Front stuffer smoke pole kits

[knight0334]

Anyone got a recommendation for a muzzleloader kit, one you gotta build and finish? I've seen a few around online, but reviews on such things are limited.

I'm looking for the following traits:
1. historic type - no plastic or modern features
2. in order of preference: percussion, musket, or flinklock ignition
3. rifled
4. big bore, ie: 54, 58, 69, 75 or greater cal. (I wanna lobb big bullets, no:32, 36, 45, or 50's)
5. "magnum" powder load(100-150gr+) proofed barrels (not necessary, but would be nice).
6. English walnut prefered. (I likes marbly wood) Kits that regularly come with a piece of American or Turkish walnut that has some character woud suffice.


Thanks!!

-knight

[TJB63]

Well,

Try Dixie Gun Works, I know they sell Kits and you'll sometimes see reviews from those that bought them. From what I've seen I don't think the kits are worth buying anymore unless you truly just enjoyed building it yourself, Nowadays they aren't much cheaper than a completed BP gun from the factory.

Years ago they made sense if your'e were looking to Save some $$$ - But that isn't the case these days. Most that I've seen come 90 to 98% finished with just final sanding,polishing required and of course however you want to finish the metal.

Enjoy
TJB

[ar15jules]

Track of the Wolf also had some nice kits the last time I checked. You can order a rifle from them that is "in the white", meaning that the stock has been inleted and that is about it. You would need to finish the wood and figure out what you wanted to do with ALL the steel. Here is a link. I have a buddy who buys things from them regularly and has been happy with the products.

Jules

http://www.trackofthewolf.com/(S(pbp....aspx?catID=13

[PA Rifleman]

First, I have a 69 caliber rifled musket. It kicks. Hard. But, it absolutely *wrecks* whatever it hits. Big guns like this have a hell of an appetite for strategic materials. I cast my own bullets for all of them, I only get 10 bullets per pound for this 69 caliber musket. Each bullet weighs a little over 700 grains.

Most guns over 54-58 caliber were smoothbore, the obvious exception being civil war muskets. For historical accurate 69 caliber weapon, you're looking for a rifled weapon made sometime between approximately 1820 & 1845. I'm not aware of any rifled weapons larger than this, with the possible exception of a limited run of retrofitted Brown Bess muskets (75 cal) sometime in the mid 1800s.

A popular design was the so-called "Hawken" or Hawkins half-stock offered in the mid-west area, and made popular by mountain men.

Thompson Center had a custom shop that made the Renegade oversize up to 58 cal, but I'm unaware of the custom shop status with 58 cal since the Renegade isn't produced anymore and the Hawken has 15/16" barrel flats. The Renegade ha the 1" barrel flats necessary for the really big sizes.

These are percussion rifles over 50 cal at Dixie Gun Works:
http://www.dixiegunworks.com/product...oducts_id=3454
http://www.dixiegunworks.com/product...oducts_id=2545
http://www.dixiegunworks.com/product...roducts_id=893
http://www.dixiegunworks.com/product...oducts_id=3483

There are vendors worth checking out, I don't have time to look them all up.

Another possibility might be finding a used repro civil war musket from a re-enactor looking to trade up. Dixons (link) had several when I was there last summer.

Here are a few file photos of my 69 cal rifled musket:
- - - - - - - - - -

[knight0334]

oh wow!

Thanks guys!

I keep forgetting about Dixiegunworks and Trackofthewolf for such things. I dont know why, I've spend several hundred $ in 45-120 supplies at TOTW - you'd think that place would be burnt into my head.


With winter coming up I'm hoping a kit will give me something to do as the snow falls.