.45 Cal Cast Bullet For Sabots

[rodwha]

I don't see boattails on slower moving rifle bullets, but Hornady does have one on a 9mm Luger bullet. Would this be effective enough to consider it assuming the velocity will be 1500-1800 fps depending on weight and powder charge?

I'm pondering a .451" bullet specifically for using in a sabot in a .50 cal percussion muzzleloader. The higher the BC the better, but I don't really want a pointy bullet. I'm thinking a meplat of something like .25" or so. I'm hoping to shoot out to 150+ yds and keeping my bullet trajectory within 5" of 0.

[C. Latch]

At muzzleloader velocities and inside of 200 yards, you'd gain almost nothing by going to a boattail, but a very slight bevel on the base might make the bullet easier on your sabots. Or you could use a conventional mold and run it slightly cool and save the poorly filled base bullets for muzzleloader use, with a slightly rounded base profile.

FWIW I've killed deer well past 150 yards with bullets of very low BC shot from a muzzleloader. Inside of 200 yards, or maybe 250 yards, BC really isn't a big concern of mine. YMMV. No more often that I shoot my muzzleloaders, I'm content with buying bulk-packed Hornady SSTs and just shooting them.

[wgr]

try a 300 grain wfn sized to .451/.452 and you will have a deer hammer. that is if you rifles twist is fast enough 1in 20 up to 1in 30 90grains of 2f and your good to 150yards easy with a 100yard zero. i shoot a 300 grain lbt wfn cast eather air cooled ww are 20 to 1

[Squeeze]

check out accurate molds, they have several sabot specific molds. I recently ordered a 45-300s, but I would eventually like a 250-260grn also
http://accuratemolds.com/catalog.php?page=7

[GMT210]

I use a Mihec 45-270 w/small round hollowpoint w/ MMP HTH 24 sabot and a 100g of Blackhorn out of my in-line. At 50 yards I'm 1/2" low, at 100 yards 3/4" high, pretty much point and shoot out to 130 yards. This load should run right around 1900 fps.

GMT210

[johnson1942]

gmt210 has it down pat. his load will shoot a lot further out that you will want to shoot. its a good one

[rodwha]

I've been all through Accurate Mold's site. It's who I'd likely get this mold from.

I've been toying with the idea of a drop in barrel for my Lyman's Deerstalker as I really like the idea of the easily swapped T/C barrel system. I don't have the kind of hobby funding to get a nice custom barrel (<$500). I'd prefer a fast twist but may keep it simple and get the stainless 1:48" twist barrel or even see about having a smith reconfigure a Plains Hunter barrel.

I certainly do like the Hornady aerodynamic bullets, or those by Thor, but I enjoy being able to go into the garage for a while and come out with a bag full of projectiles with a greatly reduced cost.

Another thing I've considered/wondered is whether or not I could get my short 285 grn WFN .456" bullets I had Tom make for my my ROA would work in an MMP .458 X .50 cal sabot. I could also find someone to resize some for me to .451" and try them in a pistol bullet sabot to see if it's worthwhile to invest in the tools. But I wondered if a more aerodynamic bullet wouldn't be better as this one has a .375" meplat.

[mark2935]

I've tried a .452, 260grn. swc in my cva hawken and the mmp sabot. What ever the powder charge, it did not like them.(1:48) I have not tried them in my encore. The encore likes the pointy stuff... Hornady and T.C.

Mark#35

[Double B]

Before this past deer season I took in a box of 451 sized 260 grain cast bullets on a trade. These are by a major commercial caster. After putting them in the oven to melt the lube out and cleaning them up, they shot just as accurately and to the same point of aim as similar Speer jacketed bullets I was using. These were shot in a cva wolf and a knight wolverine. I use them as sighting in bullets to save the more expensive ones for deer, although I think they would do the job just fine. I was shooting them with both triple 7 and fffg of 80-90 grains in regular mmp black sabots.

[rodwha]

I've also figured keeping it cheap and simple by casting 320 grn REALs might be good too. I've only shot a few from the rifle I have now, and they did well when used with a wad.