New (To Me) Gonic

[686 Shooter]

Lately I have been humming and hawing about getting a black powder rifle but never pulled the trigger, so to speak. Last night I was talking to a fellow who my wife used to work for. He mentioned he has a black powder at home. He hasn't hunted in a decade or so and said he just wanted it out of his house. He said he would give it to me for $150. For that price I didn't expect much but I figured I would go have a look. I was pleasantly surprised to see a stainless Gonic GA-93 that was in like new condition. He said it had very few shots out of it and it was always thoroughly cleaned right after he was done shooting it. We have known this fellow for a while and he is very particular about his stuff.

Back about a million years ago I worked in a shop that sold Gonic muzzle loaders. I waned one in the worst way but the need for food and shelter mixed with a limited budget kept a Gonic out of my grubby little hands. So needless to say I spent $150 last night. I got everything you see below. I think I scored a pretty sweet deal.

 

[trevj]

Bandit!

Obligatory "You Suck!" too!

Cheers
Trev

 

[Alex McK]

686Shooter: You scored a great deal! I had the privilege of knowing the late Fred Rodney (Gonic Arms' President) very well. We had some great times together, including a memorable deer hunting trip to Quebec. He is sorely missed. In my opinion, Fred was one of the smartest and most innovative gunmakers I've ever known. I also own a GA-93. This one was custom built for me by Fred himself and features a stainless barrel like yours, plus gorgeous grey laminate stock. It is one of my favourite blackpowder arms and has taken numerous heads of game in the time I've owned it (mid-1990's). These powerful and versatile blackpowder rifles are capable of MOA or better accuracy, depending on what bullet/powder combination they're fed. Of course, the fella behind the buttplate has to do his job, too. in any case, your Gonic will give you many years of great service. Congratulations!

 

[Silverback]

I have had a Gonic for many years, nice muzzle loaders. If you need more sabots, prbullet.com is the only one I know of that sells them now as Gonic sabots are smaller diameter than regular 50 cal sabots. I usually use Hornady .44 cal 300 grain XTP bullets in mine, they are very accurate and sure smack deer hard and I have harvested many deer with it.

 

[cdnrokon]

It looks like he was trying to find what shot the best out of it. Lots of stuff... buy your self some 3f triple 7 loose powder and start with 85 gr mine loved 100 gr with a precision rife 240 gr sabot

O BTW you stole it.

 

[Alex McK]

Another readily available alternative to Gonic sabots are the black 45/50 sabots intended for use with .45 cal pistol bullets. The thinner side walls of these sabots will accept .44 caliber bullets and load easily in the Gonic. Been using these now, for at least ten years. You should be able to find these sabots at any Cabela's, Wholesale Sports, or other stores. My own rifle prefers either FFg or Pyrodex RS. I mostly shoot Pyrodex RS. A .44 cal. bullet over 90 grains of either powder delivers very good accuracy and performance on deer sized game. Another: 265 gr Hornady bullet, over 100 grains Pyrodex RS. I've shot quite a few deer, plus a handful of wild boar with this combination. Works well. A really accurate and hard-hitting load: 44/310 gr. cast bullet (Lee mold), over 120 grains of Pyrodex RS. This "Express rifle" load will shoot nearly one-hole groups at 100 metres, all day. A real thumper.
If you prefer full patch bullets, the Gonic 450 gr. hollow point, over 120-130 grains of Pyrodex RS, was one of Fred's favourites. This combination delivers excellent knockdown performance on moose and other big game. I expect that your supply of Gonic bullets is limited. If so, most custom mold makers can make a set of mold blocks to your specifications. I have a Lee mold that casts a 50/465 grain solid. Perfect substitute for the 450 gr. HP. Don't know if you have any of these, but if you have some of the 486 grain, or 586 grain copper-nosed Gonic bullets, these hit hard at both ends! If a Gonic manual was included with your stuff, it will have plenty of good load recommendations inside. Especially for the heavy bullets. Have fun!

 

[Gordon M]

welcome to the gonic world I own one ,, bought it new ,, in 93 ,, I like the 465 gr gonic bullet ,, still have a few ,, also cecil at precision rifle still sells sabots for the old gun ,, the like a 300 gr 429 dia bullet in the gonic sabot you have ,, the old gonic will shoot 1'' with high doses of fff powder. I bought all the cast gonic bullets and have them up to 565 gr .. way ahead of there time only week point is the plunger spring which does not hit some brands of caps hard enough,, I have shot the heck out of mine and let me tell you with 150 gr loads make sure you screw your hat on tight as recoil is very strong,, I have had many people say they can handle high recoil however after a couple of shots with heavy conicals the change there mind ,,

 

[Magellann]

Ive never heard of Gonic until now, it certainly looks like a very nice high quality gun, Congrats on a great deal. It looks like you have everything you need to start using it.

 

[Alex McK]

I'm with Gordon M.....recoil is stout when shooting heavy bullets/150-grain powder charges in the Gonic rifle. A very heavy push...in my opinion, not unlike shooting a big bore nitro rifle. It does get your attention. Especially from the bench. It bears mentioning that Fred Rodney deserves full credit for being the first gunmaker to build a modern "Magnum" muzzleloading firearm capable of handling the pressure levels generated by upwards of 150 grain powder charges, coupled with 500-plus grain bullets. Prior to the introduction of the Gonic GA-87, then Gonic GA-93 rifles, there were few if any, contemporary 50-caliber muzzleloading rifles that were safe to use at those levels. Today, most if not all major muzzleloading manufacturers offer rifles that will handle 150 grain powder charges. This is Fred's legacy.
Of some interest may be where "Gonic" rifles got their name. From Fred Rodney's home town: Gonic, New Hampshire.