Over the summer, I found two load combinations that are accurate for my purposes with my .45 but they require a .020 patch that takes two or three smacks with my short starter to get it past the crown. This was resulting in stretching and weakening of the fibers of the patch at the crown which was exacerbated after firing. Not to mention, a real pain to get down the bore with the hickory ramrod for repeated shots in the field for squirrel hunting.
I got the bright idea that a thinner patch might hold up a little better if it passed by the crown easier. Well, wrong, but I got some useful results. My 52gr load of 3F with the .015 patch doesn't group so much worse from the same load with a .020 patch out to 50 yards not to use it for squirrel hunting out to 25yds and off-hand shooting with the rifle club out to 50yds. It was a breeze to load with the hickory rod.
The 70gr trial with the .015 patch shows that I need to stick with the .020 patch for 100yd target shooting and deer hunting. I can follow up with a .015 patch in the field after the first shot at a deer for any easy reload.
Here's pictures of both the .020 and .015 patch targets along with some patch pictures. All shooting was done sitting at a bench with a front rest for the muzzle of the rifle.
.020 Patch Targets:
Typical .020 Patches
.015 patch targets. Wind was from my right at 10mph.
The Rifle:
I got the bright idea that a thinner patch might hold up a little better if it passed by the crown easier. Well, wrong, but I got some useful results. My 52gr load of 3F with the .015 patch doesn't group so much worse from the same load with a .020 patch out to 50 yards not to use it for squirrel hunting out to 25yds and off-hand shooting with the rifle club out to 50yds. It was a breeze to load with the hickory rod.
The 70gr trial with the .015 patch shows that I need to stick with the .020 patch for 100yd target shooting and deer hunting. I can follow up with a .015 patch in the field after the first shot at a deer for any easy reload.
Here's pictures of both the .020 and .015 patch targets along with some patch pictures. All shooting was done sitting at a bench with a front rest for the muzzle of the rifle.
.020 Patch Targets:
Typical .020 Patches
.015 patch targets. Wind was from my right at 10mph.
The Rifle: