Muzzle loaders for early season

[Dunndm]

[incredablehefey]

Believe it or not there are some really great low buck options. I have taken 6 whitetail with my Traditions buckstalker. After the second season hunting with it I replaced the plastic sights (that were perfectly fine) with metal ones just in case i ever hit or bump them climbing through brush. I would recommend getting a stainless steel one as they do rust quickly. Depending on where you hunt you might want to put a scope on it, my pops has a scope on his but i really prefer iron sights.

[Dunndm]

Believe it or not there are some really great low buck options. I have taken 6 whitetail with my Traditions buckstalker. After the second season hunting with it I replaced the plastic sights (that were perfectly fine) with metal ones just in case i ever hit or bump them climbing through brush. I would recommend getting a stainless steel one as they do rust quickly. Depending on where you hunt you might want to put a scope on it, my pops has a scope on his but i really prefer iron sights.

[incredablehefey]

Check the regulations where you plan on hunting and see if you can have a scope. I don't imagine there is a run on black powder stuff right now so if you want to take a trip to the basspro you should be able to buy what you need.

Pick what powder you want and stick with it. I use the 50g pyrodex pellets. I typically only use 2 pellets But most modern rifles can use 3 if your using a scope and really trying to reach out there. Just remember point of impact changes quite a bit with the extra 50% of powder so keep it consistent. Another thought is some guns are more accurate at slower velocities.

You will also need to find what projectiles you want to shoot and pick up enough to see if they are accurate in whatever rifle you choose. They might not be so be prepared with options. These are the ones i use The are not the most accurate choice but for ease of loading and how well they perform they are worth every penny (to me). So far I have recovered 2 from the rear roasts when the deer were facing me head on. Tons of penetration and they bloomed just like in the advertisements. They are also lead free if you need or care about that.

Other than that i just use regular 209 shotgun primers, 25 year old stock shotgun primers.

My setup replicated...
$220 rifle
$25 or less per projectile set (15 shots)
$30 or so for powder (50 shots)
$10-20 primers

That's all you need to go shoot.

[Juniork5]

I have been hunting with a Thompson center omega for years have taken many bucks with it hunted mostly ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo. Very fun to shoot after the 3rd gets pretty difficult to load. No scope permitted during muzzleloader season open sights only I would recommend a peep sight those fiber optic sight are just to big for long distance shot.

[Fjold]

Get one of the modern closed breech, inline muzzle loaders. Most come with stainless barrels (that's not protection from rain but from the corrosive effects of black powder residue inside the barrel), they also have faster twist barrels that work better with minie balls and lead free bullets.

[Dunndm]

I have been hunting with a Thompson center omega for years have taken many bucks with it hunted mostly ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo. Very fun to shoot after the 3rd gets pretty difficult to load. No scope permitted during muzzleloader season open sights only I would recommend a peep sight those fiber optic sight are just to big for long distance shot.

[AGGRO]

Can't have a scope in CA and our ML seasons are late. Great options.

[Dunndm]

I think I might go with a CVA of some kind. They seem like they are pretty well rated and reviewed


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[Juniork5]

I have a the Thompson center omega and a the impact and just bought the endeavor pro hunter barrel for my pro hunter. They are all inline and great rifles. Good luck the cva is a good one also my brother has the wolf and optima and he likes them. Best thing about slo county is either sex hunt weekend of thanksgiving is opener and runs till second week of December.

[CartridgeCalls]

Scopes in CA are illegal for all M zones unless you have a disabled muzzleloader permit to have a scope.

[Divernhunter]

I have a traditional 54cal and a 50cal inline. The inline has a gold bead front and peep rear sight that I installed and is great. Taken deer with both. The very best bullet combo we found for the faster twist(1-28) inline was the Barnes mag sabot and the 250gr BIG HP Barnes bullet. Deer hit with these drop like struck by lighting. The good thing is they are also legal in Ca.
My farthest shot was over 200 yards(287 to be exact) but with my eyes now I doubt I could make it again. Closest was about 60 yards.

[Elgatodeacero]

Has anyone found a non-lead projectile that is accurate in a Thompson Center 1:48 twist barrel.

I have had a terrible time with Barnes 250 grain bullets in a .50 cal Firestorm, and I have tried several different plastic sabots with a few more to try.

I would enjoy pig or deer hunting with this flintlock, but not with the accuracy I am getting. I also don’t do very well with lead round ball, so maybe it’s just my lack of skill........

[Vigilante]

The muzzleloader tags in CA are hunt specific tags, like the SLO county MA1 tag that was referenced in this thread. The state does not have muzzleloader dates for general tags, like they do for archery.

As others mentioned, scopes are not allowed, unless you are hunting with a muzzleloader during a regular rifle season.