Rifle or Smoothbore

[hawkeye1755]

I know the question is not fair but what do you prefer? Your rifle or your smoothbore. :hmm:
With my Brown Bess i had aloot of fun. 120gr 3f swiss 2 that was a real charge.Most of my friends shoot only one time with my bess. :rotf:
But my normal charge was 80gr 2f swiss 3.I hit not much with the bess.
With my rifle i can hit a man-size target up to 150 m.Tomorrow we drive to in army shooting-range.There we can shoot at targets 400 m away. :shocked2:
But i think that's too far.I will try 200m to 250m. I hope that i hit something. :hmm:
:hatsoff:

 

[Swampman]

I really enjoy small game hunting with smoothbore guns. Loaded with #4 shot they make for a very enjoyable morning on the river. "Buck-n-ball" loads (or just loaded with a round ball) make them very effective on large game.

 

[No Deer]

I much prefer the smoothbore. It is easier to load and clean, and I am not likely to shoot at anything, not even targets, at 250 m or more. For hunting everything I have taken has been less than 30 yards, so the smoothbore does just fine for me. I can also use it for big game, or small game and fowling. If I was going to be shooting long ranges, a rifle would be my choice, but since I only shoot close, the smoothie is the what I want.

 

[Wart]

Personally, I prefer the smoothbore - it does the job of both.
I've got a 50 Lancaster rifle, flinter that I haven't shot for several years now that I'm using my 62 smoothbore. :thumbsup:

 

[CrackStock]

I like my smoothbore, but my smallbore rifle is my favorite. The ability to hit right where I want the ball to go still gives me a childlike thrill.

CS

 

[bpollock_sr]

Your right .It's not a fair question. Most of the shoots held around here are set up for rifle shooters so they get most of my attention,but I realy love my 16ga smoothie. It's lighter than most of my rifles, is deadly with rnd ball out to 75yds, which is plenty around here, and loaded with shot will take all small game ,including turkeys.What more could I ask for?

 

[Stumpkiller]

For many years (like 12) my primary shooting of any firearm was with a smoothbore Bess. Now it's a flint longrifle. I have to say that, in my hands, the claim that a smoothbore can "do it all" is kind of a stretch. Yes, you can load a tight, single ball and take a deer. Yes, you can load #6 shot and knock squirrels out of branches. Yes, you can smear motionless rabbits and very occasionally roll a moving one. Wing shooting? Forget it. I was 0 for 40 most Falls in the grouse woods.

I have a much lighter and handier 28" barrel percussion shotgun that closes that gap immensley, but we're talking flintlocks here. I've never had the pleasure of a light, flint fowler, and that would probably convince me, but then the heavily charged round ball for deer may not be as accurate. Perhaps a 24 bore smoothie, like a trade gun, would be the optimum compromise weapon?

Now, for small game that is mostly sitting motionless, a single accurate ball to the head is much better for table presentation (and you don't bite down on pellets). For deer, I'll take the more accurate rifle hands down. I've done a lot of load development to get good accuracy with loads that don't require short starting or wiping between shots, and that certainly makes any rifle more enjoyable to shoot.

For just the shear joy of shooting, it's a draw.

So, for me, the choice is a rifle. But, a smoothbore does things a rifle can't, and vice versa. Get at least one of each just in case. :grin:

 

[netoleon]

That's a good point there. The Bess is a hugely popular smoothbore for many reasons and I can't disparage it ( I left my body armour out of reach ). Everyone knows the work and uses it was designed for however. Same goes for other purely military muskets of the period. There is a substantial difference in handling and overall ergonomics when using a well made civilian-style fowler/hunting smoothbore. The pertinent quote I have in mind was advice given to Ranger recruits in the F&IW period, advising them to procure their own weapons if possible since "...the King's arms are very heavy."

Unwieldiness of mlitary muskets is not the only consideration, but it's a factor a lot of smoothy shooters will allude to ( if not outright admit ). I have a lot of confidence in my smoothbore/fowler - if not in the trigger-puller ! It's effective with many loads and a pleasure to carry and shoot. But it's got an intrinsic range limitation. For hunting with round ball you need to be real close. Firing ball at 100' targets with a smoothy is fine - no harm if you get a glancing hit. Not so for large game however. The best hunting solution is doubtlessly to own both rifle and smoothbore. I enjoy 'em both for targets, but take the smoothy out more for "play"...until, maybe I get a new rifle, see.......

 

[tg]

After many years and many guns I have come to favor the French smoothbore hunting gun with a bore of .58, good for large game out t0 50+ yds and though I have yet to try, my other .58 smooth guns did well with a variety of shot at moderate ranges so I suspect this one will as well.

 

The rifle....no question about it, the rifle. I require more precision than can be achieved with a smoothbore and I'll take a rifled firearm every time, with the exception of fowl on the wing.

Vic

 

[Runner]

Shotgun hands down. The shotgun can do it all and do it all well, while the rifle can only do somethings. I hunted squirrel, doves, rabbits and turkey successfully this year with the shotgun. I killed two of my three deer at 24 and 13 yards. Either of them could easily have been killed with the shotgun shooting a roundball. I missed two ducks, and so far the geese have refused to play. The small bore is good for squirrels and rabbits. If coyotes and such are added in, then the small bore with a conical adds somethign the shotgun can't do. 100 yard shots. With that as the only limitation, I guess a man really needs a 12 gauge/rifled 50 side by side! Of course, we all need to hit the lottery also!