My next/last rifle.

[Scout1]

I'm giving strong consideration to ordering one more rifle (my last?). My current inventory consists of a Lyman .50 cal Great Plains Rifle, percussion. And a Ted Fellows Beaver Lodge .36 cal percussion. I pretty much settled on a Tennessee Valley Muzzleloading rifle.

So now the hard part:

1. Style, their Tennessee or Southern?

2. Lock, flint or cap?

3. Caliber,.36 or .50? I want to stay with one of these two since I'm already set up for these.

My usage will be general use not necessarily big game hunting. More of a woodsbumming gun.

Any guidance you gents can give me regarding my 3 question areas will be much appreciated.

Jim

 

[Old Timer 48]

Myself, I would go with the Tennessee, 50Cal, flint.

I have a Early Lancaster coming from them. Should be shipping any day now. 50Cal., flint.

 

[Gene L]

Just took delivery of a Southern style rifle. I asked about the difference; the TN rifle has more drop and the butt plate is deeper and narrower. Which is why I went Southern. Wait time is about 7 months, but they do a very good job.

 

[FrontierMuzzleloading]

go big or go home. 54cal :thumbsup:

 

[azmntman]

Not a hunting rifle? flintlock .36

 

[Patocazador]

Go for the .36, not enough of those around.

(Then maybe your old .36 will be for sale. :grin: )

 

[Col. Batguano]

just be aware that 45's and 50's are the most widespread calibers to find balls and patches for. With a 36, you're going to have to plan ahead more. A 36 is also going to be more sensitive to smaller changes in powder volume, and be more persnikity about shooting FFg or FFFg in it than the 50 is. That said, all things considered, and with that in mind, I'd vote for the 36. There's something that's just "cool" about small calibers.

 

[Scout1]

Go for the .36, not enough of those around.

(Then maybe your old .36 will be for sale. :grin: )

Haha, nice try but no chance of me selling that one. Heck I've carried that one more miles then anything else in my past. And that's counting M-14's and M-16'so.

Jim

 

[Cowboy]

In my humble opinion and if I had the options you listed above:

I would leave the style totally up to you and would only add if it were at all possible I would shoulder both types and see which one fits you better. If you don't have that option, I would pick the one that is most pleasing to your eye.

You already have two Percussion rifles now and you don't have a Flintlock yet. Also you mentioned that this might be the last muzzleloader you purchase. So my answer would be a very easy decision to make. Get a Flintlock!

As far as caliber? Depends on your wallet, availability of both calibers. Also you mentioned it is not going to be a hunting rifle so the larger caliber would not be a factor unless you did hunt squirrel's. You do have to consider what your average distance is going to be for your shots. The .50 will shoot further and will not be effected by wind as much as your .36 will.

Just a few things to consider before you make your choice.

Good luck with your decision my friend! Keep us posted on what you decide.

Respectfully, Cowboy :thumbsup:

 

[hanshi]

I'd go flintlock and never look back. I have both the SMR and the TN rifle and I much prefer the Southern style over the Tn style. Also I'd consider the .36. If that doesn't ring your bell go .45.

 

[will5a1]

Not many Beaver Lodge rifles out there, at least I never see one for sale, and I hear Ted Fellows (or is it Fellowes ?) was a good builder.

On topic - get a .45 flinter, and why limit yourself and say it will be the last? Why not, down the road, a nice smoothbore, maybe a NW trade gun, and everyone needs a .58 half stock plains rifle. And a Bess, everyone needs a Bess, and a three band Springfield or Enfield to shoot minnies out of. Perhaps a nice percussion double. You need more.

 

[excess650]

I prefer flint, but they REQUIRE real BP. Calibers larger than 36 allow you to stretch the range a bit.

 

[Billnpatti]

For your stated purposes, I like your caliber choice. It is a very good caliber for small game and varmints or just plinking. It is economical in that it will take less powder and lead to feed it. You already have larger calibers for hunting larger game so I like the smaller caliber for what you are wanting to do with it.

