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what a difference 5 grains makes!
- Thread starter PathfinderNC
- Start date
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I have a persnickety .45 that took me forever to find the right load. Move 5 grains up or down, change the lube, change the patch, forget to clean after each shot, fart, etc and it goes from cloverleafs to 2"-4" groups at 50 yards from the bench.
Nice little group BUT! Now go back and shoot three targets using five shot groups. Measure the very worse one, that is what you and your rifle can depend on at that given range. NEVER DEPEND ON THREE SHOT GROUPS FOR SHOWING THE POTENTIAL FOR ACCURACY! The cardinal rule for any testing is "Is it consistently repeatable?"
Brokennock
Cannon
Amazing isn't it. I was trying to figure out what that has to do with your o.p. point about small changes making big differences.
I think @toot nailed it
Brokennock
Cannon
And that's exactly what he's doing.
Posting it here, as it is, has nothing to do with the point the o.p. was trying to make.
Now if it were posted with some context, like, he was getting a horrible group then made some tiny change (equivalent to just 5 grains of powder difference) and then got that group,,,, that would make sense to post here.
I am heading out this morning with the 45 Seneca have been getting ok accuracy with 60 grains and a PRB but after reading I am going to try and up it a little. I worry about heavy charges in these guns but I think if I can get a real accurate load under 75 grains it should be ok.
tnlonghunter
40 Cal.
I had that same issue with my (now) .54, but it was a .50 at the time. I had the barrel bored by Bobby Hoyt to .54 and it's night and day. Not that you need to do all that. But maybe having the rifling freshened might help.
Well it’s a three month old barrel from Jim Kibler, which is just about as good as they come!
The .45 is a custom rifle that was given to me by a departed friend. It cuts cloverleafs now at 50y, and had very few rounds through it before it came into my possession. It just seems to have only one sweet spot for a load, but that load will be more than adequate for whitetails. Maybe 50 years from now when I've shot out the barrel a bit, Mr. Hoyt will rebore it for me. That would make a nice 121st birthday present.
In fifty years Mr. Hoyt might not be answering the phone though.The .45 is a custom rifle that was given to me by a departed friend. It cuts cloverleafs now at 50y, and had very few rounds through it before it came into my possession. It just seems to have only one sweet spot for a load, but that load will be more than adequate for whitetails. Maybe 50 years from now when I've shot out the barrel a bit, Mr. Hoyt will rebore it for me. That would make a nice 121st birthday present.
It's surprising how much 5 grains can be all the difference with BP. When I first started developing a PRB load I was using 2f and started at 60 grains, worked my way up 5 grains at a time (.54 TC). I can remember thinking I must not have that accurate of a barrel those first few groups. Then when I got to 75 grains they shrank in half, and by the time I got to 80 grains they were half that again.
My .54 shoots about the same group as yours at 75 grains. Next time out give 80 a try, mine improves some more at 80.
4 shots at 50 yards (rested, swabbed between shots), 80 grains of Goex 3f, .530 RB with mink oil lubed .018" pillow patch. I really believe this load will shoot just a ragged hole if I can manage to do the same thing 4 times in a row. I was planning to just shoot 3 shots, but when the 3rd shot hit a bit left I decided to try one more shot. Shot 4 went back into the same spot as the first two.
My .54 shoots about the same group as yours at 75 grains. Next time out give 80 a try, mine improves some more at 80.
4 shots at 50 yards (rested, swabbed between shots), 80 grains of Goex 3f, .530 RB with mink oil lubed .018" pillow patch. I really believe this load will shoot just a ragged hole if I can manage to do the same thing 4 times in a row. I was planning to just shoot 3 shots, but when the 3rd shot hit a bit left I decided to try one more shot. Shot 4 went back into the same spot as the first two.
Just breaking in a new rifle, I have an older rifle that likes a .535 ball and one that I can't start a .535 ball down the bore so I shot a .530.
I need a taller rear sight but here is a 50 yard group with 80 gr of 2F and an .018 patch, I filed the sight between the low shot and the next two. This is a Bobby Hoyt rebore.
My old Beck rifle shoots the same load with the .535 ball, I pulled the first shot to the left then got serious at 50 yards. i made a peep so I could see the sights with my old eyes.
t
I need a taller rear sight but here is a 50 yard group with 80 gr of 2F and an .018 patch, I filed the sight between the low shot and the next two. This is a Bobby Hoyt rebore.
My old Beck rifle shoots the same load with the .535 ball, I pulled the first shot to the left then got serious at 50 yards. i made a peep so I could see the sights with my old eyes.
