Man, hate to hear that.
Anyone getting ready for Primitive/Black Powder Deer season yet?
- Thread starter 10thmountain
- Start date
I was given a muzzleloader a few years back but have never even fired it, I've always bow hunted until rifle season opened. I am going to give it a spin this year. My rifle is a .45 cal made by Knight, is it worth keeping/using or should I get another one? thx
Damn that would hurt bad!
I worried about that, so I bought one of those freezer monitors.
At least this way if it does bite the dust, I'll know it pretty fast.
That'll work. Ask around for somebody that knows a good load for it.
Thanks for the advice!! I will try out some new spots for sure then.
Man I now I want to go clean and lube my Hawken!
Find out the model and obtain a manual if possible.
195 grain Powerbelt bullet pushed by as much 777 as the gun allows. It's either going to be 100 or 150 grains.
If it's a 209 shotgun primer fired gun, I'd go with Blackhorn 209 as the propellant instead of 777. It's much easier to clean up after the shot, far less risk of corrosion if you don't clean the gun perfectly.
I hunt with a .45 CVA Optima Elite, too. Love the gun. Unfortunately, .45 has fallen out of favor and projectiles are rarely found at retail anymore, so best to online order some well before the season starts.
I love my 45 and yes, bullet shopping is done online most often. However, I disagree on the need to use BH209.
I've been using 777 ever since it came out. There is no real risk of corrosion that I've ever seen unless you neglect the rifle. If I shoot my rifle, it gets cleaned once I'm back at home or camp.
I hear talk of having to spit patch between shots with BH209 to prevent difficulty loading a follow up shot. I've never used it so I can't speak from personal experience. I've never had an issue loading a follow up shot after shooting mine. A sabot may contribute to that with fouling already in the barrel. I do not have issues getting Powerbelts down my barrel on a follow up load.
When using 777, I've fired as many as 10 consecutive shots in my 45 without any swabbing in between and had no difficulty loading and zero misfires. That being said, I have a 28" barrel and it gets a good, clean burn on the powder. It's my belief that far too often, the shorter-barreled rifles that are magnum capacity (150 grains) get overloaded with propellant, regardless of brand and don't get a clean burn, thus causing a laundry list of issues. Some claim to be a "Magnum" rifle, but do they perform better, or worse, with a magnum charge?
I'm not against using BH209 at all. I'm merely telling all of you what works for me. Numerous dead deer speak volumes for that.
Also OP, don't consider a 209 primed rifle to be capable of 150 grain loads. Some folks upgrade their rifles to accept a 209 primer for added reliability but yet the max powder charge is still 100 grains.
I've been using 777 ever since it came out. There is no real risk of corrosion that I've ever seen unless you neglect the rifle. If I shoot my rifle, it gets cleaned once I'm back at home or camp.
I hear talk of having to spit patch between shots with BH209 to prevent difficulty loading a follow up shot. I've never used it so I can't speak from personal experience. I've never had an issue loading a follow up shot after shooting mine. A sabot may contribute to that with fouling already in the barrel. I do not have issues getting Powerbelts down my barrel on a follow up load.
When using 777, I've fired as many as 10 consecutive shots in my 45 without any swabbing in between and had no difficulty loading and zero misfires. That being said, I have a 28" barrel and it gets a good, clean burn on the powder. It's my belief that far too often, the shorter-barreled rifles that are magnum capacity (150 grains) get overloaded with propellant, regardless of brand and don't get a clean burn, thus causing a laundry list of issues. Some claim to be a "Magnum" rifle, but do they perform better, or worse, with a magnum charge?
I'm not against using BH209 at all. I'm merely telling all of you what works for me. Numerous dead deer speak volumes for that.
Also OP, don't consider a 209 primed rifle to be capable of 150 grain loads. Some folks upgrade their rifles to accept a 209 primer for added reliability but yet the max powder charge is still 100 grains.
There are many pitted bores out there for sale, from beginners and folks who aren't disciplined about cleaning. Also, if I hunt Saturday, come back from the woods without firing, I just take the primer out and leave the BH209 and projectile in place, ready for Sunday. I wouldn't do that with traditional black powder or other substitutes, even if I lived in the desert.
Absolutely untrue, in my experience. BH209 is the cleanest propellant I've ever shot in my muzzleloaders, and nothing else comes close. It doesn't foul the barrel, no matter what the charge is. I've had long bench sessions with many shots, including cast lead and paper patched, and never needed to swab the bore. BH209 is like shooting a smokeless powder...because that's pretty much what it is. It's easy, accurate, and it works. Only loading trick required is using the right 209 primers.
