load for a .54

[Leatherbark]

One of my "Go To" guns that I use is a T.C New Englander in .54 with the 1/48 twist.
I've always shot 70 grains of 3F Goex and over a .530 ball wrapped in No.40 drill cloth (JoAnns). Shoots a nice round 3 shot 1 inch group at 50 yards from a rest and I can hit the 6x8 inch gong at 100 off hand. When I miss its me not the gun or load............Muzzle Velocity is in the 1400 range if I remember correctly. I believe you need to use a "NON Greasy" patch with 1/48 and shallow rifling for best results...................Bob

 

[paulvallandigham]

What is " Objectionable recoil" In one gun, to one shooter, is nothing to another shooter, or in another gun. I didn't use the term "objectionable", for that reason, simply because you didn't tell us all the details about your gun. I also don't know much about you personally as a shooter, and would not venture to assume how much recoil you tolerate, or not. I know, from your articles, that you have been shooting MLers for many years, but use reasonable powder charges in the guns you write about.

Personally, I find 80 grains of 2Fg powder tolerable in a .54, but when I load 80 grains of 3Fg, I begin to notice the recoil. If you add a half-moon butt plate to that later load, I notice it a lot. For some reason, my shoulder and arm are not designed for that style of butt plate. I do fine shooting guns with shotgun style butt plates, and can tolerate much heavier loads.

For instance, I once fired a friend's 8 gauge single barrel shotgun, which he loaded with 6 drams of powder( 165 grains) and 3 oz.(1305 grains) of shot! The gun definitely said, " HELLO!", but I was ready to shoot it again. I obliterated the clay target I fired at, with that one shot, BTW.

 

[hoochiepapa]

I have a friend who just killed a bull moose with his .54, and 90 grs. of powder. I can't be more specific about his load, because he did'nt enlighten me.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

I guess that I'm just missing the boat here :idunno: . I use a Lyman Trade Rifle .50 cal, with the medium-twist "48" barrel and 72 grains of 3Fg Goex (tapping to settle the charge, then topping-off, so maybe 75 on a "straight pour") under a .018 pillow-ticking patched round ball. Very accurate--can cut playing cards in half! Dead flat trajectory out to 50 yards. At 100 yards it drops about 4".

Same load with my 370 Grain T/C Maxi-Balls will drop 2.5 inches at 50 yards and 8" at 100 yards. I mentally compensate for elevation since I'm using the primitive sights that came with the rifle. The Maxi's go out the tube at about 1347 FPS on the Chrono, and they destroy anything that they come into contact with (pumpkins last week, LOL!).

I don't know about your rifle, but mine tell me when to stop adding powder to the equation...the hammer starts magically coming back to half-cock! Vigorous testing on my part has determined that the pressure variable created to do this results in my groups opening-up significantly. As the gasses escape out the uncovered nipple at a varying degree, so do the rounds land all over the paper. Once I back-off on the powder charge so that the hammer remains upon the nipple during the entire firing sequence, my groups tighten-up! For me that equates to around 80 grains with the Maxi and 90 grains with the round ball.

Your mileage may vary, but check that hammer position the next time you light-off a magnum charge :wink: .

Dave
NRA Distinguished Expert in ML Rifle

 

[Pete Gaimari]

Dave,

What do you think the practical killing range for a mule deer with a .50 1:66 twist 28" barrel, and what charge would it take? (PRB)

My gun seems pretty accurate up to 90gr of Swiss 2F, but i'm unsure of it's power on a good size deer at distance.

Thanks.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

Mule Deer look to be a little larger than Jersey Whitetails, but I think that your 90 grain load ought to be good out to 90-100 yards, if you get a shot in the boiler room. Much past 100 yards, a round ball loses its punch. And your eyes can only see well for so far, depending upon age, medical problems, etc.

What sort of "drop" do you experience at 100 yards with your 90 grain charge? And how good are your eyes?

Dave

 

[Pete Gaimari]

Blind in my right eye, and half blind in my left eye. Ok, not half blind in my left eye, but it's still a 67 year old eye.

I probably wouldn't take a 100 yd shot. I just wanted to have a safety margin. If I know my load will kill at 100yds. I feel good about 75 yds which would probably be my limit.

I've only taken a few shots with 90 gr of Swiss to see how it feels. It's a stout load. I'd rather stay down to 75 gr. I can't be specific enough to give you drop. I hit my target, and called it good. :grin:

I was more curious about the limit of the gun.

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

I feel pretty confident that 80 grains of Swiss 2F under a .50 PRB ought to be very good out to 75 yards, no problem. Still plenty of "punch" when it gets there! Swiss is a little hotter than Goex, so your load is "about" equal to Goex 3Fg, and 80 grains of 3Fg in my 48-twist half-stock trade rifle would do just fine, for sure!

Sorry to hear about your vision problem, but glad to see that you won't let it stop you from doing what you love to do! :thumbsup:

Dave

 

[hoochiepapa]

These are two Great Plains bullets from my Cabela's Hawken, .54 cal, two different elk, both shot at about 110 yards(my magic meadow) and the bullet quit in the skin on the opposite side. Neither elk went 40 yards.
You be the judge.

 

[George]

The more powder I used the better it shot.

My regular .54 is an Ozark Mountain Arms Hawken with a Green Mountain 1:70" twist, and I found the same thing with it. I thought 80 gr. 3F would be a good load, but I had to go to 110 gr. to get the accuracy I wanted. That surprised me, because my experience with slow twist barrels has usually been that they will shoot well with a wide range of charges. I had a conversation with Mike Nesbitt, who shot that same gun, and he wound up with the same load.

Spence

 

[longcruise]

My regular .54 is an Ozark Mountain Arms Hawken with a Green Mountain 1:70" twist, and I found the same thing with it. I thought 80 gr. 3F would be a good load, but I had to go to 110 gr. to get the accuracy I wanted. That surprised me, because my experience with slow twist barrels has usually been that they will shoot well with a wide range of charges.

I've had the same experience with a GM .54 1/70. Still, it shoots good enough for hunting with 80 to 100 and thats pretty much how I load now for deer and elk. We have seen tha 80 in a .54 is enough for elk so it does not bother me to go that low anymore.

 

[irishtoo]

100 grs 3f, 535 cast round ball, .010 patch olive oil lube, fiber wad between powder and patch. thru and thru shot on deer (a couple) 9 pound rifle. some recoil but not bad. irishtoo