This Hawken halfstock rifle is skillfully fitted and finished by Mike Sullivan. This percussion halfstock rifle is stocked in curly maple, with iron trim, including a patchbox. The famous Mountain Man Mariano Modena had a similar patchbox on his Hawken rifle. Assembled around a .54 caliber Rice tapered octagon barrel, this large caliber plains rifle will be ideal for large game hunting or silhouette match use. Due to the tapered barrel this halfstock Plains rifle weighs 8.9 pounds. Trigger reach is 13-5/8", with about 3/8" cast-off . Combined with the modest weight this rifle will fit a variety of shooters.
The .54 caliber 34" tapered octagon Rice barrel has a slender profile to reduce muzzle weight. The 1" breech has a straight taper to 7/8" at the muzzle. The .54 caliber bore is cut rifled with seven lands and square grooves with 1 turn in 66 inches, for .54 caliber round ball. Rice Muzzle Loading Rifle Barrels are set between centers and milled octagonal, insuring a centered bore, concentric with the exterior, with no "run-out". Each barrel is stress relieved in an atmosphere controlled electric furnace, to eliminate work hardening or barrel warp, and to dampen harmonic vibrations or barrel whip. After the rifling has been cut, each bore is "ball burnished". A carbide bore-sizing die is pulled through the barrel, to insure bore dimension uniformity, eliminating any tight or loose spots inside the barrel. This critical procedure leaves the top of the lands smooth and polished, equaling the traditional lead lapping procedure. Rice barrels are Match grade quality, with bench rest capability. Rice barrels do not require lapping or extensive shooting to break-in. The smooth chocolate brown finish of the barrel, lock, and iron have a slightly matte tone to eliminate any glare or shine from the hand draw-filed barrel. The octagon corners are crisp and square. The barrel is fitted with a nickel silver blade front sight soldered to a copper base in period fashion. The rear sight is a semi-buckhorn dovetailed 6" ahead of the breech.
The figured curly maple stock is stained with nitric acid to a dark brown and finished with hand rubbed linseed oil to best display the figure. This rifle features tight inletting with excellent metal to wood fit. The buttplate is a early style, tall and wide with a modest curve. The long patchbox is found on a few Hawken rifles, such as the one owned by Mariano Modena. Some historians speculate that the patchbox design was influenced or possibly even performed by the St. Louis makers Hoffman & Campbell due to the similarity of the design. The patchbox is neatly fitted with excellent metal to wood fit. The mounting screws are fitted with the slots neatly aligned. The door securely latches and has a button release in the toe. The long tang of the slant hooked breech strengthens the wrist. The tang bolts are neatly fitted with the slots aligned. The stock has 3/8" of cast-off for a right hand shooter. Cast-off places the right hand shooter's eye directly behind the line of sight making it instinctive to point and shoot.
The hooked breech allows the barrel to be easily dismounted for cleaning without risk of wetting the stock with water containing black powder residue. To dismount the barrel, put the lock on half cock, withdraw the ramrod, drift the captured keys past the underlugs, and the barrel can be lifted from the barrel channel for ease of cleaning. The keys are captured to the stock to prevent loss. The heads of the keys are neatly shaped to the early rectangular shape and are surrounded by oval inlays. Remove the nipple and place the breech end of the barrel in a bucket of soapy water. Run a wet patch down and up the bore, the pumping action will flush all the fouling from the barrel. Once the bore is clean, run a dry patch down the bore to pick up any moisture followed by a oily patch. Dry and oil the exterior then reassemble the rifle.
The iron toeplate protects the toe, ending in a decorative Hawken finial. The long trigger bar, anchored to the long tang with two tang bolts, supports and re-enforces the wrist. Hawken rifles quickly became famous for reliability in the Rocky Mountains. The triggerguard is the flat-to-wrist style. The forend is fitted with a polished pewter forend cap, and iron ramrod entry pipe. The snugly fitted tapered hickory ramrod is well finished, with a brass tip at front threaded 8-32 to accept your cleaning jag or patch worm. The beaver tail shaped cheek piece adds comfort for a right hand shooter, while aiming this .54 caliber rifle. The balance point is just ahead of the rear wedge key.
The Ron Long designed percussion lock by R.E. Davis is shaped with a square inside corner in late percussion fashion. Notice how the front edge of the lock has been shaped into the raised lock panel. Polished inside, the well tempered parts include a strong mainspring, stirrup link, and a fly detent to allow set triggers. The single lock bolt, and tear drop escutcheon around it, are classic features of a halfstock Hawken plains rifle, from the 1835 - 1845 era. The R.E. Davis double lever double set triggers fire set or unset, for target match shooting, or cold weather hunting with gloved fingers.
This rifle is a pure pleasure to handle and is very steady when held off hand. If you are considering adding a fine quality Hawken rifle to your collection, be quick.. Order it for a ten day visual inspection. You will be delighted. Else if it does not fit you, return it in unfired condition for same-day refund. Postage is your only risk, when you order any one-of-a-kind gun from Track, whether new, used, or antique.
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.530" round balls, pure lead, Hornady, per 100
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Track's best Black Powder BORE CLEAN Solvent, with flip-top spout
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Ball puller, steel screw, .54 caliber brass collar, 8-32 thread
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Brass Capper, for No. 11 caps, straight line, made in the USA, by Tedd Cash
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Powder Flask,
brass body, brass dispensing valve,
embossed Diamond or Basket Weave pattern
accepts 10-1mm threaded spouts
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Flush Nipple,
1/4-28 thread,
stainless steel, with 1/4" square shank for nipple wrench,
with tubing, fits Thompson Center
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Fouling Scraper, flat face, brass, .54 caliber, 8-32 thread
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Jag, jagged cleaning tip, brass, .54 caliber, 7/16" rod, 8-32 thread
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Powder measure, brass, adjustable 0 to 120 grains, with spout
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Trapper's MINK OIL TALLOW,
patch grease,
for match shooting & cold weather hunting,
one 8 oz. tin
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MINK-OIL
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| Availability:
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Price:
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$8.59
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Shooting patches, .018" pillow ticking, .50 - .59 caliber, per 100, dry
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Cleaning Patches, 2-1/2" diameter, bag of 100, pure cotton flannel, for .45 to .58 caliber
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Ramrod, 3/8" hickory, 48" long, brass tip, 8-32 thread
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Nipple, 1/4-28 thread, for standard rifle,
#11 CCI cap, square shank,
hardened steel, ideal for restoration
- Cone length: 0.440"
- Thread journal length: 0.195"
- Overall length: 0.635"
- Diameter of base: 0.307"
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Nipple, 1/4-28 thread, for standard rifle, #11 CCI cap, stainless steel
- Cone length 0.440"
- Overall length: 0.635"
- Thread journal length: 0.195"
- Diameter of base: 0.307"
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Short Starter, patch & ball starter, 1/2" wooden rod for .54 and larger calibers.
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Patch puller, corkscrew worm, steel, brass base, 8-32 thread
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