Which caliber .50 or .54 percussion

[HPS]

I’m green as grass when it comes to muzzle loaders and the following will explain part of why I’m here.

Went to a Black Powder Rifle Silhouette event Saturday to see what it was all about. Before long the gents had me entered as a contestant. One of the group loaned me his .54 caliber muzzleloader, Hawken type I believe, and with instruction on how to load and the sight picture to use away I went. I actually managed some of those steel critters. What a ball it was and really a good bunch with kidding going on all through the match. Anyway, a fun event and friendly folks who made me feel right at home and I do believe they set the hook. I was really impressed with the accuracy and the sharp shooting of the entire group. I had no idea what I had been missing.

So, here I am to start my muzzle loading education and looking forward to it. I’ve already become very interested in the Lyman percussion Great Plains Rifle but now trying to decide which caliber, .50 or .54? This piece will not be used for hunting but for target cutting and Black Powder Rifle Silhouette. Any help or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[azmntman]

If no hunting I say .50 for sure. Less cost, easier to get supplies. etc.

But you'll soon be getting a mold, lead pot, flint lock, revolver and a KY pistol, so why fight it? Buy both now. Save ya getting the next one and then you can look for a .45, .36. 58 and....eventually a smoothie (I'm finally gonna get one, been shooting 39 yrs now, bout time).

Good luck (and no therapy wont help, this IS YOUR therapy now :blah:

 

[necchi]

Go for the 54.
It has a significant advantage over the 50 in many aspects.
There's just something cool about being able to say you shoot a rifle that has a larger than 1/2" bore and projectile.

 

[Zonie]

Welcome to the Forum. I know your going to like it here.

If just poking holes in paper targets is all you want to do the .50 will work fine and it uses a little less powder and lead than the .54 does.

If there is a chance you want to keep on trying to knock down iron critters, the heavier ball from a .54 will have better power, especially on large targets at distant ranges.

 

[tenngun]

Do you hunt out west? The deer you'll run into at home will go down just as quick with a .50 as .54. Lots of boys hunt very well with a .45. If your new to front stuffing you will be unimpressed with the seemingly low power and velocity of black powder. You will find that what seems like a wimpy shot will go right through game with out a problem. Outside of elk and bigger game a .50 is a good size, and 60-70 grain loads will do the job.

 

[Alden]

Zonie makes some sense but do what Tenngun says except eat grits. He's on target here but grits makes you blind and grows hair on your palms.

Welcome!

 

[BrownBear]

...and Black Powder Rifle Silhouette.

Never popped a cap at BP silhouettes, but did a lot with centerfire rifles and handguns. Especially with the handguns (and to a little lesser degree with the rifles), caliber was important. Marginal hits with too small a round and the big old hunk of steel would clang nicely, maybe rock a little, then stand there and stare at you. A miss, even if you hit it, because it didn't fall over.

Pure guesswork here, but I'm betting there's a good reason your benefactor was shooting a 54 rather than a 50. "Knockdown power" can be debated forever on game, but it's a sure-fire, proven issue with those pesky steel critters. A hit is still a miss if the critter doesn't fall over.

 

[azmntman]

Iv'e killed several elk with a .50 myself. 1st one (big bull) at age 17 took several PRB (I was young n dumb...long story) others with conical. A .54 is better for elk (and PRB is sufficient) but a .58 (or bigger) is best. Pop shot a bull buffaloo with a .58 and was down in three jumps, was running or likley woulda just keeled over. As per above the knock down power of the BP rifle is sufficient and ya dont need teeth rattling loads to get it done.

But since yer not hunting t I still say a .50 is good (check gunbroker and type search for the diff calibers and you'll see 10 or so pages of .50 and wayy less on other calibers and ALOT is supplies) .54 is not hard to find feed for though.

Good luck and keep us posted on what ya end up with (1st...lol)

 

[ChrisHarris]

.54

Holds velocity farther.
Delivers more energy.
Can load it down for target shooting, so only as expensive as you want to make it.

I disagree with the idea that .54 supplies are harder to get. You have a computer and internet access. Go shopping!

I agree with the comment about therapy. This IS your therapy from now on. Certainly cheaper than counselors and much more satisfying.

 

[mooman76]

Either one will do what you want. Even if you decide later to go hunting the 50 will work also. If you want a little more punch, get the 54 but it's really your choice.

 

[Jumpshot]

If you wanna knock stuff down, use a bigger rock.

