Choosing my first front loader

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RusticGrain

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Here in Nova Scotia we have an early season archery/muzzleloader hunt for deer and I've been thinking about branching out and resting the bow a bit this year and giving this a go. Trying to figure out which direction to go with it as there's definitely a lot to learn. Most of my hunting is blind hunting a 40 yard clearing with the occasional random walk. No big distance shots, will be sticking to iron sights. Also it's not unusual to sit several nights without seeing anything so I would either need to have a c02 discharger or something to unload frequently. are sabots reuseable if you use a c02 dishcharger or would I be wasting money each night discharging?

I've always loved the look of the old Hawken style sidelocks but being a lefty I'm a bit concerned about the ignition happening right infront of my face, and I've heard they're a bit tougher learning curve and a bit more work to clean etc.

I have a line on a nice looking CVA left handed bolt (unknown model, looks like a hunterbolt but it has a wood stock which I can't seem to find any reference to?). I like the left hand bolt as I love collecting the odd ball things like that but it's missing the front sight, and just not the same "cool" look of the old sidelocks. None of my close friends are into muzzleloaders and no local shops carry them so not really much chance of handling them to get a feel for them.

Guess I'm just wondering how does a lefty fare using a right handed sidelock? Anyone know if the hunter bolt did come with a wood stock? How much of a difference is there in the 2 as far as cleaning/maintenance, learning curve etc?
 
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Left handed side hammer guns aren't as rare as you might think.
Check out Muzzle-Loaders.com, I believe they have a few models to choose from.
You can always check the Wanted/For Sale section of the sister site, muzzleloader forum.
There's always a few lefty guns for sale over there.
I have a couple inlines but I'm more of a traditional black powder guy.
Welcome to the forum by the way. Where's NS?
 
You could put something over that breech, like a piece of leather or something, to protect your face/eyes on almost any style muzzleloader.
Ive never seen any of the older CVA bolt guns(hunterbolt, magbolt) in wood stocks. Always synthetic. Decent guns tho, imho.
 
I’ll give you my 2 cents on a couple of your questions. No, sabots are not reusable once loaded/unloaded/fired. I personally don’t unload my rifles until springtime. I use Blackhorn 209 and load before my first hunt in Sept and keep loaded through the February seasons. But you may wish to depending on local laws, humidity and powder you’re using. With real black powder, Pyrodex and 777 you will likely need to unload and clean your rifle frequently. The easiest way to do that is either to use a bullet puller on the end of your ramrod or to remove the breechplug, dump out the powder and push out the sabot/bullet through the breech. Very simple.
 
Left handed side hammer guns aren't as rare as you might think.
Check out Muzzle-Loaders.com, I believe they have a few models to choose from.
You can always check the Wanted/For Sale section of the sister site, muzzleloader forum.
There's always a few lefty guns for sale over there.
I have a couple inlines but I'm more of a traditional black powder guy.
Welcome to the forum by the way. Where's NS?
Thanks, I'll definitely check it out. I'm in the southern tip of Nova Scotia Canada
 
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You could put something over that breech, like a piece of leather or something, to protect your face/eyes on almost any style muzzleloader.
Ive never seen any of the older CVA bolt guns(hunterbolt, magbolt) in wood stocks. Always synthetic. Decent guns tho, imho.
Maybe it's an aftermarket stock? Not sure. Here's a picture of it as it's advertised
 

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I’ll give you my 2 cents on a couple of your questions. No, sabots are not reusable once loaded/unloaded/fired. I personally don’t unload my rifles until springtime. I use Blackhorn 209 and load before my first hunt in Sept and keep loaded through the February seasons. But you may wish to depending on local laws, humidity and powder you’re using. With real black powder, Pyrodex and 777 you will likely need to unload and clean your rifle frequently. The easiest way to do that is either to use a bullet puller on the end of your ramrod or to remove the breechplug, dump out the powder and push out the sabot/bullet through the breech. Very simple.
I figured they wouldn't be reusable after unloading. we usually get a fair bit of wet, rainy weather during deer season here, typically start to get some snow as rifle season winds down but my blind gives good weather cover so other than temp swings causing it to sweat I'm guessing I shouldn't have much issues then leaving it loaded, pulling the primer. My blind's not too far of a walk back so it won't be exposed for much weather.

Sounds like an inline would be much easier to clean/unload though with being able to remove the breech plug. Thanks
 
You must know local laws about what you can use and what you can do. My state game laws consider a muzzleloader to be "unloaded" if the cap is removed. I can remove the cap and drive home without risking being charged with hunting from a motor vehicle. Then it's a matter of opinion whether you need to replace the load for the next days hunt, or if you can leave that charge for several days, or the whole season. There are various opinions on that. Unless I've been caught in a downpour, I leave it loaded for the season.
 
You must know local laws about what you can use and what you can do. My state game laws consider a muzzleloader to be "unloaded" if the cap is removed. I can remove the cap and drive home without risking being charged with hunting from a motor vehicle. Then it's a matter of opinion whether you need to replace the load for the next days hunt, or if you can leave that charge for several days, or the whole season. There are various opinions on that. Unless I've been caught in a downpour, I leave it loaded for the season.
I've read its a bit murky here, typical arguments on web forums about people's interpretations of the laws but I'm lucky enough hunt family land behind my house so no worries on the drive, though the right warden catching me walking out from the stand with a flashlight in hand after dark could be a different story. I might want to do some reading up to see for sure on that. Thanks
 
On the question of leaving the gun loaded, I typically leave all my guns hard cased in the garage from about the end of October to just after the first of the year. Smokeless and black powder which I leave loaded the whole season.
 
