Good load for a .50cal???

[Mark Nasim]

Can anyone recommend an excellent load for a .50cal rifle?? The rifle I have has a Rice barrel, but now i want to concentrate on a excellent shooting load for it. So far, I seem to get better results from a .495 ball. Now as for patch, I have been using a .017-.018 thick ticking materiel dry lubed with a 6/1 ratio of water and Ballistol. it seems to shoot very well with 60-65g of 3F.
I am open to other alternatives (lubes,patching,powder etc..) and would like to here some words of wisdom here in hopes in that I can get this rifle to shoot even better than it already does.


****Another thing---How do most of you sight in your rifle. I am use to shooting with the line of sight dead on the target--vs-- sighting in with a 6:00 hold. I have been sighting my rifle in at 50 yards. But I have been wondering, at least with shooting flintlocks, that the type of hold I am using is good for a flintlock or should I be holding in with a 6:00 hold.
I will maily use my rifle to hunt with, but naturaly I like to go to the range and shoot paper with it too,and go to a match every now and then also. What would you all recommend me do??

 

[roundball]

Can anyone recommend an excellent load for a .50cal rifle?? The rifle I have has a Rice barrel, but now i want to concentrate on a excellent shooting load for it. So far, I seem to get better results from a .495 ball. Now as for patch, I have been using a .017-.018 thick ticking materiel dry lubed with a 6/1 ratio of water and Ballistol. it seems to shoot very well with 60-65g of 3F.
I am open to other alternatives (lubes,patching,powder etc..) and would like to here some words of wisdom here in hopes in that I can get this rifle to shoot even better than it already does.


****Another thing---How do most of you sight in your rifle. I am use to shooting with the line of sight dead on the target--vs-- sighting in with a 6:00 hold. I have been sighting my rifle in at 50 yards. But I have been wondering, at least with shooting flintlocks, that the type of hold I am using is good for a flintlock or should I be holding in with a 6:00 hold.
I will maily use my rifle to hunt with, but naturaly I like to go to the range and shoot paper with it too,and go to a match every now and then also. What would you all recommend me do??

I'll give one of what will be many responses / opinions I'm sure:

Everything I do is oriented towards hunting and I don't want to have to remember which hold to use in the heat of the moment...so weekend shooting year round I use center target hold...my .50cal Flintlock loads are:

TARGETS
50grns Goex 3F
.018" TC pillow ticking
Hornady .490 balls

DEER HUNTING
90grns Goex 3F
Oxyoke wonderwad
.018" TC pillow ticking
Hornady .490 balls

 

[Stumpkiller]

Mine are close but slightly lower.

Targets/small game/plinking
.490 Round Ball
42 gr FFg w/0.018" patch

Targets/deer/plinking
.490 Round Ball
84 gr FFg w/0.018" patch

Either moose milk or Moose Snot for lube.

I sight my rifles to be 2" high at 50 yards. That usually puts me at a 25 yards zero +/- with the light (squirrel/bunny load) and on again at 80 with the heavier load.

 

every rifle is different, even with the same make barrel...you just have to experiment with your loads: combos of patch, ball, lube and powder charge--and IMHO the least of these is lube. I also shoot a .50 often (I have several calibers)and your powder charge is close to mine--I use 70 grs fffg, but I use .490 ball and .015 patch with one of several lubes, e.g., spit, mink grease, Wonder Lube, Lehigh Valley....The fellow who made my rifle has one just like it (Both 44" Colerain swamped .50)and he target shoots (and wins) with 60 gr fffg, .490 ball, flannel patch and real bear grease lube. The 90 and 90+ gr loads are unnecessarily stout for a .50 IMHO, even for hunting, but each to his own (I used to use 100 gr ffg in my .58). Your barrel must be slightly larger diameter than mine if you can load a .495 with .018 ticking!

 

[lacerote]

Wow,I have a coned barrel and would not want to use that tight a combo. I use a .490 swaged ball and .015 teflon coated pilow ticking which I add a good lube to to help prevent burn through and add water resistance and 80 grains of fffg Swiss powder. Honestly at 25 yards from the bench it puts the shots one on top of the other so I could not ask for more accuracy and sacrifice the ease of loading for a tighter combo for anything , especialy hunting . I am shooting a 48 inch Bobby hoyt wrought iron hand made barrel with a gain twist. I use a littel heavier charge because I like the extra velocity against wind, flatter trajectory and I can also hunt with this load. I would try an easier to load combination on the range and see how it shoots , you might find the easier one to live with shoots great. Eagles

 

[oldarmy]

mike, sorry about your recent troubles
Hope every thing is ok
50 cal GM
495 Hornady... going to get a 495 mold
.020 dry patch
wet lube-- moose milk
60 grains ffg goex
recommeded by Green mt barrel

 

[MikeChapin]

I own three 50s with three different barrels; One Getz, one Green Mountain and one CVA Mountain Rifle with the old Douglas barrel. Each one wants a different load for best accuracy.

The Green Mountain and the Getz will both shoot one ragged hole at 50 yards off a bench. The GM wants 40 grains FFFg and a .022 cotton duck patch. The Getz wants 45 grains FFFg and a .020 denim patch. The Mountain Rifle has not been on a bench in 25 years but shot well with a .015 Ox-Yoke patch an 50 grains FFFg. All three were just using spit for a lube.

You should get that kind of accuracy out of the Rice. If the load you are shooting does this, I would not worry too much about changing it. If it won't then put the rifle on the bench. You want to see what the rifle will do, not what you can do. Also it gives you the confidence to know that the rifle is shooting well and all those fliers are all you.

Vary the load to where it comes in best. Now change the patching to see what the rifle likes best. Changing the patching from Ox-Yoke .018 ticking to the denim brought the Getz in from an inch and a half to one ragged hole at 50 yards.