My first BP gun...

[koehlerrk]

Pulled the trigger today on my first black powder gun. Got a TC Hawkin... 50 cal, double set triggers, nice rifle.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v690/koehlerrk/Hawken.jpg

Got to replace the nipple... some numb-nuts dry-fired it and peened over the end. Add to that the general impossibility of finding caps right now, and I decided to get one of the Mag-Spark nipples. I gots plenty of 209 primers. And if that doesn't work, I suppose I could always get one of the ones that uses small rifle primers... got a few thousand of those on hand too.

Once everything settles down, maybe I can get some #11 caps for it.... but until then at least I can make it go bang!

[docone31]

Ampco nipples are good ones. Track of the Wolf has them. Save the old one for dry firing to test the rifle when needed.
Every now and again, test the machine screws for tightness. Some might loosen.
Good rifle. Enjoy indeed.
Cabelas has caps on line. #11 is what is needed.

[SamTexas49]

a good solid rifle to enter the BP world.

Track of the Wolf has:

Hot Shot® forThompson Center Hawken & other popular guns, 1/4-28 thread, #11 CCI or Remington cap, stainless steel.

Start with .490 round balls, cotton cloth patching, and Black powder, when you get to know your rifle and shooting then consider other ideas, Maxi-ball, BP substitute etc.

OVER ALL ENJOY !

[Cmasailor]

my dad found one on gunbroker for less than 100 because it needed another bbl... well we have yet to replace the barrel it shoots just fine with RB and thick patches. you'll be pleased

[koehlerrk]

I currently have a hundred .490 balls cast up from pure lead. I plan on using only Ye Holy Black, no subs for me, and they aren't supposed to work with a sidelock anyways.

So, with that I'm guessing that I should get some .010 patches. What do I lube the patches with for shooting? I'm not brand new to BP, but it's been about 20 years, and my dad handled most of the "chores" back then...

After that, what's a good lube for maxi-balls, Lee REALs, etc?

Thanks for the help everyone!

[mooman76]

You can carefully file or sand that nipple so it works again. Always good to have extras anyway. Not the best but crisco will work in a pinch and bore butter too, also known as TCs Natural lube 1000.

[OverMax]

Caps or not: That old saying applies to this OP. "Necessity is the mother of invention." Starting off in traditional mode. You may just never recover from because its so much more interesting & fun. (than inline.) Have to ask because it wasn't mentioned earlier. How does its bore look koehlerrk?

P. script: For patch ball. You might find .015 patch offers a little better accuracy than a .010.

[koehlerrk]

Yes, mooman, filing that nipple would make it work... but since I already have replacements on the way, I guess I'll file it up and keep it as a backup.

OverMax, I specifically went with a sidelock because I don't really care for inlines. I wanted to go with something more like what my dad and I shot back when I was a teen, twenty-odd years ago, more of a traditional muzzle loader. and it's hard to get more traditional than a TC Hawken.

The bore is beautiful, whoever owned it fired it some, but took good care of it. I'll make a point of getting a pack of .010 and .015 patches to try... thanks for the idea.

[Digital Dan]

Built a Renegade .50 decades back, same-same Hawken save for the stock and furniture. Was my most accurate rifle until stolen. T/C Maxiballs with bore butter were fine, but it's hard to use in the field without a speed loader. 90 grains of 2FG rocked. Less or more, not so much. A .490" ball and .015" patch lubed with BB was a clover leaf shooter with 50 grains of 2FG. When I started futzing with the RB's the adventure was cut short by the theft.

The Maxiball from that gun could star in a Steven King movie when striking flesh and blood. The steel butt plate was effective on rattlesnakes. Always wanted to try it out on the fella what stole it.

[johnson1942]

ive had about 15 muzzleloaders, sold about 1/2 of them. they all have mag spark nipples. the new owners love them and i still do. buy a small cheap pliers also to help pull the spent 209 primer as they can get sticky at times. i wet the threads for the cover with spit every time i shoot as this makes the cap come off easier after fireing. your thompson has american threads when you order a magspark nipple. im sending track of the wolf a thompson hawken barrel and a renagade barrel that are extras and to sell. both barrels have magspark nipples on them. im sure the new owners will love them. the nipples that are like mag spark but take a small pistol primer are no longer available. thompson is is good solid gun and very reliable. keep haveing fun

[fouronesix]

The bore is beautiful, whoever owned it fired it some, but took good care of it. I'll make a point of getting a pack of .010 and .015 patches to try... thanks for the idea.

Looks like one of the older closet queens where the owner cleaned it right- more rare than you might think- nice looking rifle. The 490 RBs are a good place to start and various tight weave 100% cotton patching material for testing is just a fabric shop or wallyworld away. :)

[Hogdaddy]

Great looking rifle,, My freind had one that shot great @ 100yards,,Touched boolits ; )
H/D

[koehlerrk]

Well, the Mag-Spark came yesterday. I have to say that's an impressive little piece of engineering. Looks like I need to swing by the LGS and get some patches, bore butter, and a good one-piece ramrod. Then it'll be time to go shoot the old gal. I imagine she roars...

Thanks for all the encouragement guys, sounds like I found a real winner, but, as always, some time on the range will tell. I'll take pics when that happens.

[fouronesix]

I don't know if you have been able to get any #11 caps, but if you find some you might think about picking up a few tins of them. Piddle fooling around with the magspark might get old.

[SamTexas49]

Was at local Gander Mountain this past week, ONE can of #11 mag caps on shelf so I got them !!

[koehlerrk]

I've called all the LGS within an hour drive from home... no caps.

I took the old nipple off, put it in the chuck of my drillpress and held a file against it for a couple seconds, then some fine sandpapers. It should be good to go if I need it...

Put the mag-spark on, but while I did that I broke out the cleaning rod and swabbed the bore good. Damn.... looks brand new, not even any rust in the flash hole area, checked that with a pipe-cleaner soaked in Hoppes. I'm starting to wonder how many times this girl was fired... if at all.

Put some anti-seize on the threads and twisted the mag-spark into place... looks good to me!

[PTS]

At some point try ball-ets from Buffalo Bullet Co or try Hornady PA conicals. They are made to shoot in a round ball gun rate of twist. Their hollow base will expand into the rifling so no need for patching. Very accurate in my Pedersoli Kentucky.

[dondiego]

What's a magspark?

[fouronesix]

A thingy that replaces the nipple. They've been around quite a while. I fooled around with one in a T/C side lock about the mid to late 80s. It encapsulates a regular center fire primer. Looks like this.