A good, versatile buy?

P

Pond James Pond

New member
Seems I have found a Pedersoli Hawken Target Percussion rifle in .54 or .50 cal from a site in Germany.

It is a lot of money, but about the only decent affordable ML I can find.

Still waiting from feedback from a couple of other companies, but it seems to fit the bill. The shop rep said in an email that the .50 cal would be even better, taking lead ball, but also saboted bullets for hunting (although the legality of BP/ML hunting needs to be confirmed it is good to have the option).

Most importantly it is pre-1870 in design and therefore exempt from local gun restrictions.

So would this be a good all-rounder ML for a noob to BP?
 
Do you know the rate of twist? Round ball will do best with a slow twist, say 1 in 66". Conicals or sabots need a much faster twist. Often, a compromise 1 in 48 is advertised as good for both, but I think you would do better to shoot one or the other and get the right barrel. A .50 or .54 round ball will take most big game. The only disadvantage is that they lose velocity much quicker than a conical. But given the traditional sights, you're talking a 100 yard gun anyway. Pedersoli has a good reputation in the US, and their Hawken looks like a pretty fair replica of the original.
 
I used a .50 for many years and it will do the job but after having a couple of .54's I don't want another .50.
 
The Pedersoli Hawken is more a copy of the Thompson Center Hawken than it is of a St Louis Hawken. But the TC has served well and I would expect the Pedersoli to be satisfactory.

It has a 48" twist which I think is a compromise value between round ball and bullet.
 
I have a CVA "Hawken" (that's what it says on it- I'll not debate what a true "Hawken" is to historical purists- it is what the maker calls it) with a 1 in 48" twist .... it does best with the conical 385gr "Great Plains Bullet" from Hornady, over 80 grains FFg .....

It has been suggested to me that saboted pistol bullets might work, but work better with faster twists ..... I don't know, can bring myself to pay what they are asking for the plastic sabots ....
 
Which is interesting, & an illustration of individual preference in "identical" guns. I have a 1:48 Hawken made by CVA as well but its the exact opposite, preferring PRB over bullets!:)

(images are both (C) Wogpotter 2012)

DSCF0827_zpsf60ec82f.jpg


DSCF9525_zps1c4d6b10.jpg
 
Some do well with one, some do well with the other and some do well with both. A round ball takes more time to work up a ball/powder/patch combo that works but once you get it you will be amazed.
 
Without knowing the prices in your area, it's hard to say whether its a good buy. I wish you much luck and joy with that gun.
 
I haven't found 1:48 to be bad with PRBs as long as I don't try to push them too fast (about 75-80 gr max for the .50) but I can hit 75-100 yd targets without much trouble. One of my .50s has a 1:66 twist barrel but I can't say I've shot it enough to prefer it over the 1:48 honestly.
 
First, and last, chink in the armour....

Well, I paid a visit to the precinct today to see if I had understood the law correctly.

Indeed, I had given some though to the law and it does state that guns made before or based on designs before 1870 are exempt from governmental controls. I knew already that bullets and cases are exempt from controls.

Complete rounds are restricted. Also controlled, and here comes the crux of it, are primers and powder. I knew all this before, but when applied to the whole picture, I needed a licence to buy a gun and then the resulting gun permit allows me to buy rounds.

If I buy a gun that is not limited, I don't need a buying licence and so I don't get a registration permit and thus I can't buy ammo, or primers, or powder.

In other words "you can buy the gun, you just can't shoot it!!" :rolleyes:

Any gun from before 1870 that I buy will have to be a wall-hanger.

The plus side is that there is nothing that says it must be a muzzle-loader though. I may still get one, but I may also see if there are centre-fire rifles that fit the date restrictions and that is for another thread.

Still a shame though, as I'd have liked to experience the whole muzzle-loading experience!
 
Under your laws are "primers" & "caps" different? How about modern Vs black powder propellants?

I'm just wondering if a M/L is regulated differently from "modern" guns perhaps the supplies might be also.
 
Basically if it has any explosive/combustible quality it will be a controlled good in terms of the firearms legislation.

Absolutely anyone can buy inert stuff like cases and bullets, but the bang-powder and the pop-pills are the ones you need a firearms licence to buy.

So while the muzzle-loader itself (provided it is old enough) is not restricted, the things that would allow it to propel a bullet at lethal speeds are.

Modern muzzle-loaders are definitely regulated, although I've not heard of any shooters using them here.
 
I have an OLD Thompson Center Hawkin 1/66 in .50 and it shoots best with RB over 140 grains of pyrodex. Each can be a bit different.
 
This is indeed 1:48 twist rate. If it is going to be truly hopeless beyond 50yds, I suppose I'd rather know....
Click to expand...
There are many guns that use a 1:48 and have satisfactory accuracy with assorted loads

It's a "compromise" between a slower (1:64 PRB rate) and the faster (1:28 Conical rate) in newer rifles

I never had any luck with sabots in my 1:48's, but they shot PRB's and Maxi-Ball types quite well

My (and most all) 1:28 Knight rifles are capable of "one-hole" 100 yd groups with sabots
 
Wogpotter, Try the 370gr maxiballs or the powerbelts, HUGE increase in accuracy! Even at 100 yards the CVA Hawken will print great hunting accuracy ( 3 inch or under) with easy on the shoulder loads.

A factory CVA Hawken .54cal 1:48 twist I had did 3" all day long @100 with PRB and that was burning up thin .015" patches before I learned the difference between bore butter and a GOOD patch lube.

With conicals, You can better that rifle by bedding the Tang & Trigger plate areas with JB Weld or Acraglas. It keeps the metal from being pulled up into the wood and keeps the tang screw TIGHT.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top