My logic is that the author of the thread said he was thinking Omegao or Encore, so I stuck with an Omega or Encore. Sure there are a lot of guns that will shot conicals. I would not recommend a White for just the reason you said, parts and fixing if things go wrong. TC is excellent in that regard. Hope that help. Chap Gleason

Thanks to everyones responses so far. I really want to find a rifle I can count on to shoot conicals here in Colorado. Right now, I am not going to go out and spend the money on an Omega if I am going to take to the range and find out it won't shoot what I want it to shoot.

So anyway, what is the deal with White rifles exactly? I go to their website and it looks like I can order a Super 91 or an M98 online. Is this true or is their website not well maintained? Is anyone familiar with the M98? Is it comparable to the White Lightening that seems to be pretty hard to find? The M98 looks like it could be good rifle, but nobody has mentioned it so far, so I thought I would ask.

elkhunter004

Besides the white, do a search on the winchester x-150 and winchester apex. Both will allow you to shoot conicals and sabots. Im from colorado and shoot the x-150 and its a tack driver. Also take a look at the traditional muzzleloaders.

If you contact Tom at Sunrisearchery, he will be able to give you status on availiblity of a White. www.sunrisearchery.com

As has been noted; the White Rifle Company is not presently producing rifles and unless they find more financial support they likely will not in the near future. You need to call for availability as the ones listed in the online site are usually not available. As I said before there might be a couple of 91's (which are a good choice) left. The 98 is not, as well as Thunderbolts and any of the others listed. The question about White Rifle vs. Doc White is too long to go with here but the main story is Doc started the company and it has changed hands several times since. At one time it was called MTI (Muzzleloading Technologies Inc.) which is what my stainless 97 Whitetail Hunter is. Doc still works on and sell rifles when he can get the parts but is running low on material. Parts could be a problem sometime in the future but they are so well made that I doubt that should concern you unless you shoot 100 rounds a month on a regular basis. As I stated before and some are telling you there are other less difficult to find rifles that will shoot conicals ; Winchesters etc. (most are spanish rifles but that is OK if you follow the owners manuals and do not run magnum loads that are not recommended). I think the concerns about spanish barrels being soft or capable of failing has been advertised a little more than necessary. I don't own any but I know several do and have good luck with them.

Here is the manual for the Omega:

http://www.tcarms.com/assets/manuals/current/Omega_Muzzleloader_Manual.pdf

you can see on page 61 of 64 in the PDF that it will shoot Maxi-balls or Maxi hunters. What do you want to shoot? I know it shoots PowerBelts really well. I know it shoot the Saber Tooth very well. Same with the Encore.You have to experiment with loads and bullets to find the correct load and bullet that will work in yourgun. Open sights, no sabots and loose powder isI believe the requirements in colorado, and .50 caliber or above for elk. So the Omega or Encore should be able to do that with a bore size bullet, the PowerBelt and the Saber Tooth are both bore size conicals, not sabots. Buffalo bullets are another choice, there are several good bullets--so of the guys I read are using "BullStops" and getting great accuracy. You might also want to consider a percussion from TC such as the Hawken Caplock here:

http://www.tcarms.com/firearms/mzTraditional.php

they are an excellent rifle also with good ignition, but not as good as the 209 shot shell primer. You can't beat that for firing all the time.
Chap Gleason

Chap Gleason

UC, Please point this out to the gentlement that posted. I am aware of several other ones, but I don't have the experience with them that some do on this forum, so it is better if they respond from their experience. elkhunter004 is selecting a gun/bullet combination for a ML elk hunt, in ML season not rifle season, because if it is rifle season then any in-line with any bullet is legal in Rifle season. Please give him bullets you think will do the job and a gun that will do the job. I think either the Omega or Encore will do the job for him with whatever bore sized conical that shoots well in the gun he buys.
Chap

I was not one of the lucky ones.

Steve

Steve, You need to experiment with the bullet, sabot and load. For example the TC ShockWave a beautiful shooting, but my gosh are they hard to load. I have found that Harvester Crush Rib sabot works for me with a 300g bullet (Hornady, Gold Dot or Nosler Partition) with about 100g of 777. So I would not give up on the Omega accuracy, start with what the manual says, get it hitting good then start experimenting with different bullet and load combos. It will cost some money and time, but when your done, you will have an accurate good shooting and your confidence will be good.
Chap Gleason Va

Too late - its history.I went way beyond what should be needed to get a gun to shoot even marginally well.
Four different powders in wide range of charge, 4 or 5 conicals(best pattern could be matched with some shotguns), and at least 5 sabot combo's that never approached a group useful outside of 20 yds.

Sent back for evaluation - returned with a huge scratch in the laminate stock and the advise to shoot pellets - which I refuse to do. After 4 unanswered calls requesting to talk with a supervisor, I gave up and stopped the hemorrhaging. Sold a top of the line $500 plus anchor for a $100 to a friend willing to use pellets and limit range. With powder, projectiles and shipping, lost well over $500 - needless to say, Tc will never see another dime and I am not bashful about sharing the reason. I know others have received nothing but fine service from them, but this was not so in my case.

The best customer service department is the one never needed - TC's is reportedly good because they get far more practice then they should.

Steve