Gobble!

Im new to muzzleloader hunting but i do rifle and bow hunt. I am in the process of trying to find good guality muzzleloader but dont really know which one to buy. So heres the questions...
What muzzleloader would you purchase?
What scope would you buy?
And what would be the your choice of powder and bullets?
Thanks Justin

mountaineer magic

You will probably get a different answer from everyone here. There are a lot of quality guns out there now . I'm not a professional but I have hunted with blackpowder for 30 years and have quite a variety of muzzleloaders. I would say a Thompson Center Omega in 50 cal.. They are quality guns that shoot well at an affordable price.Blackhorn 209 is the newest powder but I haven't tried it yet. I still shoot triple 7. For bullets I would use the 250 grain Shockwave easyglide. For a scope the Nikon Omega . Stay away from the Traditions scope as I just had a new one bust apart inside. I'm sure you will get all kind of answers . Second choice for a gun after the T/C would be a Remington Genesis.
The decision is always the hardest part Good luck
chet

thumper50

Most eveyone who gets into black powder and muzzloading needs "professional" help. It is very habit forming , just for starters. More guns, powder, balls, cleaning stuff etc. On and on it goes!!

cayugad

We'd need to know the laws of your state. Is there any rifles, ignitionor projectiles that are illegal? Are scopes legal? How much money do you want to spend? What kind of hunting environment are you in... Long open fields or short wooded lot hunting? Are you hunting deer, elk, moose?

What kind of rifle appeals to you? Wood stocks, plastic, fiber optic sights, thumbhole stocks, composite stocks? Are you right handed or left handed? What kind of powder do you want to shoot? Have you heard of BlackHorn 209? Are you planning on pellets or loose powder?

There, have I confused you enough?

If anything goes, and you have some money... get a T/C Triumph.

bronko22000

Gobble - A good starter is the CVA Optima Pro if you're looking for an inline. These are well made and accurate rifles. As for a scope, a good 4X would be plenty. As for powder and bullets - Pyrodex RS would be a good start and a bullet in the 240 - 300 gr range. Best to try several to see which one shoot the best out of your rifle.
Word of caution, if you want to check out the used gun section for a muzzleloader, invest the $7.00 or so for a CVA bore light so you can inspect the bores prior to purchase. A muzzleloader is not very forgiving for inadequate cleaning and care and can corrode quickly. Another area to examine for corrosion is the breach area.
Good luck and welcome to the forum.

cayugad

Justin.. If I did not own a single muzzlelaoder ( which is not the case) and I wanted to hunt I would go for a good quality rifle that would last me a life time. Again this is taking for granted that inline, 209, sabot shooting rifles are legal, that can wear scopes.

I would get the T/C Triumph. I would then (depending on how much I had left) get a good quality scope. Probably a Nikon or Leupold. I would get some loose Pyrodex RS, a volume measure, and some 250 grain Shockwaves. Of course there are other things you're going to need.

If scopes were not legal, and I wanted to hunt and shoot, I would get a T/C Hawkins .50 caliber 1-48 twist flintlock or cap lock. Since I am new to the sport, probably a cap lock. Again, I'd get some Pyrodex RS and some roundball. Then I could go out and shoot and have a lot of fun, and still have a rifle to hunt with for anything under 100 yards.

If money is real tight and you just want a rifle that will shoot and work just fine, a CVA Buckhorn Magnum is not a bad rifle. They seem to have really made some nice improvements to the old CVA Staghorn Magnum that it replaced. I have a Staghorn Magnum. It is a very good shooter.

lemoyne

If you want a high quallity gun with a really good warrenty that has a standard load that usually shoots a minute of angle if the shooter can.
Triumph
Nikon Omega
Blackhorn 209-- 100- 110 -120 gr try and use the one that works best for you.
Short black Harvester sabot.
250 gr SST or Shock Wave
Win 209 or CCI 209

MLKeith

First find out what is legal in your hunting areas including any states that you may be hunting that are not your own. Next determine how far you think you mayneed to shoot. If over 150 yards better look for a fast twist rifle that will shoot sabots with aerodynamic bullets (one twist in 28 inches is the norm). If only hunting deer or smaller the need for big heavy bullets is pretty much not there so no need for conical shooters (most T/C rifles do not shoot conicals well - there are some exceptions but many do not). The T/C rifles arenear the top for sabot/bullet handling, Knights are also very good. The imports like CVA usually shoot well and it may come down to what in your price range is legal and feels the best to you when shouldered. If scopes are legal then a rifle with a stock made for scopes would be better than one set up for iron sights. As far as scopes I use Burris Fullfield II but lots of people claim you should buy the most expensive scope you can afford (I have not gotten to that level yet). Many of the stocked rifles tend to be sensitive to stock to barrel fit or contact. My Omega is one of those. I find the break action rifles and older sidehammer guns tend to be less sensitive. If I wanted a relatively no frills rifle and did not want to spend a lot of time determining what to shoot I think I would possibly go with a Knight KRB as they seem to be relatively insensitive to stock fit and will handle almost anything out there other than the New Blackhorn 209 powder. The synthetic stock KRB7 (stainless) that I got for just over $300 shipped is pretty much a scope rifle as the stock is quite high at the comb and iron sights are difficult to get down far enough to use comfortably. As already stated there are way too many possibilities for anyone to determine what is the best rifle for you. As far as bullets and powder probably Shockwaves and maybe Tripple Seven if it will shoot in the rifle you pick. My Omega does not like Tripple Seven (very bad crud ring). There are a lot of ascorbic acid powders, American Pioneer, Shockeys Gold (same as Amer. Pioneer), Goex Pinnacle, Black Mag'3 (this one I have had great luck with but it is difficult to find).Pyrodex is messy and corrosive but it is a very reliable powder and as long as you clean well after firing it can do a very good job. Some of my best groups have been with Pyrodex in my Omega. Again a lot of this depends on you and what you expect the combination to do.

gleason.chapman

Please see: http://www.chuckhawks.com/index2h.muzzleloader.htm and read the sections on how to select a MLer:

SELECTING AND BUYING MUZZLELOADERS:[*]Beware the First Year Models (Article by Randy Wakeman)[*]Buying A New Muzzleloader? (Article by Randy Wakeman)[*]How to Select a New Muzzleloader (Article by Randy Wakeman)[*]Rating the Inline Muzzleloading Manufacturers (Article by Randy Wakeman)[*]Recommended Muzzleloader Brands (Article by the G&S Online Staff)[*]Want to Buy an Inline? A Short History of Modern Inline Design (Article by Randy D. Smith)[*]What Makes for a Good Muzzleloader (Article by Randy Wakeman)[*]What Muzzleloader Should I Buy? (Article by Randy Wakeman)
As for what I would recommend to buy: TC Omega, because it is accurate, proven, easy to clean and not that expensive (I have one.) As for Scope, Nikon or Bushnell 3200 Elite 3x9. As for bullet: Nosler Partition, Speer Gold Dot, Barnes MZ, TMZ or 45/70 bullet part no 45843. Powder, Blackhorn 209 100g. There are of course other options out there, you did not mention price range. There are lower priced options that are about a good as the Omega.
Best wishes on your selection.
Chap Gleason

corey012778

hehe, when I saw the subject I was thinking of something else.

wow, that is a hard one. about every maker out there make some good ones.

low end and good
cva wolf

mid
about any knight, tc or cva.

high end
tc, knight, newest cva accura (uc seems to like it)

(only named ones I have played with or worked with there cs dept.)

if you can only use conicals in your state.
powerbelts with 75gr - 80gr of the powder of your choice.