Newbie Here. I need gun advice.

[imdarren]

As mentioned, I'm new to this, and would love some recomendations on a good Gun MFG.
I have a CVA Hawken .50 cal, and the BP bug.
I know enough to know that CVA is not the best quality, and wan't my next purchase to be a gun of really good quality.
I really like the Traditions Crockett .32 cal percussion rifle.
Is it possible for you folks to list some mfg's, and teach me about the better brands / quality? I don't want to minimize / flame the quality of the rifles of the folks on this board, but at the same time, need to understand the diffrence between the VW, the Audi, and the Porsche.
I can't affod some of the custom stuff Ive seen on here, so lets just stick with the reasonable stuff the majority of us average folks can afford.
Thanks a bunch!

Darren

 

[jim gray]

I know enough to know that CVA is not the best quality, and wan't my next purchase to be a gun of really good quality

That's a pretty tall order, as we all have different opinions of what constitutes a quality gun. Some people here probably do quite well with a CVA, but I don't have any first hand experience with CVAs. From what I've read here Traditions may be equal to or slightly better than CVA in quality. The tradtions that I've had were of reasonable quality for the price, with the exception of the PA Pellet Fintlock that I bought for my daughter. It was a disappointment in the quality department. It had a horrendous trigger pull and the front sight fell off, but with the help of the forum members and the quality department at Traditions I got those things straightened out.

The gun you want will depend a lot on what you want to do with it. The Traditions Crocket Rifle will limit you to small game hunting and plinking/target shooting. It is in no way an adequate caliber for medium or large game. If you want a reasonably priced production gun for these these purposes, you will pretty much find that this is about the only thing available.

If you want a big game gun, in my opinion the best buys in muzzleloaders are the Lyman Trade Rifle and the T/C Renegade. Neither is overly costly and in my opinion are great guns for the money. You might want to look at the Cabela's Hawken as well since it is made by the same company that produces guns for Lyman.

The best gun for you depends on you, though. What do you like? What do you want to use it for? How much are you willing to spend? What do you expect from it?

 

[Herb]

You might like to look at Austin and Halleck Mountain Rifles. .50 cal only, flint or percussion, 32" barrels, really nice wood. 1 in 28 or 1 in 66 inch twists. Cost $539 in percussion and $589 in flint. I have not shot nor even seen one, but they look good to me. www.austinhalleck.com.

 

[imdarren]

HERB ! !
Those Halleck Mountain Rifles look great!

Well, I'm not really a hunter. Yet anyway.
I'm mostly into just shootong / plinking / Collecting.
I already have a CVA Hawken 50 cal, so I though i'd try somthing diffrent. Since I guess I'm just learning, I should keep the cost under $400 (roughly +/- $100) or so.
I just thought the 32cal looked fun. Not too many made that I can tell. I wouldnt really use it for hunting, just fun plinking.
I guess I did sort of ask a wide open question. Just looking for general direction. I don't want to spend good money on junk, and regret it later.

 

[Slamfire]

Here is something that is kind of different.

Underhammers

There are somepictures in the underhammer thread. :results:

 

[WV_Hillbilly]

FWIW, I like the Lyman Great Plains rifle in .54cal. Great looking and super accurate. The price is higher than a entry level gun, but not into the custom gun price range.

There are a good many USED T/C Rifles out there--if you look. The Hawken and Renegade Rifles are good choices and can be had for as little as 40% of the new purchase price.

It still depends on what you want the rifle for: Hunting, Targets, Plinking, Match Shooting, or just plain fun.

Some calibers and types of rifles may not be avaiable in some combinations. Then too, some are not available in certain geographic locations. The CW replicas are nice and sometimes reasonably priced, but they do "kick" a bunch.

Make sure that no matter what you get, that you take time to familiarize yourself with that gun intimately. So could you throw us a few more clues as to what you really are lookng for???

Looking is part of the fun too!
WV_Hillbilly

 

[Rebel]

The Crockett .32 cal. is a real fun gun to shoot, as well as being cheap to shoot. Also, they are extremely accurate. A good little gun for the money.

