From the late-1980s through the mid-90s, it seems that every hunter who I ran into during muzzleloader deer season toted the same gun: a Knight MK-85. The first mass-produced “in-line, modern muzzleloader,” the Knight Rifle revolutionized the blackpowder hunting game, not to mention most state regulations.
Once the bailiwick of the coon-skin cap wearing crowd, primitive weapons hunts truly became a sport for the masses once in-line guns were produced.
No longer concerned with unreliable powder ignition, hunters by the thousands took up a new/old way to hunt deer and other big game. The gun’s creator, Tony Knight, had ushered in a new era.
It’s with great sadness that we report Tony’s passing at the age of 67. Memorials may be given to the Appanoose County Conservation Foundation, Centreville, Iowa 52544.
