Well I got it!!!!
 

Went and got the LK-93 .50 cal Knight Friday, I plan on going to this really great gun place about 40 miles from where I live to get all the stuff reccomended for it.

Any how what type of bullet should I get that is not ridicuously priced yet accurate and a good one for deer?

I want to make sure the scope is sighted in so I will be shooting a few rounds (HEHE) to check it out.

Also what kind of powder and load would be a good starting place for this gun?

The Tazman

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

Tazman,

My bullet of choice is the CVA Power Belt/Big Bore Black Belt aero-tip version in 348gr. These are the most accurate bullets I've shot from my gun and to top it off.....you don't even need a bullet starter with them - all you need is a finger and then the gun's ramrod to finish seating it over the powder. You can also get these in a 295gr version if you like, it's just that my gun tends to prefer the heavier (longer) bullets

Unfortunately, these bullets ain't too cheap - typically going for $12 - $15 for a card of 15 bullets. To start off, see if you can get a box or two of the Hornady 300gr Magnum XTP sabot bullets - these shoot well too and only go for around $8 for a box of 20. I would start my load workups at 90gr of powder with the XTPs & 295gr Power Belts and at 100gr for the 348gr Power Belts. Workup in 5gr increments and see which gives you the best groups.

As far was which powder to use, I recommend using the Cleanshot loose powder (ffg) if you can get it. It burns much cleaner than anything else and its power is just as potent as Pyrodex RS or Select. Now, if the place you're going to has the new Hodgdon Triple 7 powder, you might want to try it too. They claim that it can be cleaned up with warm water and to be about 10% more powerful than the normal Pyrodex or Cleanshot.

When sighting this gun in, remember that muzzleloading ballistics are a little different than cartridge stuff. You'll probably need to sight in about 2" high at 50yds in order to be dead zero at 100yds.

Good luck! :)

"Every moving thing that liveth, I give unto you as meat" (Gen 9:3)

Trust God..........but keep your powder dry!

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

Excellent Mark, thanks for the info, that will give me a good starting point.

The Tazman

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

I always used the Remington 303 gr core lokt sabots in mine with 2 50 gr pyrodex pellets. I have gotten excellent groups at 100 yds and the bullets are fairly cheap especially the after season sales at Wally World.

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

Tazman, I also have the Knight and use the remington 303 with 90grs. fff. The best place I found to get them is thru BassPro order thru the internet.Good Luck

Edited by - popumm on 02/20/2002 08:23:38

Edited by - popumm on 02/20/2002 08:24:53

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

The 303gr Remington sabots are a good choice for general shooting & initial sight-in (that's what I used).

Pricewise, they run about the same as the Hornady 300XTPs and shoot about the same too, (though the XTPs might have a slight edge in the accuracy dept).


"Every moving thing that liveth, I give unto you as meat" (Gen 9:3)

Trust God..........but keep your powder dry!

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

I have asked a few questions here before, but have also read a lot of you alls post and gained a lot of good info. One more question, would I not be better off sticking with the same powder and bullet to maintain consistancy? I know a lot of you shoot your smoke poles a lot, I will probably only fire it 10-15 times preseason after I sight it in, so I want to be as consistant as possible. I do have a scope, what kind off groups at 100 yards should I expect using a sabot?

The Tazman

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

Using 2 50gr pellets and 260gr lead Knight sabot I am shooting 2" groups at 100 yds using open sights.

Using powder which would always be slightly more variable I would expect my groups to open up some.

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

Thanks for both replies Irishcajun, I picked up the gun at a pawn shop, I don't think it has ever been fired.

The Tazman

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

Tazman,

If the gun really hasn't been shot much, a 2" group at 100yds is probably the best you can expect. It took about 100 rounds and 2 dozen patched round balls before my gun really came into its own.

To start, it's best to stick with 1 powder type & 1 bullet type. Shoot 3 shot groups at each increment of 5gr of powder: 90gr...95gr...100gr...105gr...110gr...115gr..120gr . If none of these come close, then it's time to try the same proceedure with a different bullet, or at least one of the same type at a different weight.

If you can't get where you want to be after 2 or 3 different bullet combinations......the barrel may need a little break-in work. Spend a day shooting patched round balls (.490dia ball with a .10 or .15 thick patch) over about 80gr of powder - I would say shoot 25 to 50 of them. Don't worry too much about accuracy - maybe practice some off-hand shooting at 25yds while you're doing it.

After doing that, I'd be willing to bet that if you started the load work-up process back at the beginning, that you'll see a significant change in accuracy. I know I did in my Knight.

Also, 1 last tip when shooting for accuracy: run a spit-soaked cleaning patch down the barrel after each shot (maybe 2 patches if using Pyrodex or true Black Powder). This keeps the barrel consistant and eliminates that from the equation of figuring out where the accuracy is going.

All this sounds like kind of a pain, but when you get that 1 load that cuts holes every shot........What A Rush!! <img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle> <img src=icon_smile_big.gif border=0 align=middle>


&quot;Every moving thing that liveth, I give unto you as meat&quot; (Gen 9:3)

Trust God..........but keep your powder dry!

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

I have used a LK-93 for years, and love it. I shoot 260 grain Knight sabots and 90 grains of Pyrodex Select.
Happy Shooting

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

I've had a Knight(MK 85)for about 8 years now. They are definitely awesome guns. Very accurate. I use 100 grains of pyrodex select and 260 grain Knight sabots. Last time I bench rest shot it, I shot a 5 shot, 1 hole group (about 1/2&quot;) at 50 yds.... and a 5 shot 1 3/8&quot; group at 100 yds. I have a 3-9 scope on mine. I would recommend sighting in a couple inches high....those heavy bullets drop like a stone pretty quick. I've killed game out to 125 yds with my set up, and actually have been pretty lucky I guess....never missed anything at all with that gun. Love it!! Good luck :)

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

Taz, I may be way off on this, but I've heard that some mfgr's will season the barrels on the muzz-loaders before they are put on the gun rack for new sale. I heard that Knight is one of the few mfgr's that actually do this.

Either way, you may want to shoot a couple rounds with either a round ball or buffalo bullet just to make sure the grooves and landings have no bur's. The plastic cup on the sabots will not season the barrel as quickly as lead to metal will.

Again, I may be way off base on this and I'm sure there are others on this site that know much more about this than I do. Just my 2 sense worth.

Kenny.

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

Way to go Taz. I got my Knight BK-92 about 10 years ago and I luv it. I shoot Knight sabots with 100gr. pyrodex select. But I keep hearing such good things about the power belt bullets that I will try them this season.

RE: Well I got it!!!!
 

Well I want to thank everyone for their words of wisdom and help. I met smokpole at a gunshop here in Va. yesterday and with his help have a very good starting point for smokploe shooting. I decided to stick with ammo and powder that I could use quickly and was easily found. I went with the Knight 260 grain sabots and pyrodex select 100 grain. The gun held some very tight groups at 50 yards and when I moved to the 100 yard shots found it was shooting way to the right, I walked it in after about 12 rounds to where my last sabot cut a bull. Go to the off season forum if you would like to read about my 9 year old twins experience shooting pops smokepole. Again many thanks to all of you and to smokpole for helping out in person.

The Tazman