PRB...Not for me

Gentlemen,
After reading and taking all advice to heart, I went to the range today and tried numerous shots with a patched round ball. The results were a bit disappointing, but I learned a few things. Firstly, it takes me about twice as long to load a patched ball as it does to load a Powerbelt. With the ball, I have to clean every other shot, while with the P'belt, I can go 5 between cleanings. Accuracy is just about the same with both projectiles. There was no appreciable difference in accuracy with either 2F Black, or Pyrodex RS. Energy is much greater with the 295 gr. P'belt. P'belts are much more expensive than round balls and patches. So, for me it does not seem to be worth my while to be using PRBs. I use my M/L as a hunting tool, and given the loading time and energy factors, I think I will stick to Powerbelts. I just wish they weren't so darn expensive.
Thank you all for your advise. I really appreciate it.

OHHH I suppose depending on how many power belts you shoot ..you may try a Hornady Great Plains bullet might save a few dollars.

I think you are missing out on muzzleloading's attraction on harvesting a deer the way our forefathers did. That is all I hunt with. Did you ever try Buffalo Ball-etts? They are a cross between a conical and a rb. They shot great in my GPR.

Patched round balls are just as fast to reload! Its called Speed loaders! I don't hunt without them anymore.

You didnt say what rifle you were shooting.

Use what you like; but be sure to let us know when you switch back. There is nothing like a PRB; I also shoot pistol bullets out of a 1:28 twist flinter but I shoot more roundballs than anything. In fact I just got back from a 3 hour shooting session with them. I like the PRB and accept it's limitations in range and power. They sure are accurate. After I drilled out the bullseye from the bench with 5 shots at 70 yards I went to field positions and offhand. I had a blast!

I shoot 20-50 shots in an afternoon, and never have to wipe bewteen shots

and all I shoot is PRB

To each his own. I use speed loaders as mentioned, and I bet I can load faster than you can with your power belts. I would also suggest trying the Ball-et's, they are a lot less expensive than what you are using, and I found good accuracy with them. It's fun to try all that is out there, and the bonus is that you get to shoot more. Good luck and happy hunting.

If you count a paper cartridge as a speed loader, I guess I use one as well. I have no intention of racing anyone to see how fast I really am, but with P'belts, I can do three shots a minute. Not really fast, but good enough for me. Up to civil war infantry standards.
Gun is a 1/45 .50 T/C Hawken, which I will play with for deer this year. If I don't like it, I can always fall back on my Encore and Pyrodex Pellets. Would much rather stick to the Hawken.

"I use my M/L as a hunting tool, and given the loading time and energy factors, I think I will stick to Powerbelts."

An individual choice for sure, but definately no advantage in anyway over PRB, but all do not seek the same goals in hunting with a ML, some take the traditional path others do not.

I wonder what you are using or doing wrong? I don't have any of the problems you have and I don't use a speed loader. Hmmmmmmmm :hmm: My problem, is I like to shoot. If I liked to shoot using PowerBelts, I wouldn't be shooting near as much. A properly fitting patched round ball, with a good lube, should allow you to shoot all day. I find the sabot shooters at my club almost in trouble reloading after one shot. I don't have any experience though with sabots. Just watching the guys trying to shoot them.

Heck, why waste your time loading power belts. Get ya a 30-30. They load real fast.

Nothing goes down the bores of my Muzzle loaders except what the old timers intended when they developed these old charcoal burners. PRB's have proven fatal on anything I have shot at over the years. If ya can't kill it with a PRB then you best not shoot at it. Run!!! :grin:

I've always shot PRB. Never needed a second shot. Eveything I ever shot just keels over dead.

Had a friend of mine who finally tried a prb on a deer this last season. Used a Hornaday .490 prb and 80 gr of pyrodex. When they got the thing back into the club kitchen to cut it up they could not believe the amount of damage that thing did,

Blew the heart inside out and disconected it from every conecting tissue then blew out the sholder on the other side. Thing went down knd of quick.

If you are not getting the kind of groups and reliability you should try first reading TC traditional owners manual.

If you are cleaning a lot between shots you are doing something wrong. As for shooting 3 shots a minute that might be great on the field showing off for the spectators but on a real animal you should not need that kind of barrage.

As for more power you can get a 54, 58 or 62 drop in barrels for that thing.

Why do I need a quick 2nd shot?I can only drag one deer at a time! :rotf:

I shot PRB's for many years always did good but range is limited (for me anyway) I recently started shooting Lee REAL slugs for more 'impact' but what recoil, and I get about another 25 yards maybe more. I have them sighted in for feral hogs they are tougher than deer.

I'm a bit of an "oddball" in regards to muzzleloading. I started with a friend's Enfield that keyholed every shot cause he gave me (and himself) the wrong size Minnie's!

Then I got my own Rifle and found the ease of using 370 grain T/C Maxi-Balls. I pay about $11.00 for a box of 20 Maxi's. This may be a little less than the Powerbelts, I don't know for sure as I don't shoot them. The T/C Maxi's are very stable and accurate so long as you use a 1/16th inch vegetable fiber over-powder card from Circle-Fly. The card helps to prevent gas cutting of the Maxi and also aids in complete combustion, limiting the condition known as "blow-by". This is very important if you want to shoot several times before running either a wet or a dry patch down the bore for cleaning some of the crud.

I also shoot PRB's quite well too. The 1 turn in 48 inches twist of my Lyman Trade Rifle really likes 70 grains of 3Fg Goex, the over-powder card and a .018 pillow-ticking pre-lubed patch! In fact, I won a local competition with PRB's TODAY using this load. Using my cheap gun, I beat all of the custom slow-twist PRB-only rifles! Go figure!

Bottom line is this: Try my Maxi's & put them up against your powerbelts. If it's IMPACT you're looking for, it's HARD to beat 370 grains traveling at 1347 feet per second, about the same as a 20 ga. modern rifled slug coming your way in a hurry! Now if you're not trying to take long range butt shots at every deer that you can see, the very accurate PRB will do just fine! No matter what, shot placement is the KEY! And KNOWING where the round is going to hit BEFORE you squeeze the trigger is the other part of the equation.

Please take this advice from somebody that's done BOTH and doesn't have blinders on, because I've BEEN THERE!

Good luck and great success in your endeavors!

Dave

I never thought of putting something other than a patched round ball down a muzzleloader and I would disown any relative of mine that did. :haha:

Whatever floats your boat, at least your not talking about putting a scope on it!

Good luck!

Billy

Let us know what you are shootin Johnny. Sounds about like what I get in my .50 T/C w/RB,.015 P,BB. :thumbsup:

Billy Lo said:

I never thought of putting something other than a patched round ball down a muzzleloader and I would disown any relative of mine that did. :haha:

Whatever floats your boat, at least your not talking about putting a scope on it!

Good luck!

Billy

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I saw a guy once at the range with a T/C Hawken and a 3-9x40 scope on it. Most ridiculous thing I've seen.

HD

Tweesdad said:

If I don't like it, I can always fall back on my Encore and Pyrodex Pellets.

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Out of curiosity, what attracted you to "muzzleloading" in the first place?