thinking about hunting the muzzleloader this year

[cabage]

I have never shot nor do I know much about muzzleloaders. But this season I got permission to hunt a prime piece during the mussleloader season. What gun would you recomend? What do I need as far as bullets, caps, powder and stuff like that? I'm not gonna spend too much money since I'm still in college. All help is welcome.

[MLKeith]

You have to tell us where you are hunting. Each state has their own requirements for muzzleloading hunting. First you have to know what is legal in the state you are hunting. Then you can move to what kind of rifle you want either traditional like a sidelock Hawken or a more modern inline which is usually what a part time muzzleloader only interested in using a few times for hunting a MZ season will select. You do need to understand that this sport is additive. You may find that in a short time you are having trouble keeping track of how many muzzleloaders you have. Do not buy the first inexpensive rifle you see at Wallyworld until you get some of the specifics out of the way. Give us more information. Where you are hunting, What you are hunting, how traditional do you want to be- or not, What you expect the rifle to do, How much time will you have to spend with the rifle, what do you expect to spend and how many additions will you be adding like a scope etc. Then you will get a lot better information from the guys on the site.

[paco97]

Don't necessarily rule out a sidelock, either percussion or flintlock, although a percussion rifle will be cheaper of the two. Check a Lyman Trade Rifle or try to find a used T/C Hawken. Some Walmarts have the CVA Bobcat for $60 new. The bobcat is how I got my start in ML, but I found it mroe frustrating than rewarding, but others havd had better success with it. If you PM me I know of a couple of sources for used T/C Hawkens. These things are a ton of fun to shoot.

[Garminator]

What do you boys think of the CVA Optima?

[cabage]

I intend to hunt white tailed deer in western wisconsin. I think i like the idea of the modern inlines and i would like to keep the price under 400 so probably iron sites. I have quite a bit of time to spend with the whole idea. I have done quite a bit of bow hunting and rifle hunting i just don't know anything about muzzle loaders.

[MLKeith]

I just checked and Wisconsin does not allow telescopic sights unless they are one power. My personal preferance for a lower price muzzleloader is either an NEF Huntsman or an H&R Sidekick. They are break action which allows more barrel length than a bolt type for the same overall length. There is less concern with bedding, barrel floating and return to zero when disassembled and reassembled than actions that drop into a stock. Even my Omega is sensitive to that. I personally do not like the plastic primer carriers that are similar to what Knight uses (this is just a personal thing) and I converted my Huntsman to the breechplug that takes a .25ACP brass with small rifle primers. The newer lower power 209 primers just released are probably just fine in the carriers. Watch for rifling twist. The slower twist barrels are for patched round ball (like one in 70inches) and the faster are for long bullets in sabots like one in 28inches. There are comprimise rifles at one in 48inches that are supposed to be able to shoot both fairly well. If you are planning on modern bullets in sabots I would go for the faster twist. Some "traditional type" rifle from Thompson Center are usually one in 48 and many claim they shoot modern bullets just fine. You can find them on the used gun racks in some shops fairly reasonable. T/C stands behind their rifles new or used for life. If you buy a used one make sure you get the owners manual and read it completely several times. Once you decide on a rifle then the powder is next to consider as well as support equipment. I am not going to go on and on about that. There have been several posts with all that information and maybe the guys like Cayugad that has posted before can direct you to them. I'm sure you will get more from others. Like in automobiles everyone has a favorite rifle and not all of us will agree on what suits your needs. You just have to sort out all the ideas and see what hits your fancy. On the powder thing, loose powder is cheaper and easier to fine tune a load than the pellets. Pyrodex is the old standby for a substitute black powder. It is quite dirty but reliable. Tripple Seven is probably the more popular "new" substitute. It is more powerful grain for grain than Pyrodex and in most cases a lot cleaner. It does make a bad crud ring in some rifles which can be a problem. American Pioneeer and Goex Pinnacle and Black Mag'3 are additional substitutes that all are very clean and somewhat less corrosive. Some rifle prefer one more than another. Unfortunately the same two model rifles from the same manufacturer will not always shoot the same so this is a try and find situation. The same goes for bullets and sabots. I am presently working with Black Mag'3 which works great in my Omega and Powerbelts shoot OK as well as Hornady sabot bullets. T/C bullets are good also. I am just starting to evaluate Dead Center bullets that have a very good reputation. I shoot heavier bullets as I elk hunt. You will likely use slightly lighter bullets from 300gr. down. Well this is just to get this started. Others will add more.

[MLKeith]

By the way depending on how good your eyes are; you might consider a peep sight which will add a little accuracy potential over standard iron sights and might also be quicker to bring to target. I am 68 so iron sights do not work for me. Lucky for me Arizona allows telescopes and if they did not I would have to use a peep sight.

[cayugad]

ORIGINAL: cabage

I intend to hunt white tailed deer in western wisconsin. I think i like the idea of the modern inlines and i would like to keep the price under 400 so probably iron sites. I have quite a bit of time to spend with the whole idea. I have done quite a bit of bow hunting and rifle hunting i just don't know anything about muzzle loaders.

Almost any of the modern inline rifles will do you well. Since your budget is $400.00 you are open to a lot of different choices in the muzzleloader arena. Since you are new to this, stick with fiber optic sights or go with a 1X Nikon scope (which is legal in Wisconsin). These should put you shooting excellent out to 100 yards with little effort.

As to the kind of inline, there are the break open designs, bolt designs such as found in the Knight Rifles, striker designs found also in Knight, Thompson Center and BPI rifles. Sabots should do you just fine. I would also suggest some loose powder but if you're just getting started you might consider shooting 2 - 50 grain pellets and a 250 grain Shockwave or 240 grain XTP for the deer you will encounter.

Personally I would look at the Thompson Center Omega or the Knight rifles. See if Knightfan has any of the Knight Disc Elites left. They would make an excellent out of the box shooter and at the price he was offering them NIB it was a great deal.

If you only want to extend your season a little, any muzzleloader will do, but I want to warn you... once you get shooting these and especially hunting with these, the bug will get you and you will be hooked. These are a lot of fun...

Good luck in your selection.

[Sharp Shooter]

Cabelas has a lot of inline rifles. If you wan't to go really cheap you can get the CVA Buckhorn. I am a traditional guy so I can not help too much. i would shoot a conical if I were you because I do not like plastic.

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/index/index-display.jsp?id=cat20815&navAction=jump&nav Count=1&parentId=cat20712&parentType=categ ory&cmCat=MainCatcat20712