 

As mentioned, I'm new to this, and would love some recomendations on a good Gun MFG.
I have a CVA Hawken .50 cal, and the BP bug.
I know enough to know that CVA is not the best quality, and wan't my next purchase to be a gun of really good quality.
I really like the Traditions Crockett .32 cal percussion rifle.
Is it possible for you folks to list some mfg's, and teach me about the better brands / quality? I don't want to minimize / flame the quality of the rifles of the folks on this board, but at the same time, need to understand the diffrence between the VW, the Audi, and the Porsche.
I can't affod some of the custom stuff Ive seen on here, so lets just stick with the reasonable stuff the majority of us average folks can afford.
Thanks a bunch!

Darren

In my humble opinion, I would probably pick the Pedersoli "Blue Ridge" rifle as close to the eqivilant of an "Audi"!!

I would also reccomend .45 calibur for small game and "plink'n", tho it will handle bigger stuff if you change yore mind about deer hunt'n!!

Pedersoli makes a better quality weapon then CVA or Traditions, but is less expensive then the semi-custom rifles thet TVM offers.

YMHS
rollingb

 

[Big John]

Just my opinion,1)T/C and Lyman rifles (tie)2)Austin/Halleck 3)CVA 4)Traditions Note:Locks,springs, :m2c: barrel land depth and twist should rule your choices.

 

[Zoobear]

I own two 32 cals and they are a blast to shoot! The Crockett rifle is a nice gun but the triggers are not the highest quality. I also like the Lyman GPR in 54 cal.
Look around and there are some good deals out there. My GPR was $269.00 in kit form. :m2c:

 

[cougarmagnum]

Lyman and TC!! The Pedersoli's are quality, but somewhat pricey. For a new guy like you, Lyman or TC are top choices. You can upgrade when the bug really bites, which it will! Once you smell black, you never go back!

 

[SCATTERSHOT]

You can't go wrong with a T/C in my humble opinion. They are made in the USA, have a lifetime warranty, are tough as nails, and plenty accurate to boot. If you want another caliber, you can swap barrels in about 10 seconds and they are available from T/C, as well as aftermarket suppliers.

As to the specific gun, I would go with the hawken in .50 percussion. The .50 is a good all around choice, and if you want to sell it later there is more of a market than say a .45. Here in Colorado you can hardly give a .45 away.

Anyway, that's my .02. As you progress in the sport (as it gets more and more of a hold on you) you may want to try a flinter or a smoothbore matchlock, I don't know, but for your purposes, I think the T/C percussion Hawken in .50 caliber is as good a place to start as any, and better than most.

Good luck!
Gene

 

[MattWisc]

Here is something that is kind of different.
Underhammers
There are some pictures in the underhammer thread. :results:

I agree with Slamfire, You can't go wrong :imo: with an Underhammer. I've be using H&A Underhammers for 34 years. They are dependable, accurate, affordable, and yes compared to the "Pretty" rifles, they may look ugly to some.

 

[Donny]

There are tons of discussions/opinions about makes of guns, in the archives, ::

 

[jdstrang]

Hey, IM:

Branch out! Take the plunge! Go to some gun shows and find yourself a Zouave (Remington 1863) repro, preferably with the name "Zoli" on the barrel, and discover the joys of the .58 minie. You can find 'em for $300 or less, and it'll be fun, fun, fun! :imo:

 

[merdean]

CVA may not be the best guns but I have been shooting them in 1 caliber or another for over 25 years. At one time CVA made rifles with interchangable barrels. .32/.45 and .36/.50, I own and shoot both. I like the .32 for small game/plinking. The .36 is good for the same reasons but takes a little more powder and lead. I have never used the .45 for anything except targets. This is not near as accurate as the smaller bores. The .50 I have never fired. I have other .50s that I like too well to change. My meat guns are both .54. One is a CVA Big Bore Mountain Rifle. It shoots PRB and TC Maxi Balls very well. My other meat gun is a home built. It is a PRB only. To say that CVA does not build good guns is not real accurate. My guns are. I have never had a problem with springs or locks. I know others have. I may be the lucky guy in that department. One drawback..sights. Very poor except on the .54.
So, my advice.........Lyman or TC. They just look better. :results: :m2c: