PowderHorn further testing
 

It was too nice not to shoot. So I hiked the target back to 53 yards. The snow is melting in this warm weather. It was 38 degrees outside. I then got back to the shooting bench. I wanted to see, knowing that the 50 caliber Green Mountain Barrel Renegade with the new Cabela's PowderHorn Scope was sighted in at 25 yards... I was curious, where it would hit at 50 yards.

Again I was shooting Schuetzen 2f Black Powder, 300 grain Hornady XTPs, and Harvester Crushed Rib sabots. I was swabbing today with Rusty Duck Black Off and swabbing after every shot. The Winchester Magnum #11 caps were going to set the whole mess off.



Shot number one on a clean swabbed barrel kind of surprised me, but while I can not swear to it, I think there was a little hang fire. Maybe too much swab solution before I took the rifle to the bench. Or maybe the clean barrel syndrome. But I suspect too much swab. Although it did go off.

I was extra careful not to over swab between shots. Group #1 was very acceptable to me. Granted it would be nice to have it tighter, but I can live with that. I did have one flier. And I have no reason for it. I fired and it suddenly appeared. Kind of bummed me out actually.

Then to see if the scope would behave, I gave it five clicks down. And shot group #2. I fired three shot. In fact the first two were touching like that an I was kind of excited. Maybe why #3 did what it did to me. Puts me back in perspective.

I then went in the house and cleaned the rifle very well. I was going to hang it up for the day as I have a lot of other things I should be doing, but saw some 348 grain Powerbelt Aero Tips hanging there on my rack wall. So I figured.. a couple more shots.



I lowered the powder charge down to 80 grains and was swabbing between shots. I fired three rounds but I can only see two holes there. So one must have went through a same hole or missed completely. Anyway they were a real surprise to me.

But I wonder why they hit so much lower then the 300 grain XTPs. I mean 48 grains is not the end of the world. But with that kind of accuracy, I could learn to adjust.

The scope behaved perfect today. It traveled in those five clicks about what I guessed it would do. And again, nice and clear. Also on 10x it is easy to check the target from the bench at that distance.

That's some fine shooting. Good report too.

One of these days i want to get a conventional muzzleloader with a short barrel. It has to be a left handed one.

Nice shooting. Glad to hear that the scope is holding up.

As you and i have already discussed, i have had a 3x10x40 Powder Horn for three years now and at this moment I am totally pleased with it.

Abd I have to tell you I have not been kind to it... and it just keeps shooting great groups...

I trust the scope so much it is even installed a new Mountaineer that i hubted with this fall. The same scope scope scored me a nice little buck 2 years ago mounted on a DISC Elite 50 cal...
Can not really see it.. here it is



and here it was after it had done its work...

Nice shooting! You're making me want to pick up one of these scopes, I've had my eye on them for a couple years now..... That group with the 348 Powerbelts is impressive- with 80 grains of black powder that would put a wallop on a deer....

After shooting those 348 aero tip powerbelts and watching that group, I was amazed. And I agree with you, 80 grains of 2f black powder should make that powerbelt behave real well. Plus I could load them without a short starter. Which was nice.

Ditto!

Are they discontinuing these, or just on sale?

I have no idea what the reason is for them being so inexpensive. But to be honest, today I was switching scopes and mounts on a few rifles and I seriously considered ordering another one of these PowderHorns to put on my stainless steel .45 caliber Green Mountain Barrel. I mean if any rifle should shoot long range, that should be one of them.

yep the 348 Powerbelt performs excellent with 80gr 2f. You can actually push them up to 100gr 2F Goex with no fragmenting issues.

Well granted that was 50+ yards, but that kind of accuracy was hard to over look. I got a heck of a deal on them Powerbelts at Gander Mountain Store and so I picked up four cards. I still think they would make an excellent 50 yard and under bullet for deer, but then I have no field experience. But with that kind of accuracy, you could easy place the bullet.

Today I took out the Green Mountain Barrel that is 1-28 and 45 caliber. I had shifted scopes and so now it has different mounts and a 4x32mm Simmon Pro Diamond. I was shooting 85 grains of Graf's and Sons 3f powder and a 200 grain Hornady XTP in a light blue Harvester EZ load sabot. The accuracy of that rifle was amazing. And I was wondering... what size powerbelts do they sell for that caliber, and would they shoot well?