Hey everybody,

After reading the MuzzleLoading-101 from another board last December, I got the valve lapping compound(Fine Grit) and tried it on my old MagHunter.

Lapped it 100 times, and what a SHINE inside the bore [8D]



Finally got the old MagHunter back to the range and here are my results:

50 cal MagHunter with 2.5 X 7 X 32 power Weaver Scope, Using 100grains of loose FFFg American Pioneer Powder, pushing a .440 Hornady round ball inside a MMP sabot, I finished with a 1.5 inch--3 shot group at 70 yards!

At 50 yards--1/2 inch groups!!

I know this will be hard to believe, especially the 100grains of powder pushing a round ball!

I was working up my load from 60 grains to 80grns and wasn’t consistent. I then used some old speed loaders charged with 100grns for my PowerBelt shooting. I said what the heck; let’s try these out. And Presto! Instant success!!!

I'll post pics of targets and recovered round balls and sabots ASAP.

Will try 295grn powerbelts another day. So far the Lapped barrel is great with this roundball combo.

I think I had scope problems before,(First time out was trying to get powerbelts sighted in) on the first outing. Anyway, I've got real confidence for the next session now


P.S.

Forgot too say that my first attempt at saboted roundballs before Lapping barrel, were 5inch groups at 85 yards--using 100grns of powder--and this was with a 4 X12 X40 Bushnell-Banner scope.


50 yard warm up/ load work-up shots.




70 yard group




Last shot at 70 yards




Last shot at 50 yards




Spent Bullets and sabot

A very interesting range report. And some excellent groups there.... Nice going. I have lapped a few rifles myself and it does make a difference in a rifle that has no other options.

The expansion of the roundball you were getting is impressive to say the least. What kind of back stop were you hitting? With the strength of the powder charge you were shooting, that would make a pretty good whitetail load...

Again, great report!!

I was shooting into a sandy-clay type of soil. The expanded powerbelts you see in the fore ground are huge. The round balls penetrated about 8-10 inches.

Aren't .440 diameter round balls to big for sabots that are designed to shoot .429-.430 bullets?

Nope, fits just fine.

The ogive of a ball makes less contact with the sabot than does a larger bullet, making it easier to fit a larger ball into a smaller sabot.

Cool,i have some sabots laying around.Ithink i'll head over to Bass Pro tomorrow and pick me up a box of balls,if i am not snowed in.Think i'll have some fun this weekend

Post deleted by 777

thats some amazing expansion with power belts, a buddy of mine shot a deer 2 years ago with a 50 cal 295 grain powerbelt with 100 grains of trip 7 he collectected the bullet from the deer and it hardly expanded at all which kinda detered me from using them for deer.