This is an interesting development for Pedersoli as it is at the low end of their price range with the L/H version coming in at around £480 in Kranks catalogue and the R/H slightly less.
As a left handed longarm shooter who has been shooting right handed rifles all my life I was particularly interested in trying out a true left handed gun, available at a friendly price and a flintlock to boot. Left handed guns are around but not many production guns are configured this way and those that are have a premium price.
The rifle looks very much like the Investarms "Hawken" that I got last year and reviewed on here. I suspect that Pedersoli has brought out this rifle to compete with the Investarms marketed by Lyman, along with the other budget European "Hawkens" being marketed in the US by the yankee black powder houses.
Of all the Eytie repro houses Pedersoli revel in the reputation of making for the high quality end of the market with production guns of theirs winning the medals in top international competitions. Pedersoli's high quality fit, finish and function is their trademark.
So how does this Pedersoli fair being their first excursion into the budget end of the market?
On initial inspection it stands out as a Pedersoli with the wood to metal finish being excellent especially around the lock and patch box, areas that are forgivably less than perfect on other budget guns, even the patch recess has been well finished inside unlike others that look as if they have been gouged out with a spade. The wood as some figuring, the lock plate has a case hardened finish with the blueing being deep and even. The barrel is octagonal with the ubiquitous 1:48 twist, the muzzle is crowned but it is quiet narrow so care has to be taken when seating patches so as not to nick and hole them. The rifle has buckhorn rear sights and a blade foresight, fortunately these are placed at distance that suit my eyes well so they give me a fine sight picture.
The barrel inside was heavily fouled from the proof house and it took quiet a while with many patches and copious amounts of Aquoil to get it cleaned, but when it was it was bright and shiny with crisp, even rifling that had no tight or rough spots when a tight dry patch was sent down.
It is fitted with a very nice set trigger that gives a crisp, light let off that contributes greatly to the guns grouping ability.
So how does Pedersoli get such quality in at such a low price? If we compare it to the other "Hawkens" in their range like the Rocky Mountain and Missouri models which go for around £250 more these rifles are shorter both in barrel length and in forend length with only one barrel wedge being need as opposed the two in the Missouri and Rocky Mountain models. Savings have been made by using less materials and what must be a simplified manufacturing process. This actually gives a handier rifle that will no doubt appeal once again to the yankee market where such guns are popular for the black powder hunting season.
Now we have have well made and finished gun that fits well and as lefty it is nice to have a cheek rest on the stock that I can use but all this is for naught if it doesn't perform on the target.
To test the rifle I set the target up at 50yrds and shot it benched from a front rest. I decided upon a starting load of 60 grains of Swiss fffg powder under a cast 0.495" lead ball on a 1" diameter 0.015" thick Tanner patch that was dry lubed with Aquoil. I used Swiss Nothing B powder in the priming pan. Sighting was taken with a six-o-clock hold.
Upon initial inspection the lock geometry looked odd in comparison to the accepted norms for good sparking locks, the flint was aligned high on the frizzen and was pointing well beyond the pan when fired, this was regardless of how the flint was fitted. Despite the contravention of accepted theory the lock functioned very well, the Pedersoli geometry gives for a short throw of the cock and I suspect that contributes in no small way to the rifles impressive rapidity of ignition. The flint that came with the rifle looked usable and gave around a dozen or so shots before it shattered, it could not be re-knapped and was replaced with a good quality English black flint which functioned flawlessly for the remaining three dozen or so shots and had plenty of life in it when I had finished, so with with a good flint I would be expecting at least 50 shots from it and no doubt a good many more beyond that. The original flint came seated in the cock jaws with lead sheeting which I retained rather than my usual leather, I suspect that the lead helps with the ignition by adding extra mass which helps with the cocks momentum in its short throw, then again I could just be over thinking it.
Loading was done using a short starter as this patch and ball combination is a tight fit, a Pro Shot black powder, flexible rod and a 50 calibre bp jag was used for all ramming, wiping and cleaning. These rods are excellent and I use them for all my muzzle loading. The rod that comes with the rifle is actually of good quality with the ferrules pinned and threaded for jags, the grain straight and aligned with length of the rod so I would have no hesitation in using it if I had to.
With the first load home it took three pans of priming powder before the first ignition, this was no doubt due to proof fouling lingering in the antechamber of Pedersoli's simplified patent breech. Over the 50 or so shots that were put through the rifle there were only two failures to fire and they were both due to forgetting to the prick the touch hole after seating the main charge.
Between shots the barrel had a barely damp Aquoiled patch put down after the powder followed by a dry patch to keep the bore in a consistent condition, there was no fouling build up and the patched ball seated smoothly each time with the barrel cleaning up at the end of shooting with half a dozen wet and dry patches. Good quality fine grade powder with a tight fitting dry patched ball all leads to efficient ignition and a minimum of fouling to manage.
Here is the target with first six shots, the first shot was high at twelve-o-clock the next two were where I was bringing the sights down with the last three going into the group at nine-o-clock, I was going to tap the foresight over when I noticed that my careless adjusting of the rear sight wedge had jammed over to the left 'tween the rearsight and the barrel thus causing the drift to the left with the first four shots, with this straightened the rifle then shot consistently into the nine ring at nine-o-clock so to get it "on" would only require a slight adjustment of the foresight. The rifle performed to this same point of impact when shot by two left handed shooters and one right hander, groups were "one hole" with all shooters, except for the odd ones out of the groups which in all cases were called by the firers.
The action.
Loading.
Priming the pan.
Firing.
Even right handed people can shoot these guns.
All in all a very fine and affordable package from Pedersoli that will give any owner a gun they can be proud of that shoots very well straight out of the box.
The only complaint I have is that it shoots so well with the first picked load that I wonder what I will need to do for "load development", still that is just me.
