.45 shooters what's the advantage over the 50 ?

[stevenjay1]

I have a 54, 50 and two 45’s. The 54 and 50 are mountain rifles. The 45’s are a long rifle and a half stock rifle. I’m 74 so bottom line I go to the 45 half stock. It will do what I need to do and it is very light. Hence a pleasure to carry. As I get older I use more common sense.

 

[martin9]

If I were to order a custom from a top builder it would be a .45. I build my own so I won't do that but my thinking there is if I spend that much money I want a rifle I can use for a lot of different things. I think the .45 is the most versatile caliber. I get squirrel head accuracy with just 20 grains of 3f out of them and can load them up for deer with prb. Every one I've built also shot the 200 grain r.e.a.l bullets well in case I wanted a heavier bullet. Also they are a lot of fun just plinking with 40-50 grain charges. I would recommend a colerain barrel. They use a 1-48" twist as opposed to Rices' 1-60. I think the 1-48 adds a lot to the versatility.

 

[LME]

I used to have a .45, converted it to a .40....

It killed deer fine but back in the mid 80s the bear population in eastern North Carolina exploded...It only took one close encounter that I went straight to a .54....

The bear in my area was the reason I went to a .54 cal. I find it strange that some say a .45 cal rifle is lighter than a .54 cal.? the out side of the barrel of the rifles I have seen have been the same diameter regardless of the cal.? that being the case a .45 cal rifle would be heavier that a .50 or .54. cal one. I have never owned a .45 nor have I ever held one in my hand. This is just a personal observation.

 

[GrandLakeHunter]

My 45 has great projectile versatility for any game I may choose to toss lead at...rabbits, coyotes, deer, hogs, elk. I can choose 127 gr round ball, Lee's 200 gr REAL or 250 gr REAL. So I can go lighter than the other common calibers, saving lead and powder, and keep up with them just fine on the heavier end as well.

 

[Ranch 13]

For hunting my personal favorite is a 54. I have used 45 and 50's to good affect. But then the question comes is this rifle going to be used for more than just hunting, if the answer is yes, then quite possibly the 45 is the best answer as you'll likely be putting way more powder and lead down range shooting matches, than the 1 or 2 shots a year to fill a deer tag. In the end, you are the only one that can give a good answer to your question.

 

[flashpoint]

My thoughts can be summed up in this short statement, "I own 4 .45s, 1 .50 and 1 .54". To take this a bit further I've killed more deer with .45s than any other caliber...all one shot kills. I've also used the .50 on deer quite a bit and honestly can't tell any difference between the .45 & .50. Advantages? Well that's a subjective subject. Thinking about it a lighter rifle can be built in .45 but mine have weights from just over 6 lbs up to nearly 8 lbs. Cheaper to feed powder & ball? Yes it's cheaper but the difference is almost irrelevant. Definitely lighter on recoil, if that's an issue that is. Also the velocity of the .50 can be reached with roughly 10% to maybe 15% less powder. Much of this will depend on your particular rifle. I shoot both .440" and .445" in three of mine using the same powder charge and patch thickness. The .45 is just as accurate as any other caliber. That .45 ball weighs between 40 and 45 grains less than the .50. That roughly comes to an extra .45 ball (5) for every (4) .50 caliber balls.

Hansi, I also shoot .440 round ball in my .45. However, what would be a reason that I would consider shooting a .445 ball? Thanks.

 

[Grenadier1758]

I would use the 0.445" ball over the 0.440" if it was essay enough to load with a short starter and accuracy performance was improved.

 

[sheriff john]

Not much difference in my experience on deer, but I've never been an advocate of long range nor running shots. One advantage (and it's a small one) is when shooting paper targets unless scoring's done from the center of the hole, the .50 gives a .05 advantage.

Small game? Unless you "bark" a squirrel or do only head shots, both the .45 and .50 leave you with stew meat.

 

[smoothshooter]

I would use the 0.445" ball over the 0.440" if it was essay enough to load with a short starter and accuracy performance was improved.

I use a .433” ball with a thicker patch that is easy to load and holds more grease. Can get lots of shots between cleanings.

 

[Grenadier1758]

Ceertainly, @smoothshooter, the ball to choose is the ball that works best in your application. I have 3 45 caliber pistols that work best with a 0.433" ball.

