Need help choosing a muzzleloader (Part II)

[abaron]

OK! I didn't realize realize I was going to renerate this many responses. Anyway, I'm an experienced hunter, 20+ years, but have never picked up a muzzleloader in my life.
I will be hunting in the hill country of Texas, lots of deer.

I wish I would have provided a little more information for all these inquiring minds.

Thanks for all the replies! I've learned a lot.

Now! I'm looking for a 50 cal. inline rifle, accurate, easy to clean, and affordable. I guess you coulde say " I want my cake and eat it too!" Some that I've looked at were the H&R Sidekick, Traditions Pro, Knight Revolution/ Vision and the T/C Omega.

I have a good friend who has offered to order my gun at wholesale. Now, I just have to tell him what gun to order.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Rebel]

Ok, since no one else has brought it up yet, we are not allowed to discuss inlines on this forum. It is for trtaditional type muzzleloaders only. You can get a sidelock MLer with the same rate of twist as one of those other guns. Will do the same thing and look a lot nicer too. Check the classifieds here. There are 2 for sale that have 1-32" twist barrels, but they are .54 cal.

 

[Halftail]

How about starting out with a nice flintlock.You'll not be sorry you did. :imo:

 

[MikeChapin]

I would even go one step further and say use a patched round ball. I have taken all the local beasties except Moose and Black Bear with a PRB. I haven't drawn a Moose tag and haven't chased Black Bear since I was a kid in Oregon.

All have gone down with one shot within 100 yards, most within 50.

 

[davy]

John Hinnant wanted me to post this article he wrote for you to peruse ... useful info for selecting barrels etc.. ::

http://www.freewebs.com/davyslocker/Greetings%20Allbarrel%202.doc


Davy

 

[threefingersjack]

Go with a good ole sidelock,you won't be sorry.I know people at work who have inlines,drop in pellets,throw in a sabbot,adjust the scope...you know.To me ,if you go that route might as well stick with a modern rifle.It's alot more fun to take game the way our forefathers did.Just my opinion, good luck to you either way.

 

[glazer1972]

I too think you should get a sidelock. If you are going to hunt with an inline you might as well stick with a cartridge rifle.

 

[aflatlander]

I guess you coulde say " I want my cake and eat it too!"

People on this forum don't want to read about any muzzleloader idea, concept, improvement, invention, etc. that wasn't fully developed (and popular) at least 150 (maybe 250) years ago. Buy what you want and have fun hunting with your friends; that's what is most important. The old vs. new muzzleloader debate you ran into isn't going to be settled so just have fun with your friends, keep the game ranger happy, and ignore the rest. Good luck with your hunt.

 

[CrackStock]

I hope that you enjoy successful hunting with whatever you buy.

This particular site is focused on the traditionally styled muzzleloaders. We really prefer sidelocks, underhammers, matchlocks or wheellocks. Most of us really want the connection with some period of our history and enjoy the challenge of the older guns or older styled guns. Some of these old guns are quite capable of accurately shooting at long range and others need the hunter to show a lot of skill at getting close.

If you want to learn about finely shaped wooden stocks and the joys of getting a flintlock to drop your deer, we're here for ya!

YMHS,
CrackStock

 

[pennsyltucky]

out of curiousity, what makes u feel that u need to get an inline just because u are new to the sport? i started when i was 12 with a t/c hawken .50 flint. i bet u can do it now that u know how to hunt. u can shoot sabots or bullets or round balls outta the t/c. and i know for a fact it will shoot sabots reliably out to 150 yards. i used "redhot" sabots years ago with 110-125 grains of fff and could shoot 3-4" groups at 150 yards.... with open sights..... inlines are no better. but u cant shoot balls outta the inline. so it is quite expensive to go plinkin with one.

im not an inline hater, but id suggest u take a real long look at ur alternatives and go shoot a few flinters and inlines before u decide.

p.s. if u do go the dreaded inline route, get the t/c... shshshhhhh

 

[WV_Hillbilly]

IF I may, I'd like to use this as an example, but only to make a point. You all can go and buy what you want, what looks good, what you can afford, et cetera... I'm not going to try to tell ANYONE what to do with their money and their time--beyond what makes sense to me anyway.

This illustrates exactly why the manufacturers are designing, building, and selling inlines rather than sidelock guns. If an experienced hunter is "automatically" considering a "modern" Inline... it's because the publicity and "reputation" of said muzzleloaders have swayed the thinking of the hunting community into believing that a sidelock muzzleloader is outdated and inaccurate. Far from the truth, the manufacturers are hoping to see a higher priced Inline design to the "one-time buyers". They just want to turn a buck (dollar) and don't really care about the long term possibilities. I see the same thing happening with electronics, computers, just about everything that is made is an attempt to pocket the quick sell quick profit with a "who cares about tomorrow" kind of attitude. I won't get into the real cause of that type of mentality, but if you think about it long enough, I'm sure most of you can figure it out.

So now, instead of spending $69 on a CVA Bobcat and the rest of a $100 bill on powder, balls, patches, powder measure and a flask... we are "expected" to spend a $500 bill on the "latest & greatest" Inline, pelletized substitutes, saboted, match grade bullets (that I've seen costing up to $4 each!), and have every possible piece of accessory equipment that is known to be made.

I for one, don't have that kind of financial resources to spend--just to decide whether muzzleloading hunting is for me or not. With the way things are headed, I'll probably be spending most of that $500 on luxury items like food and clothing and gasoline (and don't even get me started about gasoline NOT being a necessity when living rurally) I think I better just stop there before getting into rampage mode.

Choose & Spend Wisely... Shoot Safely!
WV_Hillbilly

 

[BLAHMAN]

Some of those inlines are cheap, under a $100.00! They are cheap because they didn't cost very much to make. I also wonder how much of those cheap inlines were manufactured in the States and how much was manufactured someplace else (China?)

I wonder what the folks like Knight and CVA are gonna do when they saturate the market with their inlines. What are they gonna cook up next?