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I built a .54 caiiber Hawkin from a kit and i have fired it many times. I want to get a modern inline .50 muzzleloader for hunting deer out to about 150 yards so I want it to be accurate with a scope. Does anyone have suggestions based on thier hunting experience as to which rifle to purchase? Thanks
I have 2 TC Omegas, one for my daughter with a Nikon 4X, and mine has the Nikon Omega 3-9X with the bullet drop compensator reticle.
From a bench using 245gn Powerbelts and 3 triple 7 pellets I can break clay targets at 250 yards. Offhand at 100 yds. I can keep it in about an inch and a half.
I have a few of almost every make, including a few customs. they all have found a niche in the rotation somewhere. any are capable of a good accurate shot at most deer distances. It really depends on your budget.
im sold on the SMI incorporated. smokless muzzleloader incorporated, found on the internet. they put douglas barrels on H and R shotgun frames for you H and R and are very well made and high quality. i had one done for my son. they put scope mounts on it also. they are .50 cal 1/32 twist which shoots a .50 sabot and a .451 or .452 250 grain pistol bullet in it. my son uses 120 grains of black horn 209 powder behind the sabot and the .45 pistol bullet and it gets to 2200 ft. per sec. you can shoot way past 200 yards with it and to 300 yards without diff. for accracy and knockdown power. i think it has more knockdown power than my sons .270 and can shoot to 300 yards just as good. with the 1/32 twist you dont have to buy the expensive sabots with bullets at out doors stores, you can get mmp sabots in bulk off of the internet and can cast your own .45 pistol bullets. also i buy the .45 cal bullets at wall mart for my son 100 at a time. check out SMI on the internet, you may like them.
TC Omega !
I was given a CVA Optima Pro 50 cal with a 3x9 Burris banner scope that puts three touching holes in the target at 100 yds using 100grains of triple7 pellets and a patched .490 round ball ! Inexpensive to buy , boolits are cheap compared to commercial sabots, and even cheaper when its free!
My vote is for the 54 Hawken! Since you did not mention a flinter
Save your money and use your hawkin.
Lyman Great Plains Hunter?
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...t-to-100-yards
What about the Hawkin do you find unacceptable? What loads have you tried and how well is it shooting? I would think a halfway decent 54 Hawkin should be a splendid deer rifle. My 50 cal round balls have done kilt every deer they've touched, and your 54 should thwack the dickens out of them with energy to spare, with not more than a patched a round ball and a decent powder charge. You may not get clover leafs at 100, I don't know, but it should be able to come close with the right load.
Maybe we should talk loads first, and see what kind of accuracy you can get out of that Hawkin. Some people on here are shooting similar rifles with excellent results.
Some of the BPCR shooters I know use peep sights out to 1,000 yards with their 45s. You shouldn't have much trouble seeing a deer at 125 or 150 with your Mach I eyeballs if they're in reasonably good condition. It depends a lot more on your loading practices and shooting ability than on the sights. Telescopes are highly over-rated and over used (in my opinion) unless you're shooting out to several hundred yards on smaller targets. I recently went to an aperture tang sight (aperture, meaning it's a bigger hole than a peep sight, and so it let's more light through and is faster targeting than a peep) on my sidelock 50, and I do like it a bit better than the Lyman open sight that came with it. Kilt plenty of deer with the original sights though.
Then again if you're set on a new rifle, don't let anyone stop you.
Most any of the new/modern inlines will shoot accurate enough and power enough to kill deer out to 150. Go to the LGS or big box store and see what suits/fits you and your budget. They will all go bang and kill deer. Personally I would suggest that the Knight rifles are at the top of the heap for regular inlines but I don't have one. I pretty much shoot Savage MLIIs now and rebuilt Remmy 700MLs callen Rempac. Compared to factory guns they are kinda pricey as I have $750+ in each of them not counting glass. However I have them set for 0 at 200 yds and can kill deer out to 3.5C+. As for shooting "traditional" sidehammer guns with open sights at 150 yards and being reliable deer killers, It happens but not reliably unless you are a special shooter and have above average seeing and shooting skills, some people do but most do not. Get a gun that fits you and the bases/rings/glass should be 50% up to = the cost of the gun depending. Remember a modest priced gun and really good glass is way better than a top end gun and cheap glass. $.02, 10 gaQuote:
Originally Posted by Newbee
Another vote for the Omega by TC, one of the best inline ever built! Mine is incredibly accurate with several different powders/loads but will shoot 5 shots, into a ragged hole with 2ffg black powder and its sabot load of choice. I have taken deer past 200yds. I have also had great luck with the CVA Optima and cheaper Wolf breakdown, they shoot powerbelts extremely well! With the rifle you already have, using maxi hunters, you can take deer out to 200yds, just do yer homework. I had a Hawken .54 barrel on a Renegade stock/lock setup that I tuned and glass bedded, and added a scout scope, Burris 2.75 and took 43 deer with in over the past 2 decades using black powder and Hornady great plains bullets and TC Maxi hunters that I cast. I have shot competition on a state and national level for many years, and with some effort the old hammer guns are hard to beat.
work on yer stalkin' & marksmanship til ya can cut that 150yd distance in half and just use yer hawken. if aimin' is a problem for ya put a peepsight on it.
Always room for one more. Nice to have you here on C/B's Newbee. An~yway.
I'm kinda partial towards the Omega. It fits me well and shoulders well. But sadly my first rifle demands all my attention. To many deer have I shot with it too just put it away for safe keeping because of another rifle choice. Yes Sir its a traditional T/C Hawken 45 I have. Maybe someday I'll get me one of those inline's {If I can afford one!} Just not today.
What he said. Ever try a bullet in that Hawken? One of the most accurate rifles I ever owned was a T/C Renegade .54 with a T/C Maxi Ball.Quote:
Originally Posted by bubba.50
I bought a Traditions Buckstalker this past season, and love it. Came with a a 3x9 on it, and it has a quick-remove breech plug that needs no tools. Uses 209 primers. I shoot a 240 grain 45 lead slug with a sabot, and it cloverleafs at 50 yds, and is MOA at 100 with 100 grains of pyrodex pills. But... i still love my half-stock Hawken .54 with a PRB and real 2F BP.