In order to participate in the GunBroker Member forums, you must be logged in with your GunBroker.com account. Click the sign-in button at the top right of the forums page to get connected.
Traditional hunting rifle & caliber?
LilOsage
Member Posts: 39 ✭✭
This is not intended to create a whizzing contest, so for what its worth this is how "I" came to choose a .54 sidelock made by Investarms, SPA, Italy.
At the outset after reviewing the design and quality of the various brands, I rejected Traditions, CVA and rifles made in Spain. Among those that I decided were in the good pile were T/C and Italian made rifles such as:(Sile, Cabela's, Lyman and Pedersoli).
Then for several years ago, I tried very hard to prove that .45 was the very best caliber and the way to go, however the uncontrollable and inconsistent effects of fowling finally beat me. With the uncontrollable variable of fowling and too small caliber I never considered the .36 as a viable hunting caliber.
After that I tried a variety of .50's, .54's and even a couple of .58's, although seemingly impervious to the effects of residual fowling, with the short range rainbow trajectory and since I didn't plan to hunt elephant I eliminated the .58's.
To make a long story short, even though the most commonly available caliber is in fact the .50, I never really liked it plus it too has some of the fowling problems of the smaller calibers. It was only after numerous comparisons tests between the .50 and .54 that I settled on the .54.
Among my other biases, I think I've also tried all the available caps and powders, at present my choices are: CCI Mag #11, along with 777 for .535RB and PyrodexRS for 425gr solid lead bullets. Further, in my humble opinion 1:48 twist is not the best for either ball or bullet.
At the outset after reviewing the design and quality of the various brands, I rejected Traditions, CVA and rifles made in Spain. Among those that I decided were in the good pile were T/C and Italian made rifles such as:(Sile, Cabela's, Lyman and Pedersoli).
Then for several years ago, I tried very hard to prove that .45 was the very best caliber and the way to go, however the uncontrollable and inconsistent effects of fowling finally beat me. With the uncontrollable variable of fowling and too small caliber I never considered the .36 as a viable hunting caliber.
After that I tried a variety of .50's, .54's and even a couple of .58's, although seemingly impervious to the effects of residual fowling, with the short range rainbow trajectory and since I didn't plan to hunt elephant I eliminated the .58's.
To make a long story short, even though the most commonly available caliber is in fact the .50, I never really liked it plus it too has some of the fowling problems of the smaller calibers. It was only after numerous comparisons tests between the .50 and .54 that I settled on the .54.
Among my other biases, I think I've also tried all the available caps and powders, at present my choices are: CCI Mag #11, along with 777 for .535RB and PyrodexRS for 425gr solid lead bullets. Further, in my humble opinion 1:48 twist is not the best for either ball or bullet.
Comments
Fowling vs fouling
I have a 4 .50cal rifles, 12ga shotgun, and .45 &.50 single shot pistol. All but the shot gun have hang fired, not shot at all, and have had to take the nipple off to put a small amount of powder under to get it to shoot.
My biggest problem.....keeping pyrodex after it has lost it's freshness when my tight * should have tossed it.
I have a T/C Hawkin that has snapped caps on 2 or 3 deer at 10-15yrds and not fired. I could have tossed it in the lake when it did it to me on a NICE buck.
I finally went to a musket cap because the CCI #11 mags were not igniting the "unfresh" powder. The musket cap ALWAYS fires the powder with no hang fires/ miss fires under reasonable conditions.(you gun hasn't been under water.lol)
I have never had the luxary of owning a .54 or larger to comment about, but I have a hunting friend that has a T/C HAWKIN in .54 that does real good with.
To comment about the barrel twist, I like a 1-32" twist barrel for maxi/mini ball and round ball. The T/C HAWKIN I have is just a few years old and I like the 1-48" barrel it has. I can sit it on a bench and at 100 yrds make a hole that looks like a peanut(sideways figure8) with a .490 Hornady ball and .010 prelube Cabela's patch.
One last thing. If your hunting... get a fiber optic on your front sight. I can't tell you how many times last season 15min after legal light and 30 min before legal light I had deer 40-50 yrds and couldn't see the ball on front sight.
You were not planning to shoot before or after legal light if you could have seen the site, right?
I get some bright white oil paint. Fingernail polish works well.
I make a little ball, a little dot of white on that front sight.
Clean it first with lighter fluid and then make a little white dot, the width of the sight, and just that high, on the top of the sight.
You would be amazed at how effective this is, settle that white ball into the notch and put it on the deer's chest.
Regular sights, I don't get it.
Dark rear sight + dark front sight + dark deer + dark woods = no venison
Just saying that I see most deer at first few minutes in the morning and last few in evening. I hunt Army Corpes of Eng. property and deer are pressured alot.
Fiber optic allows you to see your sights at first and last light.
quote:Originally posted by He Dog
quote:I can't tell you how many times last season 15min after legal light and 30 min before legal light I had deer 40-50 yrds and couldn't see the ball on front sight.
You were not planning to shoot before or after legal light if you could have seen the site, right?
http://www.brightsights.com/index.shtml
With regard to the fresh powder issue, some of mine is darn near as old as I am and that's old, but the expression "Keep Your Powder Dry" cannot be stressed enough. An open container of most replica powders in a humid environment will become "toast" rather quickly.
I wish I could figure out how to post a photo of my Mississippi swamp hog rifle, which has a very old Wollensak brass scope with unertl style mounts, which seems to solve the poor lighting issue. Loaded with 90gr of PyrodexRS and a very pointed hollow butted 425gr solid lead projectile kicks like a Missouri mule however it stops those ill tempered hogs very effectively.
LilOsage