Ok, I'll share my experience with Pedersoli. I purchased my Kentucky rifle new from them in '91 or '92 for $250. It was my first flintlock after years of percussion shooting. I'll begin by saying I like the gun, and I've often heard Pedersoli has the reputation of being one of the best, if not the best, manufacturer of mass-produced factory bp firearms. Now for the critique. Although called a Kentucky, it is a generic muzzleloader, and not a good example of an American longrifle--barrel length is only 35", walnut stock, no cheekpiece (that can be painful with heavier loads)--overall appearance just does not conform exactly to the longrifle. It takes a 1/2" flint--just too small--it usually took me two flints to make it through a 30 to 35 shot match, and that is knapping each flint several times. I always felt the touchole was too small--lots of flashes in the pan when you weren't toying with the flint. Accuracy was not too bad, but a factory gun with a 1:48 twist is not a match winner--at least not compared to the Douglas, Colerain, and Rayl barrels on my other flinters. My biggest beef was the lock--horrendous trigger pull and I probably messed it up myself when I took it apart to polish the tumbler notches. After that, the cock always had a lot of sideways play. During shooting, the little drift pin going through the stirrup would work itself out, and usually the mainspring would expand, leading to lock disassembly to finish the match. I finally ended up ordering a replacement lock from Beauchamp--back to the horrendous trigger pull. I decided not to disassemble the new lock to lighten the trigger pull. I ended up firing it for one session, cleaned it, put it away, and have not fired it since. By contrast, my Chambers lock uses a 7/8" flint, and I've gotten in excess of 90 shots with one flint (knapping of course, but not until well into a session with that flint). Once I learned to deal with it, it wasn't so bad. Like I said, overall I like their product, probably better than most other mass-produced guns, but I feel far outclassed by a semi-custom muzzleloader.
Ron