one heckuva deal

$5? Want your money back?

One little thing though; PLEASE drift that front sight out and turn it around proper... it's on backwards.

Other than that, I can't see the first thing to complain about. Clean it up and shoot it 'til something needs fixing, then shoot it some more.


J.C.

I'm not 100% positive, but it sure looks like a CVA Mountain Rifle.
The earliest models had Douglas barrels that were made in the U.S., but the later models all had barrels that were made in Spain. They're known to be very decent shooters.
The used gunshop value is about $150 or so, depending on the condition of the barrel.

You'll need some of these things to start shooting:
1. Powder measure to measure the powder charge.
2. Flask to dispense powder into the measure, so not to dispense from the powder can.
3. Capper to help apply caps without using your fingers.
4. Nipple wrench to be able to remove the nipple for cleaning it.
5. Short starter to help get the patched round ball started down the muzzle.
6. Rod accessories:
a. cleaning jag to help grip a cleaning patch for wiping & cleaning.
b. patch worm or patch puller to grab and pull stuck patches out of the bottom of the barrel.
c. fouling scraper sometimes comes in handy to clean the barrel breech.
d. cleaning brush for your caliber for removing stubborn deposits.
7. Nipple pick to clear the nipple of debris.
8. Bore Butter or Wonderlube to lubricate patches for loading, and the barrel after cleaning and to help prevent rust.
9. Patches, .015 thickness, pre-lubed or saturate them with Bore Butter yourself.
10. Balls, .530 diameter
11. Powder
12. #11 Percussion caps
13. BP cleaning solvent - will help to clean the gun without using water, and is very helpful if using Pyrodex.
14. BP Cleaning rod or kit, it's longer and has a handle for easier cleaning without using the short ramrod.
15. Ramrod - I recommend buying a wooden dowel nearly as thick as the bore caliber at a hardware store for about $1. Drill a hole in a wood or plastic ball, a hunk of plastic or wood to make a handle for it and this will help to make ramming the bullet or ball down the barrel much easier by giving better leverage. Mine are 7/16 th's in diameter and have never broken.

For a .54 caliber percussion gun, usually the common starting point for working up an accurate load is to use the .530 balls and a lubricated patch with a thickness of .015.
There are other diameter balls like .535, and other patch thicknesses, like .005 (too thin), .010, .018 (blue stripe pillow ticking), .020 (maybe too thick).
The recommended starting powder load is the same number as the caliber of the bore, about 50 - 55 grains by volume.
If buying .535 balls, start with a .010 patch or loading may be difficult.

Did you ever imagine that this could get so expensive?

Make sure it's not loaded.

It's actually pretty common to find muzzleloaders left loaded. Old ones more often, but new ones once in a while. The ramrod should go into the bore almost to where the barrel meets the breech plug. If it stops more than about 3/4", give or take, it's probably loaded. Soak the breech in water for a bit, then pull the ball. One of those CO2 gadgets will work well, but a ball puller (looks like a wood screw on the end of the ramrod) works just fine.

Range rod or cleaning rod.

If you plan on pulling a ball out of the barrel,buy a cleaning rod,don't risk pulling your ram rod apart to do this,you are going to need one anyway.

I changed my .32 Dixie Mountain rifle over to flint by buying the lock plate, hammer and frizzen and a touch hole liner. Used all the other original internal parts; lots cheaper than buying a new complete lock. Emery

Looks an awful like my CVA Missouri, heck you even got the same color floor!

wana make $5 profit LOL

I am envious of the cool yard sale find! Whattaboggin!

Given the list of necessaries listed by articap above, I would QUICKLY sell it and use the money for something else, before growing attached to the idea of owning it

Also, curiosity: Are there any laws (in PA, or anywhere that anyone knows about which to pipe up) about transferring blackpowder arms?

timothy

BP arms do not need FFL transfers and can be sent via mail.

Articap's list is comprehensive and will make life easier. You can get by with less. Ramrod with jag, patchworm, ball puller and bullet seater. Short starter. Horn/flask and measure. Patches and balls. Powder and caps.

The difference between caps is diameter. Quality control is sometimes not up to snuff on nipples and some may be thicker or thinner than others. #11's won't stay on a thin nipple, but that's why they make #10's.

For paper punching, I'd start with a 55gr load of FFg and work up until you find the "sweet spot". For hunting, I'd not go with less than 70gr FFg. Go up by 5gr increments until accuracy begins to suffer, then back off to the last acceptable load. Find out what the max load according to CVA is (likely 110gr FFg.) and do NOT exceed it. Besides, as inefficient as BP is, you'll quickly get diminishing returns by upping the charge very much past 90gr. More smoke, more recoil, no more velocity.

HeXeD, there is a CVA Flint lock on www.auctionarms.com in the black powder section, search for item 7877478, it's on the last page. Also, I might have a CVA lock in my parts drawer. Emery

Great Buy

I am also pretty sure you have the CVA Mountain Rifle. I had one in .50 which I used a lot. I won a CVA Mountain Rifle kit in .54 at a shoot once. My .50 was a tack driver. I eventually went to a .62 Sharon hawken. I was at a shoot once and the local CVA rep showed up. Quite a character. He had a trunk full of finished Mountain rifles in the boxes. When asked about accuracy, he said he would challenge anyone to a five shot match. He would take one shot with each of five rifles out of the box. Only two of us out of 13 out shot him. He was particularly happy that I did using a CVA Mountain Rifle. He gave me a powder horn. They are good shooting rifles once you get a load worked up. Just be sure you follow the advice given previous as I don't have anything to add there. Enjoy it.

about the bore..
It only takes 1 shot of bp and a bore left uncleaned to really mess it up,so get a drop in tyep bore light and check it out.
and be SURE you clean it EVERY TIME YOU SHOOT IT.Hot soapy water is the best,just immerse the barrel in a bucket of same,and pump it through the barrel with a ramrod and swab.Riinse with clean water,and lightly oil before stroring it.CLEAN OUT THE OIL befroe shooting it again..oil and powder don't mix.
spend the 25.00 or so for a good solidly built 'range rod.
IT's money well spent.
firing tip. when you load the gun,tap the reciever area a few times to get a few grains of powder down into the 'drum' area.Makes ignition a whole lot more reliable.a WHOLE lot.alternative is to remove the nipple and dribble a few grains in.YOu can do that for a load with no powder alsH YES,you WILL forget to put the powder in at least once.

oh,and here is the FUN factor of heavy bp loads.


rifle 1, water jug LOSER!

Dryballing.

Re-read the above post. I agree with him, it's just a matter of time before you "dryball" your rifle. We've all done it at least once. The easiest answer for this is one of those co2 ball removers. No, I don't have one either. I still use a stout rod and ball puller.

well, dryballing does lead to some pretty 'gutteral' type language.!

Ramrod

Go to a black powder shooting supplier and buy an aftermarket ramrod. The one that came with an .50 otherwise identical rifle broke on the first loading. Use the one that came with it for show or on the range when you are using a longer range rod.

www.dixiegunworks.com will get you started.

If you're asking about dealers of authentic black powder, this outfit sells it plus related muzzle loading accessories:

http://www.grafs.com/

At Graf & Sons, we keep it simple. We pay the freight to the first 48 states. All you pay is the price you see plus a minimal $3.95 handling and insurance ...

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