Thanks in advance for your great advice. I have a CVA Hawken that was my brothers that he bought as a child in the mid 1990's. He fired it twice and he passed away in 1997 so it's been sitting in a closet since then. I plan to use in January for Texas Muzzleloading season. Is the original powder and other necessary items still safe to use and load from the 1990's or should I just place the gun above the fireplace mantel? I assume the lead is still good, just let me know if I should get he other stuff. Thanks
Mid 1990's CVA Hawken
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nchawkeye
58 Cal.
Welcome to the Forum and to muzzleloading...
First off, what powder did you find with the gun, what caliber is it, did you find round balls or conicals, etc...
Also, what caliber is it and have you checked the inside of the barrel and nipple, drum area for rust and corrosion...
If the gun is still in good shape it is fine to use, many of us are shooting built earlier in the last century...
Enjoy!!!
First off, what powder did you find with the gun, what caliber is it, did you find round balls or conicals, etc...
Also, what caliber is it and have you checked the inside of the barrel and nipple, drum area for rust and corrosion...
If the gun is still in good shape it is fine to use, many of us are shooting built earlier in the last century...
Enjoy!!!
Welcome to the forum. 
Most of my factory made guns were made before 1997 and they all are totally safe to shoot. Your brothers gun should be equally safe.
Although the modern synthetic black powders like Pyrodex do weaken a bit over time, if the container was tightly sealed it should work without any problems.
If you do hunt with this gun, you might want to buy some newer powder just to make sure it has its original power.
If the powder is real black powder and it was kept dry it should be as good as the day it was made. Black powder doesn't lose its power over the years.
Be sure to get all of the things that look like they might be used with a muzzleloading rifle, even if you don't know what it is or what it does. If it really is something for your rifle, we will be able to tell you exactly what you have and what it is used for.
Don't be surprised if you become thoroughly "hooked" after you've shot a few rounds. These things are great fun.
The one thing that is very important is all of these black powder guns need to be cleaned as soon as possible after your done shooting.
The fouling left by the burned powder will absorb moisture out of the air and it will rust the bore in short order.
Use plain water to clean the gun and apply a light coating of a good oil to prevent rusting.
Have fun. :grin:
PS: Never shoot any kind of "smokeless powder" in your gun.
Real black powder, Pyrodex, Seven7seven or any of the other replacements that say they are for black powder shooting will work if your gun has a "cap lock" that uses percussion caps.
Most of my factory made guns were made before 1997 and they all are totally safe to shoot. Your brothers gun should be equally safe.
Although the modern synthetic black powders like Pyrodex do weaken a bit over time, if the container was tightly sealed it should work without any problems.
If you do hunt with this gun, you might want to buy some newer powder just to make sure it has its original power.
If the powder is real black powder and it was kept dry it should be as good as the day it was made. Black powder doesn't lose its power over the years.
Be sure to get all of the things that look like they might be used with a muzzleloading rifle, even if you don't know what it is or what it does. If it really is something for your rifle, we will be able to tell you exactly what you have and what it is used for.
Don't be surprised if you become thoroughly "hooked" after you've shot a few rounds. These things are great fun.
The one thing that is very important is all of these black powder guns need to be cleaned as soon as possible after your done shooting.
The fouling left by the burned powder will absorb moisture out of the air and it will rust the bore in short order.
Use plain water to clean the gun and apply a light coating of a good oil to prevent rusting.
Have fun. :grin:
PS: Never shoot any kind of "smokeless powder" in your gun.
Real black powder, Pyrodex, Seven7seven or any of the other replacements that say they are for black powder shooting will work if your gun has a "cap lock" that uses percussion caps.
I have caps from the 1890s which are still good. As long as the caps are stored properly (away from solvents, oil, moisture) they will be fine. By the 1990s the caps by and large were non corrosive. One way to tell is to make sure the gun is unloaded and snap a few. If they go off you should be good to go.
To check if the gun is not loaded, run the ram rod in the bore till it stops then mark it at the muzzle. Lay it along the outside of the barrel to see where the end comes to in relation to the nipple or flash hole. You can also use compressed air to blow down the barrel to see if the air comes out the nipple or flash hole.
To check if the gun is not loaded, run the ram rod in the bore till it stops then mark it at the muzzle. Lay it along the outside of the barrel to see where the end comes to in relation to the nipple or flash hole. You can also use compressed air to blow down the barrel to see if the air comes out the nipple or flash hole.
You will need to take it out and shoot it before you go hunting so that will tell you if the stuff is still good. Old powder and caps are not unsafe to use so at worse case they just don't fire well but like the others said, if it was stored good, it should be fine.
Wat Zonie said.
The patches and lube might need replacing. But the black powder and caps will be just fine.
Use it and the rest of the stuff. Your brother would want you to.
Sorry for your loss. We lost a son and, I know, his passing affected our other two children deeply.
The patches and lube might need replacing. But the black powder and caps will be just fine.
Use it and the rest of the stuff. Your brother would want you to.
Sorry for your loss. We lost a son and, I know, his passing affected our other two children deeply.
