free muzzle loader

[millman]

I stopped by to see a friend of mine today, and he gave me this muzzle loader. All I know is that it is a CVA, and is dirty as sin. I am going to take it to my other buddy that hunts with one of these, and figure out how to take it all apart and clean it up. Here is a pic of it, as is. It also came with a box of accessories.

[Junk Yard Dog]

From the title I thought you wee giving away a free rifle I near broke my fingers opening the topic. Nice , it's an inline style hunting rifle, many of these use 209 shotshell primers.

[millman]

From the title I thought you wee giving away a free rifle I near broke my fingers opening the topic. Nice , it's an inline style hunting rifle, many of these use 209 shotshell primers.

It has the manual with it, but I haven't read it yet. I'll get it figured out.

[Junk Yard Dog]

I see a lot of these around here, guys buy them because someone told them about muzzleloader season, then they find out it's work, and the rifle ends up at a tag sale three years later . I hope the last shooter cleaned the bore,

[Ironnewt]

I have to agree with JYD on this one. Be careful as it may be loaded.

[Longcolt44]

JUst a tip. It loads from the front.

[Junk Yard Dog]

Take the cleaning rod out of a 91/30, drop it down into the bore, if you hear a nice ring of steel on steel as you bounce the rod in there then you are good , any other sound and things are not good. If it's loaded you will need a worm to get the bullet out. NO, not the worms in the garden, this is a tool that screws onto the rammer, you screw it down into the bullet and pull it out. Don't try and fire it out as the last guy could have double charged it or forgot the powder entirely.

[millman]

As I understand it, the last owner was a drunken hillbilly. It probably wasn't cleaned, and hell, it might even be loaded. I am taking it to an experienced person tomorrow. Still though, free is free. The scope, if it works, is worth probably $50.

[mogunner]

If they put it away dirty then it's pretty much a parts rifle, black powder substitutes will eat at a bore fast with a bit of moisture to egg it on. I run a patch with bore butter through mine every couple of months and try to take it out and shoot it at least four or five times a year between seasons. I robbed the scope off it for one of my AR's, new scope is on the way and I'll use that as a reason to drag it out and shoot it.

[desdem12]

Looks like a buckhorn or a fire bolt. I have an elkhorn magnum and a 54 caliber firebolt cva. The fire bolt looks like that one. The plug should come out easy if not rusted in there. Cant remember if the tools interchange but I seem to remember they don't.

[Ironnewt]

keep us posted

[websterz]

No need to worm out a load. Just pull the breech plug and use the ramrod to push the bullet and powder charge out the back of the barrel.

[millman]

I took the CVA .50 cal. (something)bolt magnum to work today, The breech plug came out easily, and the bore was dirty but not pitted after we cleaned it. Looks like I have something else to feed.

[desdem12]

Cool I love my magnum. It is an elkhorn magnum 50 cal bolt. We cant use shotgun primers here but can use musket caps. I shoot loose powder in the 50 caliber but pellets in the 54 caliber. Load that sucker up with 150gr and a powerbelt and let her breath.

[mogunner]

I shoot cast 250gr R.E.A.L. bullets with 70grains of FFG behind them. Accurate and heavy enough to knock down a deer and doesn't break the bank. Never seen the need to max out the powder load as I don't see many buffalo, elk or grizzly bears here in Missouri.

[desdem12]

I don't like the full load pellets in my 50 caliber but I do have to contend with bears and elk. You gotta try the 150 grains at least once though. I have an accurate load for a bullet I use and that is the load I use for everything. It is 125gr loose powder and a platinum powerbelt for better ballistic coefficient. On the 54 magnum the pellets work good. Cant remember how much they are but you use 2 of them and the bullets I have for them work good for deer and elk. I use the 54 caliber more then the 50 but the 50 can get out there and reach a bit further and still be accurate. The 54 has some good knockdown power. Not disappointed in it except the power belt bullets suck for ballistic coefficient and fall apart when you hit something. Have tried the ones that don't need the skirt but haven't had good luck with them for a consistent load.

[bunkysdad]

Come on man, muzzle loader and ballistic coefficient don't even belong in the same sentence. Raw power! Big hole in target or animal! Lots of smoke! That is what goes in the same sentence.

[desdem12]

I used to agree with you Russell. But after watching a deer get up and run away after a good hit I changed my mind. I am too old to chase shit through trees scrub and uphill. One shot kill shot stay down. I recovered the deer and found what had happened to the bullet and then I did the research. I love LOVE black powder hunting. I love to eat deer. The deer here are not the little doggy deer in the Midwest. They are LARGE. I love bp hunting sooo much that I adapted. Will never ever change back to modern. The more power thing is exactly why I bought the .54 caliber inline. My favorite bp hunting rifle EVER. All though I do have a nice lyman 54 ball rifle. Get a 54 caliber magnum load it up and see if you can do 20 rds...I dare ya.

[bunkysdad]

I loaded up 120 grains behind a buffalo bullet in my 54 Renegade and oh yeah, I am sure I can remember well enough to know exactly what you mean. I saw a doe once jump a fence and run a considerable distance before falling flat out dead. She was already dead before jumping the fence but didn't yet know it. My dad's friend had taken a head shot with a 223 and literally removed the brain. I saw the cavity and the 2 ears just flopped together. Adrenalin, the only explanation I have. I dropped my first dear stone cold grave yard dead without taking another step with a well placed and fortunate heart shot at about 75 yards with a little 100 gr sp bullet in a Remington 243. Personally I would not ever hunt deer with anything smaller tham 6mm which is what the 243 is. I have not hunted in years, but bp hunting sounds great. You should do a thread on your inline. I'd like to see and hear all about it.

[Rongo]

As I understand it, the last owner was a drunken hillbilly. It probably wasn't cleaned, and hell, it might even be loaded. I am taking it to an experienced person tomorrow. Still though, free is free. The scope, if it works, is worth probably $50.

that's the spirit. I have one BP rifle that belonged to the 4-H Youth shooting club & have yet to fire it. I got it for $40... One of those Kentucky rifle kitguns.