Muzzleloaders

I never realised they still made muzzle-loaders. Is there any benefit to it?

I still hunt with one on occasion. Kinda fun going through the motions on it, but I do not own one. Muzzleloader season opens earlier than rifle here, so often if a hunter has a certain doe or buck picked out and are afraid it might get taken early, but don't want to bow hunt (opens even earlier) They will borrow a muzzleloader to make sure they get it before other hunters.

As I see it there are two ‘benefits’— one Romantic and one practical. First, it connects you with your g-g-g-father. Second, it allows you to hunt during special seasons reserved for MLs. For the Romantics there are period correct MLs in both flint and caplock versions. For the Practicals there is a huge array of modern inline MLs that are basically a thoroughly modern firearm using modern methods all the way. I hunt with both, but am only using a modern inline because of my eyes, and the inline allows the mounting of an optical sight. Otherwise I would prefer to hunt with my flintlock, a custom-made York County Pennsylvania Long Rifle., which is both a great hunting rifle and a thing of artistic beauty. (These rifles are often called, erroneously, “Kentucky Rifles.” They are made-in- Pennsylvania rifles used in Kentucky. They are considered the first American art-objects.)

I have owned a few rifles and revolvers. I enjoy them.

If I were going to buy another one it would be a rifled flintlock. Caps are just too easy. 

I wanted to shoot a Brown Bess since it figures in our heritage. Prefer rifling.

I had a flintlock with an iffy frizzen. It was always a surprise when it went off. 69 caliber pistol, 100gr 3f and I whole tube of BBs.

I used to regularly deer hunt with my Thompson Center New Englander .50 cal Hawken-style that I built from a kit 30 some years ago.  Not just during muzzleloading season either.  I often used it also during regular firearm season here in Michigan.

I used to know and be in the same sportsman’s club as Pa Keeler who was The Godfather of modern age traditional muzzleloading in here Michigan. He was responsible for us having a muzzleloading season.  As a result, I hung out with a bunch of patched round ball traditionalists and was taught a hatred of modern inline muzzleloader with scopes.  They just aren’t in the spirit of why Pa got the muzzleloading season started.

Agree about inlines. I use mine as a necessity. Most use them only to get an extra season. Mine has a 1x red-dot optic. Helps me make humane, quick kills.

I use 3F in all my 50s. Don’t even own any 2F. The “originals” carried only one powder, for both barrel and pan. I suspect it was something like our 3F.

I believe you can actually buy matchlock and wheelock replicas.

I’m making venison the easy way this year… a friend of ours lives about a mile and a half up the road. He knew that I haven’t been hunting the 40 acres we live on much the last few years and wouldn’t be this fall with my wrist surgeries. So, he asked if he could hunt here. He was out bow hunting for the first time here about a week ago and got a nice 8 point (asymmetric 3 x 5). I knew he’d be giving us a bit of whatever he may get. Still though, we were surprised when he showed here a few days ago and gave us a generous 15(!) pounds of steaks and burger. He said he ended up getting 60 pounds of meat off of the buck. (For the English system impaired, that's about 7.5 kilos and 30 kilos.)

No, but I am turning a blind eye as I have been bribed with fresh venison.

That is a good mid range target load in my experience. I have had a Traditions Hawken for going on 25 years. For quite a while it was the only firearm I regularly shot. I've yet to take a deer with it, but not for lack of trying. These days it's a target gun and like has been said, I love it for the process. You cant just drop a mag in and go bang bang bang. It is slow, deliberate, and you have to make your shot count. 

In regard to your specified load, you have to play around with it to find what your gun likes. Just like reloading modern ammunition, each rifle likes a slightly different charge. Your's might really like that load or it might want more or less powder. There's lots more that goes into it, but unless you're shooting to win matches or just like to fuss with things I stick with powder charge to determine accuracy. 

If memory serves me mine likes about 85 grains of 3ff, but I bounce around powders as supply allows so I have to change my load up for accuracy. Mostly I plink these days so when I'm just out with the guys having a range day I usually cut it back to 65 or so to save on powder. Even at that, the rifle is more accurate than I can be most times anyhow.

I can definitely see wanting to reduce the load to recover the ball in a survival situation like on the frontier.