to 58 or not to 58, that is the question

[appalichian hunter]

I like the big bore rifles have 2 in ,62 one a rifle and another smooth bore also a .54 mountain rifle just something about the big bores grab me, Never owned a .58 sporting rifle but do have 2 civil war muskets that are .58 cal and a .69, go for it if I ever come across a rifle in .58 I would buy it. Big holes lots of crushed bone and good blood trails make short drags especially as getting older is finally here and the drags back seem to be getting longer.

 

[Bledfor Days]

I don't see .58s very often up here but a TC Big Boar just showed up on a site for $450 obo. In like new condition. Hmmm.... I'd need a mold, lots more lead. Hmmm

 

[loud-n-boomer]

It depends on what you plan to use it for. If deer is the biggest game you are likely to hunt, a .58 is more than you need. If you plan to chase elk or especially moose, it is a good caliber.

 

[maineguy]

I have a zoli zouwave 58 cal 58 570 round balls with .015 patch. 3 f powder . how many grains of powder?

 

[Russ T Frizzen]

So really, they go against your arm?

Yes. And they are comfortable to shoot that way. I had a ,62 caliber Hawken that liked heavy loads, and never found recoil to be harsh. "Course, it weighed 11 pounds....

 

[kemart17]

all these years i have only gone as big as 54 cal . have an offer of a 58. not sure yet all the details of what the rifle is but am wondering just what benefits i would get from 58? what is if any the down side?
thanks and keep smoking!

go with the 58 you wont be disappointed. i built a 58 hawken yrs ago. shoots great, accurate, deadly on deer.

 

[TGJaeger]

go with the 58 you wont be disappointed. i built a 58 hawken yrs ago. shoots great, accurate, deadly on deer.

you won’t believe the effect of a .58 rb backed by 120 gr of ffg on a whitetail. With any decent hit, tracking isn’t a problem...

 

[Forester]

I have a zoli zouwave 58 cal 58 570 round balls with .015 patch. 3 f powder . how many grains of powder?

Start at 40 and work up until it groups to your liking.

 

[Pukka Bundook]

Someone mentioned a .58 for elk or especially moose.
In my experience, a moose is much easier to knock over than an elk. Elk don't show the same shock on being hit that a moose shows, even with a cartridge gun.

 

[nkbj]

Picked up a spare barrel for the lefthanded New Englander a while back.
A .58 reboring with the standard 48" twist five groove progressive depth rifling is just really tempting.
The barrel a little longer than a musketoon, that combo would cover round ball and everything else that would fit down it.

 

[nkbj]

Yes. And they are comfortable to shoot that way. I had a ,62 caliber Hawken that liked heavy loads, and never found recoil to be harsh. "Course, it weighed 11 pounds....

The TC Hawken with the GM drop-in .62 barrel is just right. Hangs right, tames the recoil. Rattles the windows.

 

[Bledfor Days]

I took the plunge on the TC Big Boar that came up for sale on a Canadian site. The seller brought the price down to $350 ($266 US) because the bore is less than perfect.
I'm looking for a mold now. I'll probably get the .575 one at Track. I'm not going to be hunting with it but it will still be fun to put some realllly big holes in the squirrel target at our next shoot.
The outside looks nice in the pic the seller sent me

 

[Hellgate]

I have four .58 rifles: Zoli Zouave, Investarms Hawken, Buffalo Hunter (Zoli), and an Enfield Musketoon (Euroarms). I have killed two deer and one elk. All were pass throughs. One adult deer was a left front to right rear full length pass through. The Zouave likes the Lyman 575213-OS minie ball pushed by 90grs FFFg Goex and the Enfield likes the heavy skirted 577611 minie pushed by 90 grs FFg Goex. Both are sighted in to shoot 5" high @50 yards so they will be on zero at 100. The Enfield has a slip-on shotgun recoil pad.

 

[Howie1968]

I own 2 Tc big boar .58s a zouave .58 2 tc renegades rebored to .58 and a cabelas hawken .58 when I want to use a rb for big pigs I grab a.58 all my calibers .54 and down with a patched roundball wont give pass throughs like a .58. My cabelas hawken I shoot a max of 70 gr 2F it punished me all the others I can shoot the 600 gr tow maxi with 100gr and I'm fine that cabelas hurts

 

[Bledfor Days]

I think i better try a couple of different size balls before I race out and buy a mould.

 

[Grenadier1758]

Not only should you, @Bledfor Days, get a few different sized balls, you will need to do the measurements of the bore.

T/C used a button to cut the rifling for most of its barrels. Typically this means that the grooves will be shallow or less than 0.006". Most of the barrels will have an even number of lands and grooves. A caliper can come very close to giving an accurate measurement of the land to land diameter and the diameter to the bottom of the grooves. With shallow grooves, you need a tight loading ball and patch combination. I like a patch that compresses to the difference between the ball diameter and the groove depth. So if the grooves are 0.006" deep and the ball is 0.010" less than the land to land diameter, you want a patch that compresses to 0.010/2 + 0.006 or 0.011" with moderate compression. With that combination, you will need a short starter and a smooth crown at the muzzle to load the ball and patch without cutting the patch at the muzzle.

Load development begins with knowledge of the bore diameter, groove diameter, ball diameter and patch thickness. I have the best results on target with a slightly damp patch lubricated with a mix of a water soluble oil and water. For a T/C and the shallow grooves, the ratio would be 1 part Water soluble oil (Ballistol) and 7 parts water.

 

[tenngun]

A .45 can drop a deer at fifty yards or so, and out to a hundred if it’s a good shot, and if your careful is a good small game hunter. A .50 will drop any deer well out to a hundred and beyond if it’s a good shot.
Elk and moose or a large boar might want a .54.
So the question is what do you hunt. No deer ever complains that you didn’t need a .58,.62 or .75.
Most of the lower forty eight deer is the biggest thing most of us hunt.
So what you need is a .45 or .50. What you want is a whole different story. This game sure isn’t about what we need.

 

[Pete G]

...and particularly effective when shooting from horse back.

A video of that should be worth a lot of money

 

[Bledfor Days]

I won't be hunting with the .58 unless the wild hogs invade BC in the near future. This thread got me interested in the caliber and one came up for sale at a reasonable price up here. I enjoy working up loads for my assortment of different rifles. I'll definitely measure the bore as Grenadier suggested and go from there.

 

[toot]

I note the guard-dog protecting your fine rifles, Cowboy!

boy he Shure looks' like a real killer.