54 Renegade Loads?
#12
Spike
Joined: Nov 2011
Posts: 76
Likes: 0
From: Southern Appalachia
What can be expected with T7? It's all I have on-hand currently and Pyrodex is scarce in my part of the woods. I have hoped to shoot it.
#13
Boone & Crockett
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 10,918
Likes: 1
From: River Ridge, LA (Suburb of New Orleans)
mjac, I found load development more finicky with T7 because it had a tendency to blow the patch. It shot OK for me once I found the powder charge/patch/ball/lube combination the gun wanted. But not as well as either Pyrodex or GOEX, both of which were more forgiving. With T7, increasing the amount of lube over what I used for other powders seemed to help.
#14
mjac, I found load development more finicky with T7 because it had a tendency to blow the patch. It shot OK for me once I found the powder charge/patch/ball/lube combination the gun wanted. But not as well as either Pyrodex or GOEX, both of which were more forgiving. With T7, increasing the amount of lube over what I used for other powders seemed to help.
#15
Typical Buck
Joined: Nov 2010
Posts: 583
Likes: 0
From: The "empire" state-NY
T7 is all I shoot since that .54 Renegade. I've read posts here about blown patches,etc but, honestly, I have no such issues & even reuse patches successfully.
However, I rarely shoot more 75-80 grains.
However, I rarely shoot more 75-80 grains.
Last edited by ModernPrimitive; 02-06-2012 at 06:49 PM.
#16
I have the better part of a pound of T7 3F left and when it's gone, I probably won't buy any more of it. In my guns, I have not seen any significant advantage in using it, at least not anything that justifies it's cost. I get good results from Goex and Pyro and that's probably what I'll stay with. I also thouroughly clean my guns when I'm done shooting so any claim that T7 has about being non-corrosive is moot ...BPS
#17
Giant Nontypical
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 6,585
Likes: 0
I have shot TC Hawken and Renegades since 1980 and built quite a number of Hawken rifles myself.
I set them up the old way; I load 25 grain loads and shoot them into old pillows or cotton batting, I start out with a good heavy ticking patch and when i get a ball that show the impression of the cloth strongly where the land were and weakly where the groves were I start working on the load In a 54 I start with 90 grains and work up to 120 the I go back to the best group and see if I can consistently duplicate it.
If the patch and ball combination do not fit the barrel right it will never shoot really well. After the gun is broken in I start checking the patches if I find cuts in the patches I JB it with 100 strokes.I use Goex Black or RS Pyrodex and RWS caps because this combination has worked well for me. I have never been able to get a .530 ball to shoot up to my standards all my guns but one ended up with a .535 ball the exception took a .540. It is not easy to get a 2.5 inch group with iron sights at 100 yds and I can not do it any more because my eyes are not what they used to be but I could do it until I was in my 60's, now I have to use a scope. If you ever have the opportunity watch the Hawken and Mountain man matches at Friendship IN, you will see the guys shoot groups that are only 17 inches string measure. [ That is each ball is measured from the X and the measurements are added together.
I set them up the old way; I load 25 grain loads and shoot them into old pillows or cotton batting, I start out with a good heavy ticking patch and when i get a ball that show the impression of the cloth strongly where the land were and weakly where the groves were I start working on the load In a 54 I start with 90 grains and work up to 120 the I go back to the best group and see if I can consistently duplicate it.
If the patch and ball combination do not fit the barrel right it will never shoot really well. After the gun is broken in I start checking the patches if I find cuts in the patches I JB it with 100 strokes.I use Goex Black or RS Pyrodex and RWS caps because this combination has worked well for me. I have never been able to get a .530 ball to shoot up to my standards all my guns but one ended up with a .535 ball the exception took a .540. It is not easy to get a 2.5 inch group with iron sights at 100 yds and I can not do it any more because my eyes are not what they used to be but I could do it until I was in my 60's, now I have to use a scope. If you ever have the opportunity watch the Hawken and Mountain man matches at Friendship IN, you will see the guys shoot groups that are only 17 inches string measure. [ That is each ball is measured from the X and the measurements are added together.



