45 50 question
 

So I read an article tonight in Deer and Deer hunting magazine about muzzleloaders...specifically the .45 vs. .50 cal...and he basically made the point that other than the .50 being legal in all us states, better for really big game, like Grizzlies, and being the most easy to get, that the .45 is the superior caliber because of higher velocity and energy, and that it was a better long range accuracy round with less drop.
If this is true then why aren't more people using .45's and not .50? And also why are .50's so much more popular?

mnprohunter

Well it is sort of true.... Energy is a function of velocity and remaining velocity at the target.

Example a 40/200 grain bullet fired from a 45 cal @ 23/24/2500 fps second developes a given energy. But it is also know that the lighter bullet will loose energy faster than a heavier bullet fired at a slower velocity... The other thing is that you can shoot that same 40/200 grain bullet from a 50 cal at near the same speeds.

Another factor is the burn rate of the powder that pushes the bullet. In a centerfire you can get powder with lots of different burn rates to drive that 45 cal bullet efficiently. BP and ML subs you do not really have the luxuary of a lot of different speeds. With the lighter 45 cal bullets you may not even burn all the powder before the bullet is out of the barrel.

If it were me and this is my opinion only if I were shooting beyond 175 yards I really would want a 50 cal with a heavier bullet than is available in 45 - unless you are talking a Lead conical. A 45 lead conical can be had that weighs 460 grains from Bull Shop - that will carry the energy but it will not be as fast...

Hope some of this makes sense - somebody better than I will explain further...

45 50
 

Hey, I own 4 Muzzleloaders, 2 .50 cal's and 2 .45 cal's. For taking Whitetail Deer, both do their job. I think the biggest difference is in Bullet Selection. Next time you are in your local Sporting Goods store, check out the selection of bullets, you will find that .50 cal will be 75% of the total. Also, most manufactures make more models in .50 cal then .45. One man's opinion.

i prefer a 50cal for conicals and a 54+ for round balls. A .45 is nice too but like others mentioned, less ammo to pick from at the stores + if i have a deer & elk tag in my pocket and i run into an elk while carrying a .45 im kinda screwed as a .45 isnt legal to hunt elk in my state.

Thanks guys. I have no interest at this time in buying a .45. It just seemed interesting that this author pretty much snubbed .50 cal in favor of 45's.

I guess maybe there are several different view points, because people have different need to consider. A .45 can get some more velocity up to 200 FPS which can produce a difference in point blank range. The possible problem is can you with the very limited supply of bullets and sabots fined a combination that has enough accuracy to take advantage of that velocity. On of the other things I have noticed is that Blackhorn seems to be a better match with the .45 than with the .50.
There is also the problem with some state laws. I think that will eventually be leveled out part of that problem is law makers who do not understand the sport or the progress being made in it. A 45 with a heavy .458 bullet and the right sabot and say 130 gr of BH would more than equal a 45:70 in my opinion. A little time and a few more options may well see the .45 come to life again.

With BP and BP sub MLs, the 45 gives only a marginal advantage in velocity that one may argue is hardly meaningful. Typically, you are using the same .40cal bullets as the 50 can shoot to do this. Now is someone would come out with a jacketed bullet that looked like the 195gr .357 DC, I'd be tempted to add a 45 to the stable. Right now there are not high BC jacketed .357 bullets available that do the caliber justice.

In the smokeless ML world (ie Savage) the .45 is gaining popularity because the .50 version of those won't shoot the .40cal bullets as the violence of smokeless ignition is too much for the thick sabots. The velocity difference is also more meaningful.

I shot the 200SW for years out of a .50, I guess I could have tweaked it a little in a .45 to gain a bit of velocity. However I can shoot the .458 325gr FTX in my 50 but not in a 45, and get the same trajectory with double the energy. Just a little more punishment on the shoulder.

I think for the most part people buy whats in the store and don't do much research.
If Michael Waddel shoots it the I'll take it.
The dealers and merchants decide what we shoot when they decide what to carry.
I prfer to shoot my 45 more than my 50.
Many of the stores I shop have NOTHING for the 45 cal.

Most of the new technology these days is for the 50 cal. I have five muzzies, 4 are 50 cal and one 54 cal. Its just easier for me to go with 50 cal, I can buy a box of bullets and try them in all my guns to see how they shoot.

Writers have to eat to...The guy was just needing some money so he figured this article would sell...:s2:

I think the popularity of the .50 goes back to the bullets available when ML started to gain popularity and sabots were introduced. I remember when .45, .50 and .54 versions of many models were available but then the .54 went away, then the .45 more recently.

Back then, what we had available was pistol bullets. There were a lot of jacketed pistol bullets available in the .44-.45cal range that could be shot out of sabots in the .50. None really for the .54 or .45, a .357 pistol bullet weighs only 158gr typically, certainly under 200. Even if you used them, they were not designed for the velocity and would not hold together.

So the .50 won out due to sabots and the available bullets at the time. Now, we have some really viable bullets for the .45 as the .40 bullets designed for MLs came out, but their time (the .45s) has passed. Perhaps if we see some good .357 high BC bullets come out that will change, but at this point it's a chicken-and-egg scenario, why develop a great .357 bullet when there are no guns out there to shoot it?

I can tell you if I was going to shoot RBs I'd go straight to a .54.

I live in N.Y. and 45.Cal's are legal here, but in all the years of Hunting I have never seen anyone with a 45.cal MLer. And if you think it's hard for you's to find 45.cal MLer stuff where you live just try finding it here.
It's more of a popularity thing also, if everyone shot a 45 than there'd be less 50cal stuff around, but the 50 is the most popular so that's the way it goes, there must be a reason for this as most shoot 50's.
(BP)



(BP)

I agree with pretty much what everyone else has said. I only have a .45, but I don't know anyone else who does - all my friends and hunting buddies have .50's. That being said, I don't regret my choice - I love shooting my .45, and have been able to find bullets without a problem, although I usually have to order them over the internet.

The .45 might have slight advantage on paper over the .50 when shooting .40 cal bullets, but it's probably not enough for anyone to notice in real-world shooting.

One advantage that no one has mentioned is with shooting light-recoiling loads. When working up a load for a kid or a recoil-sensitive person, a .45 is ideal. You can load a 158 grain .357 magnum bullet with 50 or 60 grains of powder that has almost no recoil, but duplicates a .357 mag load out of a carbine- plenty adequate for deer at close range.