Bear Hunting = Wild Idea

50calty · 04-16-2011, 08:53 PM

Well I went bear hunting Friday and today. With no such luck. Its still winter in the mountains and most of them havn't woke up yet. So we will have to wait and see. HOWEVER a very crazy idea came upon me. I have a 50 cal Renegade. I got the barrel from TC when they had no more .54. 50 cals are fine and that, but my bread and butter are .54 cals. My other Renegade is a .54, my flint is a .54, and my pistol is .54. See the pattern? I'm really thinking about selling that .50 barrel (its new, i never shot it) and getting the GM LRH in .54. Buying the Sabots from MMP and shooting GET THIS.... 500 grain XTP mags! Just the thought makes me giddy!! So this is what Bear Hunting has done to me.

South33 · 04-16-2011, 08:56 PM

haha
I have been dealing with the winter in the mountains also. There is still so much snow in the "good areas" that the bears haven't even thought of coming out...

-South

Semisane · 04-16-2011, 09:03 PM

That's not going to work for you 50Cal. The GM .54 replacement barrels are 1:70 twist round ball barrels. I don't see any way that would stabilize a 500 grain bullet.

50calty · 04-16-2011, 09:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Semisane

That's not going to work for you 50Cal. The GM .54 replacement barrels are 1:70 twist round ball barrels. I don't see any way that would stabilize a 500 grain bullet.

Its a .54 LongRangeHunter with the twist of 1:28. http://www.gmriflebarrel.com/product...aspx?id=323938 I can buy it from them direct or Track of the Wolf. And MMP Sabots make the sabot to fit the .500 bullet. http://www.mmpsabots.com/ Here are my xtps http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shoot...3Bcat104275080

I've pretty much convinced myself in getting the barrel just gotta sell my Renegade .50 cal.

Muley Hunter · 04-17-2011, 07:56 AM

Have you found the barrel in stock? GM barrels are hard to find now.

btw..Bears aren't that hard to kill. Unless you're talking about a Grizz. I'd carry all I could for them.

Semisane · 04-17-2011, 08:11 AM

Great! I didn't even know GM made the LRH model in .54, much less actually have them available. If you want it, grab it while it's available.

Gm54-120 · 04-17-2011, 08:29 AM

Ive shot 54x50 in a 1-28 twist and ive found a Rem CLHP 50-385gr to be about max. The sabot simply wont handle much more powder and recoil is brutal. I had to go upto a max load of BH209 just to get good groups and several MMP purples failed. The Barnes RED 54x50 sabots are tougher (never failed) but only come with Barnes bullets.

I would use the bullet Tony Knight recommended with a 54x50....The Speer 50-325gr HP or the Rainier 50-335gr if you want to save a bunch of money. $29/100 is a great deal IMO at MidwayUSA and its good enough for Alexander Arms to load in Beowulf ammo at 1900fps.

50calty · 04-17-2011, 08:44 AM

Well I ordered it from Track of the Wolf. They were ten dollars cheaper. Also ordered 1000 cleaning patches from them. They were really cheap compared to what I pay for in town. Also order some sabots. Got 100 purple and 50 red. It will probably be awhile before I buy 500 grain bullets so I got red so I could shoot my 300 xtps that i have for my inline. I'm not worried about the recoil. My father has a .458 lott that I LOVE to shoot. I don't know why I like soo much punishment from a gun. Its interesting that the purple didn't hold up. Maybe you had a bad bunch. Have to wait and see. So who wants a .50 Renegade barrel????

Gm54-120 · 04-17-2011, 08:59 AM

Actually i talked to Del about the problem and that is why Barnes had him make a different sabot for them.

Ive shot many many 54x50s and the 300-325gr options are PLENTY. The 50-300gr FTX performed really well. The 50-300gr GoldDot performs awesome in the 1700fps range and penetrates nearly 22" of gel. Speer offers a 50-350gr SP if you want even more penetration.

I seriously doubt you will get more fps than i can with 120gr of BH209 in a side lock, so your choices are even more limited. My little GMB54-120 carbine (6.5lbs) with a 385gr CLHP, pus sabot weight and a max load of BH209 is barking right on the heals of a full sized 458 Lott rifle in recoil. The calculator on handload.com puts my top load at over 55lbs of free recoil at just 1750fps with a 385gr/13gr sabot and 120gr of powder. Thats also adjusted for the extra weight of the scope and rings.

Recoil really isnt the problem, its getting the bullet to stabilize well and heavier bullets will need over 1700fps to even get close. Plus they may not expand properly if they will shoot slower.

Muley Hunter · 04-17-2011, 11:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 50calty

Well I ordered it from Track of the Wolf. They were ten dollars cheaper. Also ordered 1000 cleaning patches from them. They were really cheap compared to what I pay for in town. Also order some sabots. Got 100 purple and 50 red. It will probably be awhile before I buy 500 grain bullets so I got red so I could shoot my 300 xtps that i have for my inline. I'm not worried about the recoil. My father has a .458 lott that I LOVE to shoot. I don't know why I like soo much punishment from a gun. Its interesting that the purple didn't hold up. Maybe you had a bad bunch. Have to wait and see. So who wants a .50 Renegade barrel????

I hope you asked them if it was in stock? TOW has a habit of taking the money even when it's backordered.