.45 or .50

[Buckskin Jake]

Iam new to muzzleloading and looking to buy my first flintlock. I plan on hunting PA flint lock season in 2014 so I will have over a year to get ready.If you were in my place wood you get a .45 or .50 cal? Jake

 

[ncmtmike]

.50 :2

 

[Spikebuck]

I assume you're planning on shooting patched round ball. If it's just between those two calibers, the 50. Personally, for northern whitetails, I'd choose a 54.

A 50 should give you a little more umph and distance capability. 45's can certainly do the job as well based on the testimony of many on this forum, but my personal preference would be a little heavier and larger projectile. I've killed numerous deer with 50 and 54 and to me, the 54 just opened a bigger hole and spilled more blood for an easier trail. On average I'd have to say those I hit with a 54 didn't go quite as far, but none with a 50 went more than 100 yards either.

 

[Birddog6]

For whitetail Deer, go with a .50, .54 . My preference is a .54. I shot 2 deer Weds. morning & both of them dropped in their tracks. Bigger hole, bleed out better, more knockdown power.

This is the ball after it went thru one rib going in, took out 2 ribs going out & was under the hide about 8" from the hole. Shot at about 65 yards. Under it a ball such as it started.



Keith Lisle

 

[William O.]

The decision on caliber will be influenced by a number of factors such as the style of rifle that you like, the conditions in which you will be hunting as well as the species you will be going after. Are you new to hunting? Even if you aren't you should not approach hunting with a muzzle loader the same way you would when using a center fire rifle of any caliber. Are you used to still hunting or stand hunting? You may need to modify your blind and/or stand once you get to know your rifle's range limitations a little better. Having said that, I would get one in .45 so I could hunt smaller game than deer if the opportunity presented itself but could still take deer under the right conditions. If I was going to be target shooting a lot then definitely, a .45. As has been pointed out, the same diameter and length barrel is going to be heavier in the smaller calibers than in .54. Still, the .45 is a proven game getter within it distance limitation and depending on the rifling it may be suitable for shooting conicals.

Iam new to muzzleloading and looking to buy my first flintlock. I plan on hunting PA flint lock season in 2014 so I will have over a year to get ready.If you were in my place wood you get a .45 or .50 cal? Jake

 

[nchawkeye]

Welcome to the Forum!!!

.54!!! :thumbsup:

 

[GANGGREEN]

Yep, I agree with most of the others. .54 would easily be my first choice for a dedicated PA deer rifle, followed by a .50 and then a .45. The bigger ball, all things being equal, will always create a bigger hole, more blood and a shorter blood trail. Pennsylvania whitetails aren't scrawny little critters anymore either.

 

[excess650]

You do realize that 2013-2014 season starts after Christmas and runs for a couple of weeks?

Pa allows .44cal and larger for "big game" which includes deer, bear, elk, and turkey. .40cal and smaller for small game!

.50cal supplies are more commonly found than other calibers. That said a .45 RB weighs ~125gr, .50 ~175gr, .54 ~230gr, .58 ~270gr, and .62 ~330gr. RBs shed their velocity quickly, so figure on giving up literally half of your MV by 100 yards. The larger calibers have an advantage in that they retain more, but require more powder and lead.

I have one of each, but if choosing only between a .45 and .50, I would choose the .50. Neither makes much recoil with hunting loads, both can be loaded down for target/short range.

For a flintlock you WILL need REAL BP, and that isn't found in every sporting goods store.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Actually I'd get the best barrel and hardware that I could afford, and then look at caliber. What I mean is a second hand .54 in a poorly maintained condition might not shoot well, or a lower quality one in flintlock might not function well. Meanwhile you might also find a better maintained or even new rifle in one of the smaller calibers with a better lock. So all things being equal, I LOVE my .54 but if I was shopping for my first flinter and found a very good rifle at a good price in .50 I wouldn't pass on it simply because it wasn't a .54. (I hope this makes sense)

LD

 

[roundball]

1st choice .54
2nd choice .50

 

[Alden]

Jake;
Of your choices, the .50. All around great, efficient, flat-shooting, accurate, hard-hitting caliber.

I might mirror others' thoughts on the .54 if I was only going to hunt medium game at closer range with this rifle but I also think your personal choices for a rifle will be a little wider in a .50, and what you shoot is almost as important as what it shoots.

.45 would be about the smallest I would consider (and apparently PA basically thinks it more strongly).

 

[roundball]

1st choice .54
2nd choice .50

 

[Dave Marsh]

I agree with Roundball times 3.... :haha:

Dave

 

[Rifleman1776]

If you plan to target shoot during the off season, then other considerations come into play. But realistically, anything larger than .45 is not needed. All the deer I have killed were dropped with a .45 prb and 65 gr. of real black powder. For deer you don't need bigger. A .54 won't kill them any dedder.
Here is a recovered .45 ball:

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[Alden]

1776, that's a quarter.

:rotf:

Serious question: do you use a .45 Hawken?

 

[Billnpatti]

There is no question about it, a .45 will get the job done but I still think it just has too much greater of a chance of wounding than a .50 or a .54. Neither the .50 nor the .54 will kill them any deader but will just increase the chance that you will get them there with a greater degree of certainty.

So, to finally answer your question, I recommend a .50 over a .45 for deer hunting. :thumbsup:

 

[Walks with fire]

If your dead set between 50 and 45 go with the 50 caliber. I am from PA as well and if it were me I would go with the 54 caliber; it's a better choice for deer. Bigger is better when shooting ball. The nice thing about a 54 is target loads are mild enough to be fun and adding a bit more powder gives it lots of gee whiz on deer.

Don't get caught up in the fact that there are lots more bullets available for a 50. If your going to shoot ball (and that's what I would recommend) you will have no trouble getting ball. Lay a .45, .50 and a .54 ball in your hand before you buy and I bet you choose the .54

Those .50 bullets don't work very well at real black powder velocities where the ball of pure lead does. It's a flinter season, using real black powder so go with what's designed for a flinter; a round ball.

 

[TLanoy]

Here in Oregon, .45 caliber is the minimum for our black tail deer. They don't get as big as some of those northern white tails though. With that being said, I think if I were to choose, I'd go with the .50 just in case you get lucky and a bruiser comes along! :grin:

 

[Toomuch51]

Actually either will serve you well.
In the 1960s the .45 was about all you could get.
then about the mid '70s the fad was "bigger is better" and everyone wanted a .54. Finally the market settled on .50 as the norm. The bottom line is which ever caliber you use the game is still just as dead.
Personally, when not hassled by minimum caliber restrictions, I prefer to use my .36.

Toomuch
------------
Shoot Flint

 

[kemart]

i shoot a .58 and like the results. im also a pa hunter, but i would go no less then a .54 for deer.