Need some help

[Mumptia]

I shot a .50 cal blackpowder last deer season and at that moment knew i wanted one.

I've been looking at different rifles butI was hoping you guys could narrow the field for me.

Are there low end guns I should stay away from?

Do Black powder scopes ever get scoped?

Where is a good place to look for a gun / accesories?

 

[snowshoe]

There is a lot to choose from, traditional style, inline, break open, and the good old flinters. Do you want the challenge of using a round ball, and getting close, or do you want to shoot sabots, and use a scope? You will have to answer these questions first. I like the traditional style rifles, both cap lock and flinters, and shoot nothing but patched round balls. It is very addictive so beware.

 

[neos]

Stay away from Remmington, CVA, Traditions, and any other with Spanish barrels, except the Austin and Halleck. Buy something made in America and you won't go wrong. Go with A T/C Omega, or Encore if funds allow, and you wish an inline. No worries about the scope getting burn residue with those mentioned. About the only guns to worry about burn residue with from experience are those with a bolt action design. Usually anything with a sealed breach is problem free in the scope department. Hope this helps a little. I am T/C biased as thats what I only shoot, but for an entry level, I have heard nothing but good about the NEF muzzleloaders. I also chose to stay away from the Savage not because of the name, but because I haven't heard many reports of the guns accuracy with black powder or pyrodex. I shoot muzzleloaders for one reason, smoke! Also a gun with break, or swinging block action are easir to clean. Usually swing down or break, remove breach plug and clean. This is only my opinion, and hope you enjoy shooting smoke.

P.S. Once you start you can't stop. It's addictive.

 

[albayo]

Black Powder Gun

You would have to decide if you want to shoot primitive, or modern style guns.
If you want a good cap lock, look around for Pederosoli Tryon or something like that. I think the Lyman Great Plains is an excellent gun to start with. All my black powder guns have been Pederosoli or Lyman and Parker-Hale. If there is a black powder club near where you live go to a shoot and look over the guns. In New Brunswick you can use a black powder gun all or nearly all year long, because they are considered varmint guns. If you buy second hand be careful some people that are in it briefly don’t know how or take the time to care for them.
Talk to experienced shooters about what you are looking for and how to maintain your muzzleloader.

 

[shepodyguide]

Thompson Center Omega Z5. $329.95 at Lebarons brand new. Easy to clean, very accurate, very reliable, lifetime warranty, can handle 150 grain charges, very simplistic but functional action, easy to remove breechplug, sweet crisp trigger, plus an instructional CD for beginners. Can't beat it for value. I love mine. Worth a look.

 

[prosper]

I've been meaning to buy a Savage 10ML one of these days. A more modern muzzle loader, and can accept smokeless loads. T/C's look nice too.

For a more traditionalist, I saw a couple of flint locks on the EE the other day - no registration/license required

 

[Mumptia]

There is a lot to choose from, traditional style, inline, break open, and the good old flinters. Do you want the challenge of using a round ball, and getting close, or do you want to shoot sabots, and use a scope? You will have to answer these questions first. I like the traditional style rifles, both cap lock and flinters, and shoot nothing but patched round balls. It is very addictive so beware.

Holy smoke (pardon the pun) I knew there would be more to it than I was reading.

Break open and in line catch my attention and I don't want to get close just yet. Sabots will be the way to go I think.

I spend so much time protecting my scope when I go int ot the bush hunting moose that I think I would enjoy trying the bp without a scope for now.

How many of you guys hunt scoped?

Are the .50 bp slugs that Hornaday make considered sabots as well?

 

[neos]

I hunt scoped now. I bought my first muzzle on a friday never shooting one before. Shot it saturday once to get the feel. The following saturday droped a 4x4 at 70 yards open sights. The following week she got scoped. My flintlock on the other hand is not scoped. I couldn't imagine the damage to a scope on a flinter. As for th e.50 slugs you are mentioning. If you are talking the Hornady Great Plains bullets, no they are not sabots. They are a bore sized conical. I have had really good luck with a T/C Maxi Ball conical in my Omega. Some guns can be really picky when it comes to sabots. Some bores are tighter than others. I would strongly recommend the Hornady XTP in a 44/240 or 45/250 grain combo. This bullet combo is deadly and has probably taken the most game from a muzzleloader since the sabot was invented. Also the bonus is they are a pistol bullet, so you can buy in bulk and save money, you'll need it once you start having fun.