Best out of the TC's

[rlb]

Which of the TC models has the best reputation for accuracy with conicals and reliability out of the New Englander, Renegade, or Hawken?


Thanks for your time,

Rich

[725]

I've shot all those models and they all did very, very well. Might have to give an edge to the set trigger models, though.

[FLINTNFIRE]

Have a new englander and a renegade in 50 both have the same 1 in 48 twist , had a t.c. hawken same twist gave to the son for graduation , all shot the same , like the butt stock on the new englander the best , all shot the maxi balls and maxi hunters pretty much the same , shot lee reals and minies from them also , I also prefer the single trigger

[rlb]

Ok, out of the guys that thought they shot very well, how well is this out to 100 yds? 2", 3", 4"?

Thanks

[marshall623]

Being partial to a 50 cal renegade I'll say scoped you can do better than 2", easy 6" with irons and I believe better if you work with it . With that being said I have a older model with the square partridge style sights.

[tomme boy]

I have had them all. One thing I found out was the newer ones with the QLA false muzzle did not shoot as well as the older ones that do not have it. The most accurate one I have had is a New Englander in .50cal. I bedded the whole tang and barrel up to the front lug on it as these things like to split the wood. The trigger is very smooth and if I do my part I can hold about 3"s at 100 with irons.

[AlaskanGuy]

If anybody would like to download the TC manual, here is the link.... It is in PDF format so you can save it to your computer or Ipad...

http://pdf.textfiles.com/manuals/FIREARMS/thompsoncenter_contender.pdf

[kenyerian]

I have a 45 hawken that i bought new in 71 or 72 and it shoots roundball better than maxies or sabot's. my brother bought a renegade in 50 cal when they first came out and it shot the Maxies very well and the RB so so. Ron Gaumer had a New Englander in the 80's and he shot Buffalo Bullets in it. I don't think he ever shot round balls.

[Geraldo]

Ok, out of the guys that thought they shot very well, how well is this out to 100 yds? 2", 3", 4"?

Thanks

If you want to shoot long with one, you'd be better off with a fast twist Green Mountain barrel.

[rlb]

If you want to shoot long with one, you'd be better off with a fast twist Green Mountain barrel.

If I could find one I would get one. Green Mountain basically told me they won't do the Longrange Hunter barrels anymore.

[marquette]

If you can find a Treehawk they have 1:20 barrels and are designed for conical bullets only.

[KyBill]

I have never fired a New Englander But have the Hawken and Renegade . Hawken does better prefer the Renegade with an added recoil pad for hunting with Conicals

[Larry Gibson]

Might consider/look for a TC Black Mountain Magnum .50 cal. They have a 28" twist and handle conicals extremely well. They are also made for saboted bullets and max charges of Pyrodex. I use 90 gr Tripple 7 FFFG under a TC 350 gr Maxi-Ball cast of 16-1 alloy. Velocity is 1570 fps. Photo shows 6 shots at 100 yards w/o cleaning or wiping between shots; one down the muzzle and 5 from the speed loaders. The peep sight is the TC sight made for the rifle as the fiber optic sights that came on it were illegal in Oregon when I got the rifle.

Larry Gibson

91407

[fouronesix]

The reliability of those models are all about the same (same design). They all have the standard 48" twist. My experience is that it is easier to get good accuracy and conical stability in the 48" twist with the 54 cal than it is with the 45 cal with the 50 cal being a good, in-between compromise (simple Greenhill formula stuff). The factory 50 cal T/C Hawken is fully capable of fine accuracy with the Maxiball.

Experience also tells me that the 54 Renegade with a heavy load and the Maxiball is not the most pleasant rifle to shoot because of recoil. You might take that into consideration when balancing accuracy potential against recoil thus shootability. For me the 50 cal T/C Hawken with standard 28" length X 48" twist barrel, with good sights, is a very good conical compromise.

[waksupi]

If people would use crescent butt plates they way they are intended, the problems would go away.

[fouronesix]

Well, the Renegade has a very good, large "shotgun" steel plate- always has. That isn't the problem. Something about the geometry of the Renegade, it's short barrel and LOP and drop all coupled with heavy loads is the problem- for me anyway.

The T/C Hawken has the brass crescent plate. I have little problem with heavy loads in the 50 cal. Hawken model.

Two different rifles- two different things.

[Kylongrifle]

Heres a 50 yard 3 shot group from my .54 renegade with .530 PRB(target says .490 that was a mistake) over 90gr 2f goex..
http://i1321.photobucket.com/albums/u541/wolfcreekforge/004_zps5f529c8e.jpg (http://s1321.photobucket.com/user/wolfcreekforge/media/004_zps5f529c8e.jpg.html)

[rlb]

Thanks guys for all of the replies. I now have a couple of directions to be heading in. I have a little CVA inline with a 1-28 twist, but I wouldn't put it past Idaho F&G to someday outlaw them for any muzzleloader hunts. Thus I need a traditional rifle just in case.

[DIRT Farmer]

For those who are interested, Tip Curtis Frontieer Shop has T/C style breech plugs and depending on what you want to build up, black powder cartridge barrels for fast twist guns and standard round ball barrels. Just install the breech plug and fit the tennon, rib and sights. I have a gun that started life as a 50 Hawken and now has a 40 1 in 48, 45 1 in 18, 50 1 in 66 , 54 and 58 in 1 in 72. All shoot very well for their intended use, mainly target and silhouettes. The gun started out as a 50, was bought at a yard sale for 25 dollars with a trashed barrel.

[izzyjoe]

I personally like all the T/C sidelock rifles, and they will all serve you well. I noticed that the quality fell off some on the later one's. My 50 NE has poor wood to metal fit, but it still is a great shooter. The crescent buttplate on the hawken is not bad, it makes a lot of difference where it's placed. And old friend of mine told me that the crescent buttplate had to set were the arm meets the shoulder, not on the shoulder like a modern gun.