Back when I used a .45 my charge was 75grs FFF Goex...I tested this load by shooting through a 2x4 at 50 yards...The first deer I ever killed with this muzzleloader was the fall of 1977...I was still hunting down an old railroad bed that runs through a swamp on one of our farms when I noticed a group of does about 50-60 yards away...I took a rest on a cypress tree, picked out a doe, held just behind the shoulder and touched off...My ball took her in the left shoulder, passed through the shoulder blade, spine, right shoulder blade and stopped under the hide on the right side...Of course she dropped...

Through the years I learned to hold lower and killed at least 50 with that .45 and load...I never had any problems with the .45 ball killing deer...Now I also learned not to rely on a heavy blood trail to find my deer...Even today when when I shoot deer with my .243, shotgun, inline, bow or .54 I go to where I last saw the deer, not where they were standing when the shot was taken...As we all know, deer do not always start leaving a blood trail at the site of the hit...Typically my deer run 50-75 yards with a lung shot, no matter the weapon...If I need to drop them, I take a high shoulder shot...

If you HAVE to have a deer drop on the spot to find them do not use a roundball (or a PowerBelt)... This is also why more powder behind a ball is not always a good idea...They are made of pure lead and flatten easily...More powder simply helps them shoot flatter, not kill more effectively...This has been an ongoing debate I've heard for over 30 years...If you use higher powder charges and shoot a deer real close and you hit a good bone, you're ball probably will not exit...This is also a good reason to hold on the lower third of a deer...The rib bones aren't as tough down there...

At any rate, learn to find deer when you don't have blood, no matter what weapon you use...