Selecting Your First Muzzleloader

Shooters have an abundance of excellent muzzleloading guns from which to choose. One-half-century ago there were only a few really shootable replica rifles, handguns and shotguns. Today cataloged models of muzzleloading guns number in the hundreds. Selecting that first gun can be expedited by considering the following five factors:

1. What's The Purpose?

What will be the primary use of the gun? Although black-powder guns may be used for more than one purpose, serious thoughts about the likely uses of the new gun should come first. A traditionally-styled iron-sighted rifle can be at home at NMLRA or NRA muzzleloading matches or in the deer woods. If match shooting is the primary objective, a .45-caliber round-ball gun in a Hawken-style percussion rifle is hard to beat. Flint shooters will have difficulties in finding a good factory-replica rifle, although the availability of after-market flintlocks and higher-grade replicas by companies such as Davide Pedersoli have considerably helped this dismal situation.

Make a list of likely activities. The new gun might be used for deer hunting 70 percent of the time, plinking and informal competition 20 percent and in National Muzzleloading Rifle Association matches 10 percent. In this case, a .50-caliber fast-twist side-lock gun with adjustable sights and an extra .45-caliber round-ball barrel with fixed sights would be an excellent selection.

2. The Law

Regulations regarding the use of muzzleloaders for different classes of game are set by each state. These regulations often set minimum calibers for deer and larger game, sometimes require certain energy levels, may restrict the choice of ignition systems, require exposed ignition, disallow certain types of bullets and prohibit the use of scopes. If the primary purpose is to hunt deer, .50-caliber rifles are legal in all 50 states. In the large majority of cases and hunts, a side-lock percussion rifle would also be allowed; although there are a few states and hunts where only flintlock guns are permitted. A good first step in the gun selection process is to obtain a copy of the game regulations from states that might be hunted, read them carefully and note any restrictions on muzzleloading firearms.

3. What Style: Modern Or Traditional?

The same percussion barrel shooting the same powder charge does not care whether it is in a side-lock or an in-line gun. Both types of guns are similarly accurate over the same ranges. In-lines have the advantages of being generally more weatherproof, easier (and more natural) to use with scopes and often have slightly faster ignition. Traditional guns typically feel better for off-hand shooting, come with accuracy enhancing set triggers and, let's face it, look like muzzleloaders. There are also hybrids, like the Thompson/Center Hawken rifle, which are not copies of any historical gun. Very often these hybrids shoot very well, and T/C guns have taken a tremendous number of game animals from all over the world.

If state laws do not prohibit a style of action, type of ignition or require round-ball only use, the question of traditional vs. in-line design should rest with the buyer and the style that he feels more comfortable. Another possibility is using a replica of a Civil or Revolutionary War musket or rifle for hunting. These larger caliber .58-.75 caliber rifles and muskets can take deer at 50 yards, even from smoothbore barrels. They are fun to use, but as many of the rifles shoot high, it is part of the challenge to remember to aim 17-inches below the deer to hit it in the chest at 100 yards. New sights can be put on the gun, but using the gun as issued evens the odds between the hunter and hunted.

4. The Size

Smaller bodied shooters such as kids, some ladies and small-frame guys, shoot better with guns more appropriate to their size. Several makers, including CVA, Knight and Remington, offer shorter stocked, lighter weight rifles in both traditional and in-line designs. A typical round-ball deer load fired from guns with appropriate 1:66 to 1:45 twists barrels should use a minimum of 85 grains of FFg. If the shooter can take more recoil, increase the bullet weight by using Buffalo Bullets' 270-grain Ball-ets. Another good load is 90 grains of FFg and CVA's new 295-grain PowerBelt bullets. Either bullet load will be effective on deer at 75 yards even if fired from short, 24-inch barrels. The round-ball load should be restricted to about 50 yards.

If the objective is to kill deer at ranges of over 100 yards, barrel lengths of at least 26 inches, powder charges of 100 grains to 150 grains and .50-caliber bullet weights of 290 grains to 400 grains are needed with correspondingly heavy rifles. A rifle weighing about 10 pounds with a well designed stock and an effective recoil pad is necessary to comfortably lob heavy bullets downrange and make hits on distant targets. Less weight makes for a gun that is easier to carry, but may be a brute to shoot.

5. Price

Price is listed as the last factor, but may be the most important consideration for some shooters. The good news is that even guns costing less than $100 will reliably take deer year after year. Both sidelock and in-line designs are available for below the $100 mark. These are mostly short-barreled, lightweight guns and may have synthetic composition rather than wooden stocks. This class of guns is best used with the lighter loads mentioned above.

A few dollars, $30 to $50, can be shaved off the price by building a kit gun. Typically, all the wood will be inlet, and the gun will need to have its stock, and sometimes its barrel, finished and its brass polished. The savings is not too significant when it is considered that the materials to finish the gun must be purchased at additional costs. Nonetheless, owners of kit guns have an understandable pride in taking game with a gun that they had a hand in building.

In this highly competitive industry, buyers are getting good prices that honestly reflect upgrades in materials, finish and fitting as prices climb. Four hundred dollars will buy an excellent, good-looking gun that will last a lifetime. Upping the price by a couple of hundred puts the buyer into the area of good shooting exacting replicas from makers such as Davide Pedersoli, all stainless-steel in-lines and some factory flintlocks that will give reasonable service. Beyond about $600, more is going into the quality of wood and decorations than into the shooting characteristics of the gun, with exceptions for guns with graphite-wrapped barrels, scopes, etc.

A good rule is to buy the best you can afford from a respected maker of the type of gun that you wish to purchase. A buyer can almost not go wrong, which says a lot for the quality control and care employed by current makers of muzzleloading replica guns.