Went out shooting yesterday and noticed that where I lined up my sabot made a difference in accuracy. If I lined up the gap between petals with the front sight my groups were tighter and more centered. Is this just my gun or a characteristic of muzzleloaders? It is something else I will have to keep in mind when I load up for hunting.
I tried doing a trajectory chart for my 290gr Barnes TEZ bullets because I plan using them during hunting season. Setting the scope crosshairs on the bulls eye the shot at 25yds was 3" low. At 50yds it was 1' low and 100yds it was 1" high. I am still learning how to use trajectory programs so I need some feedback. Is this in the normal trajectory range for a 290gr bullet being pushed by 100gr of Blackhorn?
Using a CVA optima v2 nitride.

FREE download and it works.
You can start out using the loading data from Western. http://www.blackhorn209.com/wp-conte...loaderdata.pdf

IIRC the bullets BC is .240

http://strelok-ballistic-calculator.soft112.com/

The Google Play store has it FREE for smart phones.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...orisov.strelok

Consistency with any form of shooting is the key. And maybe you just have something there with your orientation of the sabot. I've never even considered that.
I just may have to try it when I get out to the range.

I never noticed that where the sabot or how it was placed made a difference. But I shoot a lot of conical and round ball. Although in my sabot shooting rifles I really have not seen a difference. Or should I say a big difference. This is just my experiences.

It makes no difference at all. A sabot slips so far after ignition. My guess is around 6 to 8 inches before it engages rifling after its fired.

That may be correct, but may not. If they all slipped that distance before engaging the rifling, some handgun shooters would be spraying rounds all over the place.
Some shooters have indexed sabots since they came available. Its nothing new and has worked for some shooters.

Most hand gun bullets obturate before leaving the casing. So thats not an issue at all.

Every bullet is different. A lead Deadcenter bullet will not slip near as much as a Knight Bloodline. The lead bullet will obturate much faster then any jacketed bullet or solid bullet. I personaly dont think a Bloodline bullet obturates at all. The brass is just way to hard so more slippage happens.

If you talk to some good long range accuracy guys with a ML they will all tell you the same thing using sabots. The arguement would be how much??? Like i said, i think 6 to 8 inches on jacketed bullets. A little less with lead. Remember im talking sabots not full bore bullets in a ML.

I didn't know we were talking cartridge handguns? I wasn't.

http://www.cva.com/CVA-Store-View.php?id=580

Those muzzleloading handguns only have a 14" barrel and that distance is shortened (maybe) by the length of the breech plug.

I shoot long range accurately, which you already know and have seen the target photos at 400 and 500yds.
After picking up thousands of fired sabots, I would never state that the sabot slipped 6-8" inches in the barrel before engaging the rifling.

I meant to say casing on the handgun bullets. But actually, it doesnt matter. Its all about understanding bullet obturation. And in a pistol, the bullet obturates before leaving the casing.

As far as I'm concerned, whether a sabot slips the rifling upon ignition is pure speculation. It may be logical speculation, but speculation none the less.

Without proof either way, it is just as logical to state that a well fitted sabot that engraves into the rifling upon loading does not slip the rifling.