Ok so what gun should I get??

Chopperhead

Chopperhead

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Well my father is going to be buying me a flintlock as a graduation present :D

so now I have to ask whats a good rifle?? I hear Traditions is really crappy so we can rule them out.

so far what ive come up with is the .50cal T/C Hawken and the Lyman great plains rifle.

so any other decent rifles out there for not to much money? also whats the aproximate price on the t/c hawken and the Lyman?


Thanks
Kyle.
 
3Beavers said:
Quite a few people I know shoot T/C Hawkens.I have shot them too.If I were looking for a Hawken style rifle this would be my 1st choice.:cool:
Regards,Jed.
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ok, I was kinda leaning towards that one myself. any idea on price though?
 
If I had to go back and do it all over again I would buy a lyman great plains kit. It is twice the gun the TC is and is iron mounted instead of the cheesy brass all over the place. The factory lyman fit and finish is not the greatest out of the box though so I would go with the lyman kit. It is basically an in the white gun but it allows you to put a better then factory finish on it and fix any minor fitting issues. If you want to spend a little more a custom long rifle makes an awesome gun as well. My prefference is for iron mounted tennesee/southern mounted rifles with a nice curly maple stock. I built one recently that is a real shooter.
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Juan.

that seems like a pretty good deal but $700 is till to steep for us.

It looks like im going to have to go with the Traditions as it's really the only thing thats fairly cheap.
 
Chopperhead said:
Juan.

that seems like a pretty good deal but $700 is till to steep for us.

It looks like im going to have to go with the Traditions as it's really the only thing thats fairly cheap.
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If you can swing the extra do yourself a favor and look at the lyman :)....or if you have to stay on the low end swap the lock out for an l and R http://www.trackofthewolf.com/categories/partList.aspx?catID=14&subID=148&styleID=577.

The whole problem with the low end guns stems from the lock assembly. Their is nothing more likely to turn someone away from flint guns then poor ignition. It is very frustrating and leads to poor accuracy and a feeling of unreliability. All the gunmakers have decent barrels these days and with double set triggers, trigger pull is generally not an issue. Fit and finish on the traditions will be fine as well in my experience.
 
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I like TC Hawkin they shoot well and quality is very good for the dollars put out. I have a cva in an express rifle in 50 cal it is fun but not the gun the Hawkin is as far a quality goes. Shop around for a good used one they are running about 400 dollar in N.B. for a good one. Regards Mike
 
Get the Lyman Great plains - it's a better buy than the T/C Hawken and is more historically accurate. The Hawken brothers never made a single-wedge short plains rifle with brass furniture - just never happened. Of course, they also never made a flintlock, but that's beside the point as I trust you are trying to avoid registration issues.

All original Hawkens had hammered iron furnishings and were of the 2 wedge pattern. Aside from the adjustable rear sight (they also provide a spare traditional leaf), the Lyman Great Plains is as close to an original Hawken rifle as you can buy out of the box at the retail level. The Fit and finish, while not up to custom levels, is certainly accpetable - I know because I have one :)

The lyman also has a correctly shaped lockplate and oiled furniture. the lockplate internals, like the T/C gun, are not period though - they are modern coil spring locks that are probably more durable than the originals.

The problems with the T/C guns are as follows (most can be fixed):
-Older guns had hammer geometry problems - a new one would be OK.
-The stock is varnished. Personally I can't live with that, but you can refinish it.
-Brass furniture. Looks great on a Longrifle, but has no place on a Hawken IMHO.
-Blued finish (like the lyman) - some people like to strip and brown them.
-Design. It's a single-band trade rifle, not really a Hawken like their ad copy claims.

If you are actually trying to buy a TRADE RIFLE, which is what the T/C really is, then you can also get the same from Lyman if you want. Lyman makes a Hawken clone (the Great Plains model in .50 and .54) and they also make the Lyman Trade Rifle which looks just like a T/C "hawken" except that the stock is oiled, not varnished.

Hope that helps! :) The lyman is slightly less money than the T/C, but the T/C has a slightly better warranty. Don't settle for anything less than these guns for a hawken-style rifle, or at the very least, get them in kit form if you want to save a few dollars. DO NOT buy a CVA or Traditions - you'll regret it as you get deeper into BP shooting.
 
One other thing - the Lyman and T/C guns only come with the standard ramrod and a patch jag. You WILL NEED, as a minimum, to buy a nipple wrench, a patch worm, and a cleaning rod.

For accessories, I will admit that I use alot of Armi Sport, pietta and Traditions stuff like nipple wrenches, flasks, etc. - but don't cheap out on the rifle itself! Take my word for it!
 
And yes I had one Lyman Great Plains .54 once and did get rid of it because the breech leaked even the gun was new... Nobody's perfect. Don't forget a Super-Rod for hunting condition... it is a synthetic ramrod that won't break!
 
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t.c. is fine that lyman rifle looks like another italian cheapo to me , not the better of, the two, give me your email address i will give you some phone numbers to call for info, [/email]
 
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