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Author Topic: Flintlocks, if you could only own one?  (Read 3535 times)

Offline paw

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« Reply #30 on: October 06, 2009, 03:07:03 PM »
my one gun would be my jackie brown 20ga smoothbore flower. I shot at a rondy this past weekend with my jackie brown 62cal rifle and I shot the same course whith my smoothbore which has no rear sites and hit 3x as many targets with the smoothbore Go Figure
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Offline deadfallpaul

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« Reply #31 on: October 06, 2009, 05:19:47 PM »
I am 65 and the lack of a rear sight doesn't matter to my shooting the smooth bore.
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Offline Lastmohecken

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« Reply #32 on: October 06, 2009, 05:40:31 PM »
This has been a really interesting thread, for me. And a lot of you guy are saying what I was beginning to suspect. I am 51, and while I can still see the sight picture on a good rear sight/front sight combination, that combination is getting harder to find. Many sight combinations don't work very good for me, but when I discover a gun or sight combo that really works well, I keep it.

It would be my guess that the long barrels of 42 inches and beyond with just a front sight, probably really helps, with focusing when  one's eyes, starts to have issues with iron sights. For me my focusing is compouded by the fact that my weak eye is my shooting eye.
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Offline Lastmohecken

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« Reply #33 on: October 06, 2009, 05:47:56 PM »
Quote from: "the Black Spot"
well, if i was getting one for here and now. it would be a .40 cal with 42 inch barrel, southern style. since i live in arkansas i can use it for deer and small game.

if i could have a choice it would be a .54 cal 42 inch barrel southern style.

I have always owned and hunted deer with the 54cal, but like you, I have been thinking about a .40 because I live in Arkansas, also, and I could carry it, for such a large part of the year, since it's the only muzzleloader, or actually rifle in general that one can hunt (legally), everthing from squirrels to deer. Not that I can't more or less do the same with a .62 cal fowler, but the one problem with the fowler is I have to either load for squirrels or deer, since the same load won't work for both, but I could make the .40 cal work with the same load, which also makes it easy to pot a squirrel, and also shoot a coyote with the same load, where the birdshot might not bring down a coyote.

So, in a way the 40, makes a great late summer, eairly fall woods walking gun.
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Offline Morgan

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« Reply #34 on: October 06, 2009, 08:15:29 PM »
Being an Arkie also, I have long said that if I ever get to have a rifle built it would be a .40 for the same reasons....but again the .62 smoothbore will hunt anything in Arkansas.

Morgan
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Offline butterchurn

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« Reply #35 on: October 07, 2009, 01:49:09 PM »
I'm 57 and the rear sight is not nice to me.
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Offline Uncle Russ

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« Reply #36 on: October 07, 2009, 03:09:22 PM »
"If ya could only have one"...now that would make Jack a dull boy, fer sure!

However, it's only reasonable, at least to this old boy, that if one gun, and one gun only, was all I could ever own, it would definitely  be a .62 cal smoothbore.
And, it seems from the opinions expressed,  that the choice of smooth bore is pretty much favored in this discussion, at least for right now.

Now having said that, I have to think back a year or so ago, on this same forum, a somewhat similar thread asked, "what was favorite type Muzzleloader for the Frontiersman / Mountain man"...and the results of that little informal survey revealed the Rifle, in caliber .50 or larger....and some fair arguments, and a bit of documentation was provided to support that theory.

Is what we are reading right now a result of today's more modern thinking, or was there actually more smooth bores among the early pioneer folks than "rifled" rifles????  

(To my way of thinking, a smooth bore with both front and back sights is still a smooth bore, albeit often called a smooth bore rifle, ....and, a "Fowler" will be a smooth bore and have only a front sight...that is neither here, nor there, as a smooth bore will still have no rifling. )

Uncle Russ...
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Offline Morgan

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« Reply #37 on: October 07, 2009, 03:53:49 PM »
Depending on one's station in life during the Colonial Era, most folks would have only been able to afford one gun and therefore would need a gun that could handle multiple tasks.  Hunting fowl, larger game and in some instances serve as an arm for militia duty.

Taking these factors into account, the smoothbore was the top choice.  Rifles were present and not uncommon during the time, but the "common man's gun" was the smoothbore fowler or musket.

While the rifled guns held an edge in range and accuracy, the smoothbore  was adequate for most tasks.

Just my opinion on the subject.

Morgan
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Offline the Black Spot

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« Reply #38 on: October 07, 2009, 05:35:59 PM »
surprised the swivel barrel guns have not been mentioned.
to heavy?
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Offline the Black Spot

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« Reply #39 on: October 07, 2009, 05:37:48 PM »
Quote from: "Morgan"
Being an Arkie also, I have long said that if I ever get to have a rifle built it would be a .40 for the same reasons....but again the .62 smoothbore will hunt anything in Arkansas.

Morgan

yeah, the .40 would probably be a little light for bear or elk(if your lucky for a permit). guess you could use conicals?
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Offline mario

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« Reply #40 on: October 09, 2009, 04:37:10 PM »
Quote from: "the Black Spot"
surprised the swivel barrel guns have not been mentioned.
to heavy?

Heavy, expensive and complicated.

Mario
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Offline Longhunter

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« Reply #41 on: October 09, 2009, 06:17:29 PM »
Quote
"If ya could only have one"...now that would make Jack a dull boy, fer sure!

I agree with Unka Russ! You'll NEVER see this child with only one gun to his name. :roll eyes ...last winter it put down two whitetails with one shot and slung a ball clean through a buffalo at 80yd's

Did I ever tell you how accurate my little .32 flinter Sweet Pea shoots?....ONE GUN???....All I gotta say is,  Mother LaClair never raised such a foolish child...  :lol:
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Offline macNnc

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« Reply #42 on: October 10, 2009, 08:01:44 AM »
I really love the long rifles...in the flint configuration,I don't think a lovlier gun was ever made...but if I had to pick one gun..for everything..(and may God forbid) it'd be my .62 smoothie...
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Offline tg

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« Reply #43 on: October 16, 2009, 05:21:23 PM »
I have found the right gun for me after many years a .58 French  smoothbore hunting gun
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Offline Witch Hollow

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« Reply #44 on: October 17, 2009, 03:29:28 PM »
If I had to choose only one, and it could be the gun of my dreams it would be 54 cal, flint, done in the Dickert style.  No fancy carving or incising, but I would love to have extra fancy maple stock.  Around a 40 inch swamped barrel would do nicely.
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