wood stocked muzzloaders?

[jrogers88]

Like the title says, what is there out on the market for a wood stocked ml? Im not talkin about laminates i want an actual solid wood stock and preferably a cap lock action

 

[O'Shark]

The first one that comes to mind is the Thompson/Center Hawken. I picked one up used in like new condition for $150 at the now defunct Ludco Gun shop. It's a .50 cal and shoots great. There are lots of T/C accessories and products around too.

 

[jrogers88]

The tc hawken is one of the models ive been lookin at

 

[Max Volume]

My personal vote is for the T/C Hawken. I've had one for close to 20 years and I love it.

I also have a Lyman Great Plains rifle which is a close second.

Let me do some editin' here. Also remember rifling twist rate when shooting your muzzleloader. Almost all inlines have a fast twist barrel which is usually around 1/20. The faster the twist the better they are at shooting elongated boolits and sabots. Slower twists like 1/60 are best for patched round balls. Many people like the fast twist because they can get longer range accuracy with sabots. To me 100 yards is perfectly acceptable and a patched ball is effective at that range.

The T/C Hawken has a twist rate of 1/48 which is intended to be a compromise of the two. Mine actually prefers round balls and is most accurate with them in the loads I've tried. Of course I didn't go too nuts working up loads. I've used a patch ball to easily take deer out to 90 yards in thick woods. I also used buffalo bullets which are elongated.

The Lyman Great Plains Rifle has a 1/60 twist which denotes it as a round ball shooter.

 

[Hookeye]

MY TC Hawken shoots sabots, conicals or roundball fine. I do run it at 100grains for all.
As with other TC's of my past, there was vertical stringing of shots with the new guns, until 50-100 shots had been wrung through. After that they shot without stringing.

This Hawken has the QLA and if looking for a good used one, I'd avoid that feature. Stainless steel my gun is, it needed quite a bit of barrel polish to make it usable.

It's OK now, not nearly the shooter my New Englander was (wicked good that rig after break-in).

Using blackpowder substitutes, I switched to musket cap nipples. No probs with #11 and reg FFg, but this new stuff seemed to throw fliers, until the ignition change. My minty .54 Renegade will get a musket cap switch as well.

 

[djl02]

I use to have one til the house burnt, It was a T/C ThunderHawk. Walnut stock,straight shooter. I have seen a couple new ones out there, though T/C discontinued them. Short carbine style.

 

[jrogers88]

I was looking at the lyman front stuffers the other day. What do you mean by qla?

 

[Jhampton]

My dad shoots a Hawkens and I shoot the renegade. Both by t/c
And both great shooters.

 

[Hookeye]

QLA stands for Quick Load Accurizer.

Its a free machined area at the muzzle, the rifling stops down a ways. This supposedly allows folks to easily set a bullet or bullet/sabot arrangement in proper alignment.

I've not had problems with regular bbls where the rifling goes to the muzzle. The QLA can crud up, and/or be of enough step to make reloading an absolute former Secretary of State.

I could have my barrel shortened and recrowned, but then I'd further reduce the value of my Hawken Silver Elite. They aint too common, and that keeps the cool factor kinda high IMHO

My Renegade (had two .50's, this a .54) is like new and does not have the QLA (bought in early 80's). I'm gonna try roundball in it. My Hawken is dialed in for the TC all lead Maxi-Hunter 275 gr bullet. No sabot, soft.......it seems to negate my annoyance with the QLA.

I will not buy another TC if it has QLA.

 

[ol' poke]

+1 for the T/C Renegade! Mine is even a lefty!

ol' poke