they are not a kit that just needs a little shaping and some stain. They require drilling, tapping, carving, shaping, basically everything you do yourself. Not something i'd care to tackle.
What he said. There is a ton of work involved. I've built some flinter longrifles, and feel pretty comfortable doing them. A Hawken build doesn't interest me at all. To do it right you need to be a good wood worker, and an excellent machinist. Like Bigblock said, they're not at all a kit. It's all rough parts and you do all the inletting, finishing, drill & tapping etc. TOW is quality stuff, but if you've never done a build that's not what I'd start with. Do a couple kits, then if you still want to try a build start with a trade gun or simple flinter. Not trying to talk you out of doing it, but just suggesting it's not where you want to start. Hawkens are pretty complex builds.
