I have an itch to get a .32 or.36 caliber black powder rifle. I might be persuaded into a kit and finish it myself...but could also go the factory finished route.

What are y'all shooting by way of small bore BP?

32 CVA squirrel rifle. Easy on powder. Typically 20 to 30 grains per shot. Same with lead if casting your own. RBs are only 44 grains in the 32. No recoil. Might be the only down side. A little kick is one of the fun things.

My squirrel rifle is a .36 caliber flintlock Longrifle.  When I commissioned this rifle, I told the builder that I wanted a rather plain rifle that could have been owned by a working man, not something that would suggest great wealth.  I chose the caliber, the barrel maker and type (Colerain, 44 inch A weight swamped), and I also got to chose the stock blank.  I had intended to go with a maple stock, but I spotted a walnut blank and changed my mind.  We discussed the lock and decided on a small Siler.

Here are a couple photos.

First, a close up of the lock area.


Next, an overall shot.


My load of choice is a .340 diameter ball ahead of 25 grains of GOEX 3f patched with ticking lubed with bore butter (or a home made version using beeswax and olive oil).  With this load, I can make head shots on squirrels at 30 yards (when I do my part).

Three .36 CVA Bobcats. Plain, inexpensive, but functional.




.32 CVA Varmint rifle.




Thompson/Center Hawken with a custom .36 barrel.

Very nice.

Tagged for responses. I've been wanting one for a while and I don't know which way is up when it comes to flintlocks.

I've got a bobcat in .50 I picked up at walmart for $65 back when CVA discontinued them
I just wish I could get my hands on one of those wood stocks.  mine is synthetic.

Roll (Make) your own!  http://www.tradrag.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=2377

The google also points to a shop in Indiana that used to make wood drop -in replacements.  Deer Creek 765-525-6181.

thanks to smashy for IMing me a link to an ebay auction for a factory wood one. it didn't look great in the pics but it looks new in person! pics to follow.

You got it already? That was super fast.

yeah it was.

I discovered something else cool.
I have an old CVA jukar kentucky pistol that I got at a gun store years ago for $40. it was very poorly put together (bad kit job) unfinished barrel, canted in the stock...
I noticed the barrel fits in the old bobcat stock. the stock is about an inch longer but it could be chopped if I could figure out a way to cap off the end.
the jukar lock will also fit with a little fitting...

I think I have a new short barreled franken muzzleloader project...

I took it out to play yesterday. I also brought my 1858 with the new howel conversion I just picked up.
it was nice not having to clean my 1858 for once after shooting it. I just need to figure out a recipe for cowboy loads for it now. (preferably with red dot since I have that on hand)

BTW, the pics in the ebay auction did not do this stock justice. it didn't look all that great in the pics but it's much darker in person.

Yeah, that's darker than the ebay pictures. I like it, looks good.

If you don't mind spending the extra money, a nice upgrade you can make is to replace the lock with an RPL lock from L&R. It would be the CVA small Model # 01 Percussion here. The price is $112.  I have two of them. Besides being far superior quality, it has a fly and bridle the factory lock doesn't. The factory lock works well enough with a little polishing, but I wanted something better for two of these Bobcats because they're going to be Christmas presents for my kids this year (the third one is mine). I'm getting ready to install them soon, the plan is to blue them and have the lock plates engraved with their initials. It's a bit of an expensive upgrade, considering the cost of the gun, but I think my kids will enjoy shooting them.

While discussing the bobcat. Are the barrels the same size between the 50 and the 36?

They're the same size, but that doesn't mean they're interchangeable. There are differences in how the barrel fits into the tang. I don't know if the differences are strictly between these two calibers, or if it's due to changes in manufacturing specs regardless of caliber.  With CVA (and also with Traditions, because their guns are made by the same manufacturer in Spain), their parts had a tendency to change over the years for unknown reasons. A particular part might have a change in measurements or shape (style) after being made a certain way for so many years. Sometimes these changes make no difference regarding fit, other times it means you can't swap them (unless you want to modify them to fit).

Regarding the Bobcat barrels, I also have a .50 Bobcat with a synthetic stock. These pictures are of the tangs, you'll see several differences. The blued one is from the .36 (the .50 is sort of a project gun and the bluing has been removed).







The most obvious difference is the hole for the breech button to fit into. The hole of the .36 tang is larger and has a rounded bottom. What this means in the case of my rifles is that the breech button of the .36 barrel won't fit into the smaller opening of the .50 tang. Another difference you can see in the side view is a small cutout on the underside of the tang. Also, the height of the hole is different. It's hard to tell in the pictures, but when I measure the distance from the top surface of the tang to the upper edge of the hole, one measures .240" and the other is .295".

Yet another difference is the ridges on the sides. The ones on the .36 are lower than those on the .50. However, this makes no difference when installing them in the stocks. Both tangs are a perfect fit in either stock. Just another small manufacturing change that amounts to nothing, I suppose.

And both barrels fit just fine in either stock. So it appears the issue isn't fitting the barrel to the stock, but matching up the barrel with the correct tang. In my case, I can switch barrels/stocks without a problem, but I can't use the .36 barrel with the .50 tang. The hole is too small. So I have to swap the tang along with the barrel (unless I want to do some filing to make it fit).

Does this mean you can't buy a .36 barrel online and put it in your .50 stock (or vice versa)? Not really, as long as you keep a couple of points in mind.

One option is modifying parts to fit. If you have a barrel and tang that don't fit, you can simply file the hole larger if necessary. You can also file the breech button to fit. So it can be made to work if you don't mind putting a little effort into it.

You can also get spare parts from other people. When CVA got out of the sidelock business and went strictly with inlines, their entire inventory of unsold guns and spare parts was bought by Deer Creek Products in Waldron, Indiana (not to be confused with another company by the same name in Florida). They're a small operation and they don't have a website. You have to call them and ask if they have what you need. (765) 525-6181 I've dealt with them plenty of times, they're the place to go when you need spare parts (while they last). In fact, I bought all three of my .36 Bobcats from them.

There's also ebay. You can find parts there with a search, but there's one seller in particular you should contact if you can't find what you need. He goes by the name muzzleloader707 and he sells parts for CVA, Traditions, and Thompson/Center. I've bought several parts from him. His prices are a bit on the high side, but he can often find the part you need even if he doesn't have it in stock.

Another thing to keep in mind is that my Bobcats don't necessarily represent all Bobcats made over the years. Like I said, I don't know if the difference is the caliber or just manufacturing changes (the latter would be my guess, since the barrels are otherwise interchangeable, and there's no point in making the tang hole a different size just because the caliber is different; but who knows?).  If it's due to manufacturing changes, there might be other .36 Bobcats that were made (unlike mine) with the smaller button and hole, and other .50 Bobcats that were made with the larger button and hole. So my example of the tangs not being interchangeable is only a possibility, not a rule (as far as I know).

But if they don't fit, you should be able to make them work with a little effort.

Sorry for the thread derail. Back to smallbore squirrel guns.

I just looked at both my bobcat and mountain stalker( they are the same rifle, my bobcat just has some brass to dress it up a bit). Both of my tangs match your 36 caliber tang. Thanks for the detailed answer. Shooting a 50 at a squirrel seems to be a waste of lead and meat.