12ga smoothbore round ball accuracy?

[Barry54]

Nice work!

What do you think the velocity is?

[faustus]

Nice work!

What do you think the velocity is?

Barry, I don’t know … I still need to chrono the load.

But, for the 54cal ball load the payload is 264 grains or around 5/8 oz …. and I used 17.1 grains of Clays.

The closest reference load I have is a 7/8oz load with 18.4 grains of powder …. and which gives a velocity of 1250 FPS.

So, I would assume that the velocity is somewhere around 1250 FPS ….. maybe a bit higher.

-------------------------------------------
Reference Load
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Cheddite Hull
Cheddite Primer 209
Clays Powder – 18.4 grains
GU 1225 Wad
Fold Crimp
#8 shot (383 grains, 7/8 oz)
PSI 7300
FPS 1250
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With only 5/8 oz as payload it is a very pleasant load to shoot. Not much recoil …..

And pressure should be very very low …. and at the bottom spectrum of what a 12ga can do. I am still not quite sure if that load will go boom this winter in freezing temps. I guess I will see …. something to test this winter .....

[Plinkmeister]

faustus, what type of magazine extensions are you using? Thanks

[Barry54]

I calculate the energy at 915 ft/lbs. I bet it is wonderful out of a 12 gauge!

Did you reduce the powder charge from your reference load to increase accuracy, or as a safety precaution?

How cold is a normal winter day up there?

I wonder if it would kill your accuracy to switch to those hot muzzleloader 209s for winter use?

[725]

I like the methodical nature of your load development. What choke did you end up using in this last series? I just have a feeling that any choke disrupts the passage of the ball / wad unit. Do you have access to a cylinder bore shotgun to use? Would love to see if there are any differences. 725

[faustus]

faustus, what type of magazine extensions are you using? Thanks

It is an S&J +2 extension that was polished and blued to match the guns finish ...

[faustus]

I like the methodical nature of your load development. What choke did you end up using in this last series? I just have a feeling that any choke disrupts the passage of the ball / wad unit. Do you have access to a cylinder bore shotgun to use? Would love to see if there are any differences. 725

The 54cal ball only worked in a .665 Turkey choke.
The 58cal ball only worked in a .680 Turkey choke.

One of my findings was that the ball/wad/choke combination needs to fit exactly.
One choke size up or down and the pattern is all over ….

I have tried the 54cal load in a .700 choke .... and some rounds did not even hit paper. The pattern was all over the place. With a Cylinder choke the result would even be worse ....

[W.R.Buchanan]

Faustus: Why are you shooting smaller round balls? I thought you were shooting these thru a 20 ga?

Typically balls from .662 and up work pretty well and are not at all hard to get to perform. Generally shooting Round Balls of .662-.690 loaded into a regular Skeet or Trap Load with a 1/4" Felt Wad under the ball, and shot thru an IC choke tube will produce good results out to 50 yards.

Randy

[faustus]

Faustus: Why are you shooting smaller round balls? I thought you were shooting these thru a 20 ga?

Typically balls from .662 and up work pretty well and are not at all hard to get to perform. Generally shooting Round Balls of .662-.690 loaded into a regular Skeet or Trap Load with a 1/4" Felt Wad under the ball, and shot thru an IC choke tube will produce good results out to 50 yards.

Randy

Randy, I wanted something with a bit less recoil and that I can shoot safely through my 12ga hunting gun with a turkey choke.