.45 Tc Hawken Range

[Rifleman557]

I have never attempted to shoot over 100 YDS with my TC Hawken .45 I am currently shooting a 235gr Maxiball with 90 grains of powder and on some occasions a .440 ball with 70 grains. My rifle has the standard 1:48 twist and standard open sights. What would
Be the max range for target shooting with this rifle.

Thanks

 

[don hepler]

For target shooting, there is no limit. You could try to hit a target at 500 yards, but you probably won't. Seriously, there are ballistic calculators, that would help find the answer. However, you'll have to get a lot of shooting practice to really determine the answer to your question. Now for hunting, that would be a whole different question, and a different answer. I'm just talking target shooting only. Maybe someone here has the web sight for those calculations. I'm going to take a guess on the first load, 2" high at 50 yards, zero at 100 yards, 7" low at 150 yards, and 20" inches low at 200 yards.

 

[Alden]

A frequent internet answer these days apparently is...

...it isn't actually a copy of the Hawken rifle and you should be ashamed of yourself.

Now that we've gotten such silliness out of the way, back to our show already in progress...

:wink:

 

[Gene Obenshain]

We know Alden was teasing you about the TC style, while they may not look much like a true Hawken they are almost exactly like guns built in California between 1846 and 1860. Guns built by G.A,. Nordhein in Yreka were... except for barrel length... very close. If you take a look at the book Gunsmiths of California 1846-1900 there are some really interesting rifles. Take care.

 

[Walks with fire]

The best way to find out is go out and shoot it at the distances you want. It doesn't do any good to look at the charts and hypothesize what should happen. The only way is to shoot your rifle, with your loads and your abilities to find out what you can do.

Since your intersted in target shooting I would say to start at 50 yards; go to 100 yards then 150 yards and then 200 yards and see what it does. Not what you probably looking for as an answer but probably the best way to go about it imo.

 

[Rifleman1776]

Cannot comment from experience on anything but patched round balls. The deer I have killed with a muzzle loader have all been with .45 cal. Longest was 72 yards. I would shoot up to 100 yards. My load is the .440 or .445 ball and 65 gr. of real bp. When I started this game I used 95 grains but it ruined too much meat. At 65gr they are just as ded and, as they say, you can eat right up to the hole.

 

[BillinOregon]

Rusty, thanks for that reference on Nordhein in Yreka. I must look into it.
I always thought the T/C was closely inspired by New England caplocks of the 1840s-50s.

Rifleman, be sure and share your results at distance. With the right loads, those T/C barrels can be nicely accurate.