Targets #1 thru #6 Were Shot Using Open Sights And A $20.00 CVA Bobcat With A Badly Rust Pitted barrel




I believe I can harvest a deer out to 75 yards with this clunker. I think the Bobcat behaved pretty well with some heavy lead.
The next targets were shot using a Thompson Center Renegade with a .50 Cal. 21 inch Green Mountain Long Range Hunter Barrel and Open Sights





This target (#13) was shot using Pyrodex loose. There was a delayed ignition of the powder on every shot. I didn't know there would be a problem using Pyrodex loose and #11 caps in a sidelock.

The last target (#15) was shot using the bullet that comes with the yellow sabot in the Thompson Center Shockwave package. The yellow sabot was replaced with a Thompson Center Mag Express sabot.
It looks like 75 yards is about as far as the Renegade will cleanly harvest a deer with open sights. That's MY limmit though I'm sure.

Pluckit, I am curious as to why you didn't try the saboted bullets in the Bobcat? At the 25 yd mark, it was obvious that the Maxiballs were not liked by the rifle. At 25 yds, I would expect to see the bullets in the same hole, or very close to each other at worst. You spent a lot of time out there that could have produced better results form the CVA. Next time out, try the saboted bullets and if it does no better, you may want to consider tossing that barrel or getting it rebored.

The rifle cost me twenty dollars and was rusted to hell when I got it. I have allready spent more on the rifle in EvaoRust than the gun is worth. I have tried sabots with it before with terrible results. Round balls did no better. My only other option was to try some big lead. I thought that they shot pretty well considering the shape of the bore.
I'm also not aware of a saboted bullet being a good choice for a 1 in 48 inch twist barrel. Let alone a badly pitted one.

Well, you could always see if you can find someone to bore it out to 20GA. (.615") smoothbore and have yourself a handy little shotgun. Is it a 1" barrel?

There was a time when you could get a CVA Bobcat for $70.00 at Wallmart. I was never expecting for this badly abused rifle to win any shooting matches, I only hoped I could get it to shoot well enough to harvest a deer with it. I think I have done that out to a limmited range and it will be a good gun to take out when it's raining and not worry about it. I need to file about half of the front sight off and knock the rear sight over to the laft a little or just have it drilled and tapped for a cheap scope.

bobcats and mtn rifles are no longer cheap these days. Gunbroker sells them in the $120-$130 range.

With those maxiballs,i'd seriously use some wads with them. I remember back when i had a winchester apex .45 and was shooting some 255? grains maxiballs and them suckers would produce a 4 to 7" vertical group. Once i put the little wad behind them, bingo! All 3 would touch.

I've been meaning to try some wads behind a Maxiball for a long time now but I just keep putting it off. As far as shooting a 370 grain piece of lead with no recoil pad on a Bobcat stock, it's murder on your shoulder. Would you have any suggestions as to one that would fit the Bobcat's stock?

when the rifle is abused, there really is no answer as to what it will shoot. Normally I found the more abused... the less powder used. I have a couple of them like that. I can tell you that the old Mountain Stalker I traded to Frontier Gander was a good shooter but it liked 85 grains and a round ball.

That little 21 inch barrel is sure a fun barrel to shoot. I have one in flintlock. I shoot 250 grain XTPs with 85 grains of powder. Also it likes 200 grain Shockwaves for some reason.

Over all it looked like a fun day at the range.

For some reason I started with 70 grains of fff Goex. For me, that is a light load. I was surprized to see how well the Renegade shot the 300 grain XTP's with such a light load. I bumped it up 10 grains with no better results, maybe a little worse. So I stuck with 70 grains. Even the drop was not bad at all from 50 to 100 yards.

Actually that would be a good load with that short barrel. All too often we push powder on these rifles. I will have to try that next time I can get to the range.