crb4809

MountainDevil54 gave some excellent advice on getting to the range early. I have a TC Omega (the same barrel as the Encore). I have been working off and on for two years to find an accurate conical load. Due to the QLA there has been a problem with the bullet starting to tumble after 50 yards. Using felt washers and 10 grains of cornmeal under a TC Maxi-hunter helped but did not completely cure the tumbling problem. The cornmeal and felt create a buffer to keep the expanding gases from causing uneven pressure in the QLA around the bullet. I have had some success with the Sabertooth but have heard of the bullet separating from the plastic skirt. After a hard day of hiking all over the mountains, shooting the plastic skirt without the bullet at an elk would be disappointing. Whether that is a real problem or not I do not know just something I read somewhere and I am not willing to take a chance. I have read a number of posts about elk taken last year with the FPB. I shot a 350gr FBP using 100 gr 777 into 3 phone books taped together at 75 yards. The bullet penetrated 5 1/2" of dry paper and exited through the 1/2" plywood backstop. I was unable to find the bullet. From the results of my penetration test and the fact that the FPB has proven itself on elk makes it a very good choice. The bullet you use cannot be any longer than twice the diameter or 1 inch in a 50 cal. The plastic tip on the FPB must be removed or cut off to make the FPB legal. I suppose that the No Excuses and Bullshop bullets are legal but do not know for sure. Hope some of that was useful information.

sabotloader

crb4809

They are Colorado legal becue they are less than 1" long.

I kinda wonder about the FPB, I have not shot any only looked at them in the store... arenot they just a conical wrapped in copper?

I wonder why they will shoot from your Omega and a lead conical will not. Have you ever shot a flat bottom conical from your rifle, such as a Bull Shop or No Excuse? I thingI understand why a 'minnie' based conical might not work in a QLA.

MountainDevil54

with the FPB i dont think you'd want to shoot it without the copper coating. Its a hard alloy, not real lead that most of us conical shooters are used to.


One conical that i NEVER can get to shoot in any of my rifles are the REAL conicals. No clue what the heck is with those.

txhunter58

I could not get any flat based conicals to shoot in my Omega. The no excuses were giving me 5-8 inch groups at 25 yards, some going through sideways.Not much better from otherflatbased conicals, andI tried many different ones.I think it is the flaired minnieball base on the FPB that makes it work in most Omegas. It flares like the powerbelt base, which also seem to do ok in the Omega. I think somehow this flare helps it pass through the QLA without being kicked sideways.

And yes, they are a conical wrapped in copper, but they are a lead alloy, which is why they don't come apart as easily as a pure lead conical.

sabotloader

txhunter58

Thanks for the clarification on the FPB - shows you how much interest I have in them... and your theory on the minnieball base might be exactly right - i sure could not dispute it.

It has long been my theory that the instant the conical leaves the lands and grooves and enters the QLA un-equal gas pressure acts upon the projectile to move it off course. It has long been conjectured that an off center QLA is the cause and in some cases it is. I have another theory at the end of the QLA - there is some sort of crown on the lands - I beleive the crown could be worn and causing the problem - just as if there was not a QLA and just a crown on the end of the barrel. Worn crowns certainly cause their share of POI problems.

So the nextquestion is, and I never approach a realgun smith with the question, can a gun smith or machinist reach inside the QLA and re-crown the lands and grooves? Gees, I might have to call a TC tech and ask that question?

I have an older Omega 2002 - and it seems to shoot the Bull Shops quite well - butthen again it shoots everything well.

JTOL (just thinking out loud)

txhunter58

The only thing I have heard of that has improved some Omegas is actually removing the QLA and recrowning. Not sure if they could do what you ask. I don't know why not though.

There are indeed some guns with a QLA that will shoot conicals. My brother bought one at the same time I did and his will shoot other conicals pretty well. But you certainly can't buy one with that in mind. That is why I told JWG he would just have to try some conicals and see if his particular gun would shoot them.

crb4809

Sabotloader: I was not ignoring your question about shooting No Excuses or Bullshop bullets in my Omega.I have been very busy the past week. I have not had an opportunity to use either of these bullets. The TC Maxi-Hunter that I tried was a flatbase conical. I did read on a forum somewhere that pushing a bullet too hard might cause it to tumble. My guess is that with a solid lead bullet and the 1in28 twist combined with the QLA I may have caused it to be unstable. I intend to do some more range work this year and reduce my powder charge to see if I can stabilize it.
Since I live in south Texas wheremuzzleloading is virtually non-existent. What is a "minnie" based conical?

sabotloader

crb4809

'minie' type conical... was the next step up from a Round Ball - some french maninvented it - it allowed shooting a ball with the 'minnie' type cavity in the base - rendering the paper or cloth patch unnecessary.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mini%C3%A9_ball

crb4809

Thanks for the information. Without the internet and forums like this all I would know about muzzleloading is that atsome time in the far past mountain men used them.