Opinions on muzzleloader loads

[turkeyfeathers]

I shoot a Winchester Apex Magnum 1/28 twist ( I believe) and currently shooting Thompson contender xtp mag express sabots(hollow point/240 grain) with 150 grains of 777. Have shot deer with 100 grains(not sure why I upped to 150) and they were equally as dead with thru and thru and great blood trails in the snow with both . 6 deer with this gun and never had one go more than 40 yards with double lung or heart shot. I didn't notice any huge accuracy difference with either the 100 or 150 . Never tried any other ammo with it. Just curious on opinions of what your findings are. Thanks in advance. Going to test other combos this summer. Going to give up the slug gun and make this my primary gun.  Oh yeah, opinions on powder vs pellet ?

Edited December 19, 2013 by turkeyfeathers

[phade]

BH209 and never look back.

[turkeyfeathers]

BH209 and never look back.

Reason being? Cleaner shooting, accuracy, FPS , easier to dial in load gun really likes?

[phade]

Rarely is a product leaps and bounds better than most all on the market. BH209 is superior imo with most all you noted.

[Chromeslayer]

Bh209 and barnes bullets

[genesee_mohican]

I shoot a percussion 54 cal and really like the Hornady Great Plains Bullets. They are very accurate, pure lead, heavy and have good knock down power. You can get them in 385gr for a 50 cal.

 I also prefer powder because I can tweak my loads to see what shoots best.

[Doewhacker]

I have always heard 150 grains of powder is a waste as it does not all burn.

[cdmckane]

Not only does 150 grains noy burn (the barrel is too short to burn that much powder) if it did, there's no benefit to pushing a ML bullet and faster than 100 grains can.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I537 using Tapatalk

[genesee_mohican]

Not only does 150 grains noy burn (the barrel is too short to burn that much powder) if it did, there's no benefit to pushing a ML bullet and faster than 100 grains can. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I537 using Tapatalk

 

Never heard of someone using 150 grains.

 

Hodgdon recommends 100 grains (max)  for a 50 cal

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Never heard of someone using 150 grains.

 

Hodgdon recommends 100 grains (max)  for a 50 cal

My encore is rated for 150 grains. I shot 100 too and didn't really notice a difference inside of 150 yards. I have no idea how much powder is not getting burned but at 200 and 250 there is a difference is in drop using only 100gr. I think they have 30 grain pellets too but I have never tried them. 130 may yield the exact same results. I thin this year I will be working up a load with the BH and will be up to my buddy's place with tables out to 300 yards so I should be able to see the point of no more benefit.

[DanceswithSkunks]

The optimum load for accuracy and complete or near complete burn of the powder charge is 1 grn per calibre. ie 50 grains for a 50 calibre. The .58 calibre Sharps and Endfields used 60 grains of powder. A little more than that load you'll get a little more velocity and energy but the fouling of unburnt powder will increase.

 

http://www.cherrytreefamily.com/muzzledixon.htm

Edited December 19, 2013 by DanceswithSkunks

[Culvercreek hunt club]

in what length barrel?

[Terry]

I think you need to find what works best for your gun. We all have different experiences and some might even use some kind of formula, but I think it's going to come down to what works for you.

That being said, I have recently fallen in love with the Blackhorn 209 and Precision Rifle bullets. Accurate, hard hitting and clean!

[G-Man]

loose powder over pellets as pellet grain is wildly in accurate, your gun may shoot the best group with 90 or 85 or 95 grain..cant do that with pellets..... thats a fast twist and there are many good bullet/sabot combinations available for it. rule of thumb your burning all your powder when u hear a sharp crack...you'll know when u hear it. i have 7 guns that shoot different charges and bullets accurately some only take 70 grains, one takes 95, another only 55 . practice and trial and error start low 50 grains and work up by 10 or 5 grain increments untill you hear that sharp crack!! embers and flames at low light mean to much powder.... i have found that once sighted in at 50 yards a 5 grain increase makes my bullet hit 1 in higher than sighted in. 150 to 200 yards is possible with a well tuned gun 1.5 in groups at that range are common. have fun!!

[Grizz1219]

BH209, 110 grains and a 250 grain slug... Great combo out of my T/C Pro Hunter.

 

BH209 because it burns a lot cleaner, no cleaning between shots and no burn ring.... also a lot more consistent burning

 

[phade]

My encore is rated for 150 grains. I shot 100 too and didn't really notice a difference inside of 150 yards. I have no idea how much powder is not getting burned but at 200 and 250 there is a difference is in drop using only 100gr. I think they have 30 grain pellets too but I have never tried them. 130 may yield the exact same results. I thin this year I will be working up a load with the BH and will be up to my buddy's place with tables out to 300 yards so I should be able to see the point of no more benefit.

 

 

Moog has an Encore too and shoots max load on BH 120 gr...and he has unburned powder coming out his barrel. It was easy to see because we were double-checking the MZ with snow on the ground. In front of my bench it looked like he was getting a fair amount of unburned powder. Heck, I got a little at 90 gr out of my Vortek UL.

 

If you are shooting 150 and in, I see no reason to even consider max load unless you are pushing heavy weight and want the fps. A 250 gr with 70-90gr of BH209 probably covers most hunters needs and saves quite a bit of cash considering the expense of BH209.