 

[Semisane]

If I had to get rid of all of my guns except one, that one would be a .54.

 

[HPS]

Welcome to the Forum. I know your going to like it here........

If there is a chance you want to keep on trying to knock down iron critters, the heavier ball from a .54 will have better power, especially on large targets at distant ranges.

Yes Zonie your spot on. I like it here already. BTW, back in my sprout days I did some hunting for mule deer close to the Dewey/Humbolt area when the Black Canyon was still a dirt road out of Phoenix. Another life, another time.


Those steel silhouettes will be my primary choice for targets. That .54 did whack and spin critters down in a blink. One of the pigs I hit was separated from his base and we had to dig around in the sand to find it but maybe that was just a bad weld job. :wink: I wish now I had got a count on the .50s & .54s. I did take down a buffalo at 125 yards and he didn't dally hitting the dirt though it was one of my few dead center hits. I'm starting to lean to the .54 thinking about the mass of those steel critters. I need all the help I can get. :grin: One other reason is I found a good price but the .50s are on back order but some .54s available. Don't know when or what the price will be when they come in. There's another critter match coming up next month and I'd like to be there with my own GPR.

I've ordered Lyman's Black Powder Handbook and Loading Manual and hope to have it sometime next week to help speed up my learning curve.

Thanks to you all for the great input and sharing. You all have made me feel right at home.

P.S. Can someone tell me if the Lyman GPR has a hooked breach? Understand it makes cleaning much easier.

 

[cynthialee]

For what you want you can not go wrong with either caliber.

Get the .54 because you may want to hunt someday. You may say no now, but you may change your mind.
The larger rifle will work on anything on this continent you may wanna shoot. The .50 will also, but if I was gonna shoot at something larger than Bambi, I'd want the bigger bullet.

Soon enough we will have you considering swamped barrels and custom builds. You're in for it now. The addiction becomes more advanced as the years go by.

 

[AZbpBurner]

I've got various Investarms (Cabelas and Lyman) in .50's and .54's - one of each in flint and percussion. While my .50's are plenty accurate, it seems to me that it was easier to work up an accurate load for the .54's

 

[HPS]

Thanks Cynthialee, the balance beam is moving even more to the .54 now. :v

I've got various Investarms (Cabelas and Lyman) in .50's and .54's - one of each in flint and percussion. While my .50's are plenty accurate, it seems to me that it was easier to work up an accurate load for the .54's

Now that's interesting and something I'll put in my pocket.

 

[BrownBear]

P.S. Can someone tell me if the Lyman GPR has a hooked breach? Understand it makes cleaning much easier.

Sure enough.

Lots of folks here own them and have experience breaking them in and feeding them. You can count on this group to help you through the process. :applause:

 

[William O.]

Yes, the Lyman has a hooked breech and it's easy to remove the barrel. I would opt for the .54 because I find it to be easier to work up an accurate load as compared to my 50 caliber rifles. That is not to say that one caliber is more accurate than the other. When I shoot steel silhouettes they go down just as easy using either one. The 50 caliber round ball is great for hunting as well and with any bullet it's where you place it that counts. If I'm hunting big hogs or anything heavier than a whitetail deer I would grab my .54 just for the fact of getting a larger hole to start out with, plus I simply have practiced more with it than my .50 rifles. So to start out with, I would recommend you get the .54 along with the black powder accuracy paper written by Dutch Schoultz.

 

[satx78247]

While I am PRIMARILY a BP HUNTER, rather than a target shooter and not even much of a re-enactor (though I belong to a PACSA unit), nonetheless my suggestion is the .54 caliber IF you have any notion of every going after big game.

While the .50 (or even a .45) caliber rifle is adequate for game no larger than WT, I regard either as INADEQUATE for large feral hogs, bigger exotics, elk and the bears as all of those sturdier animals take "considerable killing".
(The MAIN reason that I hunt heavy game with a large-bore cape-gun is a QUICK 2nd shot, when you may have a dangerous/wounded animal "in your lap".)

To quote W.D.M. "Karamoja" Bell, "I am little impressed by how well that a man kills game at 200 paces, but rather more at two paces."

yours, satx

 

[ChrisHarris]

I've heard and read several times that the .54 round ball is one of the most inherently accurate rounds. I don't know if there's any truth to it. I've also heard that same rumor about the .36 round ball.

......I read it on the internet, so it must be true...... right? :blah:

Truth or not, it might be something worth reading up on.