eldeguello

Well, I just finished up building a 12-bore Jaeger rifle. I am using .735" balls that weight 597.5 grains with a 0.15" T/C greased patch. I must now head to the range with file and hammer in hand to "zero" it. I would like to havea load that gives me +- 1350 FPS MV, and zero it to be +2" @ 50 yds, - 2 @ 100 yds,or close to these figures.

Anyone have a load recommendation for me?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v444/eldeguello/8.jpg
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Long Hammock barrel, Davis-Jaeger lock & trigger, Tiger Hunt premium cherry stock.

Thanks

mauser06

all i can say is IM JEALOUS!!!!!! for a while i wanted a flintlock for turkey and other such critters....i got stuck on building me a big smooth bore jaeger flinter...just kinda hard to scrap up the money i want to put into the gun going to college and all......but a couple years and ill be building away hopefully......awesome looking rifle.....you going to work up some shot loads for it as well? or just going to use it as a "shoulder mounted mini cannon" as i call them GIANT roundball guns?? 600grs of lead......my goodness...for comparisions sake...how many grains are in a pound?? if i had to guess i wanted to say 550ish....but that cant be right....wait...i know this..its close to 2000grs in a pound isnt it?? powder is measured in grains right?? theres.....i forget how many grains of powder in a pound......ahhhh its too early...not enough sleep...and i gota goto work!! ill be waiting for the answer though! lol....congrats on the rifle.....that looks GOOD.....and you made me jealous!! i think smokin a turkey with one of them would be absolutely awesome...but they look a tad on the heavy side...opposed to my 5-6lb 870 turkey gun with a 21 inch barrel! lol....but lugging it around would be awesome......and man that big of a ball......thatll knock the fur off a deer!

eldeguello

Thanks! I hadn't considered the shot load idea, but it would probably work for short range shooting, as the rifling twist is 1/78", so the shot charge might not disperse too rapidly.

There are 7000 grains in a pound, so this rifle actually carries 11.7 balls per pound - just a little bigger than a 12 bore, but close enough to be called a 12, I guess.

I haven't weighed it yet, but guess it is around 10 pounds - a sling will be mandatory, but the extra weight helps hold the recoil down. I have fired it a couple of times with 150 grains of Swiss FFg, and while the recoil was "noticeable", it was not too obnoxious. Not nearly as punishing as my Ruger No. 1 in .45/70 with a stiff load. Must be that big ol' broad butt spreads the recoil around some.....

mauser06

oh.....the 12 bore threw me off thinking you had a smooth bore...i think the ones i were looking at were 71 or 72cals...which your right...is close enough to a 12bore to call it one...and the weight...yes im sure that helps recoil ALOT....i couldnt imagine it NOT weighing that much....i know my 50cal tc hawken can knock you around a little with a 350gr bullet and a stiff load of powder behind it...when i get the cash in the future i want a smoothbore....like i said a flintlock for turkeys is what i want mainly...and if its anything accurate maybe try my hand at thumping a deer with it..i read smoothbores CAN be accurate...

did you shoot yours yet?? curious to as how it shot...looks like a mighty fine rifle

cayugad

Since this is a rifle, what is the rate of twist in the barrel if it has one? That is a beautiful rifle. I can't wait for the range reports. That was the one reason I wanted to get a Brown Bess was to be able to throw that kind of lead around. I would think with the right twist and around 120-150 grains of powder, that would take out anything..

That really is pretty. Have fun at the range.

Charley

Very nice work. Not my favorite style, Jaegers have always seemed kinda stumpy for my taste. It's gonna be a thumper, that is for sure.

eldeguello

Thanks! The twist is 1/78", wide, shallow grooves, relatively thin lands. In effect, it is a Forsythe bore, but with a faster twist.I had originally thought a 1/120" or slower would be correct, but the barrelmaker, Riley Smith, recommended the 1/78" fora 12-bore.

Hopefully, I'll get to the range tomorrow with chronograph, file,hammer, and brass drift to see if I can
A: Find a load that gives around 1300-1350 FPS
B. Get the sights regulated

The sights look like they're"on" now using a Bushnell Boresighter with 12-ga spud. But of course, "chawin' de string don't prove de puddin'. "

eldeguello

And so they are, mine being especially bad in that respect. I have seen some that handled a lot better than their appearance would lead you to expect before picking it up,but those were usually around54 caliber and had swamped barrels. It'll be awhile before I get daring enough to try to inlet a swamped barrel. Straight ones are tough enough for me!

BS

A 140 grain load of FF should put you really close to the 1350 mark.

What is your bore size, a true 12 ga. is .729, that .735 must take a stiff wrap to start...........or is your bore bigger?

I shoot .725 to .705s out of my 73 cal, but it only has a 26" long tube. The 725s weigh in the 550 grain area.

eldeguello

Thanks, BS. I too was thinking of starting off with 140 grains of Swiss FFg.

When I slugged it, the slug showed the land diameter to be right at .730" with a groove of .7385". The .735 ball will sit on the muzzle without a patch, and it does require a pretty good whack to start it even with only a .010" patch. However, the balldoes not have to be hit hard enough to deform it or leave a mark when using a 0.50" diameter hardwood short starter.

Where didyou find .725" balls? Did you have someone make you a .725" mould? I have some .715" balls and some .735" balls, which I purchased locally. But I believe BOTHthese diameters tobe a compromise, as somewhere between.720" to .730"would seem to be closer to the ideal diameter for this bore. (The barrel maker, Riley Smith of Long Hammock Barrels, said the barrel would be a .73-caliber, and it is!) I can certainly shoot it with the .735" balls, but these might be a little slow loading for hunting. I have not tried the .715" s yet, but with the right patching these might prove satisfactory.