I am obliged to confess that I've had quite a few irons in the fire and have not done much with the Kodiaks. The 58 I bought used and have not fired at all. The 54 I bought new when they were distributed by Trail Guns Armoury. Since then the owner died and Cabella's have taken over distribution.

The first lesson you will learn with it is why there are right and left hand locks on single barreled rifles. The left cap spits on the tender skin on the under side of my wrist and the effect is not very pleasant. You soon learn to wear a very long sleeved shirt, glove, or something to protect the wrist.

I have not done enough shooting with it to have an opinion on accuracy or regulation. I have heard that the later ones have better regulation than the early ones.

I have heard the 54 and 72 are rifled for round ball while the 50 and 58 are rifled for conicals. I can't confirm this at the moment. If the 54 will handle conicals well, it would be my prefered caliber for here in Iowa. I view 50 caliber as just a bit on the light side for deer while 58 caliber bullets are harder to find around here.

The barrel OD is the same for 50, 54, and 58, so the larger the caliber, the lighter the barrels. It's not light to start with so if you have to tote it far, I'd give points for the lighter weight.

The breech loading Kodiak was designed as more or less a replica of the Colt double rifle. As such, by chambering it for 45-70 Powell got around the federal restrictions on interstate sales and shipping. I'd bet money this point will gain you nothing at Cabella's. Powell's plans for a second caliber were for 30-40, but today the second caliber is 9.3x74R. I don't know if that cartridge is old enough to predate the federal rules.

Wish I could be a little more help. I've got to get oput and work up loads for these things.