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I am thinking about purchasing a Blackpowder Pistol or maybe a rifle. I have seen there are some kits you can buy to build your own but I am not sure on this as I have read that the "kits" you receive lots of times have missing parts. Would like some feed back on the kits if anyone has built their own and how their experience was. I am looking also at the Josey Wales pistol, is this a good choice ? I am totally lost on the black powder firearms and was wanting input on this particular pistol if anyone owns one or something close to it.

Daltex1,

I have two black powder pistols, have only shot one of them. Both of these pistols were built by my Dad, Grandfather on Mom's side, and my Uncle (screen name "skeezix" here). These were purchased and built from kits many, many, many years ago, but from the stories I hear of it there was nothing to it. All parts were there, just needed a little fitting of the parts and finishing of the wood. I will say that there is nothing that has as much "fun factor" as shooting a black powder pistol, it's quite an experience.

As dull as this one looks, this little .45 caliber single shot pistol provides endless fun at the range, TONS of smoke and lots of interested folks wanting to ask you about the pistol...




This one I have not shot yet, I'm going to wait for the weather to cool down a little to enjoy this one, a .36 caliber Navy (I think) revolver...




This is about all the help I can be on this topic, but definitely get involved in black powder shooting, it's fun, relaxing, and a welcome break from cartridges.

JLaw

I built a CVA Kentucky Flintlock pistol from a kit, and a CVA percussion rifle, neither was missing any parts, but saying the pistol was "semi-inletted" is making somewhat of an understatement, it took a lot of work with a Dremel Tool and Prussion Blue to get it to fit. The rifle was much easier, using tricks I learned from the pistol.

I browned the pistol, using a formula I dug out of an old Chemistry textbook which I have since lost - the book was from the nineteen teens and had formulas and instructions for such things as nitrocellulose, and of course nitroglycerin, in it.

I blued the rifle with cold blue, but it came out splotchy, so I prevailed on a friend of mine that had a chrome plating business to let me use his shop to hot blue it and it came out pretty good.

I took one deer with the percussion rifle and it still, the rifle that is, hangs on my wall, the pistol was stolen in a burglary and had the Albany, NY PD pretty upset for a while, at least until I finally managed to calm down the first officer enough to explain that it was a legal replica that I didn't need a license for, and that it had been rendered inoperable by plugging the barrel, and even then he and the sergeant and lieutenant were still not totally convinced. A Lt. at a routine burglary, you say? Well the first officer on the scene called in the stolen gun in kind of a panicky voice, and for a stolen gun it was normal to dispatch a full crime investigation team.

The kid(s) that did it had broken into my gun cabinet and "played" with several of the guns, but had left the truly valuable ones in the rack, and had only stolen the only one that didn't work at all. It was never recovered.

You gotta be glad to be back in Texas.

I've built several, 5 IIRC, all were CVA kits. Never any missing parts. No major problems getting them assembled, finished, and functional.

I have a 1851 Navy like the one Jlaw has posted above, only it's in .44 cal. It's not a kit gun, but a hoot to shoot. I don't like reloading it. I discovered the world of blackpowder cartridges about a year ago and thats all I shoot in my single action Ruger Vaquero. Real head turner at the range.

I like green eggs and SPAM... and oh yeah...SPAM! Good bye super happy fun time...you have been reported.

Got the spammer

I put together two kits about 15+ years ago. Still have them, but it's been a long time since they have been to the range. Shooting black powder is a lot of fun. My pistols are:

• Armi San Marco 1851 Navy in .44 cal (cap and ball revolver)
  Thompson Center Patriot in .45 cal (muzzle loader)

Almost every time I go to the range I take my two black powder pistols, an 1851 Colt Navy Sheriff in .36 (authentic) and a 1858 Reminton .44 (non-authentic), and fire a couple of loads. I love shooting the black powder pistols. They weren't kits though, picked them both up at gun shows. I seem to remember revolver kits at one time but don't think I've seen any lately.

Got a reloading bench on order, might just start firing up some more powder.