I took my T/C Hawken Silver Elite out today with the stainless GM LRH barrel. I was tinkering shooting 320gr REALs and 275 gr Maxihunters and playing with different charges of FFg and FFFg. I was shooting a 50 yds and it was windy. Try as I might I just could not get either of these bullets to shoot better than about 3 1/2" groups.
I decided to can that idea and try some 250 gr SWs with Black Harvester CR sabots I had in the box. I fired 3 shots with 90 gr of Goex FFg and shot a group probably less than 1 1/2". But it was getting so windy the target was flopping back and forth. Blew my hat off a couple times so I figured that was good enough for today. I will be fine tuning it later with those bullets and FFg, FFFg, and Pyrodex RS & P.
__________________ PLEASE NOTE THAT DUE TO THE RISING COST IN AMMO PRICES I WILL NO LONGER BE FIRING A WARNING SHOT.
A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take away everything you have.
I'm not as good as I'm gonna get - but I'm better than I used to be. "Life without God is like an unsharpened pencil - it has no point."
I took my T/C Hawken Silver Elite out today with the stainless GM LRH barrel. I was tinkering shooting 320gr REALs and 275 gr Maxihunters and playing with different charges of FFg and FFFg. I was shooting a 50 yds and it was windy. Try as I might I just could not get either of these bullets to shoot better than about 3 1/2" groups.
Probably and maybe not, but I think the twist rate of the GM barrel is to fast for those lead conicals. The twist is probably inducing wobble. If the bullets were near perfectly round and perfectly balanced then everything would be great. The balance probably has more to do with than anything else. Shot from a slower twist that would not spin them as fast, I think your results would be different.
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I decided to can that idea and try some 250 gr SWs with Black Harvester CR sabots I had in the box. I fired 3 shots with 90 gr of Goex FFg and shot a group probably less than 1 1/2". But it was getting so windy the target was flopping back and forth. Blew my hat off a couple times so I figured that was good enough for today. I will be fine tuning it later with those bullets and FFg, FFFg, and Pyrodex RS & P.
That is very good results with a bullet that is designed for a faster twist.
Just thinking out loud....
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Keep on Shooting Muzzleloaders they are a Blast
Probably and maybe not, but I think the twist rate of the GM barrel is to fast for those lead conicals. The twist is probably inducing wobble. If the bullets were near perfectly round and perfectly balanced then everything would be great. The balance probably has more to do with than anything else. Shot from a slower twist that would not spin them as fast, I think your results would be different.
That is very good results with a bullet that is designed for a faster twist.
Just thinking out loud....
I think the GMB, LRH barrel would shoot a heavier longer conical with a lot better accuracy? Ray
It's hard to get real good groups in a bad wind bronko. But even in a wind I'm surprised the 250 grain SW's didn't give you a real tight group at 50 yards. I get excellent results with 250 grain Deep Curls and XTP's in my .50 (blue) GM/LRH barrel, as the target below will show.
REALs have always been somewhat of a disappointment to me. I can get fairly decent groups with them in some guns at 50 yards, but beyond that groups always seem to open up. The one gun I had that shot them pretty well out to 75 yards was a TC New Englander. My .50 Lyman Mustang will keep them around two inches at 50 yards if I keep the charge low - around 70 grains of GOEX.
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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.
Ah Sabotloader. I never even considered that. With open sights those groups are more respectable.
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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.
Not all of us have sinful sisters... although at one time I was considering scoping my SS GM-LRH. but common sense won out and I scoped and inline instead
I think even Cayugad has sinned also but I can not remeber for sure...
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Keep on Shooting Muzzleloaders they are a Blast
Yes Semi & Sabot - I was using the fiber optic open sights. I thought 1 1/2" was pretty good considering a strong crosswind and a flopping target. Next time out I am going to be trying the different powders and also some 300 gr SWs and XTPs.
__________________ PLEASE NOTE THAT DUE TO THE RISING COST IN AMMO PRICES I WILL NO LONGER BE FIRING A WARNING SHOT.
A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take away everything you have.
I'm not as good as I'm gonna get - but I'm better than I used to be. "Life without God is like an unsharpened pencil - it has no point."
Bronko, Sabotloader was right on the money with his reply about the Real's. I have several GM Renegade, and Hawken hybrids. The 3" at 100 yards is about all the better I can do. One thing I have found is the Lee C-501-440-RF is a 500 S&W mould. I paper patch this bullet and it is an amazing bullet in that barrel. I have had sub 2" groups so many times it is normal to shoot under 2" at 100 yards. I have shot two trophy class animals with this load and I have see three others killed. We all use 80 gr of Pyrodex P with an over powder wad and the 460 gr paper patched bullet. We are also using Lyman 57 SML peep sights and Lyman 17 AML globe front sights. Your going to love that rifle when you get it dialed in. Ron
Yeah Ron I know. I've been shooting GM LRH barrels for years in 45 & 50 cal. I haven't found one yet that did not shoot - either percussion or flint. But like all MLs, you have to find what they like. I have this barrel for almost 2 years and this is only the second outing with it.
__________________ PLEASE NOTE THAT DUE TO THE RISING COST IN AMMO PRICES I WILL NO LONGER BE FIRING A WARNING SHOT.
A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take away everything you have.
I'm not as good as I'm gonna get - but I'm better than I used to be. "Life without God is like an unsharpened pencil - it has no point."
T/C Silver Elite