Thanks again for the wealth of information, it will be two weeks before I can try it out. My folks place is about four hours away, traditional rifle season ends on January 5th and muzzleloading picks up from the 6th to the 19th. During muzzleloading we can pick up two bucks and also two does. My parents place is in East Texas and I feel fine using open sights, I have spots that I use an unscoped 30/30 and even 12 gauge buckshot to hunt at, so I'm sure the Hawken will be suitable without optics. Now my question is, if I do get comfy with this Hawken and I can convince some friends to take me to thier lease in South Texas where there are longer wide open shots, should I scope it? If I do find my comfort zone, I will probably pick up a cheap muzzleloader at Academy, Bass Pro, Gander or Cabelas incase I get invited to go to South Texas and I can use the extra one as a bribe for my friends to take me. One more questions, are the standard lead balls find for Whitetail deer? Thanks again, I will keep you posted two weeks from now.
Standard lead balls work great on Deer.
Patched roundballs work very well for taking deer.
The biggest problem with them is they loose energy (velocity) rather quickly so I don't recommend using them at ranges over 100-120 yards.
Most people who have learned to shoot with iron sights can shoot at these ranges with good accuracy but, IMO, at greater distances, using iron sights can make it difficult to keep the shots in the kill zone.
Elongated lead bullets can extend the useful range beyond 120 yards but in order to shoot accurately the use of a scope will help greatly.
Some lead bullets can be shot quite accurately but others will often shoot poorly.
This brings up the problem of finding the one(s) that work well with your gun. After all, they are usually quite expensive and buying several different kinds can run into spending a lot.
There is also the chance that none of them will work well in your gun.
These guns are all different and what works well in Charlie's gun often will work poorly in John's gun, if you know what I mean.
In any case, if you intend to hunt with your muzzleloader, do take the time to find out what ammunition and powder load is the most accurate.
A poor shot will not kill a deer even if your using a modern high power rifle and muzzleloaders are no different even if they do shoot large projectiles.
The biggest problem with them is they loose energy (velocity) rather quickly so I don't recommend using them at ranges over 100-120 yards.
Most people who have learned to shoot with iron sights can shoot at these ranges with good accuracy but, IMO, at greater distances, using iron sights can make it difficult to keep the shots in the kill zone.
Elongated lead bullets can extend the useful range beyond 120 yards but in order to shoot accurately the use of a scope will help greatly.
Some lead bullets can be shot quite accurately but others will often shoot poorly.
This brings up the problem of finding the one(s) that work well with your gun. After all, they are usually quite expensive and buying several different kinds can run into spending a lot.
There is also the chance that none of them will work well in your gun.
These guns are all different and what works well in Charlie's gun often will work poorly in John's gun, if you know what I mean.
In any case, if you intend to hunt with your muzzleloader, do take the time to find out what ammunition and powder load is the most accurate.
A poor shot will not kill a deer even if your using a modern high power rifle and muzzleloaders are no different even if they do shoot large projectiles.
I went online (ebay) and bought some patches and wasn't paying attention and bought lubricated bore cleaning patches on accident. I guess I will use these to clean the hawken and my .410. I will be driving through Houston, Texas to go test this gun and sight it in. Who would sell the best patches for this gun, Bass Pro, Cabelas or Gander. Also, is it possible to upload a picture on here from an iPhone?
If you can find a store that sells cloth, go into it.
Tell the clerk you want some thick 100 percent pure cotton material called "Pillow ticking".
They might not have it but they might have matress ticking or a heavy cotton cloth that can be used to make pockets.
This material sometimes has blue or red stripes on it. It never has flowers or other designs that would be used for a shirt.
Buy 1/2 yard of it and take it home.
Most folks wash the cloth to get the starch (sizing) out of it and this can be done in a sink with a little soap.
Cut the material into some 1 1/4 inch squares and you've got all the patching you'll need.
Lubricate the patches with a commercial patch lube or with some cheap olive oil and your in business.
Tell the clerk you want some thick 100 percent pure cotton material called "Pillow ticking".
They might not have it but they might have matress ticking or a heavy cotton cloth that can be used to make pockets.
This material sometimes has blue or red stripes on it. It never has flowers or other designs that would be used for a shirt.
Buy 1/2 yard of it and take it home.
Most folks wash the cloth to get the starch (sizing) out of it and this can be done in a sink with a little soap.
Cut the material into some 1 1/4 inch squares and you've got all the patching you'll need.
Lubricate the patches with a commercial patch lube or with some cheap olive oil and your in business.
Well I had a chance to shoot it and it was a success! Shot a really nice 75 yard group that would have been in the kill zone for a Texas Whitetail. We still had original instructions and it was a breeze. Also picked up a CVA 209 Wolf to teach friends
Glad to hear your having fun with your gun.
We don't talk about those other modern things on our site.
It's not that we're snobs but it prevents a lot of verbal wars from starting.
Keep us posted on your experiences with your sidelock gun.
We don't talk about those other modern things on our site.
It's not that we're snobs but it prevents a lot of verbal wars from starting.
Keep us posted on your experiences with your sidelock gun.
vvlbs;
Are u sure they are patches just for "cleaning" or are they lubed patches that also help keep the gun clean? U may be able to shoot those... Especially if they were closely "sized" for your bore -- reread the info on them carefully.
Are u sure they are patches just for "cleaning" or are they lubed patches that also help keep the gun clean? U may be able to shoot those... Especially if they were closely "sized" for your bore -- reread the info on them carefully.
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