Accuracy problems

My new gun is lacking accuracy. How tight should a round ball seat? I can barely keep it in a pie plate at 50 yards. I'm shooting a. 530 ball with 015 patches and the go down easy but my shooting stinks.

A .530 ball may be too little. Inspect your used patches to see if they are blown(frayed and ragged). My guess is that they are. Then try a .535 ball and/or a thicker patch. How much powder are you using?

Welcome to the forum - what rifle are you using? Powder charge? Were you able to recover any of your fired patches and what do they look like? Shooting off the bench or offhand?

Give us a bit more info and you'll get a more informed response.

Are you shooting from a rest or offhand? What powder granulation & charge are you using?

Here's why I ask: I have a .54cal. Isaac Haines R Rice barreled FL rifle which is at it's best with thicker patches, e.g., .022" (denim). Powder charge and granulation is less vital in that rifle, but I would try 50 gr. FFFg or 60 gr. FFg with a thicker patch and a .530" RB to see whether things improve. (A .535" RB didn't work for me.) Btw, I use 1 Ballistol : 6 H20 for a patch lube when I'm not hunting. For that, colder weather, or whenever you have to wait more than a few minutes to take a second shot, I use Stumpy's Moose Snot. Lastly, although a thinner patched ball (.018" +.530" RB) is a pleasure to start and seat, it isn't nearly as accurate as the [harder starting and seating] thicker patch.

Try a thicker patch, then try a 535 ball.
I keep a manila folder with plain paper targets with load info on each.
Shoot, shoot and shoot some more. You will develop an accurate load Pilgrim.

Welcome...
Factory new or new to you?
what gun is it?
what powder are you shooting?
What do your fired patches look like?
Is it the gun or the shooter?
50 yards with iron sights is a tough shot for a lot of people.
Much more information is needed.

Need to provide a little more information,like the other poster wrote,To many things to look at/for. The answer is here we just need the question,Good luck and come early, stay late and jump in...
"Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass but learning to dance in the rain".

It's a new pedersoli hawken. 70 grains pyrodex rs. And I didn't go looking for the patches. I will next time. I had this trouble off a bench.

Is pillow ticking going to be enough or is there something thicker I should try as well?

Pillow ticking varies in thickness, as does denim. For example, my local fabric store stock pillow ticking that's .014" thick, .018" thick, and the outdoor kind, which is .024" thick (all dimensions are compressed). Likewise, 100% denim, which is sold by weight (9oz. denim, 12 oz., etc.) varies in thickness too. Other material may be suitable, but you'll need to take a micrometer or caliper to the fabric store with you to find one that suits your needs. Btw, my local Walmart carries pillow ticking that seems to be heavier than .014", but I haven't yet measured it. Jo-Ann Fabrics is another excellent source and their personnel have always been helpful.

Sloaf said:

Is pillow ticking going to be enough or is there something thicker I should try as well?

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Be sure to only change one part of the load chain at a time. If you change patch thickness, change ONLY the patch thickness.

Denim makes a great patch and can many times be found in .020 and greater thicknesses at your local fabric store.

I think the guys asking about what the patches look like might have the first clue...many times new barrels have sharp lands that cut the patches up severely affecting the gas seal and therefore accuracy. The first thing I would do is shoot five shots with the load you were using and find / inspect the patches.

You mentioned you cannot stay on a paper plate, but do you have some kind of backing that you can tell where you are hitting? I'm asking to determine if you really have a huge spread or what the "pattern" of the shots looks like?

I have had two Pedersoli .54's. A Rocky Mountain Hawken (you did not mention which Pedersoli Hawken you have) and a Frontier. Both shot very well with 90 gr of 2F real black powder or 777, a .015 oxyoke prelubed patch, and .530 round ball.

The couple times I've shot it I was too inconsistent to call a pattern. Not something I'm used to. I'm not a great shot but off a bench at 50 yards I can hold my own usually. it is a cabelas gun whatever model hawken they carry for pedersoli. Beautiful gun, very nice fit and finish.

I can shoot my 12 guage shotgun with rifled slugs and a crappy trigger in a 4 inch group at this range. I ought to be able to match this or betterwith the rifle and a sweet double trigger set.

Does it have adjustable sights?
A friend of mine was shooting all over the place and the retaining clip on the windage adjustment was gone. So every time he shot the sights moved.

Also, I'm not a fan of pyrodex RS

Does you gun have shallow groove rifling?

The barrel may need to be "broken-in" -- shoot it for about 200 shots and then try different combo's of patch-ball-powder. The barrel may have some rough spots from the machining process - also check the muzzle & crown for sharp edges or rough spots. You could also run some 4/0 steel wool or fine Scotch-Brite on your ram rod in and out of the bore for 10 to 20 times and then do the patch-ball-powder combo thing.

