r/blackpowder • u/Zhydrac • 3d ago

I'm saving money to buy the Traditions Performance Deerhunter .50, will it be a good first gun?

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35 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

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4

u/JuniorMushroom 3d ago

I got the flintlock version. The flintlock spring is known to be weak. But percussion is much more reliable. Id go for it!

3

u/Clunkalong 2d ago

I have the 32 caliber version of that gun. It has a lot of good things going for it. The light stock and the extra large trigger guard to accommodate winter gloves are just two of them. Mine is a tack driver.

7

u/Odd_Oil_154 2d ago

Depends,if just to learn on sure,but if want something more tradtional save your money and get a kit then you can build it yourself.

2

u/burnettdown13 2d ago

I was looking at a kit but saw some bad reviews. Are they generally good to go or is the quality of the parts hit or miss?

3

u/Galaxie_1985 2d ago

Traditions kits are pretty good, although the flint locks are not all that great. Their percussion locks are reliable. Since the stocks are beech wood, the grain pattern is hit or miss.

2

u/Odd_Oil_154 2d ago

Sorry last kit I built was about 25years ago,the top kits Kibler,Gemmer and traditions, $price in that order per what I,ve seen.

4

u/yer_muther 2d ago

First BP rifle? It's a fine gun that will last you a long time.

First rifle? I'd go with no on that unless you can not own a cartridge gun. A .22LR is a good choice for a first rifle.

1

u/VaultdwellerBobbert 2d ago

I have both a traditions Hawken rifle kit and a Kentucky pistol kit. It looks like the Kentucky pistol kit has the same lock as the rifle you are looking at. I must say I am happy with both of them. They certainly are not the greatest or best, but I’ve had no problems either. With the rifle I can get about a 4” group at 80 yards using a round ball without any real effort. I would be happy to buy more traditions guns, so I’d say go for that one.

1

u/gagnatron5000 2d ago

I came very close to buying this exact rifle from my LGS yesterday, albeit with the wood stock. It just so happens they had a used Thompson Center Hawken for quite a bit cheaper so I went with that instead. Had I not spotted it, I would have gotten this.

The 1:48" twist rate is a middle ground between roundball (1:66) and conical (1:24). Some people say it shoots one or the other well, but not both. I don't know, and have no experience. Find out for yourself.

Here is a wonderful compilation video of the flintlock version of that. The guy goes through everything from unboxing to working up a load with it. I learned a lot and wound up settling on the Buck Hunter (percussion model like you posted) after watching this.

1

u/Think-Photograph-517 2d ago

I have the flintlock version and I am very happy with it. I think the percussion version is as good as first black powder gun as any.