bullets drop faster than normal??
 

to start i am fairly new with muzzleloaders and am just beginning to understand and love the sport. so yesterday i was at the range with my first experience shooting loose powder. I am shooting a T/C Omega z5 with 250 grain shockwaves and 90 grains of 777 ffg. am shooting clover leafs at 100yds all day. am holding dead on at 100. then back of to 200 and they are about 14 inches low. i know that alot of people talk about shooting at 200 so do you just hold that high over or what. i even tried shooting with 120 grains of powder and it didnt make a difference.

RE: bullets drop faster than normal??
 

brad...I've been shooting black powder since 1975, one concern I have is manufacturers pushing the idea that deer should be shot at 200 yards....In my opinion, 150 is plenty...Once you move to MLs like the Savage, in my opinion, you might as well pull out the '06...

All that being said, set your scope where you are 2 1/2 - 3 inches high at 100, this will help flatten out the trajectory for you...Also, buy a range finder...

In my Knight Disc, I use the 250 Shockwaves, 90grs Goex FFF, sight in 2 1/2 high at 100 and I'm 2 1/2 low at 150...Good Luck...

RE: bullets drop faster than normal??
 

brad_vanderband1

Brad you can shoot that bullet 200 yards but that is stretching the envelope a bit.... First I would shoot it with 100/110 grains of T7-2f. Then you will need to be about 3" high @ 100 to get to be a point and shoot shot @ 200.

Here is ballistic chart - use it as a reference only... you will need to do the actual shooting to verify...

RE: bullets drop faster than normal??
 

I you can consistently place that bullet at 200 yards then I think you would be safe to do it. Remember the drop with the bullet and raise accordingly. Be sure to shoot for the large percentage kill areas. If the rifle shoots well with 120 grains of powder as you say, and you do suspect the 200 yard possibility, I would suggest you shoot that powder charge just for the extra down range energy.

RE: bullets drop faster than normal??
 

Based on your results and similar loads that I have chronoed with that bullet and powderI would guess that you are right around 1800fps +/- 50. At that velocity you can do as suggested and sight in 3" high at 100 yards and you should be dead on around 140 to 150, down around 4" at 175and down about 8" to 9" at 200. The energy should still be above 800 fpe at 200 so the load should work if the placement is good. As mentioned, verify these numbers at the range and make sure you practice at the extremes of the range you plan to hunt at so you know what the load and YOU can do.

RE: bullets drop faster than normal??
 

i was just under the impression that they would shoot flatter then that. and i hear people say they would shoot the 300 grain for extra ump downrange. wouldnt that bullet drop alot more? and my gun shoots the best with 90 grains, and that particlular day the wind was directly in my face and when i went over 90 grains i could feel the powder htting me in the face, so obviously it wasnt getting used. would a different powder be better in my gun or burn faster or is this the best for my situation. it was the powder they cared and looked good to me!!

RE: bullets drop faster than normal??
 

I'm not sure who told you it would shoot flatter thanthat but sorry, that is just the facts of muzzleloading. With more powder it will shoot a little flatter but it will never be a center fire rifle. I do have a load using 130gr of Pyro pellets that uses the 250 Shockwaveand itshoots fairly flat. In my son's Apex it is going around 2050 to 2100fps and is point and shoot to 200 yards when sighted in 3" high at 100, after that it starts dropping pretty quick. I can't get enough loose powder to burn in the barrel to match that performance but it works with pellets. Also, don't be fooled by the 300gr bullet drop. The difference in trajectory with the same amount of powder as the 250 will only be a couple of inches moreat 200 yards but the energy will be a couple of hundred foot pounds higher. I don't have my ballistic calculator with me right now so I can't give you exact ratios.

The best thing to do is find the load that gives you the accuracy you want with enough energy do get the job done at the ranges you plan to hunt at, then sight in to get the longest reasonable point blank range you can and learn the drop for longer ranges if needed. Good luck with it.
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RE: bullets drop faster than normal??
 

The shots you see on TV being done by Greg Ritz are with 150g of 777 pellets, not with 90 or 120g of loose. Most folks that shoot long distances shoot 3" high at 100 and then they are about 3" low at between 150 and 175, but with a 250g SW, that is closer to 200. Chap

RE: bullets drop faster than normal??
 

If you really need to shoot 200yds then try the 50/40 200gr Shock Wave,it shoots out of my Omega with 3 x 500gr Pyrodex pellets avg is 2300 fps I sight in 3 inches high at 100yds and it POI at 200 is about 4 inches low.
Only in one particular spot do I need this, 200yd shots are actully fairly rare and you need to set up for them and pratice them to be able to do it right and if you have a wind forget it. Lee

RE: bullets drop faster than normal??
 

IF your bullet strikesonly -14" @ 200 yards when zeroed dead-on at 100, that's good!. Bullets appear to dropmuch faster after the bullet drops below the line of sight, which in this case occurs at100 yards. You could zero your rifle to be, say, 3" high at 100 yards. Itwould then strike 6" higher at 200 than it did zeroed dead on at 100. So it would now strike- 8" at 200.

If you decide to do something like this,make sure you shoot it at 60 and 150 yards, as well as 100 and 200, just to insure that at its' absolute maximum height above your line of sight, the bullet is not so high up that it would pass OVER a targetat an intermediate range!

If you left it as it is now, you could pretty much be assured of a vital hit on a deer at ranges between125 and 200 yards by holding just below the line of a deer's backbone (on a broadside shot). The bullet would drop below your point of aim, but would still hit within the vital zone of a deer that had a chest 18" deep. Between the muzzle and 125 yards, you could aim dead on. For smaller animals, (those with chests less than 18" deep)you'd have to reduce the range at which you'd be willing to take the longshots.