Most of us who spend a lot of time on the blackpowder forums are the ones who usually like to experiment and find the best and most accurate load for our guns. But not everybody does that. I have talked to everyone i could find in my little area and it seems that the majority of muzzleloader shooters buy a gun, take whatever powder or bullets someone suggests. Sight it in and that is the end of it.
So I got to thinking what kind of accuracy can we get doing something like that. No variables , no experimenting. Just normal off the shelf bullets and powder and a couple suggestions.
Here's how my experiment went.:
I was arranging the Whites and Knights in the gun safe so I decided to take a Old Knight 50 cal Elite that i hadnt shot in 3 years.
Since pellets seem to be the way to go for most I took triple 7 pellets,I decided on 100 gr ( 2 pellets) The local store has mostly powerbelts, and shockwaves . I chose the 250 gr shockwave. and triple 7 primer.
The elite is scoped with a leopould ultimate slam .
I headed out with that combo and set up at 50 yards for the first shot. wasnt sure where it would hit but knew it was sighted in at 100 3 years ago when I last saw it.
here was the first shot, off the 4 wheeler seat as a rest.


needless to say I was very happy.

here was 2 shots from 50 yards . Standard 2 pellets 777 and 250 shockwave



now I was excited

so i figure I will go to 100 yards and try that.
heres the first shot


Now the real test, a group.



that looks like 2 shots but it is 3 shots at 100 yards .

So i come to the conclusion that the average Joe could , for hunting purposes, pick up a good used Knight , grab some common accessories, a box of pellets and shockwaves and head out to get a deer
Not a big investment yet more than sufficient.
the down side :
well the 777 left quite a buildup in breechplug



and the blowback was obviously there


but cleanup was quick and easy.

So a person doesnt have to settle for a cheap import to enter the world of muzleloading
There are other options, such as a good used Knight , easily obtained , some basic accessories, get it sighted in and you are good to go.
Now me, well I prefer to do things differently, but most people I talked to here in my area just aren't into blackpowder like I am.
This experiment was for them.
and for little red riding hood.

1874sharpsshooter

This is a 5 shot group from a Knight DISC @ 200 yards... It did pretty good also. Yes it was off a bench and bags.

Really wish i could say that I was the shooter, but I were not



250 grain Bloodlines - MMP HpH-24 - BH-209

todays muzzleloaders offer better options without the mess.

Still good shooting and most importantly, fun.

And the average joe would then take that gun and let it sit in the corner until next hunting season and then find it all rusted up.

Well a lot of off the shelf rifles have "moderate range hunting accuracy." Its when people such as many of you try to squeeze that little extra accuracy out of them at some extreme and IMO even insane distances, that the real shooters start to surface.

Personally I seldom shoot past 100 yards. I have shot further, but really see no need to and don't have a lot of that facility at my personal range. So I attempt to squeeze accuracy at moderate ranges that I would hunt at.

Come on a little further west to the great wide opens plains and you will suddenly "find the need to"
especially for antelope or even some of the mulies.

nice shooting for sure Chet. The average joes around here have never heard of a disc elite but they do know what the pellets are.

1874 - Yes I believe the average guy could harvest a deer with just what you bought. However I do believe that you may have just got lucky with that combo. You and I and a lot of the other guys in here know how MLs vary even those of the same make and model with their load preference.
Now granted, inlines are a bit more forgiving than traditional rifles. Some of these can be bears to figure out. But to me that is the fun of shooting them.
Thank goodness I've learned to keep a load log for each of my sidelocks or I'd be one confused (even more so than usual) guy.

1874sharpsshooter

I would bet you a dime to a dollar that you could load any reasonable projectile and charge into that DISC Elite and it would shoot a very repsectable hunting group all day long.

Actually I would bet that with any rifle you have... but when you were to go to a sidelock shooting round balls - all bets are off.

Even then with my 1-48 Renegades as long as I remain reasonable the Renegades will shoot them just fine.

I think you are right . After broncos post I decided to try the same thing with some different guns. Same load and bullet
The Triumph, omega, Mountaineer. All three shot minute of deer with the biggest group being about 2 1/2 inches however I prefer MOA or better if possible
The 1:48 twist is the one barrel that I personally don't like. I changed out to either a fast or slow twist on everything I had that came with a 1:48 twist. I realize some like the compromise twist for shooting either RB or conicals. Not me. Give me either fast or slow but not in between.

I never saw much difference between a 1-48 and 1-60 for a PRB.

Keep in mind the original Hawkens were 1-48, and they shot PRB's.