Most versitile cap lock?

Here's a fun thing to kick around.
WHAT IS THE MOST VERSITILE CAP LOCK YOU HAVE SHOT?

I chanced into a bargan on a Lyman Deerstalker last year.
24" barrel, in caliber .50, issued factory $5 sights, passable but not great, with a 1:48 twist rate unfired for $140 bucks.
Now I've never been a fan of the 1:48 "do everything but not very well" twist rate. All of my experience with the 1:48 had been with T.C. rifles and they would leave much to be desired in the accuracy department with HUNTING charges of powder, say 90 grain and more with round ball or bullet.
This Lyman surprised me.
With light charges of 50 grains of 2fg it will one hole group all shots at 25 yards and 1.5" at 50 yards with the roundball.
With bullets, including the T.C. Maxiball, it will group 2.5" at 100 yards with 100 grains of 2fg. And without moving the sights one bit.
It shot every bullet sabot combination I tried under 3" at 100 with open sights except for the very heavy (500 grain I think) White .501 bullet. It grouped that bullet into a nine inch pattern, but eveything else I fed that little carbine shot extremely well.

:applause:

 

[jtmattison]

I have a .50 caliber CVA Bobcat I purchased as a starter gun for shooting sidelocks.
It is actually a really good shooter for a $54 rifle.
It shoots roundball really well with 80-90 grains of Pyrodex RS and shoots 370 grain Maxi-balls excellent with the same charges. I get 1-2 inch groups at 50 yards with the semi-buckhorn sights.
I recently moved up to a .54 caliber Lyman Trade Rifle and boy is it a shooter!
I'm still experimenting with loads but it shoots roundball like a dream with 80 grains of Pyrodex RS and is shoots 300 and 380 grain REAL's really good with the same charge. I used the buckhorn sights at first but now I have a Lyman 57SML peep on the rear and a Lyman 37ML on the front. The peep really helped my tighten the groups.
Check out my posts on the photos section and see my targets.
I'm going to feed it some saboted bullets this weekend just to see how it shoots.
So far that Trade Rifle is the best shooter I own out of my small collection of three BP rifles.
I guess I forgot to say that my barrels on my sidelocks are 1:48 twist.

Huntin

 

[roundball]

So far, every TC Hawken caplock (and flint) 1:48" barrel I've owned has been excellent...a couple did better with different powder and powder charges, but all that I have are very accurate once that's figured out...Example:
Using various charges of Goex FFFg, Hornady Great Plains bullets were extremely accurate but the best group size I could get with TC Maxi-Hunters was 4-5 inches at 50yds...
switched to 80-100grns of Goex FFg and immediately started getting cloverleaf groups with Maxi-Hunters at 50yds.
They all shoot round balls accurately using OxYoke wonder wads and .018" prelubed pillow ticking patches

 

[Crow-Feather]

My CVA Kentucky kit that I bought as a starter rifle could take the toe of a tick at 50 yards. What a sweet shhotin rifle!


C F

 

[2172]

got a Lyman deerstalker in lefthand and flint last Oct....I find it is a great shooter...since it is not period, I'm a little embarrassed to admit it is becoming my favorite, "go to" rifle....Hank

 

14 Bore English Sporting rifle. I used 30gr. pwoder for shoting snowshoe rabbits, 2 1/2 drams of 2 and 1 ounce of shot for flying game, and 1/2 cast ball for string cutting, (haven't seen a recipe in the cook book yet), able to shoot WW balls when pure lead is hard to find, capable of killing any game in this country or any other for that matter & can be loaded lightly for deer hunting or to the hilt for Cape Buff or Elephant with hardened bullets, or a mere 5 to 8 drams for Moose out to 200yds or so.
: The shot patterns just fine to about 35yds.for grouse on the wing or ducks over deeks(with bismuth shot).
: A double 14bore with smooth bore on the left with rifle on the right would have been even better.
: This, of course, was Lt. James Forsythe's suggestion back in 1860 and holds trye today.

Daryl

 

Daryl:
Didja haveta mention a 14 bore English sporting rifle? Didja huh?
I ain't got one and now I got the hankerin' for a really BIG bore rifle. Dagnabit man didja havta say all that?
Now I'm slobbering. A 14 bore!
Would that be about .68 caliber or thereabouts?
What in the world is a 1/2 ball and what is "string cutting"? ::

 

[RussB]

What in the world is a 1/2 ball and what is "string cutting"? ::


Me too, what Maxi said.
Russ

 

[blckhrn]

I seem to recall a reference to two half balls being connected with wire that seperate and pretty much carve up anything in their path. My Dad had three 8 lb. Rev war cannon balls, one round, one two halves connected by 3/4 square stock about 14-16" long (like a dumbell) and a third similar but each had a 1 foot link connecting the two which would open up to about 2 feet. These were used to tear the rigging off ships. Used to practice shot put in high school track with the round one. The others weren't regulation.

 

[blckhrn]

Now I gotta know what WW ball is?

 

[musketman]

Now I gotta know what WW ball is?

Wheel Weights (WW) off of tires...

It is a lead/tin alloy that is harder than pure lead but easier to come by, in most cases...

Chain Shot

Heavy balls joined by a chain. By elevating the guns, the crew aimed chain shot at the enemy's rigging, hoping it would tangle and tear it down. Lucky shots even brought masts down.

 

[blckhrn]

They'd even use the wave action to elevate LOF. French were known for this tactic. The English went for the decks andgun decks. I'll have to show you a pic of the cannon shot I have, not a chain but 3/4 bar making up the link.

While we're on the topic of cannon, my hometown museum has a cannon ball that was taken from a tree up herabouts (CNY) when Lincoln was riding through on a train. I don't think they were shooting at him, I believe it was an attempt at a salute :no:. Three cathouses here when the canal was in use, lotta drinkin' goin' on back then.

Maybe you could tell me how far north the war got, that could maybe be the record.

 

[cayugad]

Subject: Re: Most versitile cap lock? I am taking for granted you mean, that I own or have shot.

This would be my T/C Renegade. It will shoot round ball excellent. It will shoot REALS, buffalo bullets, maxi ball and hunter, and even sabots although not as well as I would like. This is a rifle that even though is over 20 years old, shoots as good today as the first day I shot it after I built it from a kit.