The poor fella came asking fer advice. Now I know that there just ain't no way to 'cipher which gun is the best. Well perhaps there is, but my gun ain't fer sale. :grin:
C'mon guys you should all be bright enough to guess at what King Al is asking.
He just wants to know what guns are considered better than the Traditions he has.
King, it would help us a great deal if you could tell us which model of Traditions you have. What it is you don't like about it. What it is you are looking to get in a new gun.
We'll tell ya what to get and how much to spend. :wink:
For starters, I would say that generally Traditions and CVA are bottom line. That's not a cut, I'm just stating that you won't get much cheaper.
Investarms makes some good guns for a little more than what you'd spend on a CVA or Traditions. Investarms is the manufacturer, you will find their guns imported by Lyman, Cabela's, Navy Arms and some others.
Thompson Center are a fine guns. There isn't the selection for traditional guns though.
If you want a wider selection of old-timey guns Pedersoli makes some beauties. Cabela's, Navy Arms, and Dixie Gun Works sells various Pedersolis. Beauchamp and Sons carries the full line of Pedersolis, however some models can be cheaper at other dealers.
I presented them somewhat in order of price. Once you go into Pedersolis you are not far from getting into semi-custom guns.
My pesonal opinion as far as what the good buys are:
Lyman Great Plains from MidSouth Shooters Supply
Cabela's Blue Ridge (Pedersoli)
Tennessee Valley Muzzleloading (semi-custom; several models)
I think a dollar spent on these guns just seems to buy you more gun.