.45 Hawken shoot today
 

I went through almost a pound of Goex FFFg today shooting an array of bullets out of my .45 Hawken Caplock with its Green Mountain 1:30 barrel.
I was shooting at 50 yards and using a 70 gr charge. The bullets shot were as follows:
edmehlig's 350 gr HP and 465 gr FN
Powerbelt 300 gr Platinum
.401" - 300 gr Bloodlines with blue Harvester CR sabot
.401" - 200 gr Hornady XTP with blue Harvester CR sabot
230 gr home cast Maxi balls
255 gr T/C Maxi Hunters

The results were that at this range this barrel will shoot a 1 1/2" group with just about anything I can get down the bore. This was the case with every bullet tested except the 300 gr PB Platinum and the 200 gr XTP. These two bullets grouped into the 1" or less category.
Shooting well with the FFFg I tried the same 70 gr charge with Pyro P and the groups doubled in size. Another thing I found interesting was, despite their 100 gr difference both bullets hit the same POI.
But I give Ed's bullets credit. They shot pretty darn good considering they were what I would say - too loose for my bore. They were sized @ .4515". I think if they were .4525" or even .453" they would shoot much better. At the .4515" size I could feel them skipping across the rifling as I seated them.
All in all though it was a pretty fun day. 62* and nice bright sunshine and a slight breeze. Perfect.

Bronko, were you using a wad under Ed's bullets?

Yep - but they were too loose. I could easily thumb start them into the bore. and when I pushed them down with the ramrod there was almost no resistance and it felt like the were chattering all the way down as if they were only just touching the rifling and not being 'cut' by it. I think if they were .001 or .0015" larger they would have shot much better

Your bore must be a bit larger than mine. They enter the muzzle with light thumb pressure and the rifling does not engrave on them, but there's no wiggle. If they were any larger I would probably need to push them in and cut a bit of rifling.

my Paper Patched bullets in my barrel like that one are slip fit. They go down with only the weight of the brass ram rod. They are wicked accurate.

I just thought of something but I don't have any more left to try it. I was wondering if I knurled them would that be enough to give them a 'bite' on the rifling? But would it be worth the effort?
The 200 gr XTPs shoot very well as do the 300 gr PB platinums. But I do like the 465s of Ed's. Just seeing the dirt fly behind the target it appears they hit with a lot of authority.

I love the 44-cal XTPs in 200 gr. They seem to hold up better than the 40s.
The 300 gr XTPs in 44-cal only shot 2" lower than the 200s, in my Knight Vision.

That 300 Platinum is an awesome deer destroyer. Much like you, conicals like Ed's bullets load too loose. I have so many No Excuse 460s left. Will save them for more testing with either corn meal or wads next year.

Its 11:52 pm and after the game I got to thinking about my bore diameter of my GM .45 cal LRH barrel. So I went down to the gun/reloading room and pulled out a Sierra 300 gr jacketed flat point bullet that was labeled .4515".The same as Ed's bullets. I verified the diameter with my micrometer.
I didn't want to get another bullet stuck in the bore. So not being the dummy that a lot of people claim me to be I put the bullet in my drill press and bored a hole through the center of it "just in case". I put the base of the bullet into the bore and tapped it ever so lightly with a rubber mallet leaving plenty of bullet out of the muzzle. I carefully placed a screw into the drilled hole so the bullet wouldn't spin and pulled it out. My suspicion with Ed's bullets were confirmed. The rifling of the bore just barely scratched the surface of the bullets jacket.
Now the thought comes to mind - Why not knurl these bullets a bit and shoot a full bore jacketed bullet out of this rifle? Then it would basically be a .45-70 caplock!
This is going to be my next experiment. But for now I'm going to bed.

Looking forward to your results with that Bronko. It might be a real good idea to wipe the bore between shots with those. Go to bed old man. You need the rest.

They do several deer can attest to that! LOL I can send you some more to experiment with the knurling if you like?

Ed