The .54 caliber Colerain barrel is 1" straight octagon by 37" long. The bore is rifled with six lands and radius bottom grooves in a slow twist for a patched round ball. The bore is bright and has been well maintained. Colerain rifle barrels are the favorite choice of today's best muzzle loading gun makers, because knowledgeable shooters demand Colerain's accuracy, inside and outside. Founded by two entrepreneurs, Scott Keller and Scott Kelly were tutored by Bob Paris, the famous rifle barrel maker who was first to perfect the technique for production of correct swamped barrels. Colerain rifle barrels are drilled from solid steel, cut rifled .012" to .016" deep depending on caliber, with six “round bottom" grooves. Called “radius groove rifling", Colerain eliminates the sharp inside corner that accumulates fouling. Radius groove rifling cutters are a bit more expensive to make, but Colerain's customers agree that the accuracy, easy loading, and easy cleaning are worth the cost. Finished a lovely chocolate brown the barrel is stamped J&S HAWKEN ST. LOUIS on the top flat of the barrel. The left oblique flat is stamped GRRW along with CA in a circle followed by H23 near the breech. The left flat is stamped with Carl Walker's mark and .54 near the breech. Fitted with correct traditional sights, the front sight has a silver blade mounted in an early style copper base dovetailed 2" behind the muzzle, and the rear sight is a full buckhorn sight dovetailed 8-3/4" ahead of the breech. We note the back and top of the nickel silver front sight are painted black, for target shooting.
Correctly trimmed entirely in iron furniture, in the early Hawken style, this rifle has a modestly curved early buttplate to minimize the recoil from the .54 caliber bore. The maple stock is finished to a medium brown with amber undertones. Notice the long tang, with two tang bolts that anchor the tang to the long trigger plate, reinforcing the wrist, a classic feature of rugged Hawken rifles. Screw slots of the tang screws are neatly aligned with the barrel, a nice touch. The long tang flint 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, close the frizzen, drift the keys past the underlugs, and the barrel can be lifted from the barrel channel for ease of cleaning. The forend of a fullstock is very fragile without the barrel mounted in it and should be handled with care. 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 an oily patch. Dry and oil the exterior then reassemble the rifle. The ramrod is fitted with a steel tip with 8-32 threads for loading and cleaning accessories.
The toe is protected with a classic beaver tail Hawken toeplate. Early Hawken double set triggers, by L&R, are made with a very long trigger bar. Two bolts enter from the long steel tang, re-enforcing the wrist from above and below. A fall from your horse is not likely to break the wrist of this very strong rifle, a desirable feature for the Mountain Man, when trapping in Colorado. Notice the early Hawken triggerguard, with flat grip rail, which follows the wrist. The square cheek provides a comfortable rest when aiming this big bore rifle. The single lock bolt is surrounded by a classic Hawken tear drop shaped sideplate.
This fullstock Hawken flint rifle is fitted with L&R's late English flintlock browned to match the barrel and furniture. This flintlock incorporates many late flintlock features. Notice the waterproof pan with drains on either side. The frizzen spring has a roller bearing, for fast lock action. We recommend our 3/4" knapped English flints for best performance with this lock. The slotted stainless touch hole liner brings the main charge very close to the priming flash. This vent is perfectly centered over the pan, correctly positioned to find the hottest center of the ignition flash. The early long bar double lever double set triggers by L&R are correctly tuned to fire from the set or unset position. You may cock the lock before or after the triggers are set.
If you are in the market for a well made fullstock Hawken rifle then consider this lovely piece today. Built by a well known maker this nice .54 caliber rifle will make an excellent addition to any black powder shooters collection and should work great at the range this summer and in the woods next fall. 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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