.58 Cal Loads for Buffalo

HELP!

After trying for four years, I finally drew my bison tag last week. My guide expects we'll be at 75 yards. I only have until October to get my load accurate.

The most I've found is that my rifle likes .015 patches better than .010 or .020. I saw advice that powder in grains should not exceed 1.5 times the caliber. I'm heading toward twice the cal with PRB and still barely on paper at 50 yards (>12" groups, not a sight issue). I received advice to try backing the powder back down and start over with the better patches.

But, I also wonder should I be looking at conicals for hunting? The .58s are rare and expensive to start working up a load. Particularly if they may perform entirely differently than PRBs.

Oh boy
What's the twist?

B.

Britsmoothy said:

Oh boy
What's the twist?

B.

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Don't know. :/

Whose barrel? What twist? What length? Info needed for an answer.

Green Mountain 36"x1" untapered barrel. Don't know twist.

mahkagari said:

Britsmoothy said:

Oh boy
What's the twist?

B.

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Don't know. :/

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Easy enough to find out if you can't find the information.
http://www.bergerbullets.com/wp_super_faq/how-do-i-find-out-the-twist-in-my-barrel/

Ok, so it’s a slow twist, round ball barrel. No reason to not be accurate with 70-100 grains of FFG. I’d sight it in at 25 yards and get it accurate there. Then 50, then 75.

It will be 1-66 0r 1-70 if I remember right.

110 t0 120 FFG will be fine.

Try loading 5 shots from 75 to that increasing 10 grains each group. The barrel is fine for that with no worries IMHO

Or call GM and ask them what the twist is. They will find out what you need.

I really dont recall the powder charge but I'm guessing 80-90 grains. My pops buff took three more leaps and was DRT. Trotting broadside at 40-50 yds. Conical and with only 80 gr we recovered it on the opposite side under the skin. Get accurate, that glob of lead will do its job as long as you put it in the boiler room. No matter if at 1100 or 1500 FPS you be eating hump steaks soon. Start about 70-80 and go up 5 gr at a time. Take time off to get the rifle sighted in, you be glad ya did. And BTW I woldnt hesitate to use PRB if its more accurate. I'm betting you'll see Mr Buff fall over anyways. SHOT PLACEMENT

Having never shot a buffalo, but being the proud friend of a buffalo guide who's also my hunting pard, I put your question to him. He uses 120 grains of 2f in his personal 54, he pondered that you'd be happiest in the 100-140 grain realm with your GM 58, whichever grouped best. My own GM 58 drop-in 58 is downright fond of 120 grains of 2f, .570 ball and a greased .018 patch.

Thanks all for the info. I don't see anyone saying conicals are superior to PRB enough that I need to shift my focus. I'll keep working on the PRB load and shot placement.

I can't even see a bison heart with iron sights at 75 yards, much less 100. I'll be doing some aim small/miss small on 8" gongs at those distances.

My Zouave only wanted 80 grains of FFg with a PRB to be most accurate. It did have a strong preference for dry-lube type patches and the one's I used were blue-white striped pillow ticking. Don't give up, keep experimenting in a methodical manner until you figure out what your rifle wants.

mahkagari said:

...and shot placement.

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My bud owns 300+ buffs on a very large (26,000 acres) unfenced spread. It's about as fair chase as fair chase hunts can get. He's been on hand for a whole lot of buff kills over the years using a huge array of modern and muzzleloading calibers. He points out that one of the most popular ways to hunt buff back in the day was "running" them, getting right up alongside them at high speed on horseback. And near the top of the popularity list for such shooting was a 36 caliber C&B revolver.

T'aint what you hit them with, but where you hit them. They actually die pretty easy with a decent hit.

But he makes the point that extra powder is a nice complement to stalking skills. In open or semi-open country you might need a little extra reach, so he stirs people toward as much powder as the gun likes and they shoot well. Less powder will certainly do the job, but mostly for trajectory you need to get closer. If eyesight is going to hold you inside 75 yards, so be it. You almost certainly don't need lots of extra powder. But you still need to hit them right.

Remember as a kid reading about Custer shooting more than one horse out from under himself while chasing buffalo on horseback and attempting to gun them down with a sixshooter. Story was he carried more than one saddle back to fort/camp due to the lack of a horse. Guess if one had a real set it could be done with a 22 short in the ear with a Ruger Single Six while on horseback. Doubt outfitter would sanction, but it is possible.

Personally, I would use either my favorite 54 caliber plus roundball load or 45 caliber plus conical load. Just one person’s opinion.

Also, I would avoid using a sixshooter while on horseback, even if PC. Seems a tab bit dangerous.

I would avoid a herd of stampeding buffalo if I were on horseback :shocked2:

azmntman said:

I would avoid a herd of stampeding buffalo if I were on horseback :shocked2:

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Or on foot. I was "inspired" to dive into the bed of my truck when they drove the herd toward a corral but they veered around it at the last moment. No dignity in that leap! :rotf:

Purty darned impressive as they rocked the truck splitting around it. I don't claim to be a buckaroo, and even if I was I'd have second thoughts about whirling into that mess.

SDSmlf said:

Remember as a kid reading about Custer shooting more than one horse out from under himself while chasing buffalo on horseback and attempting to gun them down with a sixshooter. Story was he carried more than one saddle back to fort/camp due to the lack of a horse. Guess if one had a real set it could be done with a 22 short in the ear with a Ruger Single Six while on horseback. Doubt outfitter would sanction, but it is possible.

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The things I read about Custer I reason he was a fool!

B.

Britsmoothy said:

The things I read about Custer I reason he was a fool!
B.

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He graduated last in his class at West Point. :td: