il coyote

I would assume that you would not expect the same type of accuracy/function from a lower priced muzzleloader as you would say a $700 TC or the like, But what, if any, downsides will I encounter when buying a 'budget minded' .50 cal. to hunt with for maybe 2-3 weekends a year, whitetails only, and only wanting to shoot maybe 150 yds. max?

I've hunted IL every year since I was 12 years old,and owning a muzzleloader is the last piece of the puzzle for me to hunt any game, in any season within the state boundries. Just tryin to come 'full circle', ya know?

frontier gander

High price does not always mean you'll get better accuracy! Im shooting a $60 cva that is printing less than 1" groups @ 75 yards with the cheap plastic sights.
$300 winchester x150 thats shooting UNDER 1" groups with open sights.
$175 deer creek .45 thats shooting under 1" groups @100 with open sights.

High price rifle pretty much means they need to pay off the equipment and tv ad's and then they'll drop the price 2-3 years down the road.

cva kodiak you can pick up for around $170-180
cva optima is around $180
cva optima pro is a hair over $200.
www.budsgunshop.com

You're pretty much just looking for a rifle to get you started and last a while. 2-3 weekends a year is very little shooting.

All those rifles are good shooters and come with a lifetime warranty.

dmurphy317

Often, price does not equal accuracy. I have several examples of lower priced muzzleloaders that shoot well under 2" groups at 100 yards and some will shoot under 4" at 200 yards with a scope. It has more to do with finding an accurate load than the price you pay for the gun. My suggestion is to go and try several out for size and fit and decide based on that, coupled with any other factors you feel are important, whether a gun is right for you. Then find a load that the gun likes and that will do what you need it to do. And keep us informed on what direction you go.

Underclocked

http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/product_info.php/cPath/351/products_id/11464 blued/wood version should meet your budget but I didn't see it there. The stainless might be worth stretching your budget a bit. Some quirks but generally good, accurate rifles.

il coyote

I appreciate the speedy input. The $200 figure I gave was notreally my maximum, but more of a reference point when talking about inexpensive muzzleloaders.

I also said 150 yds. max, again, just a reference. I'm sure not going to limit myself if the weapon is capable of more.

I've been casually looking around for a while and am leaning on a break open design that runs 209 primers. Several good contenders out there for sure. I'm not going to be shooting this thing every weekend for practice, I've got lots of other guns for that, it'll be shot enough to know it's still good, and to kill 1 extra deer a year.

...I've been real busy the past several months and with very limited computer access, I think I've made maybe a dozen or so posts since May, but I'll try to report back with whatever I decide and how it works.

cayugad

When someone in a store or on a forum tell you that just because you paid under $200.00 for a muzzleloader, that it will not shoot as well as a $500, $600, or more muzzleloader, you know one thing for sure. That person does not know what they are talking about.

What you might find, and I say might... that the more expensive rifles will have a better fit to finish between the hardware and stock. I own both kinds of rifles, cheap ones and expensive rifles. Both of them will shoot very well once you find the right load for them.

If all you want is a two week a year rifle that will get the job done, in a break open design, I would look at the Sidekick by NEF. I have heard some very good reports of the CVA Wolf, CVA Optima, Kodiak, Apex, ... the point is, all of them will shoot good once you find what they like.

Now I have found that if you are a powder junkie.. the more expensive rifles like the Pro Hunter, Encore, Omega, Knights, will be more willing to accept and provide excellent accuracy with magnum charges. Like I said, I have a number of inexpensive rifles. Not one of them like magnum loads. But then, neither do it. 100 grains of powder is all 99% of the hunters are going to need out there for making their kills.

Long range shooting with a inexpensive rifle will take time to work the load up, and then practice. The mechanics of being a good shooter with good shooting skills is something that you have to develop.

wabi

I have a break-open Traditions Pursuit that has terrible fit & finish. You can see daylight between thereceiver and side panels on the synthetic stock, the fore end feels "springy", there are a couple small "pits" in the receiver from casting (I'm guessing it's cast and not milled), the barrel finish is good but the sights have plastic bases, the trigger pull is heavy (but does break cleanly), but the darn thing shoots as accurately as many much more expensive rifles I own and have owned. With the cheap fiber optic sights I'm getting 1" groups at 50 yards.
Price is NOT an indication of accuracy potential. Price is a good indication of fit & finish, andwarranty & customer service.
For an inexpensive break action I would say CVA, NEF, or Traditions will probably all be good possibilities. I would probably choose NEF as #1 choice, but I don't like the $1.00 each plastic primer carrier they require. If I were getting a NEF I'd look into a .25ACP breech plug.

4patches

yea, I asked a simalar question a litte wile ago and got no responce. my problem is i cant get bugeted for another weapon, and found that mossberg has an aftermarket barrel for their model 500, witch i happen to own. for $ 103 the wife wont mind, and it takes up no extra room. but nobody seems to know anything about them.

lemoyne

Well it depends on which lower priced one for a starter, I have seen some CVA for instance that had excellant barrels and shot well the material and the quality of the maching is not usually very comparable, on the other hand I bought a TC Omega Z 5for $150 and its an excellant weapon with a fine trigger and shoot sub 1 inch groups just like it came out of the box.
ITS NOT WHAT YOU PAY BUT WHAT YOU GET FOR YOUR MONEY. Lee

cayugad

All I can tell you is the same thing was asked about a long time ago and no one really knew too much about them then. Remember that black powder is a fowling powder and any trace of the fowling has to be cleaned or your shotgun receiver will rust. Also, would that be considered a closed system? How do you load the 209 primer? You must have to pull the barrel to remove the breech plug I am guessing.

Good luck with the barrel should you get it. We would like to learn more about it as well. I think the last person simply bought a bottom of the line CVA and left the shotgun to do what it was designed to do.