i really want to get into muzzleloading. i know a little bit about them. THEY JUST SEEM REALLY INTIMIDATING. Does anybody know a good model for a beginner. my buddy told me a CVA. is cleaning really hard? Do i have to break in the barrel... by the way im looking for an inline muzzleloader not a flintlock.. thanx

cleaning is easy, just a bit messy. With inlines you will have even less trouble. I prefer a flinter, but it does offer extra challenges. CVA, Knight, Ruger, T/C, Savage etc. would all be fine. It takes a bit of shooting to burn up the storage grease, clean with soapy water and then treat with T/C bore butter or the like.

i really want to get into muzzleloading. i know a little bit about them. THEY JUST SEEM REALLY INTIMIDATING. Does anybody know a good model for a beginner. my buddy told me a CVA. is cleaning really hard? Do i have to break in the barrel... by the way im looking for an inline muzzleloader not a flintlock.. thanx

Your buddy is right , the CVA rifles are good functional rifles and will get you started for a reasonable cost.Get yourself a copy of the Black Powder Handbook by Sam Fadala , read the manual that comes with your rifle and you should be off to a good start.Dixie Gun Works catalog has a lot of info on loading , cleaning , etc. Clean your rifle after every shooting session , I've seen a lot of nice rifles ruined because people did not know enough to clean them.Hot water and dish detergent work just fine but do it outside or in the garage 'cause the sulphur smell will have the little woman in a snit if you do it in the kitchen ! Pull the barrel out of the stock , set the breach end into a plastic pail of HOT water ,run hot ,soapy patches in ther barrel till they start coming clean , rinse w/ HOT water , dry and oil everything(your lock needs to be cleaned also) .About 2 days after you have cleaned the gun , check it again...the salts get into the pores of the steel and leach out .... Round balls are fine in the slower twist barrels (1-66 in the .50 or .54) Anything under a 1-48 twist will probably prefer conicals.I tend to stick to the old "Hawken" style and my boys are using inlines , its just a matter of preference ,the older style rifles take deer just as well as the new ones.These are excellent hunting rifles and with good sights and proper loads they can do some darn good target work.Didn't mean to write a book , but this is one of my favorite forms of shooting

Mossyoak,why not get a traditional cap lock? I have a Lyman Deerstalker, cap lock in .50 cal that will shoot as good as an inline. The barrel comes off with the removal of a barrel wedge, and you can put the end of it into a pail of hot water for easy cleaning. The best part of this type of muzzleloader is the rifling twist enables you to shoot cheap balls and real lead bullets. The inlines have a tight twist that shoots plastic sabots best. I cast my own round balls and bullets, and that gives an extra bit of satisfaction. Whatever you get, have fun.

i really want to get into muzzleloading. i know a little bit about them. THEY JUST SEEM REALLY INTIMIDATING. Does anybody know a good model for a beginner. my buddy told me a CVA. is cleaning really hard? Do i have to break in the barrel... by the way im looking for an inline muzzleloader not a flintlock.. thanx

Take a look at the Lyman products. I have a Great Plains Hunter .54 cal. Genuine Walnunt, great shooter AND great looker. IMHO - the inlines go against what Muzzleloaders are meant to be. You can pick one up new for about $300.00.

G'Day, I notice that the term "inline" comes up all the time with you blokes, question is "do you want to shoot a muzzle stuffer or a center fire rifle?" seems to me that the In lines are a hybrid of both, they are not allowed to be used on Aussie ranges "Not in the spirit of black powder", I use every Cal rifle and pistol from .30 to.69 cal, never even seen an Inline, don't want to, it's almost as bad as putting a scope on one, Now I know you blokes wouldn't go that far. If you want to put pin holes in targets off a bench.....get a centre fire in .222 or .22-250, I did that for ten years, now I stand free hand and take a shot when the front bead wavers over the target, not accurate, no, but bloody heck it's fun.
Paladin