Muzzleloading hunting has officially gone too far!

[725]

While I think the rifle is ridiculous, I don't care what others use. If somebody likes it, who cares? If it gets more people shooting and into the hunting woods, it's a good thing. I prefer sidelocks, but do you really care what I like? Without being too much of a "get off my lawn" guy, it's none your business. Live & let live.

[hylander]

Lame, that is not muzzle loading.
You are not loading the powder from the muzzle.

[AntiqueSledMan]

Hey Guys,

I stand corrected, Smokeless Powder is again legal in a muzzleloader here in Minnesota. It was banned in 2006 (I remember reading this), and I guess repealed in 2007 (I don't recall). As far as this rifle being legal, all laws are interpreted by the individual and I can see a ticket from a Conservation Officer for said rifle as the charge is loaded from the breech. It would be the same as breech seating a cartridge rifle if you loaded the projectile from the muzzle.

AntiqueSledMan.

[Tatume]

Every sane hunter would never buy an inline and just use a normal rifle if it were legal.

Not true. I hunt with a muzzleloader during the regular firearms season, and not just because I want to (which I do). Virginia has a hodgepodge of hunting regulations, county by county and some cities. A hunter can park his car where it's legal to hunt with a 30-30 and walk to his stand, and be in a location where it is not legal. But everywhere it is legal to hunt with a gun, any kind of gun, it is legal to hunt with a muzzleloader.

Now add to that that my muzzleloaders are just as accurate, just as effective, and just as much fun, and you may understand why I don't hunt with centerfire rifles in my home state.

That doesn't prove I'm sane, but you be the judge.

[Slugster]

I still use my .54 cal St. Louis Hawken that I assembled from a CVA kit 40 years ago. Dead accurate with the T/C Maxi ball. Have seen no reason to change to one of the new in-lines. It never fails, always accurate, and has accounted for more deer than I have fingers and toes. This new Federal idea (idea is actually well over 100 years old) is rather off-putting.
This is all probably the result of the manufacturer trying to appeal to the NEW HUNTER (not overly bright, and more interested in their phone and gadgetry than actually hunting) who is infesting the woods these days.

[Dimner]

Not true. I hunt with a muzzleloader during the regular firearms season, and not just because I want to (which I do). Virginia has a hodgepodge of hunting regulations, county by county and some cities. A hunter can park his car where it's legal to hunt with a 30-30 and walk to his stand, and be in a location where it is not legal. But everywhere it is legal to hunt with a gun, any kind of gun, it is legal to hunt with a muzzleloader.

Now add to that that my muzzleloaders are just as accurate, just as effective, and just as much fun, and you may understand why I don't hunt with centerfire rifles in my home state.

That doesn't prove I'm sane, but you be the judge.

You are sane. Because, the quote you posted had "if it were legal".

I'm guessing you would pick a centerfire rifle of sufficient caliber if there wasn't all this nonsense in the laws.


I see it this way. Let's say there was a state where any sufficent centerfire caliber was legal in any deer season.

If a feller wanted to forgo the option of modern rifle cartridges and go muzzleloader, how many would pick an inline?

My guess is that people use in lines because they are not permitted to use their centerfire rifles.

[hpdrifter]

I think they went too far many years ago.

Allowing scopes on muzzleloaders was it. I could live with inlines, to an extent. Heck of a lot easier to clean.

Compounds in archery season seemed ok, but I knew where it would lead. Now we have crossbows, drawlocks, even live rounds attached to arrows.

To me, the whole idea of archery and muzzle loader season is to step away from modern contrivances.

I know I am not the one writing the laws and it's a good thing for many.

[FergusonTO35]

Jniedbalski - all signs signs of the quickly changing times in America. and yet, to our young'uns, these are their good ol' days. i wish they could experience my good ol' days, but i'm a'feared those days are gone forever ...

When it comes to deer and turkey hunting here in my state, these are in fact the good old days. When my dad was a kid in the 1950's, if you wanted to hunt either one and have a realistic chance of success you had to travel a couple states away. When I was a kid in the 1980's I spent lots of time in the woods of Scott County and rarely saw any deer, never saw any turkey. On the odd chance that a neighbor got one, there would be a stream of cars in and out of their driveway of people coming to look at it.

[Good Cheer]

Wow.
Now who came up with that , and can call that a muzzle loader.
That ain't much different than taking a 45/70 , loading the casing Full of black powder , then shoving a projectile down the barrel.

Or with a 45 Colt single shot rifle.

[Tripplebeards]

It’s not legal in Wisconsin either it’s got to be loaded from the barrel. I have an old-school muzzleloader that you have to unscrew the breach so it’s faster just to load it from the front!

