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Post by Deleted on Sept 3, 2018 21:12:38 GMT -5
A well tuned high-performance smokeless muzzleloader where legal has many advantages over nonsmokeless types. 1) non corrosive powder 2) highly accurate 3) extended range 4) more energy 5) reliable Ignition Just to name a few. If it wasn't for yous guys ,I wouldn't given a half cent for gitten into sml.....The brotherhood is priceless...>
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Post by smokelessk on Sept 4, 2018 5:54:26 GMT -5
Searching for the "ultimate" hunting implement is what first got me turned on to SML. For the first ten years or so I hunted whitetails we were restricted to shotguns, pistols, archery, or muzzleloaders. As most did the 12 ga slug gun was what I was carried to the field. Never did have total confidence in any slug gun I carried. Sights were always sub par, according to my standard. Accuracy was never exceptional. Practice with slugs was brutal and expensive.
Being sick of the numerous areas that slug guns underperformed in I entered into muzzleloading in 2010. With the purchase of a 10mlII, upon recommendation from a friend of mine. In short time I mothballed the old slug gun entirely. The 10mlII served me well enough for about 6 years. I was more comfortable with it than the slug gun. Began taking head shots on deer. Then the mechanical issues began. No longer have either of my 10mlII's. Had Hank put a Brux 45 caliber barrel on a Remington action and here I am a Ramrod Maniac! Lol
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Post by Chad on Sept 4, 2018 19:07:42 GMT -5
To start with the main reason I gave these a try was to get away from cleaning nasty Pyrodex and BH 209. I had actually stopped muzzleload hunting for that reason, I didn’t know just how accurate and the range these killers had so all of that was a plus. My gun is hunting gun rarely gets shot except around hunting season. Where I live in the mountains of NC this is some of the best times to be in the woods the 2 weeks of muzzleloader and to know you’ve got something that’ll git’r done.
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Post by dylan26ofde on Sept 6, 2018 5:30:42 GMT -5
I hunted all my life since I was a kid with blackpowder and had many success stories with blackpowder and also had my share of misfires with the no. 11 caps and 209 primers, moisture getting to the powder pellets, one point to get the bullet down the barrel had to beat the ramrod against a tree after taking a shot on a deer. And then the heavy cleaning when I get home.
Friend of mine got into the sml sport and I visited his house and he was making a knurling tool and looked like a pain and I was against it at first. Til my buddy called me and said there was a h&r sml for sale down the road. Bought it and once I got everything for the gun, shot it and I was hooked right then and there. Shot the hinger for a year and called jeff hankins for a rem/brux conversion and its amazingly accurate. Now I have a cva scout sml from jeff on the way. Best part about all this after shooting or hunting, clean the outside of the gun and put it away. No cleaning after shooting and better penetration on game.
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Post by herman on Sept 6, 2018 5:45:33 GMT -5
I can still remember shooting a muzzleloader back in the late 40's.I was just a kid and our next door neighbor would bring his
muzzleloader down and let us kids shoot it.He would load it lite for us kids so there wasn't any real recoil.It was an orginal flintlock.Now for the adults he would load it with very stiff loads.He sure got a kick out of watching them get kicked like a mule.
I was hooked back then and still am.
Years after that I shot side locks,and I wrong out all the accuracy I could out of them,then came the inlines.I had a knight,ruger and encore.Still have the ruger and encore but haven't shot them in years.
Don't remember which year we here in NC we got a muzzleloader season but have taken from one to three deer every years since except one year in which I didn't get to hunt because wife had a stroke.With the ruger it was very accurate I shot 7 deer in the head with it.
The encore and knight was accurte out to 200 yds.Took a lot of deer with those also.I got the first savage ML in 2000 in my neighborhood.Man that was some learning curve.I didn't have but one person I could ask questions and that was !-shot. thru e-mail.
The 10ml would not shoot any load in it I tried but would shoot one holers with pyrodex.We finally figured out that the barrel was the problem.Finally sold it when the ML11 came out and got one of them.I had 3 of them,2 stainlless and a blue one. The ml11 shot so good I couldn't believe the tiny groups I got even at 300 yds. Then the 45 cal barrels came about and had to have one of them. Now I shoot at least one of my 3 customs about every week of the year. I shoot a lot of different calibers every week but the smokless ML is my favorite.It has endless combos of power loads and bullets.
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Post by nyhunter on Sept 7, 2018 17:59:04 GMT -5
I've hunted in the southern NY area for approximately 40 years.
In the areas that I primarily hunted you weren't able to use a rife. Although I participate in target shooting once in a while I'm primarily a hunter so my goal has always been to make a precise clean ethical shot. For me there has always been a natural progression to strive to improve my hunting/shooting skills and coupled with the use of quality modern equipment as it has advanced has helped me with such progression.
1. At first I started with a smooth bore shotgun were most shot were well under 100 yards. Unreliable extended range accuracy.
