What is your favorite cast muzzloader bullet for deer and elk

[atl5029]

Hi Guys,

Been out of the cast game for a while, but I am thinking about getting back in to cast some muzzleloader projectiles for my muzzle loader when I hunt western states that require a full bore, all lead projectile.

What is your favorite mold to use for deer and elk bullets? Lets assume 50 cal (although I might also get a 54 cal)

I have been doing a fair bit of looking and people seem to like the Lee REAL bullets. Anyone use those and how to they perform on game?

[725]

Sure depends on your rifle and the rate of twist in the rifling. I've used both .50 & .54 R.E.A.L.'s and never had one walk away. Pure lead and good placement means meat in the fridge. Mostly I gravitate towards round balls. Seemingly overlooked by a lot of folks, they are steady & reliable performers for me. I even load shot shells with roundball and have had only one shot kills so far. What distances do you expect and which rifle are you going to use? Open sights or scope? There are so many combos that work very well.

[richhodg66]

Lyman Plains Bullet.

[MT Gianni]

Round Balls tend to go in a straight line without deflection. TC Maxi will penetrate through anything I have shot at.

[Tatume]

I have two favorites. My Parker-Hale volunteer really shoots the Lyman 451114 well. I like this bullet so much that I built a flintlock with a Green Mountain barrel to also shoot it. It shoots it very well indeed.

My other favorite is my English stalking rifle, which shoots one-ounce balls (66 caliber) exceedingly well. Both of these bullets kill like lightning.

[quilbilly]

Unless I am out in the desert of E. Washington, I use PRB exclusively for deer. Same for either my 45 cal or 50 cal. For elk I preferred a 429 cal 265 gr. SWC inside a sabot for my 50 caliber rifles. I use that sabot load out in the desert for mule deer because it gives me an additional 75 to 100 yards of range.

[brewer12345]

I like round ball. If you want to use a conical, try a few different ones to see what your rifle shoots best. They all kill game.

[Larry Gibson]

I use a TC Black Mountain Magnum 50 cal. Its made for 150 gr charges and saboted bullets (28" twist) but has a tradition side hammer lock and traditional look. I use the 350 gr TC MaxiBall cast in a TC mould but the Lyman mould casts the same bullet. I cast them of 16-1 alloy and lube the bottom groove. I load them over 90 gr Triple 7 FFFg . Velocity runs 1540 fps with excellent accuracy at 100 yards for 6 shots (1 in the barrel plus 5 in speed loaders) with out wiping or cleaning. Thumps deer and elk quite well.

Attachment 260821

[atl5029]

Sure depends on your rifle and the rate of twist in the rifling. I've used both .50 & .54 R.E.A.L.'s and never had one walk away. Pure lead and good placement means meat in the fridge. Mostly I gravitate towards round balls. Seemingly overlooked by a lot of folks, they are steady & reliable performers for me. I even load shot shells with roundball and have had only one shot kills so far. What distances do you expect and which rifle are you going to use? Open sights or scope? There are so many combos that work very well.

Right now the only muzzleloader I have is a TC firestorm Flintlock. I grew up in PA so I had that for the flintlock season. Like the post above, it's a traditional side lock but the barrel is made for 150 grain charges and sabots, so I usually shoot Barnes expanders in that.

Now that I live in Ohio and want to up my chances in western states by applying for black powder tags, I want to get a modern inline. I am just about set on a CVA Accura Mountain Rifle, so that is a 1:28 twist. Most of the time I am sure I'll be shooting a Barnes sabot bullet in it, but there are a lot of western states that outlaw sabots, and a few that even say the boolit must be lead - and this is where my question comes from. I have been considering the Lee REALs, or some kind of Maxi-Ball, but due to the fast twist, I was even considering possibly paper patching a 50 cal pistol bullet.

[brewer12345]

I don't do inlines, so no help from me. I would guess a maxi ball would shoot really well with a 1:28 twist, but you will have to try it. Keep in mind that if you are planning to hunt in Colorado no optics or pellets are allowed.

[sharps4590]

Same thing I've been using for over 45 years, patched round ball. It's killed everything I've shot it at...a nd has been doing so for close on to 500 years.

[RU shooter]

Maxi ball

[missionary5155]

Greetings
A .58 round ball cast of 40-1. Propelled with 85 grains of Goex 3F. But then I hunt river bottoms and my farthest shot still 33yards. Most corn crunchers are well closer than that.

[RugerFan]

Lyman Plains Bullet.

Concur. I got best accuracy in full bore conicals with this.

Right now the only muzzleloader I have is a TC firestorm Flintlock. I grew up in PA so I had that for the flintlock season. Like the post above, it's a traditional side lock but the barrel is made for 150 grain charges and sabots, so I usually shoot Barnes expanders in that.

Now that I live in Ohio and want to up my chances in western states by applying for black powder tags, I want to get a modern inline. I am just about set on a CVA Accura Mountain Rifle, so that is a 1:28 twist. Most of the time I am sure I'll be shooting a Barnes sabot bullet in it, but there are a lot of western states that outlaw sabots, and a few that even say the boolit must be lead - and this is where my question comes from. I have been considering the Lee REALs, or some kind of Maxi-Ball, but due to the fast twist, I was even considering possibly paper patching a 50 cal pistol bullet.

Yes, paper patching can work very well. I used to cast and paper patch the Lyman 446110 for a friend's brother that shot them out of a .45 cal ML. He raved about the accuracy and used them for mule deer.

[Ozarkflyflinger]

I shoot a .535 patched round ball in the TC Hawken
Weight is 230 gr propelled by 70 grains of Goex ffg
It has done a great job on anything from targets to deer

[robinsroost]

My rifle is a Lyman Great Plains 54 caliber flint lock. It has never digested anything but round ball. I see no reason to change...……….robin

[megasupermagnum]

A round ball is still the gold standard. While the rules read full bore lead projectile, oddly enough a patched round ball is always exempt. I have no idea if the same round ball with one of those poly patches is legal, but a cloth patch is always allowed. The REAL's I'm sure work great on game, but with very few exceptions shoot very poor. I've tried both 50 and 54 caliber versions, and the best I ever got was about 2 1/2"-3" groups at 50 yards. The great plains worked better, the only problem being they can be hard to load. The maxiball was the best shooting conical I have tried. If you get a modern inline, they are all fast twist barrels. I have not shot mine in some time, but a paper patched 50 caliber bullet sure seemed promising. Also very popular is a bore sized conical like sold by No Excuses bullets.

[Chihuahua Floyd]

54 cal Thompson Center Renegade, patched round ball.
CF

[Fast Asleep]

I have taken elk with Lee REAL bullets in both .58 and .50 calibers. Also I have used a 600 grain custom mold 58 cal. in a fast twist .58 under hammer I built and the 500 grain Lee .45-70 bullet sized to .452 and in a sabot in a 50 cal. in line. All of the elk (6) died within 50 yards of impact and most DRT. Pure lead, heavy bullets and proper shot placement have always worked for me. For deer the same billets work fine, but if I want to flatten trajectory, I use 350 or 405 grain .45 cal bullets in Harvester sabots in my .50 cal White in line.

[Blkpwdrbuff]

I shoot a .50 caliber T/C Hawken, 370 grain Maxi-ball over 90 grains of 3f.
Kills them dead right there.