In a flinter




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Will a twist of 1:48 shoot sabot rounds in addition to maxis's? Could I shoot conicals in a 1:48. I am confused that some of the rifles say they will shoot them and some say maxi and round ball, and don't mention sabot? Help me figure this out please.
as always thanks boyos!

1-48 twist is your do all twist. Some claim it shoots roundball but not well. That of course is not true. I shoot roundball out of my 1-48 twist with amazing accuracy. The 1-48 will shoot conicals like the Great Plains, REAL, Maxiball, Maxihunter, Powerbelts, Sabertooth and others. The question here is, which one if any will it shoot well. Some 1-48 shoot maxiball real well but not maxihunters. Some shoot powerbelts, like my Lyman but not Great Plains. It is all a matter of trial and error. Also some of the 1-48 will shoot sabots. Then again some will not. You might have to experiment with a lot of different sabots, bullet weights, etc but there probably is one out there it will shoot well.

Just because your rifle is a flinter means nothing. The barrel twist will determine what it will and will not shoot. I can not write here and say POSITIVITLY the rifle twist will shoot sabots and conicals. It does in some BUT NOT ALL CASES. All you can do it try the different things in the rifle and let the rifle determine what it shoots.

Cayugad as always is right on. Many moons ago when PA started a muzzleloader season you could only use flintlock and patched round ball. There were a few lymans around with a 1:66 twist but most of us had 50 cal T/C Hawkens or Renegades wit a 1:48 twist. And we did pretty good. We used to go out on Sunday afternoons and put plastic spoons, handle first, into the edges of cardboard boxes and shoot off hand at them at 50 yds. We hit them with much regularity too. And several of us managed to get deer with them too.
But as Cayugad suggests you are going to have to play around with your rifle and see what it likes. Try different bullets with different powders and different charges. Sooner or later you are going to find the 'magical mix' of bullet and powder for your rifle. Good luck.

Buck Hunter 1

Chapman Gleason - shoots a 300 grain Speer Gold Dot from his flinter - has harvested animals with that combination... Can not remember what his powder charge is or was....

Sam and Jake Hawken had a 1-48 twist rifling machine...Seems their rifles had a pretty good reputation...

One other point...My 54 has a 1-72 twist, my .40 has a 1-48 twist, both are round ball guns with cut rifling...

I've found the sweet spot for may guys that had factory sidelocks, they would all shoot as well as open sights would allow...Some just took a little more work than others...

cayugad has it right on my tc hawkin has 1-48 twist and loves maxi balls hates maxi hunter so does my traditions in line its alsoa .54 1-48 twist 209 primer ignition. shoots maxi balls great. I especially love to cast my own for next to nothing from scrap lead , and hear all the new sabot shooters whine about a buck a bullet for store bought.

Twist takes a lot of explaining, for one thing what caliber you are talking about makes a difference.
I will assume you are talking about a 50 cal since it is the most popular [ a 54 cal is best for PRB hunting]
while each gun is a law unto itself there are some generalities.
with a sabot I would try short bullets as they will normally match the twist best, I have had a 1-48 twist shoot 230 and 200 gr 45 cal bullets with a sabot in less than 2.5 inches which I consider good for a twist designed for PRB and conicals.
Real bullets and maxie balls usually do well also.
If you wish to do a bit of research on the subject look up "Greenhil formula" there is a free mini program if you get on the right sight that will caculate what twist works with what bullets. Lee
PS. oneof the sights you might find interesting
http://www.z-hat.com/twistrate.htm
http://kwk.us/twist.html

Thanks all. I like an all around gun as it goives lots of options and shooting oppoprtunities.