A friend built me a rifle this winter with an interesting barrel. It's about a 25 to 30 year old Getz barrel that a man had for years and years but never built a gun with it. My friend acquired it last fall and we put it in a "Lancaster"-style precarve with a Jim Chambers Large Siler lock. I am not sure how "HC" it is, but I know it's a "Pennsylvania Long Rifle" 'cause it's long and was built and lives in PA. :rotf:
The barrel's serial number is 1114--recent Getz barrels are now above 27,000. It's a 42" swamped .50 in what's close to today's "B" profile, I think, and is twisted 1:66.
I have had the rifle out to the range about a half dozen times and was not getting the best results. I started with what has worked for me in the past with .50's--.495 balls & .020 cotton or .018 ticking patches, but accuracy was spotty and patches were torn and ragged looking. I thought it might "settle down" after a while, but it did not really improve, even after 100 shots.
At a friend's suggestion I tried some heavy .023 cotton duck and a .480 Hornady ball and it worked. The patches look good, it groups well with 60 to 80 grains of Goex 3F and it is easy loading. I always thought tighter was better, bet I guess not every time :idunno: :surrender:
Today I went out and tried .480 and .490 balls alternating shots, shooting 5 shots each at two side by side targets at 50 yards. No swabbing in between--just load and shoot with my forward hand holding the forend and rested on a bag and no bag under the buttstock. The .490's were shots 1-3-5-7-9 and the .480's were shots 2-4-6-8-10. The one shot out of the group on the left was #4
I guess it likes the .480s :hatsoff: But I would not have figured on that beforehand BTW--patches were lubed with moose juice and cut at the muzzle.
I am going to have to try the heavy patch/smaller ball load in a .54 that's being finicky :hmm:
Anybody else regularly shoot heavy patches and round balls that are a caliber or two undersize?
Thanks for putting up with my long post... :yakyak: :yakyak:
The barrel's serial number is 1114--recent Getz barrels are now above 27,000. It's a 42" swamped .50 in what's close to today's "B" profile, I think, and is twisted 1:66.
I have had the rifle out to the range about a half dozen times and was not getting the best results. I started with what has worked for me in the past with .50's--.495 balls & .020 cotton or .018 ticking patches, but accuracy was spotty and patches were torn and ragged looking. I thought it might "settle down" after a while, but it did not really improve, even after 100 shots.
At a friend's suggestion I tried some heavy .023 cotton duck and a .480 Hornady ball and it worked. The patches look good, it groups well with 60 to 80 grains of Goex 3F and it is easy loading. I always thought tighter was better, bet I guess not every time :idunno: :surrender:
Today I went out and tried .480 and .490 balls alternating shots, shooting 5 shots each at two side by side targets at 50 yards. No swabbing in between--just load and shoot with my forward hand holding the forend and rested on a bag and no bag under the buttstock. The .490's were shots 1-3-5-7-9 and the .480's were shots 2-4-6-8-10. The one shot out of the group on the left was #4
I guess it likes the .480s :hatsoff: But I would not have figured on that beforehand BTW--patches were lubed with moose juice and cut at the muzzle.
I am going to have to try the heavy patch/smaller ball load in a .54 that's being finicky :hmm:
Anybody else regularly shoot heavy patches and round balls that are a caliber or two undersize?
Thanks for putting up with my long post... :yakyak: :yakyak:
