accuracy in sharps rilfes

[500bfrman]

I hear a lot about how the big 45's and 50's 120, 110, 140 don't shoot accurately. I was wondering what is good accuracy considered in the smaller 45's and 40's at say 600 or 1000 yards?

[montana_charlie]

It's said that the guy who can shoot within two minutes of angle all of the time will win most of his matches.

CM

[Don McDowell]

I hear a lot about how the big 45's and 50's 120, 110, 140 don't shoot accurately. I was wondering what is good accuracy considered in the smaller 45's and 40's at say 600 or 1000 yards?

All of those cartridges will shoot accurately, sometimes they may require a bit more attention to detail in loads, bullets etc, and fouling control, but they will all shoot match winning accurate in a well made rifle using good loads and the trigger yanker exhibits decent riflemans skills.

2 moa is pretty normal, and less is preferred.

[NickSS]

On standard bulls eye targets the 10 ring is set at 2MOA for most distances except most places I have shot use the standard 600 yard target also at 800 yards and they use the 1000 yard target at 900 yards. This means that to shoot a perfect score you need a rifle that will hold 2moa minimum. All the BPCR I own can do this or better. The main problem with the larger longer calibers is that recoil gets up there and during long strings the shooter gets punished and many people can not take the pounding without a deterioration in their holding ability. Thats why my Long Range BPCR is only a 45-90. I have determined that I can shoot that caliber for a 15 shot string without starting to jerk the trigger in anticipation of the recoil. More potent loads affect me and my scores go down even though the rifle is of equal accuracy when I fire a shorter string.

[500bfrman]

thanks for the replies. I was not trying to say that no one could shoot the bigger ones merely that what I hear is "that won't shoot, can't do it, give up". From what I have read at shiloh it appears it just takes a little or a lot more effort.

[Kenny Wasserburger]

MY old 45-110's seem to shoot quite well with GG bullets or Paper Patch.


KW
The Lunger

[Lead pot]

I shoot 7 different 74 sharps rifles .40-70, .45-70, 44-90, .45-90,.50-90 and a high wall in .40-65 from 400 grain bullets to a 718 grain. and every one of these calibers are 2 MOA shooters and better.
Yes recoil is stiff with some of these rifles but recoil can be controlled but just shooting them 5 or 6 times a year will not get you there.
I think nothing about shooting my .50-90 with a 718 grain bullet with 110-118 grains of powder 400 rounds and more in a couple of days at the two gong shoots I go to every year and I cant say it effects my accuracy because of the recoil. But I shoot several times a week.
I know several that shoot the .45-2-7/8 with 500+ grain bullets with great accuracy. You learn to control the recoil and you will make that rifle shoot great.
It might be hard for some to believe, but you will get used to the recoil and you will shoot these heavy bucking rifles very good.

Kurt

[hydraulic]

I've stood behind the line and watched both Kenny and Kurt shoot those big rifles with excellent scores. CM.

[hydraulic]

Kurt used to have a .45-70 highwall, too, but he sold it to a beginner from Nebraska.

[RMulhern]

I've been shooting great Sharps rifles in the M1874 class long enough to know that they will stay with or outshoot a whole heck of a lot of so-called modern rifles! I have very expensive HP rifles come to my range on a yearly basis and I have a few friends that shoot them quite well but they just shake their heads in amazement at how bad they get beat by a 140 year old design such as the M1874 Sharps...shooting PP bullets!


http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b67/Sharps110/BPCR%20SHOOTING%20RELOADING/EBulletGroupWidth.jpg

This is a 6 shot group I fired a while back with my C. Sharps .50/90 from 200 yards using a PP bullet designed by Dan Theodore. It's a new elliptical bullet that I did not have a zero with so I fired 4 sighters to get it on the paper and then I fired the remaining 6 rounds into this group. There are 3 rounds through the hole at the upper left!

I have a Shiloh Sharps in .45/110 that will equal this rifle in accuracy using PP bullets!

[HPT]

How much effect on accuracy is from the gun weight? I see impressive groups and wonder how heavy are these guns? Does a 10# gun have any chance against a heavier gun? I read in The Muzzleloading Caplock Rifle allowance was given for lighter weight guns.

Anyone have accuracy results for a 10 lb Sharps rifle vs a 13 or 15 lb rifle?

[NickSS]

I have a 9.5 pound and a 10.5 pound C. Sharps 1875 rifles. Both will shoot 10 shot 1.6 inch groups at 100 yards when I do my stuff. I can't do any better with my 12.5 pound Shiloh Sharps or my 14 pound Remington Rolling Block.

[Don McDowell]

Accuracy wise I don't think theres that much difference between the heavy guns and the lighter ones. The heavier guns will "go to sleep" better in the sticks or on the bench due to their weight, but as far as group capability that's up to the quality of the barrel and the loads, and the ability of the rifleman.
Here's a group at 270 yds with my CSA 75 with 28 inch heavy round barrel, weighs in at around 10 lbs.I have fired groups tighter than this one at the same distance.
http://i51.photobucket.com/albums/f358/Ranch137/0908idddybit.jpg