If that goofy set up was legal you might as well just start using H&R single shots for muzzleloader season with modern cartridges because in my opinion it would be the same thing.

[varsity07840]

In my state, any gun that does not use fixed ammunition is legal now. That opens the door to Sharps, Smith, Starr, Gallahger, and that new train wreck. I'm ok hunting with a Sharps etc, as they are black powder and your average yayhoo won't even know what they are but that new thing is just wrong. I asked our DNR what was up with that and the response I got was that the deer harvest wasn't as high as they would like due to lack of hunters in the woods. They still have a fairly large number of licenses issued, but folks actually going into the woods, not as much as in the past.

I live in western NC and planned on using my Gallagher this year. But given the fact that I have to hunt public land which means a lot of hunters and fewer deer, I changed my mind. My alternative was going back up to New Jersey with my full stock flint Hawken but I realized that I really don't want shoot a deer anymore. So at 69, I retired. Paper is catching hell though.

[Tatume]

You are sane. Because, the quote you posted had "if it were legal". I'm guessing you would pick a centerfire rifle of sufficient caliber if there wasn't all this nonsense in the laws.

Not true. I hunt with a muzzleloader because I want to, that that is exactly what I said. I added further support for doing it, buy I would not use a centerfire rifle, period. I like hunting with my British rifles.

[Dimner]

Not true. I hunt with a muzzleloader because I want to, that that is exactly what I said. I added further support for doing it, buy I would not use a centerfire rifle, period. I like hunting with my British rifles.

Okay understood. But in this hypothetical situation where laws are not an issue, would you use an inline or sidelock?

[rfd]

the issue of this thread is, what is the definition of a "muzzleloader". common sense would indicate the answer is clearly in the name. if powder and projectile are breech chambered instead of muzzle chambered, i don't see how said firearm could be deemed "muzzleloader". as such, how could such a breech seated firearm fit it use within the description of a "muzzleloading hunting season"? beats me, but in this politically whacked out new millennium, lotsa whackos are attempting to fit square pegs into round holes of equal dimensions.

then there's the issue of where and when weapons called "muzzleloaders" should be used for hunting is a can of worms in too many counties and states, for too many reasons, including blending firearms with archery (then there's the issue of what's considered "archery"). oh what fun. not.

[Bazoo]

Well, while I like traditional muzzleloaders over inlines, it doesn't bother me. I'm not sure if it'd be legal here but I think so. Personally I think the mz season is a joke. Folks here all use inlines as a way to extend modern gun. Modern gun is just 2 weeks, and then mz is like 10 days 3 weeks later. But if they would let modern gun go for a month or maybe 6 weeks it'd take a lot of pressure off the deer during that 2 week period everyone is frantic.

To make it worse, my county has been unlimited does for 3 years now. Folks killing all they can and donating the meat. That puts a lot of undue pressure on the deer and makes it harder for small farm hunters like me.

[Tatume]

Okay understood. But in this hypothetical situation where laws are not an issue, would you use an inline or sidelock?

I use a sidelock percussion British stalking rifle, a Parker-Hale Volunteer, and a flintlock British sporting rifle. All three are deadly at any range I would choose to shoot a deer with any rifle.

[Tatume]

I hasten to add, anybody can use any rifle they want, and I don't care. This is not a social event for me. What they do is their business, and I'll never know, so why should I care. Peace and solitude are among the reasons I hunt.

[Fly]

I must omit I,m a traditional muzzle loader guy. I,m not crazy about people hunting in the tradition muzzle loader season with the new rifles & such.
I don't bash them ever for it is the law & I can't controll that. But stuff like this tells me the people making laws, just want
the money generated by deer stamps.

Fly

[rfd]

I must omit I,m a traditional muzzle loader guy. I,m not crazy about people hunting in the tradition muzzle loader season with the new rifles & such.
I don't bash them ever for it is the law & I can't controll that. But stuff like this tells me the people making laws, just want
the money generated by deer stamps.

Fly

as always, it's about political power - control and money. politicians have always known that without constituent scrutiny they can literally get away with murder. so the real problem becomes we, the people. look around and see the current state of the average, apathetic, ignorant American, happily giving away their liberty, their freedoms, to the nefarious politicos who promise bread and circuses in return ... allowing hunting across our lands to devolve into a near nightmare of rules and regulations, where at least some are downright devoid of any manner of common sense. welcome to the new USA.

[bob208]

the reason I don't like inlines and what has fallowed. they are going to lead muzzleloaders into the same regulations as center fire guns.