Smooth barrel on it's way...

[Lonegun1894]

Just sent a GM .54 smooth barrel to TOTW to get it fitted to a FL GPR. I've read a lot of posts on here about the advantages and disadvantages of smoothies vs. rifles, and will now have both options available as soon as I get the barrel back. Are there any quirks to my new "almost 28 ga" that any of yall think I need to keep in mind? Thanks for getting me into this side of MLing. Like I really needed another addiction.... :thumbsup:

 

[roundball]

Just sent a GM .54 smooth barrel to TOTW to get it fitted to a FL GPR. I've read a lot of posts on here about the advantages and disadvantages of smoothies vs. rifles, and will now have both options available as soon as I get the barrel back. Are there any quirks to my new "almost 28 ga" that any of yall think I need to keep in mind? Thanks for getting me into this side of MLing. Like I really needed another addiction.... :thumbsup:

You'll need some cushion wads and over shot cards.
The ones that have worked best for me in my GM .54cal smoothbore are Circle Fly prelubed 1/2" cushion wads, and their over shot cards as well.
You'll need some shot of course.

And Hornady .520 (five-twenty) balls with .018" pillow ticking are the most accurate in mine.

Artic-cap gave me a great tip when using it as a shotgun, and that was to simply put a piece of tape over the back wall of the rear site so you don't from habit try to look through the notch and lose time on a fast target...just set the front bead on top of the taped rear sight as if it was a "shotgun rib".

For small stationery targets like squirrels, or a turkey head, that's not necessary as you probably want to aim it like a rifle.
NOTE: I had to adjust my rear sight down to get the pattern centered before I started playing with various load combos for density.

 

[Lonegun1894]

any load recommendations? For both ball and shot. Also, I have several ball molds that would work, but the closest to shot I have is a .31 ball mold. I can always just buy a bag of shot, but has anyone tried this gauge with different sizes of shot? What worked well? Any buckshot options?

 

[CoyoteJoe]

28 gauge is a pretty small shotgun, the old standard black powder load was only 5/8 ounce of shot. Most people today load it heavier but I'd not exceed one ounce. From a cylinder bore one ounce spreads pretty thin at 25 yards and pattern density will limit your range. I'd suggest shot no larger than #6 because it will have enough penetration well past the range where the pattern becomes too thin. Any larger size would exacerbate the thin pattern problem. For grouse, quail and dove #7 1/2 or #8 shot may well do better. Have fun! :grin:
Start with equal volumes of powder and shot. Try 60-70 grain volumes, with two thick cardboard over powder wads and a thin overshot card. You will need to test patterns on a large paper or cardboard target at least 36x36" to catch the whole pattern. The standard distance for pattern tests is 40 yards but with a cylinder bore I'd suggest 25 yards as a starting point.

 

[roundball]

any load recommendations? For both ball and shot.

GM's .54al x 15/16" x 33" Flint smoothbore barrels are thick and strong...the loads I've personally settled on and taken game with are:

ROUNDBALL DEER LOAD
70/80/90grns Goex 3F and .018" lubed pillow ticking patch and Hornady .520 (five twenty)
Note: could not use any number of Oxyoke wonderwads as they caused an occasional flyer for some reason, so I had to use a thick pillow ticking patch for it to survive...but the thick patch was too tight with .530s.
Tried .520s and they were extremely accurate with snug .018” pillow ticking, and patches survived fine.

HUNTING LOAD ”“ Squirrels, Rabbits, Crows
70grns Goex 3F
2 Oxyoke wads (or one half of a ½” Circle Fly lubed cushion wad)
100grns #5 shot (1+3/8oz)
Circle Fly overshot card
Outstanding pattern at 30 yards

HUNTING LOAD ”“ Turkey
70grns Goex 3F
2 Oxyoke wads (or 1/2 of a Circle Fly lubed cushion wad)
100grns (1+3/8oz) #6 copper plated lead shot OR #7.5 MAGNUM SHOT
Circle Fly overshot card
Good for Turkey head shots to 20-22yds

DOVE HUNTING LOAD
Dove load with .54cal GM Flint smoothbore barrel on TC Hawken
70grns Goex 3F and one half of a ½” Circle Fly prelubed cushion wad
80grns (1+1/8oz) #7.5 ”˜Magnum’ shot and Circle Fly overshot card
NO WIPING BETWEEN SHOTS”¦after 16 shots, bore cleaned right up with both sides of 1 wet & 1 dry patch
Excellent pattern at the 30yds tested”¦penetrated 1 tuna can + dented another one behind it

CLAY TARGET LOAD TEST
Trap targets at DCWC with .54cal GM Flint smoothbore barrel
60/70grns Goex 3F and two .58cal Oxyoke wonderwads
70grns (1.0oz) #8 hard shot and Circle Fly overshot card
Dusted them standing behind the trap house, broke them into large pieces from the 16 yard line.

 

[Lonegun1894]

Thank you for the information. Coming through as always... :bow: