need some info on my cherokee

[shadz]

i just picked it up in trade (i allways wanted to kill me some tree rats with a lil rifle) ok the things i would like to know are
1. what is the twist of the rifleing?
2. what size ball should i use .311 or .321?
3. what would be an good charge of FFFg powder both for accuracy and send ol bushytail to demize?
4. what years did Tc make em

thank you in advace

 

[Haleh]

Hi Shadz,
I have a cherokee .32 that I recently have been shooting.
1. I beleive it is a 1 in 48 twist.
2. I have been using .310 hornady ball with ticking and spit.
3. I have shot from 20 to 35 grains of 3f goex in 5 grain increments. 20 grains seems to give me a good group(4 holes touching at 25 yards) with less fouling.
4.I have had mine for over 20 years. Don't remember exactly when I got it.

It's a great and fun little gun to shoot.

 

[Wes/Tex]

The Cherokee in .32 and the Seneca in .36 have 1-30" twist. This faster twist allows their use with small powder charges. The Cherokee will shoot accurately with as little as 10 grains of FFFg powder...that's only 700 shots per pound of powder! Talk about economy.

 

[Java Man]

10grains is probably pleny to take out a tree rat up to 50yds too. :thumbsup:

I bought a Cherokee in 1985. Sold it a few years later. Bad idea. Now have a Crockett rifle for my Son. He's using .310's and about 20gr 3F.

Good Luck.

 

[shadz]

1 in 30 twist? wow .what was there plan?what was there plan to use sabots or miniballs? did they make em? cause i was realy wqanted to got oldschool pach and roundball.and with 10 gr.will it be enof or will it act like a pea out of a peashooter?

 

[musketman]

1 in 30 twist? wow .what was there plan?what was there plan to use sabots or miniballs? did they make em? cause i was realy wqanted to got oldschool pach and roundball.and with 10 gr.will it be enof or will it act like a pea out of a peashooter?

Even will 5 grains of powder, a gun can kill (if close enough), one should never underestimate the small bore's capabilities...

I used 15 grains of FFFg in my Cherokee and loved it, that was the only gun I ever regret selling...

It has a nice feel to it, plus you can carry it all day without effort, a good thing when hinting squirrels on the rolling foothills of the Appalachians...

I do so wished T/C offered their Cherokee in a flintlock, alas, it was never to be...

 

[shadz]

i understand that.but what i'm trying to get @ is what would be a good economical load with the power to Consistently and humanely take tree rats out to 50 yards with the TC cherokee.

 

[ryoung14]

What they've been saying, shadz....10 to 15grs. of fffg or Pyro P will kill them as dead as they need to be and with better accuracy than heavy loads. Plus you can get away with .010 patches which make loading very easy. Use 20 grs. if you really want to hear it CRACK! Above that, accuracy suffers.

Can't understand why TC advocated loads of 30 grs. and heavier in the little gun. Loads that heavy seem totally out of place in a gun that small.
Bob

 

[burch]

My Cherokee happens to be in almost mint condition. I`ve fired it about ten times. When I bought it, it still had the factory grease in it. I used 15grns. of FFF Goex and a 310. ball and it shot shot very tight at 25yrds. Also they do make a bullet for it. I have some and if you send me an e-mail with your address i`ll send some to try out.
Burch

 

[musketman]

i understand that.but what i'm trying to get @ is what would be a good economical load with the power to Consistently and humanely take tree rats out to 50 yards with the TC cherokee.

There is 7000 grains to the pound...

15 grains of FFFg powder = 466 shots per pound of powder

.310 roundball weighs 45 grains = 155 roundballs per pound of lead

This is extreme economics, let us use a .50 caliber rifle as a comparison to show you your savings...

90 grains of FFFg powder = 77 shots per pound of powder

.490 roundball weighs 177 grains = 39 roundballs per pound of lead

 

[shadz]

i'm going to start @ 10gr work up maybe 20gr ....it amases me that 10 to 15gr. of powder it all that it take to get the job done.....I'll let you know how i fare.if it ever stops pouring around here (NEPA) thanks for all your help also 1 more quick ? i mic'd out some 0 buck this morning to .315 would it hurt me or my gun to use
it as i have 2 quart massion jars of or should i stick to the bullets i bought

 

[paulvallandigham]

Shadtz: Why not use a chronograph to check the velocities with these " small " powder charges, and settle the matter for all times? That 310 round ball is very light in weight, typically less than 90 grains. It just doesn't take much powder to get that going in a gee willies fashion. That is the charm of using that small caliber in Black Powder rifles.

Best wishes. I know you are going to like that gun. Just stay away from those 30 grain loads. Those may be okay for a .36, but they are even stout loads in that caliber, too!

 

[Rebel]

Actually they weigh closer to 40 grs. About like a .22 LR.

 

[Wes/Tex]

1 in 30 twist? wow .what was there plan?what was there plan to use sabots or miniballs? did they make em? cause i was realy wqanted to got oldschool pach and roundball.and with 10 gr.will it be enof or will it act like a pea out of a peashooter?

That was their plan! Not sure how soon after the guns came out that they started marketing molds but maxi slugs in all their calibers were available for a while. The small .32 & .36 bores shot patched balls well with smaller charges and the maxi style equally accurately. The molds have been out of production many years now but they show up occasionally on sites like Auctionarms or Gunbroker. These sites also offerslugs cast from these molds in 100 packs. Might be worth trying bag full to see if they are what you really want before starting a treasure hunt for a mold.

As for performance, let me list some info from Sam Fadala's Blackpowder Loading Manual. The balls get 1120fps from 10 grains FFFg, which is similar to .22 Long Rifle. 20 grains get 1649fps; 30 grains get 1871fps and 40 grains gets 1919fps. The 10 and 20 grain loads rated his "target accuracy" codes. The Mazis ran 30 to 50 grains of FFFg drifted along at 1399fps, 1612 fps and 1733 fps accordingly. These lift the hunting levels from truly small game up to the javelina, coyote, etc...but not deer, still too little energy produced. The small balls only weight 45 grains while the maxis only weigh 103 grains, so they will dump velocity rapidly, even in maxi form. Still, they are fine small game guns.

 

[shadz]

back from the range first let me say i'm i love.what a fun little gun my 5 shot groups after sight in were 1.16avg. @ 50 yards (even though the front sight covers over 2"@50yards)with 15gr. of fffg and they all penetrated over 1" of pine and still flatened out in my trap. my 12yo and 13yo loved it and so did my wife lol as far as a chronograph goes mine has been on loan for way to long and i'm being avoided by my brother in law as is the norm. now i need to find out if there is a tang sight for it and a bead front to tighten the groups alittle more not that my groups did not suprise me but....thanks guys

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

Are there screws or screw positions on the top flat of the barrel? There would be filled holes or screws if the rifle originally had a T/C type rear sight. Either way, it's a pretty little rifle.

 

[Walks Alone]

There are holes D&T for open rear sights with filler screws, but I think all rifles from the factory would have them regardless of which sight type the rifle was shipped with.

They are great little rifles - same with the Seneca. Too bad sales were not high enough for TC to retool for them after the fire.