Traditions or Pedersoli PA Flintlock Rifle

[Hota]

Hi All, I am currently shooting a Lyman GPR and I love it. It is very accurate and looks very nice. One would think then why are you interested in another? You can only shoot one at a time and I understand that but I love the look and the history of a Pennsylvania Rifle and if it as accurate or better than my Lyman I will be very pleased. I have already decided to do away with using modern firearms for all my hunting activities with the exception of spring turkey.

Anyway, I searched this site for a comparison between the traditions and the pedersoli PA rifles. I thought I saw something before but nothing came up for this specific question. As far as the PA rifle is concerned, does anyone have a preference or comments on either?

 

[smokeblower]

Pedersoli makes the best out of the box flinter I have owned. Buy yourself a brass or composite ram rod as the only draw back to their products are cheap dowl rods for a otherwise fine commerical product.

 

[CrackStock]

I see that the silence is deafening, so I will give you my opinion.

I took a look at their site again.
I do not have a strong preference aside from a bit of skepticism over the silver coloring on one of them. Does not seem period correct to me. It is beautiful but would not be readily accepted in some groups for that reason. The rest is a case where beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I do not like the .45 caliber in a ML rifle. Too small for deer and too large for small game in my opinion.

As to Pedersolis, I have seen some that were pretty good guns and I have seen some that did not impress me at all. I may even get one of their pistols one day.

However, I would rather spend that amount of money on something that fit me and was exactly what I wanted. I would contact some of the ML builders and consider having a gun made to my trigger pull in a caliber of my choosing. I would also check around as there are companies which sell semi custom guns at reasonable cost that have already been built. You might be able to find one that meets your needs and is ready to go. You might also be able to see it before you buy it.

TVM comes quickly to mind. There are many others as well.

I wish you every success with your ML whatever you get.

YMHS,
CrackStock

 

I have to agree with crackstock about the metal. I'm not crazy about the Pedersoli Penn Rifles and KY's and Shennandoahs, but the Blue Ridge in .50 caliber is an excellent gun in my experience. I always recommend it to people looking for a sturdy, straight shooting out of the box flinter.

:results:

 

[cytorg]

I'm in the same boat as you on this, I want a long-rifle but I do not want to spend a chuck of change on one yet.
I posted the comparison of Pedersoli's Kentucky vs. PA rifle. I have spent countless hours reading here and elsewhere, gone to a dealer and looked at the two, ( Traditions and Pedersoli

 

[CrackStock]

I understand the thought. But you can save for a while and then get what you really want. If you go cheap now, do you think that she will smile on your moving up in the near future? I doubt it. She will figure that this ticket is punched and give you static when you go for the upgrade.

Save money for a while and go for the whole enchilada. But then, you know her better than I do.

Other tactics include:

Order one built and make payments while waiting.

Maybe buy parts and build one as you get cash.

Trade off something that she really wants.

Whine, beg, plead...

LOL -- okay, I'll stop now -- but it worked for me.

Which one?

All of the above -- I have a few.


CrackStock

 

[cytorg]

Those are all good ones CrackStock, another one is, "What new gun, I've had that one for ages!"
Sometimes it actually works.

 

[Pasquinel]

Never had Pedersoli, own Traditions Pa longrifle and have no
complaints. I've used this gun for 2 years both hunting and
on the range without problems. Just tonight I killed a nice
doe at roughly 50 yards, she went down inside 60 yards. I had both entry & exit hole so this 50 cal. roundball gun can do the job. I can only speak for myself but once I went
to flint, this is about the only gun I use. Hope you enjoy
it as I do. Also you should be able to get a nice custom built Pennsylvania rifle for under $1000. Good luck and be
safe.

 

[Twisted_1in66]

I also have the Traditions Pennsylvania Rifle and like it a lot. I picked mine up while I was visiting relatives in Oregon last August and got a great price on it. Was $429 (suggested retail is $529), no tax, and only $10 to ship it to my house in Vermont. That was about $400 less than other longrifles I was considering. It was the one on the rack and the wood on this rifle was much nicer than the wood on the ones they had in a box. They come with a full walnut stock and this one is a dark walnut with light tiger stripes on it. Very nice looking gun, .50 cal, and very accurate too. Fit and finish seems to vary from gun to gun, so I'd recommend inspecting the rifle in person before buying it.

 

[Rebel]

Cytorg, on their websight, Cabela's has the Blue Ridge flintlock on sale for $499.99. They are a real good gun to start with. Have a good sparking lock, and are very accurate. Only thing you will need to do is drill the vent hole out to 1/16". www.cabelas.com Check it out.

 

[Twisted_1in66]

Hey, they dropped the price even further. It's now only $20 more (before shipping) than my traditions PA was. They've got it online for $449. You can see it here - Blue Ridge Flintlock

Twist rate is 1:48 which is a compromise to let you shoot conical bullets more accurately (if you choose to hunt with them) and is about as fast a twist as you'd want to use for accuracy with a patched round ball. It doesn't have a nose-cap, patchbox, or any other ornamentation, which was typical of rifles commonly called "poor-boys" that were in use in late 1700s. I had pretty well settled on getting one of these until I came across my Traditions PA on the rack for $429 at Sportsman's Warehouse in Portland, OR.

 

[Twisted_1in66]

I posted the comparison of Pedersoli's Kentucky vs. PA rifle. **SNIP**
My problem with their PA is that it is only .45 Cal which seems a tad small even for our small Texas whitetail deer.

The Traditions Pennsylvania rifle is available in both the .45 cal and .50 cal. Mine is the .50 cal.

 

[Rebel]

Yea, that's about what the kit normally runs, and you can get it in .32, .36, .45, .50, and .54 cal.

 

[ttom715]

I have the Traditions PA rifle and like it very much. I bought it because I really like the looks. Being a romantic, I like the three brass hearts (one for my wife and one for each of my daughters). I replaced the front site with a Ted Cash silver site. I shoot 70gr of fff. Because it's a straight shooter I named it after my wife. I, like you, would someday want a custom rifle, but this does a good job for the money.

 

[jfraymond]

Don't think that .45 cal isn't for whitetail.
That's all I use here in PA and have dropped them with no problem between 40 and 70 yds.
I shoot a Hatfield .45 using 60 grains 3f, a .440 ball patched with .15 german linen lubed with Leighvalley Lube.
I've had them run up to 60 yds before they drop and also have had them drop right in their tracks.
So take another look at that Pedersoli .45. By the way I do have the Pedersoli .32 PA for small game, haven't gotten it broke in yet for hunting but do like the feel and handling of it at the bench. The only thing is the rear sight is a modern one not a buckhorn, so that will have to be changed to make the look more sutiable.
Keep your powder dry.

John

 

[Hota]

In my quest to find info on the TVM company referenced above for a custom PA rifle, I came across this google list and figured someone else might be interested.

http://directory.google.com/Top/Recreation/Guns/Blackpowder/Manufacturers_and_Gunsmiths/

 

[cytorg]

Thanks for the info gents, I appreciate it. I'll probably make my decision next week after a few more phone calls.

So the only difference between a Blue Ridge from Cabella's and a Frontier (Blue Ridge) from Cherry's is the nicer stock? All of the hardware is the same?

Hope everyone has a safe New Year.

 

[Rebel]

Basically the same gun except like you said the Pedersoli's from Cherry's might have better wood. And the price is a lot less from Cabela's.