Best Shootin' Iron

[Hanshi]

It has been way too slow around here for a while.  Let's get something going so we can talk about our favorite thing, muzzleloaders.  Pics are requested but not demanded.

Question: What is your favorite gun for day to day shooting?  Not necessarily hunting, or target shooting but a, "hey, it's Sunday so let's go out back (to the range, etc) and burn some powder".  It may be your cheapest to shoot, your most powerful, nicest, grungiest or one that's simply "special".  But it must be one you use more than any other for a variety of things (2 guns are permitted if it applies).

[Papa]

Hanshi,
I'll jump in. Usually my favorite shooting iron is the one I have in my hands at the moment, comes from having to many to shoot at once. Lately I have been shooting a lot of table shoots and have built two rifles that have spent the most time with me. One of them is a modified TC Hawken that has a slicked up lock and triggers and a 38" Green Mountain barrel in .40 caliber with a 1-48 ROT. The sights are by Paul Griffith. Shoots pretty well in the Hunter Class. The second I built using a H&A action. I built the stock up for chunk shooting but now use it for table. The barrel was made by Ed Rayl and is 1 1/8 X 34 in .40 cal with a 1-56 ROT. The rear sight is a Lyman 57 series mounted on a long bar and the front is by Paul Griffith.  This one shoots very well in the Open Class. Lots more that get used but these have been the go to's recently.Can't post but will send pics if you want to put them up.
Mark

[Hawken50]

   Cool post . My favorite long gun would have to be my 50 cal. TC Hawken. My wife bought it for me at an auction when we first met. If memory serves she paid bout 70  bucks for it. Nice natural patina  and a bore that is as slick as a mirror Seems like i cant miss a target with it. No matter what else i have it alway seems to get shot the most.

[Dogshirt]

I've got a whole cabinet of front stuffers, including two from Mongrel. But the one I grab every time is my GPR, Big Kobuk. Unless I specifically make a decision to shoot one of the others, 99.9% of the time it's BK.

[William]

That's going to be Big Red, the cherry stocked .54 that Mike built for me using some parts and the barrel from a Lyman Trade Rifle I had.

[hotfxr]

I don't get to shoot near as much as I should, I think I have several rifles that have only been shot in my front yard with 15 grains behind newspaper just to hear them fizz off and watch fire come out the barrel. Of the ones I have shot more than twice, as much as I love that Mongrel 36, my favorite is that Jaeger Kentuckian flintlock in .45 cal. It is just fun to shoot and whenever it comes out, I guess do to that nice piece of walnut the stock is made out of, it always gets an audience and many hands wanting to try it out.





For as short as the LOP is, it still seems to jump to my shoulder and (this is for you Dogshirt) despite an early spate of embarrassing failure to fire incidents, now that the flint is dialed in. it is most reliable (for now at least).

[Jamie]

Well, I've only got the one to play with, but so far that's just fine.  No pictures, but if you scroll up to the top of the page you'll see someone put a picture of it right between the flags!  How could I not join this list?

I've also joined the local fish and game association so I can use their range - otherwise it's nearly an hour's drive with no guarantee that I won't run into trouble anyway - the world's getting too crowded.  Can't shoot there on my own until I've taken the orientation course next week, then I plan to get out most mornings, to make use of the time I usually spend waking up!

All this on-line looking could cost me though.  I'm thinking that sometime I'm going to have to build my own gun - I really like the early fowlers, but just today I was looking at the Rifle Shoppe site and wondering about a Baker rifle.  All in the future though, might never happen but it's good to dream a little.

Jamie

[Hanshi]

I guess I need to post mine.  Since I am so cheap frugal, I tend to shoot the cheapest to feed more than the others.  From first to last the frequency of shooting goes .32, .36, .40, .45, .50, .54 and .62.  The .32 is the newest and cheapest so I'll post that one; but they all get range time.  This one is a .32 Tn poor boy.

[Patocazador]

I've got two favorites.

One is a long rifle in .45:



The other is a SxS 12ga.

[flintboomer]

1)TC Hawken with .40 GM barrel that I inherited from a friend is the most often used for general use or for targets
2) Mongrel built .40 lancaster flint any time I need a small bore flinter
2.5)When its time to go big game hunting the .54 TC Renegade usually comes out because it works.
2.75) My .50 Pedersoli Kentucky (technically its the Alamo model) used to be the go to shooter for everything but wear and time have taken their toll and it is no longer as accurate or as reliable as it used to be.
Since Hanshi only asked for 1 or 2  you will notice that I didn't include a 3rd one. 

[Jamie]

Hanshi, can't help noticing there's a gap where the 58 cal. ought to go.  Better buy another?

Jamie

[gunmaker]

Well------as a born n bred Tennessee boy, raised in the foothills of the Sequatchie valley, haf ta be my .45 long rifle.  Been with me since 1978 & is still my baby and she's going in the box right along side me and the dog...Tom

[Dogshirt]

Hanshi, can't help noticing there's a gap where the 58 cal. ought to go.  Better buy another?

Jamie

What he said!

[William]

From left to right;

50 cal western trade rifle, .54 Lyman parts/LH L&R lock (Big Red), TVM Early Virginia flintlock in 50 cal.

[Cranbrook]

Great bunch of rifles fella's! Now that Spring is finally thawing things out around here I hope to get out and do some shoot'n soon! For me, my favorite for the time being will be my 50 cal. maple stocked octagon to round barreled flinter.  After falling off the deep end over custom made rifle's and not having a silver spoon in my mouth, I slowly gathered up the parts and pieces to build one of my own. I'll admit that I did spend more for books, tools, DVD's, and trips around several states to learn and look at original rifles than I spent on gun parts.  But the journey has been well worth it.