Posted on 01/08/2018 5:07:22 AM PST by w1n1
Muzzleloaders have come along way and there has been enormous improvements in muzzleloading technology. Traditionally, able to take down target at 50-75 yards, current muzzleloaders can reach out at longer ranges.
There’s mixture of sentiment as to which muzzleloader to go with. Modern day hunters have the latest piece of weaponry with all the gizmo. While some old school purist just want to use their old style muzzleloader.
Finally, a few that just want a reliable muzzleloader.
Whichever side you fall on there is something for everyone. Have a look at this best hunting muzzleloader list.
Remington Model 700 Ultimate Muzzleloader
Considered one of the most advanced muzzleloaders available. Built on a standard Model 700 action, this baby is design with long range accuracy in mind. (300 yards)
Uses a primed centerfire magnum rifle casing, thus results in a hotter and more direct spark. This efficiently use up to 200 grains of powder.
Thompson/Center Encore Pro Hunter FX
This muzzleloader is used by the infamous hunter Jim Shockey. Thompson/Center gets in its name in the muzzleloader industry as a very accurate, user-friendly ambidextrous, scope mount and rifle protected with a “weather shield” to fight corrosion. See the rest of the list of muzzleloader you can hunt with here.
What do you like. My son has one that is rarely used because of the cleanup required after shooting. For us it is simply too much trouble for a one shot rifle. I am open to suggestions, but we have come to prefer crossbows.
I have hunted with both pistol and rifle, both in cap and ball and flintlock. Even went so far as to build some of the weapons myself from kits. Crossbows too.
For me it is like riding a motorcycle... It is the trip the counts, not the destination.
Besides, I am not too keen on being out in the woods when every great white hunter from the burbs is there with their semi-auto doing the spray-n-pray at every little noise or movement.
A friend just gave me a Winchester Apex. (he bought himself a new rifle and gave me his old one)
I’ve taken a couple shots at the range and can drive a nail with it.
It is a bear to clean though
BTW...
My favorite is probably the CVA Optima with a Red Dot scope
https://cva.com/product/optima-v2-pistol-stainless-steel-with-black-stocks/
It takes a month to wipe the smile from my face every time a pull the trigger.
Check out Quackenbush .50 cal single shot rifle, made in Boliver, Missouri.
It’s not a muzzle loader but shoots a .495 round ball via compressed air.
TC Encore and Blackhorn 209. As easy to clean up as smokeless powder. 1” groups at 100 yards. For hunting in a state that only allows shotgun muzzleloader or handgun for deer the muzzleloaer is the way to go.
I have the TC Encore Pro Hunter (at least I did before the accident) and it is the best gun ever. I love it. Also, you can interchange to about 15 different rifle and shotgun barrels for it also.
Interesting weapon. Would be tough to reload in the field. Probably have to really make that first shot count.
One shot, one kill.
I kinda like my Hawkins .54 cal I built from a kit.
I’m primarily a bowhunter who occasionally takes a rifle for a walk in gun season, but, with respect to muzzleloaders, I’m more interested in the bullets than the rifles themselves.
Nine years ago, a friend who was an outfitter in Illinois offered me four December muzzleloader hunts at half price if I could round up three other guys who wanted to go, which wasn’t much of a problem. Seems four of his booked hunters had a late cancellation due to a conflict and had to forfeit their deposits. I told him I’d never hunted with a muzzleloader, but I had enough time to buy one and get it tuned for the December hunt.
I bought a .50 caliber TC Omega, put a Leupold VX-III scope on it, started developing some fairly hot loads and shot it frequently. I had that rifle shooting 3 to 4-inch groups consistently at 200 yards. To make a long story short, I hit the second largest whitetail buck I’ve ever seen at 150 yards. He was quartering slightly towards me, I had a good rest and my crosshairs were centered on the point of his near shoulder when the trigger broke - precisely where I would’ve shot that deer with a centerfire rifle. After searching until almost midnight that night and until noon the next day, we never found that deer. The outfitter had multiple pictures of him and we all agreed that he’d gross 190-195 B&C.
The outfitter asked me what kind of bullets I was shooting and when I told him 250-grain T/C Shockwaves, he said, “That’s your problem. That bullet won’t completely penetrate a 300-lb. whitetail at that range - especially if you hit a large bone.” He was right, of course. It was clear from the sign that I did not get an exit hole. There was little blood, most of which had run down his right front leg. Unfortunately, I’m sure I killed that buck - just not quickly enough to recover him. I sold that rifle a couple months later and haven’t hunted with a muzzleloader since.
There are a lot of good muzzleloaders capable of decent accuracy at 200-plus yards. However, in reading reviews of modern muzzleloaders, I think writers and manufacturers, as a rule, place far too much emphasis on accuracy at extended range (for a muzzleloader) and far too little on bullet construction, which, in terms of terminal effectiveness, is just as important as accuracy. In other words, I can hit a whitetail at 300 yards with most of my .22 rifles, but I’m not likely to kill one quickly and humanely.
We have several cap & ball and one flint lock. Most are kits. Three revolvers, one a Colt Walker. Smallest bore .32, largest .58 that uses a 620 grain civil war bullet.
We are into traditional muzzle loading only. None of this modern inline stuff.
The modern belief is a black powder weapon needs cleaning after each use. Think of it a minute, did Crockett or Boone meticulously clean their rifles after a days use? Did they have the bore brushes and the solvents of today?
I’ve let rifles hanging on the rack for up to a year with no cleaning to prove this point. But I do run an oil patch down the bore first, and I sorta suspect the frontier folks ran an animal grease patch down the bore in lieu of a thorough cleaning.
Ka-Pow!!!
One fill of air allows four shots.
The major issue is the scuba tank—not easy to haul.
I come from a different time. I shot muzzleloaders competitively back in the 1970’s. Even won a state championship or two.
Now I see all these modern “muzzleloaders” and just shake my head. Don’t get me wrong, the times have changed and I stayed behind. The yutes of today wouldn’t have a clue if I started talking about what a real muzzleloader is.
It is another area where people want technology to replace skills that are learned over a long period of time.
I understand your concerns and agree, but I have 4 properties for my son and I only to hunt on with an occasional in-law. The hunting pressure is a fair distance away. The solitude is a big part of it for me, but we also enjoy the harvest. I road BMWs for a few decades, most all of it on back roads, never in cities. Also road a husky dirt bike for many years.
Same here. I hunted on a couple of drizzly snowy days and had the failures. The cross bow is also nice because of the low noise factor. Good hunting.
Is it powerful enough to kill a deer? I’m over on the Gasconade in Wright Co.
Sounds good. Can you use a crossbow? Good to 70 yards.
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