2. Then moved into a rifled shotgun were I extended my range to 125 yards. Improved accuracy over the smooth bore however the bullet drop was dramatic.
3. Then moved into a 50 cal muzzle-loader were I extended my range to 200 yards. Considerable improved accuracy over the the rifled shotgun however the worst part of my muzzle-loading experience had been the unreliable factory 209 ignition systems offered. They were so dirty that in under 20 shots my firing pin would get stuck not to mention the consent cleaning required.
4. Last but certainly not least SML, were I now have extended my range to 350 yards. Moving into a SML has given me the precision reliable accuracy at extended ranges that I would not have dreamed possible out of a muzzle-loader.
Additionally the Hankins H.I.S ignition system gives me the confidence my gun it going to preform at the moment of truth along with the added cleanliness of SML and the H.I.S ignition.
Not discounting anything I've mentioned above, let's face it there just plain fun to shoot !!!.
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Post by sagittarius on Sept 7, 2018 21:39:31 GMT -5
100% the need to clean right away and corrosion, in the beginning, was my reason for switching. Oddly enough though, now I'm into competing with BP Longrifles and Hawkens.
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Post by hatchetjack1 on Sept 8, 2018 8:08:24 GMT -5
Gives me another excuse to buy another gun. Plus I hear chicks dig'em. On a serious note; Extended range and not having to worry about corrosion are my main reasons.
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Post by smokelessk on Nov 28, 2018 23:23:23 GMT -5
Probably the biggest factor in my personal quest for the most efficient hunting tool is time. With two young kids time to get out and hunt or shoot is more limited than what it used to be. Since I hunt to put meat in the freezer having the most efficient tool to do the job only makes sense. The SML eliminates the severely restricted range of my slug gun of the past. Allowing me to fill the freezer much easier. No more of those days where "aw, I could have killed a deer today but 140 yards was just too far for me to shoot". 140 yards with the Hankins SML is just getting things warmed up. The precision of these rifles is unbelievable. Never before have I had the ability to hunt whitetail with a rifle that shoots as well as my finest varmint rifle. To say I'm really enjoying the precision of the Hankins SML and Pittman bullets is an understatement.
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Post by doug136 on Nov 29, 2018 9:46:54 GMT -5
i saw some Hiilbilly from Kentucky shooting some amazing geoups on U tube . Not even sure how many years and a few rifles ago . Its been all down hill from there ! Thanks Jeff !
In all seriousness. This has been a great experience i have met a lot of really great people .It was something i needed.
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Post by schunter on Nov 29, 2018 10:37:41 GMT -5
My itch was probably different than most. I killed deer with a cf rifle for 40 years and kind of got tired of it. I loved to shoot my muzzleloader and then I met a guy name Carlos and the rest is history.
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Post by Richard on Nov 29, 2018 10:56:58 GMT -5
What happened to Carlos? He disappeared off Doug's?
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Post by 12ptdroptine on Nov 29, 2018 13:19:53 GMT -5
i saw some Hiilbilly from Kentucky shooting some amazing geoups on U tube . Not even sure how many years and a few rifles ago . Its been all down hill from there ! Thanks Jeff ! In all seriousness. This has been a great experience i have met a lot of really great people .It was something i needed. Lol@hillbilly from kentucky....You goof Doug.
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Post by schunter on Nov 29, 2018 16:03:46 GMT -5
What happened to Carlos? He disappeared off Doug's? He is still around just not on Doug's.
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Post by sew on Nov 29, 2018 16:47:17 GMT -5
Performance and low maintenance for hunting This is and was it for me. I started in 1999 working with Toby Bs on loads. Preproduction 10ML. No CF allowed for deer hunting here, used replica 1857 Gremler Hawkin, shilen progressive twist (77->56 ) 50 cal RB from Ozark Mtn Arms. Loved it but hated the cleaning, upkeep. Have hunted with smokeless 19 years. After somewhere around 8,000+ shots on load testing, I’ve had enough range work. No serious target shooting anymore. just getting hunting loads. Shoot off of Hart Windage adj rest/#13 rear bag, wind flags. Will stay with 40 cal bullets, lighter, moderate velocity. Thank you Kyle and Fury and CEB for coming up with modern bullets that make the 40 a practical moderate range caliber.
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Post by Ice on Nov 29, 2018 22:14:11 GMT -5
I had a 700ML which was pretty sweet compared to the the ole TC Hawken that Dad and I used. I added the 209 primer which was a step up from #11 percussion caps. The 209 presented problems with the spring and firing pin. I eventually lost 3 good bucks with the last being a drop-tine 9. Frustration lead me to the MLII. I had heard rumors of 700 ML conversation and finally did one.
I love to shoot my SMLs and would hunt the 2 weeks of ML over any other part of the season. Thankful for the insight that many of you provide - started on the other and made the move here.
