Loading those non toxic balls was terrible even with a .015 patch. Reloading was even worse! Plus the cost. A buck a ball! One idea, if you can recover them, they dont expand so you most likely could reuse them again.
Loading those non toxic balls was terrible even with a .015 patch. Reloading was even worse! Plus the cost. A buck a ball! One idea, if you can recover them, they dont expand so you most likely could reuse them again.
The effect of roundballs on game defies all the ballistic charts and speculation by modern "experts". When I've shot deer with my .54 Lancaster longrifle, it has been from 50 to 80 yards, but that is the usual shot where I hunt. RBs lose speed fast compared to conicals, but at moderate ranges, I will say they probably kill better. The first thing is the balls most shoot are dead soft pure lead. When this type projectile hits game, it transfers nearly all of its energy to the game, and flattens out to nearly double the original diameter. The deer I've shot have a .54 entrance hole and a golfball sized exit. They don't go far. The thing to remember pick shots within 100 yards and go for the "boiler room" to maximize effect.
I don’t know anything about them myself but have read of a couple of people who have used them and claim they are the next best thing.
As an aside there is a fellow on a traditional forum who experimented with a patched brass ball and found it worked quite well. Even found it once and reused it to see what that was like.
Just quoting from New West Magazine, don’t know for sure.
“Original 1861 New Model Army revolvers had an estimated production run of 122,000 from 1863-75. The ’61 revolvers with an original percussion system and those altered to take metallic cartridges remained popular for some time after the Great Rebellion. Remington’s top strap design added strength to the revolver. The Remington also eliminated a frequent problem found in open-topped revolvers—exploded percussion caps falling rearward into the revolver’s internal workings—because its hammer struck the cap through an opening in the frame. And its rear sight groove along the top strap provided better sighting than that of the simple notched hammer found on other handguns.”
"Experience is a series of non-fatal mistakes"
Disarming is a mistake free people only get to make once...
a .440 round ball from a 45 caliber pennsylvania type rifle waxed everything from groundhogs to small deer when i was 16. for them, it was always terminal.
Great thread. I learned a lot here. Wow that Walker 44 behind 60 grains of black packs a wallop! Never knew.
Inside of 100yds, blackpowder and roundballs are about as good as anything.
Yes, roundball slows down fast, but, the key is to stay inside 100yds.
They shoot flat (relatively speaking of deer boiler room) out to 100yds.
As long as you stay within their performance distance, there is no such thing as 'rainbow' trajectory either.
The lead projectile so-called 'rainbow' trajectory doesn't come into effect unless you are sighting in the FAR side of 100yds.
If you consider the deer boiler room being the size of a pie plate, then yes muzzleloaders shoot flat out to 100yds,
I started my shooting days looking for a conical bullet to work in my T/C 54 Hawken. Although I had the rifle sighted in quickly so to shoot P/RB accurately to 100 yards just after its purchase. Easy peasy to do not having different Ball weight's to deal with. And that's a major problem of looking for that accurate conical by a caster. So many weights_ profiles_ and brands needing to experiment with along with those charge tweaking's surely can put the hurt on someone's wallet buying molds and pure lead.
Once I was told my rifles-twist rate wasn't friendly to> conical use. That ended my ambition to find a accurate conical I thought I needed to drop those super heavy weight deer occasionally passing in front of my deer stand years ago. (Keep in mind all my rifles were custom ordered from Fox Ridge Outfitters} two were ordered having factory Round Ball Only barrels.
The very first time I shot one of those big fellows back a-ways in the woods I own thru its ribs with a 54 cal patched Ball I caught standing in a derelict hay field gawking at two doe not 50 yards away. I was truly impressed how little distance he ran after my shot. Maybe 25 yards? his tail hung {low between his legs} before falling dead. Another surprise came in the same animals cape'ing? My Ball passed completely thru the animal side to side just nipping the shoulder bone a bit ~~~never found that Ball as I spent some time purposely looking for. Ball pass thru's? Turned out to be a typical observance time after time with the 54's use.
