Why do people use muzzel loaders? Why do they think it�s more fun then "ordenary" guns? I�ve never tryed it and I don�t think I ever will. Isn�t it difficult and enough fun with regular guns?

Here it TN we have two times during deer season where you can use a muzzel loader. One fallowing archery season and another fallowing rifle season. The two main reasons that I favor it over the other two is that one, it is my favorite time of year to deer hunt and two, you may take either sex of deer if you are a meat hunter as well.
You may take either sex in archery season also but you have to be able to spend a lot more time in the woods as you have to draw the game in closer (obviously). I have a hard time finding the time to become an avid archery hunter. On the other hand with a muzzel loader, everything that you do with a regular rifle transfers over. With all the new high tech muzzle loaders the only disadvantage is a fallow up shot which is the last and to me the most important thing you learn from muzzle loading. ALWAYS MAKE THE FIRST SHOT COUNT!

I enjoy muzzleloaders because they are a link to the past. They also provide you with an opportunity to hone hunting skills. Since you typically only get one initial shot, you have to make it count as jd_1 mentioned. Of course it doesn't hurt that they make a nice loud boom, produce a billow of smoke, and provide large whiffs of burnt gunpowder for the ulitmate fix!

muzzle loading rocks!! i love shooting my .54 caliber T/C Renegade, its literally a cannon. When i go to the shooting range, everyone else there shooting is either shooting their deer rifles or varmint rifles, then i pull up with my .54cal and load 120gr of FFg Goex black powder under a 435gr Conical bullet to get an awesome cannon blast. It has a boom like nothing else, kicks, and i hear the bullet hitting the back stop. The huge cloud of smoke and the mushroom cloud of dust from the backstop 100yds down is like nothing else. Then all eyes are on me wondering what in the world i'm shooting. Then i smile and wave a little, and do it again. I love it because its awesome to shoot. Plus its easy to clean, dont listen to the naysayers who say it takes hours, i can completely clean mine in 5-10min. I've also had a 1 inch group or 3 shots with it at 100yds the last time i went shooting, and thats with iron sights. Plus i git to hunt another season. I do archery, muzzle loader, and firearms. I got 2 bows, one muzzle loader, 1 slug gun, 1 handgun, and i'm working on gitting a Ruger Bisley .45 Colt. I love hunting and do it with as many tools i can. In the end, i still git the same results, but its just so much fun.
cyberhick

Well we use they for are muzzel loader deer season. If you try one you will be hook. My Knight Disc rifle will shoot a T/C 250gr PTX bullet at 2250fps with 140gr of Pyrodrx pellets and will shoot about a 1" group at 100yds.

IronMan......many hunters, myself included, use muzzleloaders because of the extra hunting time and opportuntities provided by many states in the form of special seasons and bag limits for muzzleloaders..

For instance in my home state of New York, there are special muzzleloader seasons for deer and bear both before and after the regular firearms season..The deer tag that is legal for a buck only during regular season is good for a deer of either sex during the special muzzleloader season..

In Colorado, the muzzleloader season for elk occurs during the rut, which makes the bulls easier to hunt and to call than during the later rifle seasons, which occur after the rut is over..

[This message has been edited by Pygmy (edited 08-08-2001).]

I enjoy being in the woods any chance I get and muzzleloading enables me to spend around 14 more days in the field that I would not be able to. Here in Tennessee the first muzzleloading season is a fine time to be in the woods, the leaves are changing colors and great temperatures to be out. I love it!

Here in New Mexico (yes NM is in the united states) we have to draw out for everything. Odds of drawing a tag are much higher if you use a primitive weapon.

I use a Rem 700 inline with a scope, and so far my dad has taken a few nicew mule deer with it. I drew out for a high demand unit for mature bull elk. I am very confident I can put a bull down no problem.

Cabelas showed some muzzleloaders advertised at 2,600 fps with a 150 grain bullet. To me thats nothing to grin about at all. I bet this would work very well for antelope on the open flats.

Anymore muzzle loaders are very advanced, 200 yds is really not a problem on mule deer sized game.

Chad

I have to agree with the rest. Muzzleloaders are a BLAST! You have GOT to try one! Also in AZ your chances of getting drawn are better with a muzzleloader. I love shooting my TC 54 Hawkens. Very accurate for open sights. Very cheap to shoot with round balls, very deadly on game with heavy conicals. They are just fun. The last time I shot it was with three friends, trading off shooting, the gun stayed busy all day, and at the end of the day I had shot less than $5 worth of supplies. With 65gr XX and a patched round ball, it's a mild enough plinker my wife likes to shoot it. With a 460gr conical over a wonder wad over 130gr of XX, it's a very effective elk rifle out to 150yds (know your trajectory).

IronMan, having had a lot of experience with muzzel loaders (although not in the field) i'll tell you that the hardest part of shooting them, at the range or in competition, was cleaning them out later. If you can nail a deer with an iron sighted .30/30 or .44 mag at 100 yards and closing you hit that same deer with an iron sighted .58 cal musket or .50 Hawken/Kenntucky rifle at the same range.

Thank�s for all the answers.

I did not know that it was possible to shoot that well with a muzzel loader, but I do now

I would deffenatly try it if I had a chance but in Sweden muzzel loaders are illigal (at least to hunt with).

