powder charge for deer

I'm going to hunt with a flintlock next muzzleloader season. Traditions manuals say that the rifle will shoot most accurate with a 50-70 grains of powder, but I'm worried that I will not get the velocity to make an effective shot on a deer. I'd like to use 100 grains. Will this really make my shot less accurate? I don't have the rifle yet, but I will have it soon. I just wondered what some of your thoughts were.

What caliber is your rifle?
Are you using a patched round ball?
What range do you expect to shoot?
:idunno:

It's 50 cal. shooting patched round balls. I wasn't planning on shooting any farther than 50 yds.

I've killed several deer (3 this season) with a 50 cal. flintlock loaded with 80 grains of 2f & a patched round ball. All have been less than 75 yards.
All 1 shot kills!

That's good to know. I've heard some people use 3F in their 50 cal. but I chose to go with 2F. Hopefully I can get the same results that you have. I already hunt with a bow and rifle and I'm pretty excited to add traditional flintlock hunting into the mix.

Just remember, shoot placement is more important than velosity! Find the most accurate load and practice, practice,practice!
Good luck and let us know how things go! :thumbsup:

It's better to hit a deer in the head with a slow ball than to hit him in the foot with a fast one.
50 grains of ffg will kill him. 75 grs. is great

Deer are pretty easy to kill with a well placed shot. Shoot what ever charge that is most accurate. I have killed deer with a .45 and 45gr 3fff

I shot my deer this year with 75 gr. 3fffg and it passed completely through the deer. These aren't magnum guns and you really shouldn't be using anything more than about 90 gr. in that gun. I shot 100 gr. in my traditions one time and it knocked the manure out of me :haha:. Needless to say my shots were all over the place.

I have the traditions Hawken Woodsman in .50 cal. My standard load is 70 grains ffg with good accuracy out to 100 yards. About a 5" drop at 100 yards but fairly straight on at 25 and 50 yards. I found my highest accurate load to be 90 grains, anything over that is just ridiculous. 70 grains will do the job on Deer at up to 70 yards and is a comfortable load to shoot.My recommendation is for the 70-90 grn. range.

Do you plan on target shooting with this gun....like trial walks and the such? If so why not use the load you "practice" with.

To often I talk with people that shoot trail/gongs all summer and do will with the load they are using, only to increase that load during hunting season....make no sense to me

I hunt with the same load I use all summer...why change when I know exactly where I need to hold for the best performence...

I shoot a .50 L.E. Williams flinter and I load 60 grs of 3f under a patched .490 RB for target and hunting and out to 75 yards I've done great on deer, coyote, and targets....the way I see it, if I miss its operater error....not the gun

50 gr FFFg in a PRB 40cal resulted in a DRT deer for me this year shot @ 40yds and it was a high shoulder shot, passed through and was found about 10yrds out expanded a little to about 52 cal (it was a mixture of WW and pure lead)

Going to 90 or 100 grains of powder could easily ruin your guns accuracy.

When these hot loads are used with a patched ball they often will burn thru the patch, spoiling any chance of making an accurate shot.

Even if the powder load doesn't burn thru the patch the change in velocity can change the harmonics of the barrel which can also ruin accuracy.

As the others have said go with your most accurate load.
A .50 caliber roundball starts out as large or larger than most modern hunting bullets expand to and the roundball will expand when it hits the deer.
In other words, a .50 caliber roundball over a 70 grain powder load inside a 100 yard range will be more than enough to kill a deer with no problems.

The important thing is to hit the deer in a vital spot.

I've used 90grns Goex 3F for my deer hunting load in 28" & 32" caplock and Flintlock barrels for years...excellent accuracy and deadly on deer.

Oxyoke makes a little 1/8" over-powder pre-lubed wool wad to act as a firewall, improve the gas seal which improves accuracy, and introduces more lube into the bore. Patches are so perfect using a little firewall that they can be reused...and I have...with accuracy basically a single ragged hole at 50 yards.

So with accuracy not an issue, the added velocity makes for a flatter trajectory and more energy at distance, should a longer than normal shot present itself.

My load in my 50 is 70gr. of 2F. The deer have never complained about it. :wink: My daughter and son in-law, use the same load and they got the same amount of non-complaints from the deer. All were taken with a 50 cal. gun. One with a CVA Mountain, one with a Lyman GPR and 3 with a Colerain barreled Beck.Some were taken at 15 ft. and a couple were taken at 75yds. +or -.

A buddy of mine uses 50 grains of FFFg Swiss in his .50 caliber Hawken with a rpb to take his deer and has never "lost" any venison.

However, I have found that most of the guys use 60-80 grains of FFFg in their .50 caliber muzzle loaders for deer.

As others have advised, work up a load your rifle "likes"... one that is the most accurate and you're good-to-go. :wink:


Strength & Honor...

Ron T.

Go with your most accurate load; it doesn't take great energy to kill a deer. Some states - Va. and Ga. for instance - have a minimum powder requirement of 50 grains and even that will take deer. A few years ago I killed a deer with my oldest .45 using 65 grains of 3f. The shot was at 75 yards and the ball went all the way through and was not recovered. The deer was recovered, however, just a few yards away.

For 50 yrds or less 50 grains of either FF or FFF will be deadly on deer. I would find out your most accurate lead at 50 grain or above and go with the most accurate! :hmm:

The load for my GPR flinter is 55 grs. 3F, .490 RB,.018" PT patch cut at the muzzle.
Same load for everything.
I've taken deer from just a few yards up to 125 paces. The ball always seems to be just under the skin on the off side of the critter.
Never had to track one.
Jon D

Play around with it. My .50 likes 85 gr of FFg and that's plenty for the local 200 lb whitetail. For 50 yards with a round ball I would have no worries about 70 gr.