58 caliber long rifle

[hortonstn]

I have a client that wishes to have me build a 58 cal flintlock for him I have limited knowledge of this cal I'd like your opinions it will be used for  offhand targets and limited bench shooting
Thanks again
Paul

[smylee grouch]

Put a some what flat butt plate on it 

[heinz]

A 58 is a wonderful caliber for a serious bench gun: one that weighs at least 20 pounds, mounts peep site and is accompanied by a set of wind flags.  Maybe even OK for shooting off cross sticks.  With an adequate powder charge to get good accuracy and decent velocity to prevent a hideous drop at 100 yards, it is going to be a handful to shoot at offhand matches.  Maybe fun at casual primitive shoots and effective at splitting stings, cutting cards, splitting on an ax blade, but I would find it tedious in offhand line matches.  A 58 ball is about 20% heavier than a 54, and over twice as heavy as a 45.

Those Canadian brothers shoot a lot of this heavy caliber stuff and can give you advice on a good weight.  I would say 10 pounds plus, and a wide flat butt.

[axelp]

I have a Jim Chambers English sporting rifle in .58 caliber. 31 inch swamped barrel. Its a great handling gun. I did replace the wooden ramrod with a brass one to give it a little more weight up front. It is comfortable to shoot-- its got less recoil than a 12 g modern gun. The wide english buttplate does a good job of distributing the recoil. I am not a competition line shooter so cannot speak on that. I am able to mostly hit what I point it at.

[alacran]

A 58 is a wonderful caliber for a serious bench gun: one that weighs at least 20 pounds, mounts peep site and is accompanied by a set of wind flags.  Maybe even OK for shooting off cross sticks.  With an adequate powder charge to get good accuracy and decent velocity to prevent a hideous drop at 100 yards, it is going to be a handful to shoot at offhand matches.  Maybe fun at casual primitive shoots and effective at splitting stings, cutting cards, splitting on an ax blade, but I would find it tedious in offhand line matches.  A 58 ball is about 20% heavier than a 54, and over twice as heavy as a 45.

Off the bench or of crossticks a .58 is a hand full. Off hand not so much. I have a Hawken rifle I built that I can swap out a.54 with a .58 barrel. Have shot many trail walks with it using the .58 barrel with 80 grains 2f. Most trailwalks out west have at least 20 shots. Most shots tend to be 65 yards or less, an occasional 100 yarder.  Have also shot offhand bullseye targets out to a 100 yards with it.  I don't find it uncomfortable to shoot offhand. 10 shots off crossticks however wears me out. By the way it weighs 9 lbs with the .58 and 10.5 with the .54.

[bama]

I have built a couple of 58 caliber rifles and they can be a good shooting hunting rifle if you build them right. As others have suggested a wide butt plate and stock architecture is very important to the accuracy and felt recoil. I built a short 58 hunting rifle, light and handled real well in the woods, but I got the stock a little too straight. Needless to say I nicknamed this rifle Thumper, because if you used a good hunting load in it, it would thump you eveytime you pulled the trigger.

I would stay with a early style rifle that weighs in the 9 pound range and I think your customer will be happy.

[smart dog]

HI,
Most of the rifles and smooth bores I shoot currently are 0.62 caliber.  They are all a pleasure to shoot during woods walks, on the range, and hunting.  I like 58 caliber as well and you can create a rifle with wonderful balance and good shooting qualities and powerful enough for any big game.  The rifle below is a 58 I built for a friend in Alaska, mainly for hunting anything Alaskan.  He also likes using it to hit gongs at 200-300 yards.  I believe Jim hauled it up a mountain and killed a mountain goat at pretty long range. The heavy browning is done because the gun is used in Southeast Alaska, where 150-200 inches of rain fall annually and the gun can be exposed to sea spray.  I could not stand browning the side plate and lock plate, which would obscure the engraving so I polished and case hardened those parts to resist rust. This gun has a Colerain D weight, 58 cal 42" swamped barrel that I bought from Tip Curtis and weighs just about 9 lbs.  I don't recall the barrel maker.  The balance is so good that you barely notice the weight shooting off hand. 

dave

[Mike Brooks]

I have a client that wishes to have me build a 58 cal flintlock for him I have limited knowledge of this cal I'd like your opinions it will be used for  offhand targets and limited bench shooting
Thanks again
Paul

It's  going to need a 1-48 to 1-56 twist.

[Pukka Bundook]

Horton,

My .58 was a Jim Chambers "Mark Silver " kit, It is a joy to shoot and never notice the recoil.     It has a Don Getz 42" barrel.
For some inspiration, have a look at the Chambers "Mark Silver " rifle.

It's a very comfortable stock design and V elegant.    Comes up perfect for me!

Dave, That's a very bonny rifle!  I bet you had to cut the patchbox dovetail a little slacker than usual, it being used in wet weather and all!

[Daryl]

With a decent weight, 9 to 10 1/2 lbs. AND a wide fat butt plate, a .58 with about any rate of twist will be easy shooting. It is only with narrow or hooked butts and slow twists that the recoil becomes uncomfortable. Ken's English gun is case in point. Also, a Virginia or E.Marshall style will also serve, as wood a Jaeger.