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Should I get a .40?

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smoothshooter

50 Cal.
Joined
Nov 6, 2005
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I have a Tip Curtis .45 flint rifle with a swamped 38” barrel and sliding wood patch box. Shoots very well with about any powder charge from 25 to 80 grains.
Have wanted a .40 for decades.
I shoot a .433” ball in the .45. A .40 would use a ball around .390”, give or take .005”.
The difference between the two calibers is only around .050” +/- .
Don’t remember about the bullet weight difference.
Maybe that is the more important.
And I like that the .40 uses a little less lead and powder on average than the .45.
Is there enough of a difference to justify a new gun?
Is there enough of a power difference to justify another gun?
 
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I have three .40 cal. muzzleloaders. I have one setup with peep sights for matches that allow them. The other two are open sight rifles for open sight matches. For me the .40 cal. shoots good at 25, 50, and 100 yards. Perfect for target matches and small bore silhouette. I don't hunt. I have other calibers, .32 for fun, .36, .38, .45 for woodswalk and other steel targets, .50 and a .54. I shoot the .40's at Friendship and at local matches. Two of my .40's are Hoyt rebores with round bottom rifling. the other is a Green Mountain barrel. Part of the fun for me is to try to get the best accuracy from the rifle. The rest is up to me. If you find one that suits you I wouldn't hesitate. I have spent most of my life trying to justify everything I buy. Not being wasteful of time or money. I am 71 and retired and I just want to have fun doing what I like.
 
I have a Tip Curtis .45 flint rifle with a swamped 38” barrel and sliding wood patch box. Shoots very well with about any powder charge from 25 to 80 grains.
Have wanted a .40 for decades.
I shoot a .433” ball in the .45. A .40 would use a ball around .390”, give or take .005”.
The difference between the two calibers is only around .050” +\~. Don’t remember about the bullet weight difference.
Maybe that is the more important.
And I like that the .40 uses a little less lead and powder on average than the .45.
Is there enough of a difference to justify a new gun?
Is there enough of a power difference to justify another gun?

I have three .40 cal. muzzleloaders. I have one setup with peep sights for matches that allow them. The other two are open sight rifles for open sight matches. For me the .40 cal. shoots good at 25, 50, and 100 yards. Perfect for target matches and small bore silhouette. I don't hunt. I have other calibers, .32 for fun, .36, .38, .45 for woodswalk and other steel targets, .50 and a .54. I shoot the .40's at Friendship and at local matches. Two of my .40's are Hoyt rebores with round bottom rifling. the other is a Green Mountain barrel. Part of the fun for me is to try to get the best accuracy from the rifle. The rest is up to me. If you find one that suits you I wouldn't hesitate. I have spent most of my life trying to justify everything I buy. Not being wasteful of time or money. I am 71 and retired and I just want to have fun doing what I like.

Thank you sir I needed to read this, I have a .36, a 20 gauge Smooth bore, and currently building a Jim Chambers Isaac Haines in .50 (all Flintlocks).

I was lamenting the small difference between .36 and .40 but now feel a .40 will be worth the trouble and expense.
 
absolutely not! they are notoriously inaccurate and all of them are ugly too!
40 group.jpg
40g4.jpg
 
Have one 45 cal. It prints using the Davenport Formula, A standard load is 54.5gr @ 1633fps
VS 75gr max load @ 2033fps.
Had to go with a 45, smallest legal hunting caliber here. Woulda got a 40.
 
I have a Tip Curtis .45 flint rifle with a swamped 38” barrel and sliding wood patch box. Shoots very well with about any powder charge from 25 to 80 grains.
Have wanted a .40 for decades.
I shoot a .433” ball in the .45. A .40 would use a ball around .390”, give or take .005”.
The difference between the two calibers is only around .050” +/- .
Don’t remember about the bullet weight difference.
Maybe that is the more important.
And I like that the .40 uses a little less lead and powder on average than the .45.
Is there enough of a difference to justify a new gun?
Is there enough of a power difference to justify another gun?
Using your worries and logic one could also talk themself out of a 50 cal if they already have a 45. Or out of a 54 if they have a 50. It goes on……. Not to leave out the redundancy of two guns of the same caliber. Muzzleloaders, like many other things in life, come in a variety of flavors and sizes. If you can afford it, buy what you want. Or don’t and then lament about it for decades if you can keep waking up every day long enough.

Post photographs of your new 40 caliber when it arrives.
 
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