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Post by jims on Nov 30, 2018 9:09:52 GMT -5
Similar to many. In Ohio we could use for the most part slug shotguns and MLs. First tried to make the shotguns better, slug barrels, bolt action shotguns etc. Even a TarHunt shotgun. Then off to MLs as more accurate but dirty. Then discovered the Savage smokeless ML in the very early 2000s. Worked to improve that even more with bedding, third pillar, bushings, duplex, sabotless, subcalibers etc. The new ignition systems are better but after chasing the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and at a fair amount of expense I am pretty happy with what I have now. Not as good as what some are shooting now but they are plenty deer accurate and reliable so they work well for me. In fact with some straight wall centerfires now allowed here and the ranges I shoot and the daughters shooting but not liking the "complications" of the MLs I might be scaling back the number of smokeless MLs in the future. For many ML shooters is would still be a great step above pellets etc. What I have shoot well enough they only get a few shots a year in, a confirm sight in shot and perhaps a deer or two. Even that may be less, the worst deer season on my farm in 30 years.
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Post by doug136 on Dec 2, 2018 15:57:07 GMT -5
I doubt I hurt Jeffs feelings to much calling him a Hillbilly ! Kinda like calling me a Redneck . lol I did say that Hillbilly I saw on Utube could really shoot .
Funny part about my story . I told a friend of mine about these Smokless muzzleloaders built by some guy called Hankins in Kentucky and these muzzleloaders were shooting MOA at 100 yards. Scott also looks up that same Hillbilly . Then... Scott shows up at my house one day and says lets go order a couple of guns .With all that peer pressure I said ok !
lol been a great experience Hope i didnt pi$$ you off to much Jeff. Just playing ! I have met so many good people through this experience. I truly mean that.
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Post by uharriehunter on Dec 5, 2018 8:20:06 GMT -5
I started muzzleloading at 12 years old with a hand me down 45 cal Kentucky long rifle that was as long as I was tall. I had many misses and misfires over the next 4 years. So much so that I worked summers to save up to buy my Thompson Center Hawkins 50 cal just before the season opened in 1986. The combo was 100g pyrodex with a heavy maxi ball don’t remember the weight but close to 400g if I remember correctly. This new gun coupled with the experiences of hunting with the Kentucky Rifle now knowing what it took to keep it clean and in good shape to reliably fire when needed made a deadly combination for the deer in the Uharrie Mountains of North Carolina. The only thing that stood in my way was a bad case of target panic or shot anticipation as some would call it. Nevertheless this rifle was a big part of my early hunting experiences. This rifle was also a kit gun and it took me almost a month to assemble and finish the wood and the metal surfaces. Needless to say I was very fond and proud of this rifle because I did the work myself. Over the next 10 years I kept the gun as clean as possible and it had no rust or noticeable dings in the wood as far as the outside was concerned but no matter how much I cleaned it it would always build up a coating of rust inside the barrel and I would pull the nipple run the bore brush through it again and then swab oil in the barrel again for the off season and repeating as needed until hunting season rolled around again the next year when again I would take the barrel off and pull the nipple to allow for a bath in hot soapy water to thourally clean and dry the bore out to get rid of any rust and oil from the off season just like I did after the season when I stored it. But as many of you know even with 2 very thorough cleanings with brushing and oil swabs in between per year the rust finally won the battle. The riflings in my barrel were now after 10 years nonexistent and I lost all accuracy. The gun I once loved and was so proud of was now nothing more than a vessel that carried lots of old memories but couldn’t make new ones even though on the outside it still looked almost new. I like everyone else moved on to other muzzleloader for the purpose of hunting but never put much money in them because I knew they were on their way to the scrap yard after the first shot was fired it was just a matter of time. So to answer your question I wanted a muzzleloader that if I took great care of it like I did my TC Hawkins and all my centerfire rifles that it would be there to hand down to my son with hopes that he can make his own memories with the SML that has already started to be so special to me in this first season of use. I have killed 1 small buck and 3 does so far this year and look forward to many more years of hunting with this awesome Hainkins SML bolt rifle. Btw thanks Jeff for building the barreled action for me. I enjoyed stocking and bedding the rifle myself like my first muzzleloader I have a connection with this rifle that can’t be bought. Thanks again
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Post by smokelessk on Sept 7, 2021 10:27:13 GMT -5
This thread is a few years old now. I know there have been a considerable number of new members joining us since then. Thought was to bring it up and see if any wished to chime in on their particular situation?
I did have to add something. I have discovered a problem with owning one of these guns. Well, for me it was a heavy bolt gun as the step into owning a rifle of Hank's design.
So, after a while of owning and using the bolt gun... I'm on here watching other guys and their success shooting break actions. That's where the problem began.... So, I now own a break action AND a bolt gun. Why? Because it is just so darn tempting, and easy to justify, owning both dimensions of a fantastic rifle! There has been that voice telling me for some time now "it sure would be great to have a light woods gun...." So, now I dun did it! Problem solved! Right? Haha. Well, hopefully the symptoms are cured for at least a few more years.
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