A Worthy BP Rifle?

dak47

dak47

CGN frequent flyer
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Location
Summerwood/Bridge City TX & Okanagan BC
I've been threatening to dive into black powder for a few years now and still don't own a front stuffer. Time is so limited, I was barely reloading for my modern firearms let alone one at a time with a smoke pole....... Lifted the foot off the gas career wise as I get set to retire so, what do you pros think of this rifle?

I have no need for a modern inline as it gets me zero advantage hunting season here in BC and I think in my heart of hearts I'm drawn to the real traditionilist rifle but still want it to work in the woods at a 100 yards if I'm at the right place at the right time...... Of course this is all assuming light use it has been cleaned properly. Here is its description:

Matt Avance - 50Cal - Tennessee Valley Flint Lock - Leman Style Southern Rifle - Supreme Maple/Browned steel , 42", L&R Late English Goose Neck flint lock, RE Davis double set triggersCheers

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dak47 said:
I've been threatening to dive into black powder for a few years now and still don't own a front stuffer. Time is so limited, I was barely reloading for my modern firearms let alone one at a time with a smoke pole....... Lifted the foot off the gas career wise as I get set to retire so, what do you pros think of this rifle?

I have no need for a modern inline as it gets me zero advantage hunting season here in BC and I think in my heart of hearts I'm drawn to the real traditionilist rifle but still want it to work in the woods at a 100 yards if I'm at the right place at the right time...... Of course this is all assuming light use it has been cleaned properly. Here is its description:

Matt Avance - 50Cal - Tennessee Valley Flint Lock - Leman Style Southern Rifle - Supreme Maple/Browned steel , 42", L&R Late English Goose Neck flint lock, RE Davis double set triggersCheers

View attachment 224146View attachment 224148View attachment 224151
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Nice rifle, but that's a pretty long tube. Something in the order of 32" - 36"might be more suitable for hunting.
 
Nice looking rifle. Tons of fun to shoot and if price is reasonable, why not! Looks like something Jed Clampett would have been happy with, Go fo it.
 
You didn't mention the barrel maker but Davis and the L&R lock (looks like a Bailes or Durs Egg) should work well. Snap it a couple times and watch for the sparks to land in the pan or scatter all over: they should be directed into the pan. Rifle is nicely proportioned and finished. Barrel looks to be the more or less standard 42". Personally I prefer a 54 cal for hunting but even my 45 cal PRB's pass right through a deer so your 50 cal should be fine for that too.
Nice rifle so if you are happy with the asking price just do it.
 
That's a really sweet looking boomstick. But go out and drag it around in the bad weather too and see if a flintlock is the best choice for hunting where you tend to do your hunting. It may be that you'll find a percussion is a wiser and less troublesome choice.

I love my own rock lock guns. But for matches in the bad weather I broke down and bought a percussion just because it sucked for trying to keep it dry enough to keep working. Oh sure, there's some tricks I've learned from the others. But it's still a bit of a PITA. If you hunt in foul weather very often a percussion would be a wiser choice.

I don't know about the 50cal but a buddy that has hunted with a percussion .54 cal has taken a couple of dear with his front stuffer.
 
Well you and I are at about the same place in life it sounds, and I have always been fond of the more traditional firearm to. So for the past 7 to 8 years I've just been buying them and trying them. Pack em as a walking gun, shoot a yotie or two when they get under foot and figure the gun out. So I'm still learning but do listen to the suggestions here so far and here's a couple of things you might not think of. With the same outside diameter a 54 cal barrel is lighter than a 50 cal but shoots a bigger and heavier ball. Loading a ball is quick and fun compared to mini's etc. I'm still not sure what the advantage of the 42" long barrels is, may be it gives a bit more range but a 28" to 32" gathers way less trash walking through the bush, sights up faster and is plenty accurate for the 40 to 100 yard shots you get in the bush. Then it comes to cleaning the gun. Again I've gotten fond of the lift off barrels. Pull the wedges out, lift the barrel out of the hooked breech and pop the breech end into the warm soapy water and start pumping the water in and out of the nipple. No time at all the rifle is clean and no stains on the furniture. Dry it out, grease it up and put it away.