Forgott one thing...

Some of you mentioned that muzzel loading is a great way to learn that the first shoot is important...I personally don�t shoot if I think I will have to shoot a second shot. The first shot is important in all types of hunting, don�t you agree? Okay, it feels good knowing that I can follow up with a second shot fast if I need to but I don�t shoot if I don�t think I will kill it...

Ironman,

You are correct in shot selection. I also try to make clean, one shot kills no matter what I am using. However, I think the muzzleloader end of knowing you only have one shot re-inforces the need to make a good shot every time. That way one doesn't get too complacent

There's some satisfaction in doing things the hard way with traditional tools.

I find the adrenelin rush and general feeling of being super-alive is greater for me when I'm using the 'stoker. It's a one shot deal, the gun goes "click" when I cock it, which means everyone is on alert. Things will be inside of 150 yards, but usually are much closer. I don't scope the iron.

The T-C big boar will throw a .580 dia 525 grain hand cast lyman 577611 minie at 1500 FPS using 125 grains FF into 2 inches at 100 yards. Taylor knock out is 65 for this combo, which is 50% higher than for a .375HH shooting 300 grainers at 2600FPS, and nearly equal to a .458 win 500 grain. When this thing connects, things fall down. There are always 2 holes. It pollutes the air.

If one uses walkie talkie head sets, GPS compasses, the latest ultra mag cartridges, and feels that manhood is proved by shooting game, front loaders may not be suitable, they do make it harder. But way more fun.

Some of the newer techno-loaders are more like firing a single shot modern gun, complete with scope. Just depends on how bad one wants to kill something and how much one relies on equipment vs. skill.

Wes

I don't shoot or hunt with a smoke pole "yet" but when I do it will be as traditional as I can get it. IMHO the "inline" loaders are nothing more than modern rifles who happen to load through the muzzle. Its like compound Bows with all of the wiz bang sighting systems; the only thing it has in common with traditional bows is the shape of the arrow. Primitive hunting means just that primitive. Didn't Col ban the inline muzzle loader??

I can't say I'm much of a fan of those in-line jobs either, but some fellows like the feel of a modern bolt action and don't see any need to have a hunting rifle that works on a differentt mechanical system than their other hunting rifles.

Case in point, my uncle and my father just bought two different muzzel loaders that they intended to use on white tails.

My father spent an abosrbatnt amount of money for a kit which included a swamped barrel, choice wood, flint and precussion locks, and brass furniture. When he gets done finishing the the stock it'll look like it cost twice as much as he paid for it.

My uncle grabbed the Cabella's catalogue and ordered the Knight (i believe) in-line since he didn't want to bother with anything so traditional.

In the end, it's all a matter of taste, or lack there of, which is the deciding factor behind whether to buy a musket, rifle or in-line. Regaurdless what we think, it's not very democratic to tell people that if they wish to own a muzzel loader they can only own the own which appeals to your tastes, now is it?

sorry about the double post, my mistake.

This is very simple : I love to shoot it, smoke, blast, smell, history, accuracy . . .

muzzleloaders are a blast. Here in AZ I have been hunting a muzzleloader hunt near home every year and have taken two longhunter society record book mulies. The thing I like most about it is that are not a lot af hunters out during this season. That adds a lot to the quality of the hunt for me. As to the in line vs traditional argument, I own both. They both shoot very well and I have taken deer with both. In lines are not modern rifles. They have a worse trajectory than a 30-30 so there! The main advantage I see is the in lines stay drier in wet weather. No colorado did not ban in lines they banned sabots.

Say IronMan, what's the rationale Sweden is using to prevent hunting with muzzel loaders?

Curtis_Lemay,

�rationale�? Humm�.I�m not sure I know what that means. I think you asked me why it�s not allowed to hunt with muzzleloaders, am I correct? 

Well, I�m not sure why you can�t hunt with a muzzleloader. Probably because the Swedish government don�t know (just like I didn�t know before I started this tread) how they work. They don�t know how accurate and effective they can be. But the Swedish government is against everything except rifles and shotguns; we can�t hunt with handguns, we can�t hunt with muzzleloaders and we can�t hunt with a bow.

Well, you answered my question exactly as asked. I was simply curious as to your government's reasoning behind the limitation of what you're allowed to hunt with.

You know, it's too bad most governments don't work on logic, there'd be a lot less frustrated people in this world if they did.

Curtis I just stated IMHO I did not mean it to come across that people should not hunt with them. I my self just try to stay with the old ways as much as possible. I use a long bow for bow hunting and only a 4x power scope on my rifles.

No offense intended Paleo. I simply stated my view of the world as you did yours. Like I said, I prefer the traditional feel of a .58 cal musket when it comes to front stuffers. However, I will say, I don't give much thought on the subject of what others use for their primitive type hunts. Personally, if the law provided for this, I think i'd much prefer to go hunt the muzzel loader season with a mdl 1859 Sharps repro. Since I don't have an ample supply of paper cartridges, i'd probably end up using it as a muzzel loader anyway. But that is another thread for another time. My whole point was simply, does it really matter if we use flash pole reminissant of the 18th century or the most hi-tech in-line with shotgun primer, pyrodex, and (law providing) a scope?
i didn't think so.