I'm sending a man my barrel to have it bored out to .54. I want a patched round ball gun, what twist would work properly in a 24 inch barrel?
I'm sending a man my barrel to have it bored out to .54. I want a patched round ball gun, what twist would work properly in a 24 inch barrel?
why so short a barrel? a brush gun for hunting?
Twist determines PRB accuracy results, not barrel length - so there's little difference between a 24" bbl & a 32" bbl.
Dedicated RB twist rates can vary from 1-60" to 1:70"
A 1-48" twist, while not the best in accuracy for either, is a compromise that will allow "adequate" accuracy for both a PRB or a conical.
Sabot loads, & some conicals, perform best with a steeper twist of around 1-22" to 1: 28".
.
Last edited by pietro; 03-02-2019 at 11:21 PM.
Now I lay me down to sleep
A gun beside me is what I keep
If I awake, and you're inside
The coroner's van is your next ride
I just sent my T/C Hawken barrel to Mr. Hoyt for a rebore to .54
It will be 1:60 for PRB only.
Mine is 28", but I would do the same with a 24"
Failure is not an Option
Is it a White Mtn carbine your referring to? I own one in 54 cal having 1-48 twist. When shooting P/ball I found my rifle rather hard to sight-in to 50 yards. {just couldn't find its sweet spot in >Charges} . Sadly I haven't spent much time with it since. Although if and when I do take it afield. The little light weight 54 would likely be a dandy close range deer thump-er.
I certainly wish you luck turning your rifle into a dedicated P/ball shooter. As far as twist rate for accurate ball shooting.> Indain Joe knows.
OverMax, no though I have one of those. It's a High Plains Sporter. Very much like the T/C New Englander but with a curved pistol grip instead of the straight one.It loves Maxi's but not so much the round ball.
1:60 - 1:70 - if it were mine, I would go with the 1:60 for a dedicated RB barrel - but with that in mind, I would also discuss it with the people who are going to freshen the bore for you and see what they suggest/usually do.
Over the years, I have had the opportunity to work on a number of original rifles and the majority of them fell into the 1:60 - 1:70 twist rate with most of them closer to the 1:60 rate. It didn't seem to make a difference if it was a "manufactured" barrel - i.e. where the maker bought the barrel and lock for assembly - or for those barrels that were unmarked and obviously hand made and rifled - they all seemed to be within that range.
I bought an old barrel probably twenty five years ago from a guy at a gun show. It was hand-made - 7/8" octagon X 43" in length. The bore measured out at about a .47 caliber and the original rifling index marks were punched not he muzzle. The barrel started out on a flintlock long rifle and form he lugs and dovetails on the bottom side, it had been on at least three rifles in its lifetime. I don't recall the maker's name but it was engraved on the top flat. Anyway - I checked the rate of twist on it and it came out as close as I could figure to 1:63. I figured that it was probably from the 1775-1800 era. The breedh plug was missing but it had the typical very coarse threads found on most early barrels - at some point - had been converted to drum and nipple. I couldn't find anything on the name engraved (not stamped) on the top flat. I figured that the barrel had been "fresher" at least once by following the original rifling (i.e. not re-bored/re-rifled). Obviously a "round ball barrel". I ended up selling it to a private collector of original long rifles who lived in Virginia IIRC.
Is the barrel you're having re-bored the same one that had the rough spots that needed to be lapped?
Good luck with your project - you'll enjoy your "new barrel" when you get it back!
Jim
I like 1-66.
The solid soft lead bullet is undoubtably the best and most satisfactory expanding bullet that has ever been designed. It invariably mushrooms perfectly, and never breaks up. With the metal base that is essential for velocities of 2000 f.s. and upwards to protect the naked base, these metal-based soft lead bullets are splendid.
John Taylor - "African Rifles and Cartridges"
Forget everything you know about loading jacketed bullets. This is a whole new ball game!
leave it up to the guy doing the work, he will know whats best.
There a few of us un-normal blokes left yet!!
one of my favoutrite hunting guns is a CVA 54 round ball gun - built it up from bits n pieces - with a load in its still a tad under 7 pounds - nice to tote around - and you can load it so's it bites at both ends - 120 grains of FFg under a soft lead ball ----- shoots about three inch high at 50 to three inch low at 130 yards.
Thats a 1:66 twist and will shoot just about any load accurate from 60 grain plinker to full throttle
The solid soft lead bullet is undoubtably the best and most satisfactory expanding bullet that has ever been designed. It invariably mushrooms perfectly, and never breaks up. With the metal base that is essential for velocities of 2000 f.s. and upwards to protect the naked base, these metal-based soft lead bullets are splendid.
John Taylor - "African Rifles and Cartridges"
Forget everything you know about loading jacketed bullets. This is a whole new ball game!
Depends on who the guy is and whether you already know what he's a'gonna do.
I have a .50 RB rifle and it is 1-66" and I have won a number of local matches with it over the years. I like longer barrels because I shoot better with the longer sight plane. Works for me, james
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HP | Hollow Point | PSPCL | Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" | C.O.L. | Cartridge Overall Length |
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