Shot my TC Hawken Rifle today

[Mac Attack]

I finally had the chance to take my "new to me" Thompson Center Hawken rifle out for a spin. My brother in law (BIL) was grateful enough to let me and another BIL shoot on his property. We had a blast shooting real blackpowder and patch and balls. I have to tell you I have not had this much fun shooting in a very long time. I was so overcome with excitement and joy that I was giddy and couldn't stop smiling and laughing. Which is amazing because it took like 10 minutes between shots because I cleaned the barrel after every shot because I read it was good to do that.

We started with 50 grains of Goex blackpowder and a 175 grain .50 Cal ball and mixed in some HP Powderbelt .50 ?? grain rounds at 40 yards. We moved back to 60 grains at 60 yards with ball and HP Powerbelts. Ultimately we shot at 100+ yards using 70 grains of BP. There is a significant difference in 10 grains of powder. We hit our intended target (a metal water container) every time with the balls making dents but the HP Powerbelts going right through the metal container. Talk about shooting a cloud of smoke! If we didn't hear the audible gong every time we hit the target, we wouldn't have known we hit the target until the smoke cleared. The smells associated with the shooting of muzzleloading firearms are like the aroma of a rose to me...love the smell of BP.

On my forth shot I did what I told myself I would not do. I loaded a ball without a powder charge. I won't go into the full story but I will tell you this, I wasn't able to pull the ball using the ball puller. I had purchased a cut to length ramrod as a range rod - the type where the threaded end is tapped into the end of the ramrod tube. When I tried to remove the stuck bulle using my ball puller, the end tip came off the ramrod tube. I tried to reseat the tip which was still attached to the ball puller and ball into the tube but it kept coming loose. Finally I was able to get the end to stay but the tip ended up pulling out of the ball and I could not reseat it. I ended up having to remove the nipple, pour some powder into the chamber, reinstall the nipple and shoot out the round with literally a pinch of powder. Thank God it worked because I thought my day was finished. Any suggestions on how to handle this next time it happens.

We started off at around 40 years then moved back to 60 and ultimately 100+ yards. I was absolutely surprised at how accurate my rifle shot! We didn't miss a shot all day and routinely hit a metal water container over and over like the rounds were magnetically drawn to it. This is contract to the way I thought the accuracy would be. I though I would just be lucky to get my round into the same neighborhood as the target. I didn't get to sight it in on paper but I suspect that my rifle will give me a high level of accuracy. If you would have asked me a year ago if I had ever thought muzzleloading firearms were interesting I would have told you no. Now that I have shot one I can't wait to shoot it again.

Anyways, my BIL's and I had a great time shooting a muzzleloader for the first time and plan to do it again next week. One of my BIL's wants his own rifle :toxdance: and plans to go out and purchase one before next weekend. This from a guy who shoots center fire rifles. Here are some pictures and videos. The video's are really grainy because I didn't bother to look at the video size until after we finished shooting.

Pictures
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Videos
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[SASS#23149]

ain't them T/C's a hoot!! ?

re: stuck ball puller.I"ve had little luck with them,but one trick that did work was to buy 2 of them,and cut about 1/3 of the threads off of one.That way when the one with the point won't do the job,you thread in the stubbby one with more bit to it,and save the day.....maybe.
also,clean the bore and oil it first before pulling it,BUT CLEAN the bore before shooting the gun again.

 

[GENTLEMAN OF THE CHARCOAL]

Handle it the way you finally handled it. Remove the nipple, trickle in your powder, replace the nipple, re-seat the ball, cap and fire. If it dosen't work the first time for some reason, repeat the procedure. ALWAYS REMEMBER TO RE-SEAT THE BALL!

"The powder goes before the ball or else it will not shoot a'tall!"

 

[mykeal]

There are three kinds of muzzleload shooters: those who have dryballed, those who are going to, and those who are going to do it again. Congratulations on achieving the third category.

The preferred method of removing a dryball is shooting it out, just as you did. As stated above, be sure to reseat the ball if you need to try more than once; you can ruin a barrel shooting a ball that is not firmly seated on the powder.

I've never had a ball puller fail, however. I know that several people have had bad luck with them, but for some reason they work ok for me. I'm not going to say how many times I've used one - you see,I have a lot of friends who know I have good luck with the ball puller, they come to me for help, (it's my story and I'm sticking to it).

