OK, now that I have purchased my Great Plains Rifle in 54cal, I am ready to buy some assesories, such as Ramrod, Cleaning Jag, Powder measure, Bullet puller,Bullet starter,etc, etc, I don't want to buy junk, and that's why I am asking for help. any advice from this forum, I know that I can trust. looking forward to some knowledge from you all. thanks.
Katie couric interviewing a Marine in afg--What do you feel when you shoot a Terrorist? The Marine shrugged and replied "a slight recoil'
OK, now that I have purchased my Great Plains Rifle in 54cal, I am ready to buy some assesories, such as Ramrod, Cleaning Jag, Powder measure, Bullet puller,Bullet starter,etc, etc, I don't want to buy junk, and that's why I am asking for help. any advice from this forum, I know that I can trust. looking forward to some knowledge from you all. thanks.
Katie couric interviewing a Marine in afg--What do you feel when you shoot a Terrorist? The Marine shrugged and replied "a slight recoil'
Due to the tolorance used in manufacturing I suggest you try both 530 and .535 dia ball [ I have take large game as well as deer with a 54 PRB so I suggest that you master shooting the PRB first] Go out to the range and run the powder ladder from 80 gr to the max in your operators manule. Not all guns like the same powder but most will shoot Pyrodex RS but it is very corrosive so clean your gun the same day you shoot it boiling water and a touch of dish detergent is recommended. I like a usket nipple and musket caps, but if you want to use #11 caps with anything other than Real black powder then I recommend RWS1075 caps.[ Ihave had hang fire and misfire problems with some of the others] I recommend Ticking for Ballpatches and flannel for cleaning patches. Now at this point some will disagree but I have used bore butter ever since it came out for PRB with very good results, I also believe in seasoning the gun , and I believe that their is only one way to get that done right. I put my barrels in an oven set for two hundred degrees [ usepads and thick gloves they will burn you at that temp]. and be sure only the metal gets hot [plastic sights or any such would be ruined at that temp] when its hot [around 200degrees] grease it real good while the pours are open .
The ramrod, I much prefer the "super rod" [plasitic] one but the solid aluminium is also very good, I do not use wood except in an emergency they dont know or dont care to make them right any more so they are liable to break and end up stuck right through your hand, and the hollow aluminium one are not strong enough. I stop at the craft store and get a wood ball about 2.5 inches in diameter and get an aluminium doll from the hardware store which I mount in the ball then I drill and tap the end and put a jag on it that is the size and shape of the round ball in reverse.
Either the solid brass adjustable measure or the see through funnel top made by TC are good measures, I am sure there are others that are good but most of the others I have tried were NOT. After you have worked out your load you may want to make your own out of horn or brass.
Do not start with an ides that you are going to shoot a certain load be prepared to find the load the gun likes. Lee
Oh no! Not the seasoning vs. non-seasoning thing again.
All I can do is report my personal experience. When I got my new GP, I cleaned the bore real well with patches soaked in regular rubbing alcohol - then started shooting with round balls and lubed patches. I got accuracy as good as I could expect with those factory buckhorn sights and my bifocal eyes.
A good place to look at various supplies is the RMC Sports web sight.
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My wife says I'm totally nuts, but I think I'm Semisane.
Things I've Learned: (1) It's not possible to please everyone, but quite easy to piss everyone off. (2) If you love animals as I do, then you're not a vegetarian. (3) There's no need to act stupid, even if you're very good at it. (4) If you eat right and exercise, don't smoke or drink, you're going to die anyway.
I shoot a Lyman Trade Rifle in .54 caliber. While the manual suggested a .535 ball, I get better accuracy with the .530 ball. I shoot a .015-.018 patch and moose milk as a lube. It works really good for me. Also my .54 likes a good powder charge. 90 grains of Goex 2f (flintlock) and the patch and ball and I am in business. Bore Butter is a good patch lube. As for the seasoning of the bore, well it is your rifle, so do as you like.
Some things I would pick up if I were you is a couple of the loading cleaning jags. Any brand name seem to work well. BUT those expensive spinning jags really do work well. Also they do not start to unscrew themselves off the ramrod. Also get a new stainless steel nipple. The ones that come on a Lyman for some reason give shooters problems. They change over to a new stainless steel model and the problems end. For powder, if you can get Goex it is a good powder. Dirty mind you, but a very good powder. Pyrodex RS is another good powder for the .54 caliber. After that I would have to look at my notes, but I did get good results shooting APP 3f in some of my big bore rifles with a patched ball. Easy to clean too. Get a bore guide and a range rod now. Use the range rod and bore guide. It will save your barrel a lot of wear. Also the factory ramrods, I never did trust. Cain's Outdoors sell a ramrod called a Super Rod. They are very good quality. They also carry a lot of the other things you might need and are real good to do business with. RMC Sports is another good store. A good roundball short starter I find has the roundball at the top. They are easy on the hand and very necessary. A good see through powder measure is sure a nice thing. Also get some isopropyl alcohol for cleaning and swabbing the bore. A bag of patches is very necessary as well. A 30 caliber bore brush will also help to clean the cone in the bottom of the barrel. Some use a .35 caliber. I have used a .22 caliber with a patch wrapped around it. In the bottom of the breech is a cone shape where the powder sits. Most of the time this cone gets flushed, but not really scraped and cleaned.
I am sure you are going to like your rifle. I will be looking forward to seeing how well it shoots. I was amazed at Semisane and his flintlock smoking a target first time out like he did. That shows to me the rifles are excellent quality and able to really put ball down range.
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"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."
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My wife says I'm totally nuts, but I think I'm Semisane.
Things I've Learned: (1) It's not possible to please everyone, but quite easy to piss everyone off. (2) If you love animals as I do, then you're not a vegetarian. (3) There's no need to act stupid, even if you're very good at it. (4) If you eat right and exercise, don't smoke or drink, you're going to die anyway.
Thanks for the fast response guy's, I knew that I had done the right thing when I joined this forum. I am making up my list now of the things that I need. Again thanks to Lemoyne,Cayugad and all. DCH
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