Tal/IL, I am afraid, my friend, that it is your inexperience that is on display here, tempered by a healthy dose of ignorance on the subject of smokeless powder muzzleloading. You see my friend, I have been thru the gaunlet of flintlock p/rb, sidelock percussion with solid lead conicals, to sidelocks with saboted pistol bullets, to in-lines with saboted pistol bullets, to custom smokeless powder muzzleloaders, to the Savage 10ML and 10ML-II. I have more ropunds down range thru smokeless muzzleloaders than most people put down range in a lifetime, collectively. When it comes to the subject of smokeless powder muzzleloading I am anything but inexperienced.

If you think that a p/rb is more efficient than a Savage 10ML-II at taking game? Let let the figures speak for themsleves, shall we?

.50 Cal shooting .490 cal 177gr Speer round ball:
muzzle fps/fpe....100yd.....200yd.....300yd
2,300/2138.....1,099/488...781/247...590/141


.50 cal 10ML-II with .452 Hornday 300gr XTP
mzl fps/fpe....100yd........200yd.......300yd
2230/3313...2026/2735...1500/1499..1234/1015


.50 cal 10ML-II with .452 Hornday 250gr XTP
mzl fps/fpe....100yd.......200yd........300yd
2450/3333...1985/2188...1591/1406...1276/904

I am being a little conservative with the 10ML-II, because the latest load data performance is 20-25% greater than I listed here. The fact is that the 10ML-II performance is greater at 300yds, than a P/RB has at 100yds. How can someone with your self-proclaimed knowledge and experience make a logical arguement that a P/RB muzzleloader is just as effective or more so at taking game, than the smokeless 10ML-II, when the facts are staring you right in face? Yes the round balls start out fast and put up modestly impressively fpe at muzzle, but with basically zero BC, they shed velocity and energy not just by the yard, but by the inch.

If I put my Savage 10ML-II in a circa 1700's stock, removed my scope, installed open sights, added a dummy rocklock, so that it looks like a flintlock, would that please you?

Edited by - 1SHOT_1KILL on 01/15/2002 14:57:43