If I had to buy a smokepole all over again I would....

[Davemuzz]

Seriously......If I had to buy a smoke pole again, (My first smoke pole was bot in 1980 and was a T\C Hawken kit) it would be a little different than what I first did.

Right now my Hawken has a Green Mountain 50 caliber 1-70 twist Hawken "drop in" replacement barrel, and it's the cat's meow as far as accuracy goes. My T\C 1-48 twist would give me "adequate" groups only with 60 grains of goex ff black powder.  The Green Mt. will punch 'em in there with 90 grains of ff....ie: fantastic groups. If I crank up any more grains in the T\C barrel, groups could be measured in feet, not inches.

With the internet today and the availabity of parts, I think I would look to buy a Hawken stock, tang, lockset, ect. and then buy the Green Mt. barrel in either 1-70 roundball twist (my preference) or the 1-28 sabot twist.

I think you would then have about the same amount of $ invested (or even less for those guys who have a knack for getting deals) in a gun that would end up being much more accurate than the "factory".

Just my $.02

Dave.

[tscott]

After all these years, I would buy a Hawken kit and do up a 1:48 barrel for prb and conical. I have had good success in making even the cheapest rig shoot well for deer... Might splurge on the stock!!! 

[roundball]

My T\C 1-48 twist would give me "adequate" groups only with 60 grains of goex ff black powder.  The Green Mt. will punch 'em in there with 90 grains of ff....ie: fantastic groups. If I crank up any more grains in the T\C barrel, groups could be measured in feet, not inches.

Unless you just happended to be unlucky enough to have a defective barrel, it wasn't the 1:48" twist barrel...sounds like your patches were failing...all my .45/.50/.54cal TC 1:48" barrels easily print inside 3" groups at 100yds with the following deer loads:

90grns Goex 3F
Oxyoke prelubed wonderwads
.018" TC prelubed pillow ticking
Hornady .440/.490/.530 balls

The prelubed wad is the key with powerful hunting loads...it acts as a firewall and a better gas seal...patches don't fail and accuracy is outstanding.

[Davemuzz]

Roundball,

I gotta tell ya man, in the 20 some years I have owned this barrel, I have tried every possible load\bullet\sabot\ball\powerbelt\patch\lube combination on the face of the planet. If I could shove a '64 chevy fender down this barrel with 500 grains of ff and it shot a consistent tight group, I'd be buyin '64 chevy fenders in mass quantities.

But it just aint happin that way. Put a .490 roundball with a .018 pillow ticking patch, 60 grains of FF Goex and you will get a fairly consitent grouping of hits. Push the load of powder up and that pattern will begin to look more like a shotgun pattern. It's just the way this barrel is.

But, give me a $150 Green Mt. barrel and put that puppy on a Hawken stock........throw down a .495 with .018 pillow ticking and 90 grains of ff Goex, and your hitting what you point at every time.

It's just that simple.

Dave.

[roundball]

You know you also changed the rules...went to a .495...be interesting to know how they perform in that TC barrel...anyway, that's a strage one for sure...never heard of a TC barrel shgooting the way you described that one...I would have had TC replace it.

Had TC replace a new 1:66" RB barrel a couple years ago as it's POI would start walking left as it heated up...so much that there wasn't enough rear sight adjustment to offset it...they replaced it and the new one just eats the center out of the target no matter how fast I go through a 50 shot range session, and the sights are sitting dead center...this one needed no windage at all.

[Slamfire]

Quit buyin' rifles, and just git barrels for my Numrich made H & A underhammer frame. 

[sharps4590]

I would do things pretty much as I have done in the last 30 years.  I started with production firearms, then, about 20 years ago, I started upgrading.  All I own and shoot now are custom muzzleloaders...but I darn sure couldn't affod that when I started!  All my rifles and pistols are: extremely accurate, beautiful to behold, (at least to my eyes), worth a lot more than I paid for them, historically accurate and most are replica's of original, existing rifles or pistols.

If I still used production firearms I would own a GPR in 54 cal., same as I did years ago.  I've owned; TC, CVA, Lyman, FIE, Numrich, Navy Arms, Dixie Gun Works, Pedersoli, Uberti and probably a few others I've forgotten.  All were ok, some were very good and a few, (the Lyman's) were exceptional for production firearms.

Vic

[Snowshoe]

I have good accuracy with my 1 in 48" Lyman and .495 balls, and that is all I have been using to hunt Deer with for several years. But if I had to do it all over I would get the same Lyman Deerstalker, only in .54 instead of .50. In fact I am trying to get a new .54 barrel for mine now.

[flintlock]

I have a confession...I'm a snob when it comes to muzzleloaders...I have never owned a factory built gun...Bought my first in 1977...I was 22, on my own and already a history buff...Never could get into the factory guns, I knew they weren't built like the originals...Anyway, I walked into a shop in Stone Mt, GA...Looked at a custom .45 flintlock, talked with the owner of the shop and put a down payment on it that day, he let me pay him off a bit at the time...I have used that gun now for several shooting matches and hunting...Been offered about 8 times over what I paid for it...Already have promised it to my oldest girl....Been a great investment..I wouldn't change a thing...

[sparsons]

Got to agree that my Green Mountain replacement in the Thompson Hawken is a great shooter. I did get my orginal barrel shooting very good after floating the barrel but still like the GM barrel for longer distance. I use .495 ball with 75 of FFF with Wallyworld pillow ticking.