Rustgrain said:
Maybe it's an aftermarket stock? Not sure. Here's a picture of it as it's advertised

My first Muzzleloader was a CVA Magbolt 150(RH) in .45 caliber that I still shoot regularly. On E-bay you will find aftermarket stocks for that CVA series. Although I have never seen a LH version, I will say that the photo looks like a Mirror image of my Magbolt, except for the barrel profile. I shoot lefty as well, have been shooting for almost half a century now, and the only time I have ever flinched was when a Flinter went off right in front of my nose (then again, I have a rather large nose!). My advice to anyone looking to get into ML has been to start out with an inexpensive In-Line, You will be pleasantly surprised. As Deermanok said, LH sidelocks, especially percussion, are readily available when you want to move up. As for leaving one loaded, about the only piece of my kit that has never been used is the bullet puller. Centuries ago, they would keep the lock covered with an oiled leather piece. Just keep the powder dry, and if you do not wish to keep it loaded, well, then practice makes perfect. Muzzleloading and Bowhunting seem to just go together. Welcome to the forum, and good hunting.
 
i always cover the end of my barrel with electrical tape and keep my load intact throughout our 13 day season unless I kill a deer which I’ve been lucky enough to do most years. BTW I shoot BH209.
 
I do the same as several others have mentioned, leave my rifle loaded during the season.
I put red tape over the bore, both to protect from moisture and to signal that it is loaded (people have later on forgot they left it loaded and then double charged and got quite a surprise when they shot it off). I have a sidelock and also set a foam earplug over the nipple and then lower the hammer onto it when not hunting, for same reasons as tape on the muzzle.
If for some reason I have concerns about moisture, then I will pull the load and give it a quick cleaning, then load fresh the next time I hunt.
As gsasc mentions, it is a good idea to store a loaded muzzleloader somewhere that it will stay cool to prevent condensation. A garage, unheated room in your house, etc.
 
Being a lefty and in a location where wet weather is common, I'd be looking for a Hopkins & Allen underhammer. Lefties using a right-handed sidelock has drawbacks besides the possibility of a cheekpiece. Bad thing would be putting the exploding gasses, percussion cap chunks, and burning powder (flintlock) really close to your eyes. Get a lefty or underhammer.
 
I am a lefty and shot a right-handed muzzleloader. Of course, I have shot a right-handed bolt action for years. I have never had a problem with either of my muzzleloaders. I do not even notice the charge going off in front of my nose.

I leave my guns loaded all season. Yes,, there is a problem if you are hunting in the rain, and then I would fire them off and make sure they are dry before reloading. I either use round balls (for deer) or mini balls (for elk). With the drought conditions we have been experiencing the last several years, we have not had a problem with rain, with that said and drawing for elk in Eastern Oregon, it will probably rain every day.
 
I have never had a problem with either of my muzzleloaders. I do not even notice the charge going off in front of my nose.


I shoot a right handed percussion left handed. Been doing it for 35 years. Hasn't been a problem. I specify percussion because I have to think a flint lock would be a problem.
 
Here in Nova Scotia we have an early season archery/muzzleloader hunt for deer and I've been thinking about branching out and resting the bow a bit this year and giving this a go. Trying to figure out which direction to go with it as there's definitely a lot to learn. Most of my hunting is blind hunting a 40 yard clearing with the occasional random walk. No big distance shots, will be sticking to iron sights. Also it's not unusual to sit several nights without seeing anything so I would either need to have a c02 discharger or something to unload frequently. are sabots reuseable if you use a c02 dishcharger or would I be wasting money each night discharging?

I've always loved the look of the old Hawken style sidelocks but being a lefty I'm a bit concerned about the ignition happening right infront of my face, and I've heard they're a bit tougher learning curve and a bit more work to clean etc.

I have a line on a nice looking CVA left handed bolt (unknown model, looks like a hunterbolt but it has a wood stock which I can't seem to find any reference to?). I like the left hand bolt as I love collecting the odd ball things like that but it's missing the front sight, and just not the same "cool" look of the old sidelocks. None of my close friends are into muzzleloaders and no local shops carry them so not really much chance of handling them to get a feel for them.

Guess I'm just wondering how does a lefty fare using a right handed sidelock? Anyone know if the hunter bolt did come with a wood stock? How much of a difference is there in the 2 as far as cleaning/maintenance, learning curve etc?
I'm a lefty, Have both kinds in percussion, and it certainly is no problem shooting my two right-handed rifles. Depending upon the powder used, cleaning is probably harder with the percussion over the flintlock. To me, muzzle loaders are much more enjoyable over my .270, probably the same reason why you're in the game, but to have to kill a deer or anything is only second to the ability to get out and hunt with something that was very effective 200 years ago. Perhaps that's why you use archery. I too do archery, as I've aged, I've had to reduce bow weight so my range is only about 20 yards. Needless to say, I don't get many shots.
Squint
 
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