One other thing, try it before you buy it. Does it fit you. (you might want to do this in the privacy of your own home or back yard) Laugh if you want but dance with it first, pick a spot on the wall and sight it. Is it comfortable, does it automatically come to your shoulder and eye or are you struggling to find it. Are you in an unnatural position (arms etc.) to get it to sight. Is it too heavy or too light or is it just right. If it doesn't fit, it may get better with practice but if you find one that does fit it will only get better. Most of all, have fun.
 
commonman said:
Well you and I are at about the same place in life it sounds, and I have always been fond of the more traditional firearm to. So for the past 7 to 8 years I've just been buying them and trying them. Pack em as a walking gun, shoot a yotie or two when they get under foot and figure the gun out. So I'm still learning but do listen to the suggestions here so far and here's a couple of things you might not think of. With the same outside diameter a 54 cal barrel is lighter than a 50 cal but shoots a bigger and heavier ball. Loading a ball is quick and fun compared to mini's etc. I'm still not sure what the advantage of the 42" long barrels is, may be it gives a bit more range but a 28" to 32" gathers way less trash walking through the bush, sights up faster and is plenty accurate for the 40 to 100 yard shots you get in the bush. Then it comes to cleaning the gun. Again I've gotten fond of the lift off barrels. Pull the wedges out, lift the barrel out of the hooked breech and pop the breech end into the warm soapy water and start pumping the water in and out of the nipple. No time at all the rifle is clean and no stains on the furniture. Dry it out, grease it up and put it away.

One other thing, try it before you buy it. Does it fit you. (you might want to do this in the privacy of your own home or back yard) Laugh if you want but dance with it first, pick a spot on the wall and sight it. Is it comfortable, does it automatically come to your shoulder and eye or are you struggling to find it. Are you in an unnatural position (arms etc.) to get it to sight. Is it too heavy or too light or is it just right. If it doesn't fit, it may get better with practice but if you find one that does fit it will only get better. Most of all, have fun.
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I like your methodology. Myself I have the discontinued John Browning Mountain Rifle. I desired a .54 but that was not in the cards so I passed on a .45 and settled on the .50, no regrets here. 100 grains FFFG Goex gets me pie plate at 100 yards with its Buckhorn sight.
 
Matt has been making semi-production traditionals for a number of years now. I'm not as active in the BP community as I used to be but still know more than a few people shooting one of his creations. He is a good value for your dollar builder.

Obviously the fancier you want the more you will spend. He doesn't build "unique" so the (harder core) crowd tends to stay away from his rifles - a dozen other guys might be shooting exactly the same thing. So my comments are not to his quality, but uniqueness. At the (stage) you seem to be at wanting something "unique" (read quite expensive with a 2 year lead time to delivery) doesn't seem to be your current "want". And just to illustrate what I'm talking about. The rifle you note is called a "Leman style southern". Leman was a Pennsylvania builder who overwhelmingly built trade rifles, not a southern styled builder at all, so if "historical correctness" was all important, this would miss the mark by a bit.

I still have three traditional rifles - a 50 cal caplock (Ohio style fullstock) with a 36" straight 15/16" barrel, a 45 cal caplock (Maryland style fullstock) with a 42" swamped barrel and a 38 cal (Sam Hawken squirrel style half stock) with a 34" tapered barrel.

Although my Maryland is the longest, with the swamped barrel it "holds" the best of the bunch and if I ever add another one to the collection it will have either a tapered or swamped barrel to help reduce the weight at the front end which is noticeable (and I find irritating) on longer barreled rifles.

It only takes a few minutes to clean them after use, some make it sound like climbing Everest would be less challenging. A bit of care goes a long way.
 
Something like this maybe ,a copy of an English Sporting rifle

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