Things to look for when buying a used muzzleloader?

[rfd]

you ain't hunting elk with a .36 skwerl gun good find on the pedersoli. make sure to clean out the ante-chamber with a small bronze bore brush.

i'd say to stop yer searching around for used and get a new lyman trade gun in .54 bore - added to yer .36 you'll have a pair of guns that'll do things that a .45 would marginally do and be either under gunned for elk or over gunned for skwerls.

[pietro]

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You might want to check your state's game laws, for what you can or cannot use on various types of game.

Not all states regulate bore size, but my state does.

Here, only front stuffers up to .40cal can be used on Small Game; and only frontstuffers over .40cal can be used on deer - so I have a matched pair of lightweight (important to me) T/C Seneca caplocks ( a .36cal & a .45cal).








These two rifles give me the light weight I wanted, via 13/16" barrels, and locks/stocks that are downsized from the T/C Hawken's.


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[DakotaElkSlayer]

Can anyone tell me about what I bought? Looks brand new, not a scratch, but had a broken fiber optic in front eight. New fiber optic was put in at gun shop a few miles down the road. Needless to say, I am stoked about it! Anyone know the model or anything else about this?

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[DakotaElkSlayer]

Yup rfd, not an elkslaying rifle, but will be hell on jackrabbits and groundsquirrels! Bought the kid a .32 a few years back so I needed something similar. Not a single .45, .54 TC Hawken, or Renegade anywhere. Found a great .50 Hawken of unknown manufacturer that had the sliding tang peep and globe front sight for $175...almost bought that since it looked so clean, but did NOT click and lock after half cock!!! Not knowing how to fix, I walked, but those sights!!!😚

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[725]

Side of the barrel should give you some information. Without any further info, I'd say it looks like a Cabella's rifle.

I like all the above advice. Nice old T/C's are worth it if they haven't been abused or neglected. Side hammers are my favorite, too.

If, perchance, you find an otherwise good gun but the bore is iffy, it's an easy and kind of inexpensive deal to have it either re-bored or lined to a caliber & twist rate you determine. I've salvaged several that have a new life from that process. Many do it, but I go to Bob Hoyt over by Gettysburg, Pa.

[54bore]

i'd say to stop yer searching around for used and get a new lyman trade gun in .54 bore - added to yer .36 you'll have a pair of guns that'll do things that a .45 would marginally do and be either under gunned for elk or over gunned for skwerls.

rfd, here is one i have to disagree with ya on, My .45 Cal GM LRH is sending a 410 Grain bullet over my chronograph at 1460 FPS, My .50 Cal with a 460 grain bullet is going over the Chronograph at 1400 FPS, between the 2 rifles i would choose my .45 Cal to Elk hunt with in a HOT SECOND! BUT it is not legal here in Idaho, we have a .50 Cal minimum for Elk. As far as potency goes, I'd say the .45 loaded above would be a PLENTY and then some for Elk, Now if we were talking Round Ball the .50 or .54 would no doubt be the better choice

[Saxtonyoung]

The 45 caliber is no joke if larger bullets are being used, preferably with a fast twist barrel. Michigan use to have a 45 caliber rule but lifted it at least 3 years ago. Speaking of the 45 , one friend of mine took a very large Elk in northern Michigan with a 45 White Muzzleloader and a super slug about 12 years ago.

[Saxtonyoung]

It's such a shame that there aren't more fast twist barrels being made, in his book Doc White described several calibers that White Rifle either produced or were experimenting with. Here are the sizes he described.

.331 1-14" twist
.351 1-14" twist
.368 1-14" twist
.410 1-16" twist
.451 1-20" twist
.503 1-24" twist
.540 1-24" twist

[rfd]

it's true that a .45 can work if the hunter and load and game and conditions are all in reasonable alignment. so can a .22lr kill moose - been done, probably still being done by the inuits.

if the OP already has a .36, bracketing that with a fast twist cap gun in .50 or .54 will allow some serious projectile usage in the form of REALs or patched boolits, which makes for a pair of firearms that aren't gonna be a compromise of one gun.

[Bent Ramrod]

Dakotaelkslayer,

That looks like my Pedersoli "Kentucky" rifle, that I bought from Cabela's. The fiber optic front sight is probably aftermarket, and if there are no maker's marks on the barrel, maybe you got an aftermarket barrel as well.

[DakotaElkSlayer]

Barrel is marked Pedersoli, Black Powder Only, Made In Italy, CAL .36. Also has five digit serial number and proof marks on there. The fiber optic sights are the same ones found on the Pedersoli website....not a clue if they are original or not.

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[54bore]

Barrel is marked Pedersoli, Black Powder Only, Made In Italy, CAL .36. Also has five digit serial number and proof marks on there. The fiber optic sights are the same ones found on the Pedersoli website....not a clue if they are original or not.

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Get out and shoot that critter!! I wanna hear how you do with it? I would like to find a light caliber like that for my dad so he can have fun shooting it, his .54 Cal Renegade loaded for elk isn't the perfect plinking rifle, maybe i can talk him in to some light Round ball loads for it? Pretty tough teaching an old dog new tricks tho!

[Bent Ramrod]

They must have modernized the sights since I bought mine. I'm in the process of changing out the buckhorn rear and blade front mine came with to an easier to see rear notch and a pinhead front.

Mine's a great offhand rifle. You ought to have a lot of fun with yours.

[DakotaElkSlayer]

Stayed up to 1am trying to figure out how to get a peep on it.

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[mooman76]

You got a great deal on that rifle. 36s are getting harder to find and usually command a higher price. I looked for quite awhile to find one at a good price. After a couple deals fell through, I finally got on after a couple years but not even as cheap as yours. Yours looks kind of like a Cabela's if I remember right, they marketed it as a Shenandoah rifle. Cabela's imports some guns and market them under their name.

[DakotaElkSlayer]

Just got a reply from Pedersoli...it is their Frontier that they shipped to Cabela' s in 1993. They sent me the load data, too!

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[mooman76]

Good deal. I checked on the Shenandoah and it was made by Traditions. There are so many with so many different names and most only vaguely resemble the originals and even more are just new made up ones.