 

[Chawbaccer]

You need to pin yur ram-rod tip onto your ram-rod. A 6p finish nail and the right size hole and then file it down smooth. I use a dremel and split the puller for about a eighth inch at the tip, it makes it cut lead better it seems.

 

[nicholst55]

I agree with mykeal about the three types of BP shooters. So far, (knock on wood), I belong to the second group. There's nothing to compare to the feeling of hitting your target with a REAL muzzleloader!

Now, when you decide that percussion caps are just a passing fad and buy a flintlock, let me know!

 

[arcticap]

I bought a set of cheap little plastic funnels at the dollar store which I use when I pour the powder into the muzzle so as not to spill it. While it adds a small step to the loading process, it also allows me to be less precise when I dump the powder so I can drop it in more "sloppily & hastily" without spilling and wasting any of it.
Anyway, after each shot, I'll place my rifle in the portable range rack, against the shooting bench, or even against a tree and place the funnel in the muzzle. That way I'll know that the powder hasn't been dropped in yet. Then immediately after dropping in the powder, I'll remove the funnel so I'll know that the rifle has been charged and it's time to load the patched round ball (PRB).
Sure, I've been distracted and have lost track of the loading procedure and have dry balled, but I've never pulled a ball and have only used the pinch of powder method. I've even used a pinch of powder without having rammed any ball in the barrel! That's because I haven't marked each range rod for every different rifle that I shoot.
Anyway, there's a couple of tips for you here: 1) If possible, try leaning your rifle against something while you're readying your powder and PRB to free up your hands for loading preparations, and 2) placing a cheap funnel in your muzzle will help to remind you that the powder hasn't been dropped yet and will also help you not to spill any of it.
Thanks for posting, I enjoyed the pictures.

 

[pbearperry]

TC Hawken

Just last week myself and 3 buddies went to TC in New Hampshire and had a tour of the factory.We were told that all TC products are guaranteed for life ,even if the gun was not bought new by the owner.If you ever have a problem with the gun,contact TC and they will even pay for shipping.
When you call,ask for Black Powder Jack,he is in charge of repairing guns,although he will probably retire in the next few years.TC stands by their products 100 %.

 

[Hawkn]

Glad you enjoyed your first experience. As stated above, everyone forgets the powder at last once. I purchased a small CO2 unit that will blow the ball out of the barrel. Remove the nipple, press the CO2 cartridge against the hole and the pressure pushes the ball out. Remember - "Powder, Patch, Ball"

Used to belong to a black powder shooting club. They only allowed pre-1840 replicas, so it was all single shot, muzzle loaders. Some tricks to keep the barrel clean while shooting, and for easier clean up, is Formula 13. It's sold by NAPA Auto parts as a water pump lubricant. We would dampen a few patches in the stuff before we started shooting.

Although I haven't shot any of them lately, still have my original Hawken, hence the screen name, a Kentucky long rifle, and a Plainsman, as well as two pistols, all in 50 Cal.

Have fun shooting.

 

[scrat]

nice post im glad to see that you got that stuck ball out. videos are pretty cool too

 

[Pancho]

I dryballed once and it was at the worst place possible,deercamp, with a bunch of guys ready to go hunt and to fry anyone that screws up. I tried my best to get that ball out without anyone seeing. I got the ball out using a screw extractor but not without everybody seeing it. I am now known as PPB, Powder, Patch,Ball. That was 5 years ago and evidently I was lucky the ball came out on the first try. Your way with the pinch of powder is the best as long as you re-seat the ball.

 

[tallpaul]

I am not sure about the one picture where you have your shoulder above the muzzle... if you are ramming the ball down on powder you DO NOT WANT ANY BODY PART in line with the muzzle! The ramrod will go right through ya if a spark or unburnt powder happens to cause a hangfire at the wrong time etc...

I doubt that was what ya were doing but just so anyone might not have thought of it or realized it.

 

[Mac Attack]

Loading Safety Questions

Unfortunately, I think I need to learn loading safety because that's exactly what I did to seat the ball.

