Southern Mountain Rifle

[JCKelly]

Finally got a gun I can shoot. Returned to muzzle loading last Spring after maybe a quarter century absence. Started out with a trade gun, nice heat treated steel barrel but it ate flints. Got a Pedersoli Frontier & learned I had forgotten everything I thought I knew about loading a muzzle loading rifle. This forum has helped, considerably. Then got my shoulder damaged so I couldn't hold a long rifle. Had some things other than shoulder to think about, when back & at it again began searching for a rifle light enough to hold. Looked over gunbroker.com at the right time, a fellow Michigander had a Caywood mountain rifle for sale. I might have preferred a nice Lancaster Revolutionary period rifle, but I can't hold one unless I shoot left-handed. The Caywood is a wonder--5 pounds so I can lift it. .45 caliber, rifled barrel supposed to be nickel-chrome-moly steel. Sparks enuff to set the rug afire.The rear sight is set 14 inches ahead of the breech, so I can use it with Model 1940 eyes. Have yet to develop an ideal load. But my first attempt off the bench made 5/8" c.t.c three shot group so figured I was doin' something right.

Moreover, those snotty steel targets that used to snicker as I walked by now Clang respectfully. Most of 'em, anyway.

Ah, the rear sight placement. I looked over some old Kentucky rifles, most sights were about 10" from the breech, 12" at most. Those of you with Mature Eyesight should appreciate the 14" of this rifle. True, it cuts down on sight radius, but if you can't see the @!*% sight anyway whats the difference?

[MikeBurnsie]

Beautiful rifle, enjoy her.

[Ben I. Voss]

Sweet little rifle! Looks like fun.

[northmn]

Should be a nice little rifle.  I shoot left handed due to a master eye issue but would not necessarily recommend switching.  Recently I ahve been adjusting sights on my rifles.  The old classic blade sights dont work anymore and I have switched to 1/8 inch beads with a very wide U in the rear.  I also put the rear sights a ways up the barrel.

DP

[Don Getz]

Jim....pretty gun.   Also, sounds like you found one with a "good" barrel on it, should be able to stuff 50-60 grains of powder in that one..........Don

[Daryl]

Looking pretty good, JC.  The sight radius you've left should give more than if the barrel was only 30" or so, no problem with that.  My 30" barreled rifle is my most accurate rifle, more so than the 42"'ers, so sight radius isn't as important as some believe.  As you said, seeing's the most important.  Looks like a very comfortable rifle to shoot an will about any sight height.

[Dr. Tim-Boone]

Jim....pretty gun.   Also, sounds like you found one with a "good" barrel on it, should be able to stuff 50-60 grains of powder in that one..........Don

Hhhmmm......   it is a pretty gun.  5 pounds is good too!!

[G-Man]

Nice little rifle.  Mike Rowe made the prototype for that gun - including the original hand forged mounts, if I recall correctly.  I remember handling the prototype at Mike's table a number of years back, maybe at the last CLA show that was up in northern Kentucky(?).  Anyway, I was very impressed with how slender and light a little gun it is, and I believe Caywood keeps the production rifles very close to the slender lines of Mike's prototype.  It has a lot of drop, but not much pitch to the buttplate - if you look at it closely it has a  variation of the stepped wrist, almost like jaeger architecture - so it  handles and lines up on the sights really well for me.  They don't offer it as a kit like their other guns, to my knowledge - only a finished rifle.

Guy

[hammerhead]

got to love those southern rifles