Meant to get out and shoot some Buckslayers tonight. Set them out, but I just somehow forgot to get them in my box of accessories. They say there's three things that happens to ya when you get older. The first one is . . . uh, the first one is . . . forget it[&:].
My plan is to shoot a 6 shot group at 50 yards measuring velocity at 10ft. Then to move the target to 26 yards with chrony a yard in front of it. Clock 6 shots there so that I can average each set and calculate a BC for the Buckslayer. The planned load is 80 grains of Pyro P. Wanted to try it because the 270 ballets just love Pyro P. Then I plan to get a another data set with chronies at 10 ft using 80 grains 3f Goex. If the pattern looks good at 50, I may try 100 yards with this data set for a grouping.
I did happen to get to the range with a brand new can of Goex and some 385 GPs. Shot this 5 shot group at 100 yards and went home. Not as good as yesterday but all shots are kills. Horizontal was 2.75" and vertical was 5". I tell you what. Its alot easier to place in the horizontal than the vertical because one can see on either side of bead. The bead by the way nearly covers the entire target at 100 yards. I am going to make a much larger target, say about 11X17 so that target extends beyond the bead giving me a better reference to center in.
My rear sight is a cross hair which I center in the bead. Originally wanted to sight with the horizontal cross hair flush with the top of the bead, but at 50 yards, I was having problems with vertical placement. With the bead centered in the cross hairs it is easier to repeat the same aim precisely. While it is a problem for this target at 100 yards, it is very comfortable when pointing at deerup to about 120 yards. Withgame one has the whole body to reference the point of aim. With atarget such a good relational reference is difficult to achieve at 100 yards with open sights and an 8"X8" target.
I'm not changing anything about my sighting system right now though, because its good enough for the ranges I will be hunting at, but I already knowwhat I'm going to change sighting system to. The crosshairs are going to the front sight and I am going to install a ghost sightclose to the breech which has a cross with the center out so that when the crosshairs are centered in the ghost sight, it will look like a multi-x reticle. Then the target will be completely unobstructed.
That's some good shooting. Now you're doomed to shoot again and try the other bullets. I will be real interested to see what kind of speed you get out of them Buck slayers. What kind of rifle are you going to shoot them out of?
I personally admit, I am not one of these people that shoot a real tight groupat one hundred yards,with the open sights. Now granted, some peoplereport withopen sights, some really impressive groups at those distances. Once in a great whileI get lucky and reallyhave a heck of a day on the range, but that is not the norm. I am usually happy to hit the bull a couple times and lay a few around the bull in the general area. Must be the older eyes. Although yesterday when I was shooting it was so HOT outside I was trying to shoot through sweat running in my eyes and then all over the lens of my glasses. I finally said, enough!!
Yesterday I also learnedI need to get out and work on distance guessing again. I work on that as well as target shooting. I had moved my bench to what I thought was fifty yards and after shooting, got the range finder out and discovered I was seven yards off. It must have been the different angles I was trying to shoot at. I like to change angles on the target from time to time because how many of us always get that perfect dead on shot. The target shows that angle a little also.
How many people I wonder, actually practice guessing distances?
I found that before I got my Bushnell range finder, I was terrible at guessing distance. In fact friends and I spent an entire afternoon walking the woods and fields guessing distances. It was kind of fun actually. We let the kids use the range finder. the kid was in heaven because he had my new toy. He'd point out a spot and we would guess the distance, then he would shoot it and tell us the range finder reading. We actually doubted him so bad, that we were taking the range finder away from him and shooting the distance our selves. Even distances close, we would be off a few yards (which I again proved yesterday). To a bow hunter that is critical. The longer distances were really funny, how off we were. After a while of doing this guessing gamethough, we got a lot better at distance guessing.
I was shooting my Lyman Trade Rifle flintlock. I wanted to see how it reacted whenI tried less powder and how it shot maxi ball with less powder. Well I think I learned, that rifle likes large powder charges. 90 grains and it is accurate. Reduce that charge, and the accuracy starts to suffer.