Heres the thing, I read all about how you should load with the barrel pointed away from you. As a matter of fact I read this over and over to make sure that I did the right thing the safest way possible. When it came time to put what I learned to practice it wasn't as easy as I thought.

First off, seating the ball took a lot of effort. I tried to seat it with the barrel angled away from me but I needed the extra force of my body to push it in, hence my shoulder. I did however make sure there were no caps on the nipple and the hammer was at half cock and nothing was near the trigger. This brings up the question regarding my ball and patch combo. I was using a .490 Speer .50 Cal ball with a 0.010 prelubed patch. It was always difficult to seat the ball/patch into the barrel and on some occasions it was even hard to push the combo down onto the powder. Am I using to thick of a patch? The thing is my accuracy was pretty good and I am not sure if a thinner patch would affect my results.

Also, I ready and watched video's on the proper way to load. The CVA blackpowder 101 video's stated that when pushing the round onto the charge (after seating the bullet into the barrel) that the push should be made in one continuous motion and not a jerky push. Well, this wasn't the case with my ball/patch combo which required me to hit the rod several times to push it onto the charge. With the Powerbelts it was easily a smooth push.

I guess I need to be schooled by some of our more seasoned veterans. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[arcticap]

Uusually a .010 patch isn't too difficult to ram. Are the patches pre-lubed with Bore Butter/Wonderlube or other lube?
Pre-lubed patches aren't always loaded with enough lube, especially thinner ones like .010's.
Depending on the type of powder you're using, you might need to swab every once in a while to remove some of the powder residue. The problem that wet swabbing can cause however is not drying the barrel breech enough with a dry patch afterward so as to not interfere with igniting the next load.
Hoppe's Number 9 PLUS BP Solvent & Patch Lube claims to not interfere with ignition even if some is left over in the bore.
Believe it or not, a tighter patch like a .015 may be a little bit harder to load, but it will sometimes help to push all of the powder fouling (esp. that which is in the grooves) back down further into the barrel after each and every time you ram the next load, and then you will shoot a percentage of it out with the next shot, helping to keep your barrel cleaner. Thus it won't build up in the grooves as much and you will be partially "swabbing" more effectively as you load.
Using the least amount of powder neccessary also helps to keep the barrel cleaner.
How to load any tight PRB more easily is the key.
1. Try to have support for your rifle to leave both hands free while you load. This will also help you to ram more with your arms and not with your body as much.
2. Use a short starter, the longer ones are sometimes better.
The further down you can "start" the ball with your short starter, the easier it will be to ram it the rest of the way down. The first 6 or 8 inches at the muzzle are the tightest to start.
3. I use a small wood, rubber or plastic hammer with a protected head in case I miss hit the short starter, so as to not damage the rifle.
I lightly tap, tap, tap the short starter with the mallet to get the ball started down those first tough inches at the muzzle, so I don't need to repeatedly wack my hand or palm on the short starter to get the ball started down a slightly fouled bore.
4. Once the PRB is started deep enough, it becomes much easier to ram, especially if you can grasp the ramrod with both hands while the rifle is supported/leaning against something.
Even putting the rifle in between your legs and holding it that way might help too.
5. Before you start loading, place the hammer on half cock so any air trapped in the barrel can escape out through the nipple. This also helps the powder charge to flow into the patent breech better and promotes better ignition. The more room that's allowed for air to escape the barrel, the easier it theoretically is to ram.
6. Having a handle on top of the ramrod helps to grasp the ramrod better. There are flat top ramrod handles, ball handles, T-handles and rubber grips to help grasp the ramrod better with. Anything that you can come up with to increase your hold on the ramrod will help to better push the ramrod. Try using a piece of rubber or leather if you don't have anything else handy.
7. There are range rods made out of thicker, sturdier materials (brass, aluminum, steel) that can be mated with a handle, or try very thick wooden dowels sold at any hardware store or a Walmart craft dept. that can help to provide an especially sturdy and non-bending ramrod. It's not too thick in diameter as long as it fits into the bore, even if it's 7/16th's of an inch for a .50 caliber bore.
Then you can lean on the rod without worrying about breaking it and spearing your hand clean through, and ram more smoothly & efficiently and with less of a struggle.

 

[86thecat]

And don't forget to use safety glasses when handling powder, loading or shooting. Blind might really ruin your shooting.