The sight is a good idea to check. I have an adjustable rear. The local gun store basically told me that they weren't going to carry 54 caliber supplies. All they had were 50 cal patches.

My question;
Did you clean inside that new barrel before you shot it? I mean clean-clean,, till a white patch came out white?
Be honest.

As mentioned the barrel may need shot in. Have you tried different powder charges to see if it tightens up your groups? 70gr charge may not be the best for YOUR rifle. To throw this in the mix. I shot Pyrodex for years and had problems with inconsistency, so did my buddy and his son, they shot the Select. After I switched BP and saw the change in accuracy I had them try it. They couldn't believe how much more accurate they were and all they did was change powder. My suggestion would be play with your powder charge first, you already have the patches you've got and the powder, see if there is any difference, then try different patch thickness. Also how much lube are you putting on your patches? Remember the least amount you can get away with is better. After you have shot up your Pyrodex RS (which will put about 100 rounds through your barrel) and you don't have it shooting well, if you don't have access to BP then try the Pyrodex P and see if that improves things again playing with powder charges and patch thickness. Just a thought. DANNY

Danny Ross said:

As mentioned the barrel may need shot in.

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He mentions he can't keep it in a pie plate(9"s) at 50yrds,,
That ain't barrel break in issues.
I'm wondering if the barrel is in the stock/hook-breech properly or if something is loose at the tang.
9" groups off a bench at 50yrds is a nasty problem, I can throw ball overhand and get better then a 9" group.

I understand what you are saying but if you read the rest of my post it listed other possibilities. My buddy and his boy when using Pyrodex Select out of their guns they had no consistency. They may have a few, go where they were aiming, and thought they had it figured out, next few went way off. Average group size 5-8 inches at 50yds over the years for both of them. Very frustrating for all of us. When my buddy started shooting some of my BP, he went to 3 inch groups on the same day. That 3 inch group my buddy shot with 80gr 2F BP was THE BEST he had ever shot with his Cabela's 54cal Hawkins, that he had for about 5 years at the time. He had been shooting 80gr of Pyrodex Select. His son has a 54cal Renegade he has had for about 3 years couldn't get consistency with the Pyrodex Select. We tried multiple loads of 3F BP no consistency, 90gr 2F BP 2-2.5 inch group at 50yds. He took a really large doe free hand at 70 yds using that load last year it gave him the confidence he could do it. I got to watched the whole thing.

I have told this story before. Went to range some years ago shooting a 54cal caplock Lyman Great Plains Rifle. Shot the best I have ever shot using 95grs of Pyrodex RS shot a 2inch group with a couple of fliers that I knew I pulled the shot (actually still have that target on my gun safe). Went home pumped knowing the rifle was on and deer season opens in two weeks. Cleaning the barrel in the garaged door opening, had the barrel cleaned propped up against the tail gate of my truck. Wife comes down the street doesn't notice the door open hits the Garage door opener and it starts to close I start grabbing stuff bump the barrel it falls over knocks BOTH the front and rear site loose. Ball park the front site by what looks to be the pencil line I had on the edge of the front site before knocking it loose and centered up the fixed rear sight by the width of the barrel and the width of the sight. Have to go back to the gun range the next week. I CAN NOT get the gun to group at all shooting Pyrodex RS 7-8inch goups at 50yds. I had 2F BP I used for my flint lock in my shooting box, thought what heck had always heard it was more consistent than Pyrodex, NEVER believed it, but thought what the heck I'm desperate. Loaded 95gr BP, first shot 1 inch high center, next shot dead center third shot clover leaf the first 2 BP shots to the right. Loaded Pyrodex about 3 inches right and 3 inches high, next shot Pyrodex 2 inches low and 3 inches left, next shot BP cut the hole that was centered, and the last shot clover leafed the first 2 BP shots to the Left. Difference between the week before and that week about 14 degrees colder the 2nd week.

Point of all this being: That is why I also told him to try different loads with his Pyrodex RS with the patches he had before buying new patches, and to try Pyrodex P if the RS didn't work and to try different patches with that. I understand not every one has access to real BP. I also told him to try less lube on the patch which was something I learned from here which helped me tighten my groups and may help his. Point being I did not just say it was just the barrel needed shot in, it was one thing in a list of possibilities. The one thing I didn't tell him was to try swabbing between shots with a damp patch, not a dripping wet one, and to swab with a dry patch after that. Also to get a range rod to help with loading, swabbing, and cleaning. A range rod makes life a whole lot easier, for a day at the range, and cleaning the barrel afterwards. DANNY