I am wondering if becauseFlintlocks have a large vent hole on the side, and perhaps you loose considerable load pressure through there and that's why to get a faster ball, you need a larger powder charge. Next time out I am going to drop that down to 50 grains and see what happens.
__________________
"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, a total wreck, screaming Yahoo, with a big smile on your face."
Now you're doomed to shoot again and try the other bullets. I will be real interested to see what kind of speed you get out of them Buck slayers. What kind of rifle are you going to shoot them out of?
I'll be using the Sidekick.Using the 270 ballet as a guide, I figure that the velocity with 80 grains Pyro will be in the neighborhood of 1620 fps, with 80 3f goex in the neighbhorhood of 1460 fps. Wanted to be sure and chrony some with the load which is working good you.
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I personally admit, I am not one of these people that shoot a real tight groupat one hundred yards,with the open sights. Now granted, some peoplereport withopen sights, some really impressive groups at those distances. Once in a great whileI get lucky and reallyhave a heck of a day on the range, but that is not the norm. I am usually happy to hit the bull a couple times and lay a few around the bull in the general area. Must be the older eyes.
I always considered 75 yards max for my hawken when I amthe onesighting. Others, I'm sure, could do alot better than the 3.5 to 5" groups which were norm for me there. Even so, a critter just doesn't want to be a legaldeer less than 75 yards from me and my Hawkenin hunting season or its day would suddenly go awry!. Now the same is true to 100 yards and the sidekick. I want to tighten the group and extend range, of course, but just like with the Hawken. If I don't, I'll just relax, take in a deep breath, and accept that I will have to plan my hunting and shooting within the limits of rifle, load, and my own skills.
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Yesterday I also learnedI need to get out and work on distance guessing again. I work on that as well as target shooting. I had moved my bench to what I thought was fifty yards and after shooting, got the range finder out and discovered I was seven yards off. It must have been the different angles I was trying to shoot at. I like to change angles on the target from time to time because how many of us always get that perfect dead on shot. The target shows that angle a little also.
How many people I wonder, actually practice guessing distances?
It's really tough to do. I notice that most people, including myself,underestimate distances. You know the little white reflectors that you see every .10 miles on the hiways? They are 167 yards apart. They really do look closer than that to me, more like 110 to 130. Its just tough. What I am working on now is learning how far is too far. Instead of how far is 60, 80, 100,120, and 150, , just how far is is 100 or 120. If I ever get serious about hunting game to 150 or200 with these full bore conicals, I will do what you have done, and invest in a good range finder.
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I was shooting my Lyman Trade Rifle flintlock. I wanted to see how it reacted whenI tried less powder and how it shot maxi ball with less powder. Well I think I learned, that rifle likes large powder charges. 90 grains and it is accurate. Reduce that charge, and the accuracy starts to suffer.
I am wondering if becauseFlintlocks have a large vent hole on the side, and perhaps you loose considerable load pressure through there and that's why to get a faster ball, you need a larger powder charge. Next time out I am going to drop that down to 50 grains and see what happens.
Sounds to me that you are on the right track. I don't own a flintlock, but reallywant to now, in .58 cal. Good groups with the flintlock.Remaining steady with the aim after the hammer falls seems an important thing with flintlocks. Just adds an extra level of challenge. Like many here, I used to hunt with muzzle loading rifles to get an extra season. But after so many deer shooting a rifle with a point blank range of 300 yards, just putting the cross hairs on the spot, it justdoesn't offer the challenge I want to experience in my hunting now. I may never go back to hunting centerfires and if it happens that I just couldn't get close enough to take a shot, well, so be it. I'll have a lot fun trying!
Sorry Cayugad, forgot the Buckslayers at home
. Now the same is true to 100 yards and the sidekick. I want to tighten the group and extend range, of course, but just like with the Hawken. If I don't, I'll just relax, take in a deep breath, and accept that I will have to plan my hunting and shooting within the limits of rifle, load, and my own skills.
