I inherited A TC .45 cap lock - HELP!

[sawhitt]

I admit it. I'm completely ignorant about this rifle - and BP in general. I can't find it on the TC page. It looks almost identical to the Hawken .50 cal.

What caps do I need? Any powder load and bullet recommendations? Patch recommendations? I'm waiting for a manual from TC, but it's taking a while and spring BP turkey season is coming soon.

I prefer to live in peace with my Weatherbys, but we do have a couple of black powder seasons here that I would like to take advantage of.

Any assistance would be helpful.:banghead:

 

[zahc]

If it's a hawken type sidehammer, and it were mine, I'd buy some .440 round balls and .10 pre-natural lubed patches, (wonderlube or bore butter) a tube of T/c bore butter and no.13 bore cleaner, and a few pounds of goex.

And no. 11 percussion caps.

And make smoke

 

[Backwoods]

TC made 2 Hawken style rifles. One was a .45 caliber version of the Hawken and the other was a lighter version named IIRC the Seneca. The lighter Seneca was made in .36 and .45 and is somewhat of a rare find these days. Don't know if they're rare enough to command a high price though!
The name should be stamped on the barrel, at least on the newer TCs

Don in Ohio

 

[444]

You will need #11 caps, and some FFFg powder along with the stuff already mentioned. Personally, I would load about 50 grains to start with and see how it goes. You can move up from there basing your final load on accuracy.
Not sure if you have any black powder experience or not. You will need to clean the rifle periodically when firing it. Bore Butter allows you to shoot a lot more, as advertised, but I like to clean to better simulate the bore condition when I am hunting. After shooting you need to really clean it good. I like to use hot soapy water. I cock the hammer, knock out the wedge located about halfway down the forearm of the stock that holds the barrel in place. The barrel then pivots out of the stock. I boil a big pot of water, pour it into a bucket with some dish soap and then pump a patch up and down through the bore. I then repeat with clean boiling water. Then run a patch loaded with bore butter in the bore and wipe the outside with bore butter.
When you hunt, fire a powder charge with no ball to make sure the nipple vent hole is clean and the barrel is slightly fouled with powder.
During the hunting season, I leave the rifle loaded over night, but I leave it out in the truck so that I don't get any condensation in the bore from the transition from cold to warm.

 

[kentucky bucky]

Learn BP safety!!!

If you know nothing about shooting muzzleloaders, get a book for beginners and read first. Don't do like alot of us did and for the rest of your life look back and cringe when we think of the dumb things we did in the beginning. I'm guilty,and youth is my only excuse, but not a very good one. It's a safe sport, but learn all you can, FIRST!!!!!!