I figured if a deer any size deer can be harvested so easily with a 54. Why not my deer hunting be done with a 45 cal. Much easier on this old bushwhackers shoulder and not so much blood shot meat needing soaking in kosher salt water before its cutting and wrapping convince me into trying.
Already having a 45 Hawken new in the box ordered at the same time my 54 was (but never fired.) I was really pleased with my 45s ball targeting. 45 cal in its current configuration is a bit more accurate than either a 50 or 54 cal with P/Ball use. As my 45 cal also has a Rd Ball Only Barrel factory switched too.
I so seldom need to shoot deer in the ribs with it. Neck {white patch} and spine shots POA {above} the animals front shoulders gave me cause to retire my 54 cal. to the safe. "Tiny 126 gr. ball has toppled quite a few nice size deer shot at different ranges."
45 Hawken has been my " Lets go hunt'in Mary K " gun for more years than any other B/P I own.
I am far from a BP enthusiast. As far as hunting I have only used T/C Hawkin 50 to deer hunt. The
only reason I own ML is for ML deer season. I have had this rifle since they first came out. Round
balls were standard then, before maxi ball. I did try maxi when they came out but gun shot balls
much better, especially at longer ranges. I have shot several deer with it and never had to shot
one twice. My furthest kill was about 150yds and I hunched, shooting through a fork of a tree. I
think my count is 7 with that rifle. They were all through & throughs, never had recovered a ball.
Mine cast from pure lead with just a small amount of tin. A Hawkin 50 on deer is overkill but I
didn't know that when Ibought gun in late 60s. I should have bought the 45 cal. When maxi came
out the Renegade was on the market and I sold a lot of them in the 70s & 80s. They were cheaper
and most guys were using maxi balls. 50 & 54 cal guns where deer are shot average 40 yds equals
dead deer, herd no complaints on killing power of ball or maxi. I think it would take a heavier game for any bullet to make a difference.
My .54 flintlock has killed 2 moose, many deer and 1 bear. Lots of small game also and I have never recovered 1 ball all exited. All PRB.
What more can 1 ask.
“Can’t say what the disconnect is as they even state that it was first introduced in 1863.”
Confusing, isn’t it?
Last edited by scattershot; 02-20-2018 at 06:22 PM.
"Experience is a series of non-fatal mistakes"
Disarming is a mistake free people only get to make once...
I recovered some of the lead round balls I used the first time I fired my .54 caliber underhammer rifle. The backstop behind the target was a sandbank, and it made recovering the balls easy.I was surprised to find that the balls had expanded to nearly twice their original diameter! I don't have any measurements, but they certainly did expand, and by quite a bit.
I don't remember the exact load, but it was around 50-60 grains of FFG.
Hope this helps.
Rick
The way I explain BP/prb terminal effect to my non charcoal buddies is "shove a 1/2" pipe through a deer and see what happens"
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A 54 cal. patched RB entered through near shoulder quartering on and found in front of the off side ham looking like a little flying saucer for the 1950's movies. It was about the diameter of a quarter with about half the ball looking untouched.
The deer never moved a step.
BP | Bronze Point | IMR | Improved Military Rifle | PTD | Pointed |
BR | Bench Rest | M | Magnum | RN | Round Nose |
BT | Boat Tail | PL | Power-Lokt | SP | Soft Point |
C | Compressed Charge | PR | Primer | SPCL | Soft Point "Core-Lokt" |
HP | Hollow Point | PSPCL | Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" | C.O.L. | Cartridge Overall Length |
PSP | Pointed Soft Point | Spz | Spitzer Point | SBT | Spitzer Boat Tail |
LRN | Lead Round Nose | LWC | Lead Wad Cutter | LSWC | Lead Semi Wad Cutter |
GC | Gas Check |