 

[smoothshooter]

The o

I Think the "vehicle " was a Tow truck.
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The correct word of course would have been “ winch “, not “ wench “.

 

[rafterob]

It has been said already, but save lead and powder and still have the ability to take down deer. If mainly target shooting, like me, the advantage is less powder and lead. We shoot silhouettes too and the .45 has plenty power at 100 yards to knock them down. .40 sometimes have a little difficulty in that area and .32 is almost worthless at 100 for silhouettes (at least from what I have seen).

 

[ZUG]

I’ll speak to my own viewpoint of what feel are the advantages of my 45 compared to my heavier calibers.
The 45 is the lightest caliber that is allowed on deer for the areas I have hunted. I have experienced little, if any difference in killing effectiveness at my typical deer hunting range range of <60 yards between my 45 and 50/54 cal. rifles. The lighter/smaller ball and charge weight can either be employed to generate less recoil, or enable a smaller/lighter rifle. The smaller caliber and powder charge yields a lower cost/round as well as the number of LRB’s/pound 45cal./52 per pound;50cal/38 per pound; 54cal/31 per pound.
I must admit that I’m somewhat biased. My first flintlock acquired decades ago was a 45. That rifle, along with a more recently acquired 45 cal rifle are my most accurate(off-hand), and sweetest shooting flintlocks.

I feel the same and LOVE my .45 caliber BUT if I was hunting bigger than medium size deer then I would take my .54 caliber rifle. Bigger game - bigger ball

 

[Coinneach]

Bldtrlr...............A 42" 13/ 16 " X .45 cal. oct. barrel makes a very nice lite long rifle to carry w/ a long sight plane. I found my favorite sweet spot load for competition was 62 Gr. FFFG.....440 PRB. Can't remember patch thickness. The rifle did well on targets out to 100 yds. We shot steel knock down targets out to 200 yds. . To knock the cub bear down at 200 yds. , required to hit the bear in the upper half of the target with the .45. Wind strongly affected the .440 ball as well.
My first general purpose long rifle for competition and deer hunting , was a home built copy of a Biven's Bicentennial long rifle in .50. The barrel was a Getz , 44" , C WT, . The weight of the finished gun was about 9.5 lbs. . I was young and strong then with very far sighted vision. The rifle was very accurate with 80 Gr. FFFG , .490 ball ,with mutton grease lube. Old Zip. The .490 ball , 170 Gr. was not sensitive to light wind as was the .45. The 200 yd. metal bear target would fall no matter where the .50 cal. ball hit it , unlike the .45. Never had any friends that hunted deer w/ a .45 round ball , nor have I done that , so can't testify to .45's over all killing power. Longest distance a deer killed by me with my .50 , was 135 yds.. I shot that .50 long rifle in the Gunsmith's match 1988 , and 1989 at the Spring National Shoot Friendship , Ind. The gun barrel was getting worn , had to replace the touch hole liner , and go to a .495 r/b with a .007 patch , still 80GR. FFFG. , still accurate once the fixes were done. Sold the rifle to a friend. I hope this experience is helpful.,,,,,,,,,,,,oldwood

Thank you sir, I always enjoy reading your posts.

 

[Coinneach]

She must have been a husky wench but was she good looking too?

Even here Down Under we're warned from an early age about them Pennsylvania girls......

 

[Dave Dworshak]

get the .45 then you have an excuse later to buy a .50!

 

[Coinneach]

get the .45 then you have an excuse later to buy a .50!

And then a .54......58....60 et al.
"The Road goes on forever and the Party never ends" when it comes to BP Muzzleloaders !

 

[bldtrailer]

so far five .50s & one .54

 

[Johnny Tremain]

If I could have only one rifle, it would be a .45.

I only have one, and it is 45 cal

 

[Cattywompuss]

I don't discriminate personally. I own from .40-.60 and like them all. Everything in life is a compromise if funds are lacking. If they are in no short supply, then all calibers are equal when properly applied. If I only have money for one gun, I then have to decide what it's meant to do. Application is the key. That said, my favorite of my rifles is a .50. Second favorite is a .45, followed very sharpish by the .40. Heck, be different: get a .47