frontier gander

4.57 sound about right for the .45?

Underclocked

.457" ? No - that's an awfully loose bore if you are getting that measure land to land. I would expect it to be .450" to .452"

frontier gander

I used some kind of ball looking thing that you screw to expand the ball and then you use the caliper tool and measure the ball.

frontier gander

Okay i measured right off the lands and groves with the calipers and came up with just slightly over .451, Im going to start with 20 of BS 225-245 grainers.

Underclocked

If you got just over .451, then I would order the bullets sized to .452. Wouldn't need more than a bit of thumb pressure to get them started and should go down the bore very easily.

And I would suggest a bit heavier bullet - what is the twist rate of the rifle you are going to shoot them in? Some 340 grain bullets shot great for me from a Knight .45 with 1:30 twist.

frontier gander

i think its a 1:48 twist but am unsure. i'd prefer to stick around in the 225-250 grain area so i wont have to file down to sight.

Underclocked

Ah, okay - a lighter bullet might just be the ticket. Do the grooves look deep or shallow - conicals do best with shallow grooves in my experience. Go with a bullet that has a fat nose (wide meplate). I would also use a card wad of some sort between powder and bullet, you could make your own from cardboard or similar.

One of the things that encourages full obturation of a conical in a muzzleloader is the weight of the bullet itself. The heavier the bullet, the harder it is to get started and as a result the bullet tends to fill the grooves better. Since you are going on the light side, a bullet with a hollow base might be the best choice but a card wad (or a few grains of buffer such as cornmeal) might well help achieve the good seal you need for accuracy.

frontier gander

Yes the bullshop guy also recommended a wad over the powder. I can buy a few samples of each to try out, once i find the right one i'll place a big order. So for starters i'll go with a .452, Which others do you think i should try out?

The rifling looks to be half the thickness of my fingernail. I wish i knew what thickness patch i use for the PRB, probably help out more with figuring out the rifling depth.

Underclocked

Try some of his 420 grainers just for grins. I don't have access to a list of his molds right now (or ever) but I know he has a bunch of different .457/8 molds that could make a suitable conical. His computer was down for a bit or he would very likely haveseveral auctions up on Auction Arms. Even though the ones he lists on auction are primarily for centerfire rifle and handgun, many of them could be excellent in a .45 muzzleloader if cast in pure lead and sized properly.

Now half the thickness of a fingernail, I would guess that to be about4 RCH?

kdsberman

I agree with you, Powerbelts are the way to go. I absolutely love them. I shoot 295gr hollow points out of my CVA Optima and see no reason to switch.