Little shooters

[TMerkley]

Well, I did it.  I got the little one hooked on black powder!    

I took him out target shooting.  I had the ML and him with a BB gun.  After a few shots, I asked "Do you want to shoot this?" yeah!  I talked him through the loading.  Powder, patch, ball,.  Then the starter, then the ramrod.  With him sitting in my lap and a coke can at 25 yards.  I helped hold the rifle as he steadied his aim.  Then the smoke and sparks!  "Daddy, that was cool!"  I saw the sparks, and looked for the .50 cal hole.  Well, it was just above the target at 12 o'clock.  about 30 grains with .50 cal CVA Frontier Carbine.  Not bad for Seven years old!

He may not have hit it, but is now hooked!  Now I have to get working on his rifle!
I think I am just as tickled as he is!

[BrownBear]

Great job!

Now comes the fun part....  Getting him set up with his own gun and gear!   

[TMerkley]

Already working on it.  Just bought some sewing patterns from the Tippecanoe Battlefield Museum yesterday.  Rick Conwell is one of the store mgrs.  His wife is Leslie Martin-Conwell, who is a coordinator for several events with NMLRA and Tippecanoe County Historical Association.  Great Folks!

[mjm46@bellsouth.net]

New youth size Flintlock $500

Powder horn $50

Possibles Bag $50

Pound of black powder $20

Lifetime of fun and a new shooting partner - PRICELESS!!!!!

Way to go!

[blunderbuss]

 I started mine at 7 he got a little bored with targets so I fasened clay birds to the target and he liked to see them break

[TMerkley]

I am thinking a .45 cal with a 24 inch barrel should be just fine for a boy weighing in around 50 pounds.  I will post the rifle when I get done.  It will be a little while.  It won't be fancy either, just a shooter.  As far as the horn and bag,  already started on those too.  I have the patterns and the horns.  Just need a rainy day when I don't have to worry about work or errands.   

[Bob Roller]

Tom,
I have a barrel that came from an underhammer that is 15/16x26" and 45 caliber.
It was given to me and I need it like a pig needs a sun bonnet so if you want it,send $10 to cover the postage and an address to send it to and it's yours. It is a good barrel and not a shot out junker.

Bob Roller

[Candle Snuffer]

Love to hear when we get our youth involved in this sport.  Many years back I started my daughter and son out on muzzle loading after building a 24" barreled little cap lock rifle for that purpose.  Now they're into the full size muzzle loaders and I still have that little cap lock rifle ready to go for when my (almost 3 years old) grandson is ready to take up the smoke pole for the first time.  Great family fun!

[TMerkley]

Absolutely!

I started at age 10 in 4H.  that was 24 years ago and haven't lost interest yet.  I think I will use a sister piece of wood to the frankenstein I built, but this time, I will remember the errors of my ways.   

[TMerkley]

Bob,

I sent you a PM,  By the way, are there any specifics known about the barrel?

[Hungry Horse]

My son was born on the Saturday of the Scotts Creek Rendezvous in 1986, and attended the event on Sunday ( Unfortunately, I was supposed to be running this event). This was the weekend of May 9th. We attend a week long rendezvous at Crescent City Calif. Over the 4th of July holiday a little over a month later. My mother swore it would kill him, but she was wrong as usual.
 I had bought a cut down kids rifle made from an old TC .45 cal. Hawkens to get my nephews shooting, several years before my son was born. My son shot his first rendezvous at four years old. And, ran his first event at the Scotts Creek Rendezvous at seven (A jerky shoot, with potatoes for targets).
 I still have that little TC I bought second hand from Potlicker so many years ago. Every spring The Konocti Rod and Gun Club has their annual Family Fun Shoot. An event open to the public, where the public has an opportunity to shoot many kind of firearms provided by the club for free. I loaded over a hundred shots for that little gun during the day, and looked like a coal miner at the end of the event.

                      Hungry Horse

[Hungry Horse]

This brings up another question regarding youth shooters. Over the years I have been given a boat load of messed up production muzzleloaders, and kit guns, with missing parts, and other ailments. I started out trying to make them good as new, but some were well beyond that point when I got them. So, I started to make repairs like those I had seen on genuine antiques. Like rawhide wraps, copper and brass wrapping, metal sleeves, and of course inletted plates held in with nails, screws, and tacks. The kids loved them, and they no longer stick out like a sore thumb in period pictures.
 They allowed me to practice a little carving, a little engraving, and helped me develop some interesting antique finishes.
 Do any of you fool around with these wrecks? I enjoy letting the kids help on some of the work, and often give the gun to them at the end.

                                 Hungry Horse

[Daryl]

My youngest daughter shot her first grouse age 10, with an 1880's era ZULU 12 bore - BP load. I know, not a ML, but still well worth the experience. She also cleaned the grouse hereself, with instruction.

[arcticap]

When one of my sons first started at about 9 years old, he used a .50 caliber youth rifle. The .50 barrel is lighter than a .45 with the same external dimensions, and he really appreciated the large holes that it made in the target. The larger balls were easy for him to load, and I think that the larger bore made ramming easier too. He always used a mallet to get the ball started so it was never a struggle. And the light .50 loads provided just the perfect amount of recoil to make it enjoyable & thrilling for him. Not that it really matters but I would recommend starting with a rifle that has a short .50 caliber barrel.