Hello, I have an chance to purchase a almost new, barrel looks good, Lyman Great plains hunter in 54 cal. What can I expect for accuracy with this rifleare there barrels well made. I would probably be shooting sabots in the 250gr range.I have a Green mountain Long-Range-Hunter Barrel on my 50 cal TC hawken and it shoots great. I shoot the 250gr shockwaves in my TC and I would like to use the same style of bullet in the lyman 54. I use 100 gr of triple 7 in the 50 and was wondering if that would be about the same in the 54. I ama bitconcerned about purchasing the Lyman54, and then finding out that its not the shooter that my TC is.( also due to the fact the barrel is stamped Made in Italy )thanks for the help. Steve

Steve it is hard for anyone to guess how well the rifle will shoot. A friend of mine shoots that exact rifle. He shoots a Lyman Maxi Ball with very good accuracy. I can not remember him shooting sabots though. Whether that rifle will shoot sabots.. who really knows. I do believe there are barrels that can be purchased for that rifle. If the price is right, you might want to buy it for an investment in the future as they have really went up in price. Besides, you can never have enough rifles.

I'm not sure about the 54 but I have the 50 hunter barrel along with a 54 round ball barrel for my Great Plains. I get very good results shooting conicals out of the hunter barrel, some loads were under .5" at 75 yards. I have not shot a lot of sabot rounds out of it but the ones I have were decent to good, 2" or less at 75 yards. I haven't shot it much lately due to traveling for work so I need more time to develop some loads and explore it's range of powder cappabilities with each bullet. There are sabots for the 54cal that will work with most bullets that work in a 50cal so you do have options to try out in it. Good luck and keep us all informed.

Hey Steve,
I shoot the Hawkens Sportized Carbine that is made by InvestArms. That is the same company that makes Lymans rifles. I love mycarbine. In thewoods it was a dream to carry and hunt with. I nailed a large doe with it and I was shooting a Barnes Expander sabot:

http://www.barnesbullets.com/products/muzzleloader/expander-mz/

As far as accuracy, it is a shooter. I group three rounds at 50 yds to inside 1& 1/2". I nevertried to go any farther since here inVirginia the country side is pretty heavey and thick. It handles conicals nicely. My barrelhasa 1 in24" twist rate.

I thinkyou will findthat you will enjoy your rifle. Good hunting!!!

I had a great plains in 50 cal..Lost it in the fire
a few years back..I loved that gun..It shot round
balls excellent..I think it had a 1 -60 or 1-66 twist..
I aint sure if it would shoot sabots or not
My guess would be NO...There has got to be some
body on here that knows..These good ole boys know
a lot about makin smoke and noise..

Kind of like the Bevel Brothers UP or Down

Johnny2,

The Great Plains Rifle has a 1 in 60 round ball twist. The Great Plains Hunter has a 1 in 32 twist which allows the heavier conicals and sabot rounds to stabilize. The 2 barrels can be swapped in the same stock so it gives you the ability to use the one you want without having to buy the whole gun. I bought the 54 GPR then added the 50 GPH barrel to have the best of both worlds.