest resource on the net for traditional ML. I will always feel like a beginner in company like this. I never cease to be amazed by the accomplishments of my fellow forum members in shooting, gun building, reenacting, and everything else associated with muzzleloading. Had I taken this step first, I could have avoided most of the problems I encountered.
Good luck to all, and never stop having fun with, imho, what has to be the greatest hobby a human being can have. - John
