My son has been bitten by the black powder bug after shooting several of Grandpas guns. He is interested in a kit gun because he thinks they are less expensive and he likes building things. Everything he looks at seems to be 45 or 50 cal. Which he doesn't seem to think is a problem at all! What would be a good starter black powder rifle kit and what cal? What other considerations should I be thinking of?
Rifle Kit for 12 year old
- Thread starter GVMan
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i wouldent go for a big kit if i were him. places like track of the wolf and pecatonica river are both good. but their kits are quite advanced. they require a lot of inletting minor adjustments, and some require a hell of a lot of material to be removed. (my Rigby rifly kit is proving to be quite the challange. mind you its an advanced kit)
if your son likes working with his hands he should enjoy it.
the Lyman kits arent to bad. they are pretty much finnished. and just need to be assembled. also quite a bit cheaper than buying a kit from pecatonica and track. (my rigby kit was origonaly $600 or so american for the kit and some inletting. i have spent close to 400 canadian ontop of that to get all the stuff i need. its gonna be another 200+ after i get the stock finnished to get the barrel and furnature blued. (so over $1000 so far on my rifle)
if your son likes working with his hands he should enjoy it.
the Lyman kits arent to bad. they are pretty much finnished. and just need to be assembled. also quite a bit cheaper than buying a kit from pecatonica and track. (my rigby kit was origonaly $600 or so american for the kit and some inletting. i have spent close to 400 canadian ontop of that to get all the stuff i need. its gonna be another 200+ after i get the stock finnished to get the barrel and furnature blued. (so over $1000 so far on my rifle)
arcticap
Member
One consideration is the final cost. Kits can often be more expensive in the end than if you just bought a factory finished rifle. Stock finishing supplies, special tools, and the cost of replacement parts if major mistakes are made add up, and kits cost only ~$20 less than a finished gun. Also the quality of the finished gun may not be as good as expected in the end, as some kits just aren't perfect and there can be fitting problems.
Another suggestion would be to determine what the length of pull should the rifle be to fit the boy. Will an adult stock fit him or does he need a youth model?
Some of the optimal models might not be available in kit form.
Depending on how much that you want to spend, you might consider asking Deer Creek Products what they have available in a short stocked model, kit or factory finished. They bought all of the remaining CVA sidelock inventory, and carry Traditions models plus much more.
They are in Waldron, Indiana and only have a phone number & catalog: It's 765-525-6181.
I don't have their 2007 catalog, but in 2006 they listed a CVA .36 squirrel rifle, a Traditions .45 Deer Hunter kit or finished rifle, a youth inline and youth .32 sidelock w/12.5 inch LOP, Traditions .45 & .50 Kentucky kits, .50 Deerhunter kit or .50 St. Louis Hawken kit, .32 & .50 Deer Hunter combo. kit, plus other carbine length finished sidelock rifles and accessories.
Lastly, a .50 caliber rifle will weigh less than the same rifle in .45 caliber. So if buying a gun that might cause an excess weight issue, .50 caliber would be an advantage for a youngster. The powder charge can be easily downloaded so that there won't be any excessive recoil at all for a 12 year old.
Good luck and let us know if there's any other ways that we can help you spend some more of your money!
Another suggestion would be to determine what the length of pull should the rifle be to fit the boy. Will an adult stock fit him or does he need a youth model?
Some of the optimal models might not be available in kit form.
Depending on how much that you want to spend, you might consider asking Deer Creek Products what they have available in a short stocked model, kit or factory finished. They bought all of the remaining CVA sidelock inventory, and carry Traditions models plus much more.
They are in Waldron, Indiana and only have a phone number & catalog: It's 765-525-6181.
I don't have their 2007 catalog, but in 2006 they listed a CVA .36 squirrel rifle, a Traditions .45 Deer Hunter kit or finished rifle, a youth inline and youth .32 sidelock w/12.5 inch LOP, Traditions .45 & .50 Kentucky kits, .50 Deerhunter kit or .50 St. Louis Hawken kit, .32 & .50 Deer Hunter combo. kit, plus other carbine length finished sidelock rifles and accessories.
Lastly, a .50 caliber rifle will weigh less than the same rifle in .45 caliber. So if buying a gun that might cause an excess weight issue, .50 caliber would be an advantage for a youngster. The powder charge can be easily downloaded so that there won't be any excessive recoil at all for a 12 year old.
Good luck and let us know if there's any other ways that we can help you spend some more of your money!
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Deer Creek's 2007 catalog
I have Deer Creek's 07 catalog.
It has several kits:
Traditions .50 and.45 cal Kentucky Rifle in flintlock and percussion,
Traditions Deerhunter Rifle percussion only, .54, .50, .45 and .32 cal,
Traditions .32 cal Crockett Rifle percussion only,
Traditions Shenandoah Rifle, percussion only, .36 and .50 cal,
Traditions St. Louis Hawken rifle, percussion only, .50 cal,
Lyman Great Plains Rifle in flintlock and percussion, .54 and .50 cal.
They also list a couple of youth rifles, but I didn't see any reference to the youth models as kits.
I have Deer Creek's 07 catalog.
It has several kits:
Traditions .50 and.45 cal Kentucky Rifle in flintlock and percussion,
Traditions Deerhunter Rifle percussion only, .54, .50, .45 and .32 cal,
Traditions .32 cal Crockett Rifle percussion only,
Traditions Shenandoah Rifle, percussion only, .36 and .50 cal,
Traditions St. Louis Hawken rifle, percussion only, .50 cal,
Lyman Great Plains Rifle in flintlock and percussion, .54 and .50 cal.
They also list a couple of youth rifles, but I didn't see any reference to the youth models as kits.
dstorm1911
Member
15 years ago going the kit route would have been cheaper but not anymore, the Lyman kits at Sportsmans warehouse run about $30 less than the completed rifle on the rack.......
O.S.O.K.
Member
I'd recommend a nice used TC renegade or similar
They are very robust and just shooting and cleaning them is "using your hands"
Check gunbroker - for instance here's a nice Renegade flinter in .50 - $200 http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=78138762
When searching you may have to type in TC, T/C or Thompson Center to find the rifles - this time, Thompson Center produced the results...
They are very robust and just shooting and cleaning them is "using your hands"
Check gunbroker - for instance here's a nice Renegade flinter in .50 - $200 http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=78138762
When searching you may have to type in TC, T/C or Thompson Center to find the rifles - this time, Thompson Center produced the results...
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