FS: Black Powder stuff

cashflyer · 11:11 AM

If this is prohibited by Pelican staff, please delete the thread and notify me.

My father used to be fond of mountain-man craft, rendezvous reenactments, etc. He has been away from the game for about 25 years or more, and no longer has an interest in keeping his black powder firearms.

These will be going on Gun Broker in a few days unless somebody here is interested. He would probably be most interested in a deal where somebody makes him an offer on all the stuff together.

PM me if interested - I will relay any / all offers to him.

Ruger Old Army .45 cal pistol.

Bill Ruger said that the company would make these as long as he lived, and it did. And when he died, they discontinued them because they are such a small segment of the market that Ruger courts.

It was one of, if not THE best black powder pistols ever made. It has a very strong frame, based on the Ruger Blackhawk. It has target sights, and it shoots a big, slow slug of lead.

Condition is Good to VG.
Some wear on the blue due to holster rub.
Some light pitting at flash areas due to powder.

Thompson Center .50 cal Hawken rifle

Review: Review of the Thompson Center Hawken .50 Caliber Rifle - Associated Content - associatedcontent.com

The Hawken rifle is one of the most copied designs in muzzle loading history, and Thompson Center is one of the top manufacturers.

Good for somebody who wants to get in on some early season deer hunting, or just some mountain-man reenacting. Target sights, adjustable for windage and elevation.

Another Good to VG condition weapon, this rifle has a little bit of powder related corrosion around the nipple area:

Also available are:

Lee lead melting pot, electric, high production
Lee bullet mold, .457 conical (for the pistol)
Lee bullet mold, .490 MAXIE (for the rifle)
Old Time brand bullet mold, .457 round (pistol)
Powder flask, large
Powder flask, small
Powder horn (similar to THIS)
Leather western holster for pistol
Bulk lead, approximately 50 pounds.
Powder measures
and misc stuff.

tabs · 10-05-2010, 11:16 AM

The pistola is worth about $150

The rifle is worth 100 to 125

Condition is what hurts and they are not high end nor true copies of original weapons.

cashflyer · 10-05-2010, 11:23 AM

I know you are the 'go to guy' here on old guns, but Ouch!!
The rifle retails over $800, and because it's used it is only worth $100 - $125??

Racerbvd · Racerbvd's Garage

Shoot me an email.. I'm interested in the lot..
me911bvd@comcast.net

tabs · 10-05-2010, 11:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cashflyer

I know you are the 'go to guy' here on old guns, but Ouch!!
The rifle retails over $800, and because it's used it is only worth $100 - $125??

They have been making those TC Hawkens for over 40 years... in the scheme of things they are crudely made, massed produced, don't really fit any historic period and are basically a dime a dozen...yours looks to have been well used...they just don't pull the dinero...

The first rifle I bought on omy own was a TC Hawken 45 caliber...SN under 10,000 and that was in 1972 for $110 with a whole bunch of stuff with it..bullet molds, tang sight, loading stuff....I still have it...and the condition is really nice..

On the Ruger for under $400 you can buy one NIB..value falls off quick with wear...and they had been making the Ruger Old Army for 40 years as well. It to is not a historic copy but a modern hybrid.. and as such the renactors don't like em...

Jeff Higgins · 10-05-2010, 01:15 PM

Sorry, cashflyer, but tabs is right on. I love both guns, having a stainless Old Army and a .54 caliber T/C Hawken myself, but neither has any sort of collector value. Their value lies in practical usefulness, as hunting and/or plinking guns, but not as collectors.

As tabs points out, neither is a copy of anything. The Hawken is more of a half stocked Pennsylvania rifle, or a German influenced Jaeger (literally "hunter") rifle of the east coast. Some Leman plains rifles may have looked somewhat like that, with the single barrel tennon, and even the odd Hawken had that (rather than its ubuitous double tennons), but even that is a stretch. The brass furniture was very, very rarely encountered on any sort of plains rifle, most being furnished in plain steel. Then those adjustable sights - far more useful to most than the traditional fixed sights, but most enthusiasts don't merely dislike them, they disdain them.

The Old Army has the same problem with its adjustable sights. No one likes 'em. To make matters worse, Ruger made a run in the last few years they made this gun that had a more traditional top strap style fixed sight and simple blade front. Those are the more desireable of the configurations.

All of that said, both are outstanding choices for the muzzle loader hunter. I bought my Hawken kist and built it at 16 years of age, and my Old Army just after turning 21. Both have been my companions of muzzle loader deer and elk hunts for just about three decades. The .54, shooting the 460 grain Lyman Great Plains bullet cast from pure lead at over 1500 fps, just plain works. I've killed more game with that rifle than all of my others combined. It shoots accurately and flat enough to be useful out to 150 yards or so, and it hits with authority.

The Ruger has accounted for untold grouse and several coyotes, plus providing a finishing shot or two when needed. For the first few cylinders, until it starts to foul, it's one of the most accurate handguns I own.

tabs · 10-05-2010, 04:14 PM

OHH BTW neither of these spoon REQUIRES ANY REGISTRATION>>>jI would get a copy of a DL but other than that just send em...

Joeaksa · 10-05-2010, 05:19 PM

Just sent you a PM.

cashflyer · 10-06-2010, 05:45 AM

Thanks for the input, guys.
I'll pass this along to my Pop and see what he wants to do.

If they are worth no more than a couple hundred, he may opt to just stick them on the mantel. For that value, it's cheaper than bad art.

Also, replies sent.