T-C hawken Question

[Winter Hawk]

I just procured a T-C Hawken at a very reasonable price because it has a cracked wrist.  It is destined to be a wall hanger so that didn't bother me; I can always get another stock from Track.  After cleaning it the bore at the muzzle shows NO rifling, but running a patch down it's just as tight there as further down the bore.  I don't have a bore light to drop down it so I can't check out what is down there (yet).  It is marked .50 caliber, and the jag was a .50.  Also, I couldn't even get a .22 cleaning rod into the patent breech, although blowing down the tube blows air out of the nipple. 

So the question: could this barrel not have been rifled at the factory?  And what is with the antechamber?  I was not able to break the breech plug loose from the barrel at this time to get a good look at the "innards" of the barrel.  Right now it is hanging on the wall in place of the TCR which is not the "pretty rifle" my wife says I sold....

Enough rambling, I'm going to warm up a bean!

~Kees~

[Fyrstyk]

T/C made a few 50 caliber smooth bores, so this could be one of them.  I have no idea about the breech area.  The standard T/C breech was approximately 36 caliber and concave.  T/C marketed special breech plug scrapers to fit their guns.

[Bigsmoke]

Kees,
I think the T/C only had about a .005 deep rifling in the first place, so it almost started out as a smooth bore.
I had never heard that T/C made a .50 cal smoothie.  Of course, I never much paid any attention to anything .50 caliber, so that could be a big surprise to me.
RE:  the ante chamber, I shot T/C's for a lot of years and never paid the least bit of attention to that.  And after popping a couple of caps, I never had any ignition problems either.  If you want to clean it out, a .30 caliber bore brush should fit into it for a good scrub.  Then you can put a cleaning patch over a .22 cal brush to dry it out.
Have fun with the new smokepole, Kees.  Still haven't shot mine.  Seems like every darn rendezvous and rifle range on the west coast is cancelled or closed for the duration.  Takes some of the fun out of life.
After not pouring a single round ball for years, I sold off most all of my casting stuff.  Then I got our rifle and decided it would be a good idea to pour some round ball for the smooth bore barrel.  Now I gotta get a new ladle and a mold and stuff.  Right on time, eh?
John

[Ohio Joe]

Kees, TC did make some Quick Load Accessory Barrels towards the end - meaning that for about the first 3/4 to 1 inch of the muzzle is smooth to press in a patched ball or conical and then ram it home... I have one in .54 caliber I built from a TC Hawken Kit... As John says, the rifling is only .005 deep... If you can drop a bore light in your barrel, you may see the 1 in 48 rifling twist... I can see mine but I have to angle the pin light just right.

I'd bet it's a QLA barrel and you're rifled below the QLA Muzzle.

[Hank in WV]

Kees, put a patch on your cleaning rod and put a piece of tape on the other end. Make it like a flag and slowly push it down the barrel. If it has rifling, the flag will go around as it goes down.

[dmarsh]

My guess would be QLA as well-- no rifling for the first inch .  I have an unmentionable and when I first got it I thought it was a defective barrel with no rifling and then discovered the wonders of QLA. 

Dave

[Winter Hawk]

Thanks for all the replies!

With the antechamber, my .22 rod won't go into it, much less a .30 brush.  But I can blow air down the barrel so it IS clear through the nipple.

I thought of the QLA, and it may still be what it has.  Without a bore light I can't tell.  But there doesn't seem to be any difference in pushing a tight patch down, and I believe the QLA relieves the bore so the ball is easier to get into it, like coning would do.  Then I would expect to feel a tighter fit when the patch hits the rifling, which i don't.

I don't feel the cleaning rod trying to twist as it follows rifling, which I have felt on all the other various rifles I have (or had).  Shallow rifling may be different; again, the only way to find out is with a bore light which I still need to procure.

Fyrstyk confirms that it could be a .50 smoothy.  My next order to Track I need to add a bore light to get a definite answer to this puzzle!

~Kees~

[Ohio Joe]

Kees,

With my TC QLA barreled Hawken, I never found my patch and ball combination to load any easier... However, it does aid in loading the Maxi Bullets for a nice straight loading procedure, and I think that was its real intent...

Overall I feel it was nothing more then a gimmick IMHO...

[Fyrstyk]

Winter Hawk:  Push A small wad of tin foil pushed down the barrel, then shine a light on it and you should be able to see if there is any rifling.  Then just use a ball puller to pull the tin foil out,

[PetahW]

.

XXX, below left, while not exact, is an approximation of what the T/C powder chamber looks like.   

[BEAVERMAN]

Thanks for all the replies!

With the antechamber, my .22 rod won't go into it, much less a .30 brush.  But I can blow air down the barrel so it IS clear through the nipple.

I thought of the QLA, and it may still be what it has.  Without a bore light I can't tell.  But there doesn't seem to be any difference in pushing a tight patch down, and I believe the QLA relieves the bore so the ball is easier to get into it, like coning would do.  Then I would expect to feel a tighter fit when the patch hits the rifling, which i don't.

I don't feel the cleaning rod trying to twist as it follows rifling, which I have felt on all the other various rifles I have (or had).  Shallow rifling may be different; again, the only way to find out is with a bore light which I still need to procure.

Fyrstyk confirms that it could be a .50 smoothy.  My next order to Track I need to add a bore light to get a definite answer to this puzzle!

~Kees~

Kees, before you order a bore light check out some places online that sell fishing tackle or maybe a local shop, I have seen small led light that you can add to lures and jigs that will drop down a 22 barrel and are stupid cheap!

[Nessmuk]

Just for the record ,  did Thompson Center QLA any calibers other than the .50?

[Ohio Joe]

Just for the record ,  did Thompson Center QLA any calibers other than the .50?

Yes, because I have one in .54,,, as well as my hunting partner, Stan...   

I don't know if they did the .45, but my guess would be they did because they made Maxi-Balls for the .45 as well.

Nessmuk, I just checked an old 1997 Dixie Gun Works Catalog, and the TC Hawken was offered (at that time) with a QLA Barrel in .45. .50, and .54... No mention of .58 caliber... Looks as if they were offering them in all their lines (Hawken, Penn. Hunter, Renegade, New Englander) and the "Big Bore" .58 cal was also offered with a QLA barrel...

[Nessmuk]

Dang, I  might have missed a good deal on .54 a  couple of years ago because I  thought  the barrel was "Shot out". Thanks for info, Joe! I'll  be  better prepared  if I  find one in future .

[Ohio Joe]

I could see it happening, Nessmuk... The QLA didn't have a long life in "Traditional Muzzle Loaders" so therefore it really didn't become common knowledge to many a folks.