Scopes for muzzleloaders?

[mgmorden]

When I knew everything there was to know (before I got married and was still young), I was always horrified by people who scoped levers and sidelocks. My gosh, how could they possibly do something like that? Now I'm 58 and totally understand that if we want to shoot some of us needs glass. But a recoil pad, never! Unless you have blown out your shoulders like I have.

Probably just has to do with shooting style too. I don't care for using iron sights on hunting rifles. I CAN - I mean I prefer them on handguns and the concept is the same, but my mind just associates hunting with shooting via a reticle. Even if its 1x no magnification I'm fine with that. As such my lever gun and all my single shots wear scopes.

My muzzle loader is sporting one too, because as I said above I just prefer shooting with a scope and truthfully while I respect everyone's preferences, for me personally I don't really get into muzzleloading for the "spirit" of it. It's a way to access certain areas for hunting at times I otherwise would not be able to with my main rifle. Anything I can do to make it more like regular rifle hunting is welcomed to me. Same with archery - as long as its allowed per the regs you'll find me using a scoped crossbow .

 

[Bill Raby]

No recoil pad on a muzzle loader? Try shooting 150 gr of Pyrodex and 300 gr bullet (your basic elk load) without a recoil pad. Your shoulder could be damaged for life. Or at least really sore. And only Superman could do it very much without developing a bad flinch.
I have a T/C Omega 50 cal inline and it has a fairly cheap Cabela's 4x rifle scope on it. It's probably been fired 100 times and it's still ok.

I have a 4 bore that shoots 1700 grain balls with 450 grain powder charge. It has a brass buttplate. The recoil will knock you back 5 or 6 feet, but it is not painful and does not leave bruises.

 

[gila_dog1]

If I can get a broadside shot at an elk at 100 yds, I've done my job as a hunter. Now it's time for a nice clean kill. For me a scope makes that a lot more likely than with iron sights. The last thing I want to do is have to track an elk that's been hit but has disappeared into the rough country and blown down timber. Elk are a lot harder to kill than deer. They are much bigger, and tougher. And I've never had a muzzle loader shoot all the way thru an elk, therefore little if any blood trail. So the shot has to be just right.
And lugging a big heavy rifle around up and down steep canyons at 8000 ft elevation is just too hard. So a light rifle is what I want. And that's going to kick pretty hard, therefore the recoil pad. But maybe if you are hunting deer at a low elevation, on fairly flat country, with thick cover a non-scoped rifle with a light load is just fine. But I wouldn't recommend taking one on an elk hunt.

 

[brewer12345]

If I can get a broadside shot at an elk at 100 yds, I've done my job as a hunter. Now it's time for a nice clean kill. For me a scope makes that a lot more likely than with iron sights. The last thing I want to do is have to track an elk that's been hit but has disappeared into the rough country and blown down timber. Elk are a lot harder to kill than deer. They are much bigger, and tougher. And I've never had a muzzle loader shoot all the way thru an elk, therefore little if any blood trail. So the shot has to be just right.
And lugging a big heavy rifle around up and down steep canyons at 8000 ft elevation is just too hard. So a light rifle is what I want. And that's going to kick pretty hard, therefore the recoil pad. But maybe if you are hunting deer at a low elevation, on fairly flat country, with thick cover a non-scoped rifle with a light load is just fine. But I wouldn't recommend taking one on an elk hunt.

Scopes aren't legal in my state during ML season. Nor are red dots, sabots or pelletized powder. Moot point. As for deer in a river bottom, it isn't hard to get within 75 yards which is about my limit for open sights on that size target. But that is also one of the reasons I like 54 and 58 better for hunting: bigger hole and more whomp means more margin for error.

 

[Fishtales]

I am sure a bunch of you won't like this question much, but here goes:

I was shooting an inline with a scope today. The store bought bullets barely stayed on paper at 50 yards, but my home cast maxi balls grouped within about an inch. Considering they cost me a nickel to cast, yay. The problem is that the scope that came mounted on the rifle is trash. Can I just buy any center-fire rifle scope as an upgrade, or is there something special that makes it a muzzleloader scope?

Damn glad I brought the slip on recoil pad. A 370 grain conical over 80 grains of powder in a light rifle is pretty hefty recoil.

You haven't mentioned what kind of group you got that barely stayed on the paper. If it was as good as your home cast maxi's then it's not the ammo. The scope is not necessarily trash unless it has some flaws you haven't mentioned. You need to adjust your cross hairs for the store-bought load, but why bother when you've got just what you need in your home-made ammo. Rare is the .30 (or other) caliber scoped rifle of any type or any brand that shoots 150 grain spitzers, 180 grain spitzers and 150 grain soft points to the same point of impact. If anyone is lucky enough to have such a rifle, keep it forever and take damn good care of it.

 

[hawg]

Scopes aren't legal in my state during ML season. Nor are red dots, sabots or pelletized powder. Moot point. As for deer in a river bottom, it isn't hard to get within 75 yards which is about my limit for open sights on that size target. But that is also one of the reasons I like 54 and 58 better for hunting: bigger hole and more whomp means more margin for error.

You need to move to Mississippi and forget about using black powder. All you need is a scoped Handi Rifle in 35 Whelen or 45-70. Or wait until the second primitive weapons season and use your AR 15.

 

[brewer12345]

You need to move to Mississippi and forget about using black powder. All you need is a scoped Handi Rifle in 35 Whelen or 45-70. Or wait until the second primitive weapons season and use your AR 15.

I'd prefer to remain married, so Mississippi is out, heh. I have fun as a round ball hunter, though. Last year I used my Zouave and if it weren't a requirement to wear a blaze hat I would have been wearing my Union kepi reproduction.