As for style, only you can determine that. It is like asking someone which flavor of ice cream you should buy or whether you should have turkey or ham for Thanksgiving. It's nice when you can have both but when it comes to picking one over the other, it is all about what YOU like best. Ideally, you should hold and handle both rifles in question to see which feels best and shoulders best for you. When you can't do that, if you have a friend who has one of the rifles in question or a similar style, ask if you can handle it to see how it feels in your hands. If he agrees to that, then push your luck and ask if he will let you fire it.

In the end, I like your choice of caliber but the choice of style is entirely up to you. One recommendation I would make is to get a light weight A or B weight swamped barrel. They look and handle so much better than a straight barrel and are lighter in weight. Either of the guns that you are considering is a very nice gun, I don't think you would go wrong with either one.

BTW, I think you need a flintlock. You already have caplocks and everyone needs at least one flintlock.

 

[Billnpatti]

I just read over my reply and saw that I didn't specify which of your two choices of caliber I was talking about. I am recommending the .36 caliber over the .50 for the reasons that I stated.

 

[Gene L]

Me, too. My Southern rifle is in .36 caliber, and flintlock.

 

[Scout1]

So far most of your recommendations are coinciding with what I had in mind before asking for your thoughts.

Lock: Flint, because I've always wanted to have one and like you've pointed out I already have 2 Caplocks.

Caliber: .36, I already was leaning towards the 36 as I have found down through the years that this is a very fun and versatile ball. I have used it for everything from plinking at pine cones up through coyotes. And squirrel, cottontail and jackrabbits.

Style: Without having the ability to actually handle the two models that I'm interested in, I'm leaning towards the Tennessee model. If I could just walk into TVM and handle and purchase on the spot then I may be tempted to making a road trip. But for now I'm thinking the Tennessee.

Please keep your thoughts coming as it's nice to read what other people think.

Jim

 

[Treestalker]

If you have any possibility of shooting anything overhead or up a tree, you don't want too much drop in your stock; in a .36 I'd recommend the Southern stock (less drop) In a .50 I'd use a Tennessee stock (more drop) for flatter shooting. Just a thought. I'm collecting parts to build a long barreled .36 pistol. (no drop unless I drop it, Ha!) It should be a lot of fun to shoot and hunt with and easy to carry around. George.

 

[robinsroost]

Scout, If I was choosing for my self, I would opt for a .40 or .45, since I all ready have a .32, a .50 and a .54 but since you want another .36 or .50 I would go with a, flintlock, because everyone needs at least one flintlock, SMR in .36. SMR just because I like the way they look, and a .36 because they shoot so nice and you can use .00 or .000 buckshot in them. Keep yer powder dry.......robin :hmm:

 

[Col. Batguano]

The other thing to think about is the shape and angle of the comb. The sharper the angle to the BP and the narrower and more angular the shape, the greater chance that it be some kind of a cheek slapper in heavier loads and calibers. That's part of the reason German Jaegers and English sporting rifles have the reputation for being sweet shooters in large calibers. Wide butt plates help there too.

If you look at modern target and sporting guns the comb is often parallel to the bore, and modern scopes permit it being raised higher than low iron sights do, and make cheek weld and placement more forgiving. Higher iron sights (like on Lancasters) allow less drop at the comb than low sights (like on Lehighs). Higher sights are also much easier to see and shoot well too (in circumstances when you can take your time to aim rather than just point and shoot like on running game--not recommended though it does happen).

As far as being your "last rifle" goes, that isn't anything that can be confirmed by anyone except your estate's heirs.

 

[Scout1]

I prefer flint, but they REQUIRE real BP. Calibers larger than 36 allow you to stretch the range a bit.

Since I've never had a flintlock before could you expand on the usage of BP. My local stores only carry Pyrodex, so that's what I shoot.

Jim