T/C .50 PA Hunter

[zeus50]

Good morning all,
Hope everyones season is going well. I was speaking to my dad the other night, and told him i was interested in getting into ML. I was talking about ML shopping when he said don't waste your money, i have a T/C .50 PA Hunter I put together years ago and never fired. From kit to Gun rack. Its yours.

He said it was a flint lock and he doesn't think you can get them anymore. I have a couple questions.

First is this gun worth anything if in fact you can't get them anymore? Should I not fire it and maybe keep it for resale later?

If I do want to use it, what will I need to purchase? I believe he only has whatever came with the kit.

Is there a good website on info for ML? I've never fired one, and i'm pretty sure neither has my dad.

Thanks,

Z

[gleason.chapman]

ORIGINAL: zeus50

Good morning all,
Hope everyones season is going well. I was speaking to my dad the other night, and told him i was interested in getting into ML. I was talking about ML shopping when he said don't waste your money, i have a T/C .50 PA Hunter I put together years ago and never fired. From kit to Gun rack. Its yours.

He said it was a flint lock and he doesn't think you can get them anymore. I have a couple questions.

First is this gun worth anything if in fact you can't get them anymore? Should I not fire it and maybe keep it for resale later?

If I do want to use it, what will I need to purchase? I believe he only has whatever came with the kit.

Is there a good website on info for ML? I've never fired one, and i'm pretty sure neither has my dad.

Thanks,

Z

Flintlocks are a lot harder to shoot than inlines, unless you have a local support group of experts that help you, like this forum, but local to where you live. There are a lot of little tricks to FLing. I recommend you start with an inline, then graduate to the FL. You can pick up a good inline gun for $200, if you like it then start shooting the FL. Chap Gleason

[Semisane]

I agree with Chap. But hang on to that flintlock. If you get an inline and catch the muzzle loading bug, you'll be glad you have it and will be shooting it one day (probably after spending hours surfing flintlock forums). Built by your dad - it will surely be more valuable to you than to anyone else.

[cayugad]

The T/C PA Hunter has a 1-66 twist barrel. While they are not a fancy rifle, they are a nice looking rifle. And it being a flintlock does not surprise me as most of them were made with the Pennsylvania primitive seasonand traditional shooters in mind. They are a very accurate rifle. They are a roundball shooting rifle. And normally a powder junkie so be prepared. I would load it with 90 grains of Goexand a .490ball with a .015-.018 patch with a good quality lube on it. Prime the pan with Goex 3f or 4f. A good sharp flint, and you will be in business.

As for being a rifle that might be too valuable to shoot? They sell for around $300.00 on auctions.I would never sell it since my father built it, if only for that reason. Plus being a hand me down from Dad would make it a stay in my gun rack til I die rifle.

To shoot it, get a cleaning jag, short starter, some quality black powder like Goex 2f or 3f both will work. If you get the Goex 3f you can shoot and prime with the same powder if you like. Some Thomas Fuller black English flints in 5/8 thick width will fit the lock perfect. Or you can go with Agates and do the same thing. Some .490 roundball, patches, lube, alcohol to swab the bore and wipe the frizzen and flint off with, a vent pick, and you should be about set.

Swab the barrel with a very lightly dampened isopropyl alcohol patch and then two dry patches. The bore should be dry now. Take that alcohol patch and wipe the frizzen, pan and flint off. Check the flint to make sure it is good and sharp and not all busted and blunted. Then start outby dumping 80 grains of BLACK POWDERdown the bore. Place your lubedpatch over the muzzle. Center you ball in the patch. Now with the short end of the short starter, set the ball under the muzzle. With the longer end, seat the ball into the barrel. Now with the ramrod and the correct jag, set the ball onto the powder charge. Prime the pan with about half a pan full of powder (3 grains), trying to keep the powder away from the vent hole (so you do not get a fuse effect). Cock the hammer and pull the trigger when ready.

Your world will change forever when you see/hear the flash...BOOM!! If you did it all right, the ignition time will be very quick and the ball will be sailing down range to the bulls eye.

[arcticap]

TC made 2 different hammer designs, depending on when your dad's rifle was made.
The first hammer design was shorter anda little bit harder on flints, so TC improved the hammer geometryto make themspark better and sothe flints would last longer. They may have improved the vent liner too, that goes in the threaded hole where the spark enters the barrel.
Lots of folksreplace the old stylehammerswith the newer style onesfrom TC, and usually always report better performance.
Flintlock shooting isn't for everybody, butflintlocks can be tunedup to perform just about as fast as a percussion gun if done properly.
Shooting patched roundballs for target/plinkingis alsoeasier than loading sabots, especially if one wants to shoot a lot. But round balls generallyaren't as accurate at the longer ranges unlesstherifle hasa longer, high quality slow twistbarrel.
Most people consider inlinesto bemore desirable for hunting.
Sure, your dad's rifle is sentimental. Butsince shooting a flintlockdoesn't appeal toeverybody, I'm sure that he'd understand ifit wassold for another model that was more enjoyable.