50 or 54

[Wes/Tex]

Agree with the rest, go .54! All the reasons given above are true. The .54 can be shot economically with about 40-50 grains of powder for plinking and double up for things that bite back!

 

[WV_Hillbilly]

No question -- the .54cal is first choice.

Have you thought about which kind of gun to get? I would suggest the Lyman Great Plains Rifle.

Regards, shoot safely, and always use enough gun.
WV_Hillbilly

 

[750k2]

I have 2 - 40's a 50 and a 54 - The 50 is a cap.
I haven't shot the 50 in a year.
54 all the way.
But I'm not sellin my 50 either (I keep that for really crappy weather)

 

[Otter]

I have 1 - .36 cal, 1 - .40 cal, 1 - .44 cal, 2 - .45 cals, 3 - .50 cals, 4 - .54 cals and 3 - 12 ga ML's. The first I ever owned was a .54 cal and I wouldn't hesitate at all to recommend that same caliber to anyone, even if they are only going to shoot paper. I have had no trouble getting accessories / supplies for any of my muzzleloaders . . . You just need to know where to look, and the fine participants on this forum will answer most any question you may have and will point you in the right direction at all times.

 

[CoyoteJoe]

I own 45,50 and 54's. Go with the 54. Each has it's own advantages and disadvantages. If I could only have one it would be the 54 hands down. I even hunt squirrels with it. The trick is to blow the bark off the tree just under them. It does a nice job. If you do it right it almost looks like an olympic pole vaulter :grin:

But where does that big ball come down? Even in Colorado there aren't many places I'd feel safe firing large calibers into the tree tops and you're in New Jersy?
A .32 or .36 won't travel nearly so far and won't do nearly so much damage when it comes down and a load of #6 shot is no worry at all.

 

[HardBall]

and a load of #6 shot is no worry at all.

Unless you were hunting with Dick Cheney :haha:

 

[faw3]

Will use the rifle for targets, mostly. But, a friend wants me to hunt elk, with him, in New Mexico.
That being a Maybe hunt?? the 50 is the target shooters choice (out of those 2, I'd go 40 for short and 50 for 50 yd and longer -wind drift ect. All that said I have been doing some target at 100 with a X 22 scope on a smooth bore underhammer and Wednesday put the first 2 shots so close thru the same hole you could just tell it shaved a side, the 3rd shot missed the 3 X 3 foot target :rotf: another thing going for the 54 is it will shoot other than round balls with a round ball barrel short minies ect. But most target shooters here use the 50 for the speed of ball vs wind. Hope that helps. Somehow? Fred :hatsoff:

 

[szihn]

Go with the 54 is you will ever hunt elk with it.
I live in elk country, and I hunt them a lot.
For elk I believe that 54 is where you should start, and maybe go up from there.

 

[xia_emperor]

62 cal...... I mean 54. :winking:

 

[akroguy]

Will use the rifle for targets, mostly. But, a friend wants me to hunt elk, with him, in New Mexico.

I like the bigger bores..easy to see down and clean, larger diameter ramrod, more knock down, but can still be loaded down for target/plinking, etc. After owning a Bess and a Mississippi rifle, anything below the mid '50's looks like a
BB gun!

Oh, I live in New Mexico. Big Elk down here. A coworker and his hunting buddies knocked down three around the Mt. Taylor area near Grants two weeks ago. They used 7mm mags.

Sissies. :rotf:

 

[rabjr]

I like my .54s :thumbsup:

 

[captaincaveman]

I like my .54s :thumbsup:

YUP :grin:

 

[faw3]

Really longbow when Im shooting the rifled or smooth 62 my 54 looks small,as does the 53,50 and 45. :rotf: it comes down to how much powder do you want to burn to get it to move fast enough for the wind to miss it, I use the 50 Ithaca Hawken for target work, the 53(52)Santa Fe for target, the 54 is rainbow like the 58, and 62's except when loaded with 150 grs of 2f or more ( in the Zep barrel) :rotf: all of them will get ya to what you want. Fred :hatsoff:

 

Will look for elk in the Jemez Mountains.

 

[thorman944]

Nobody has really answered the original question. I prefer a 54 cal also, but the question was which was easier to find supplies for.

Walmart, Dick's Sporting Goods, and many other easily accessable retailers sell round balls and sabots for 50 cal. Good luck finding anything in 54 cal, much less any sort of selection. If availability of supplies is important, then go with the 50 cal. Unless you really like giving out your credit card number over the internet and having to wait a week or two for your purchase to ship.

I just decided to use my 54 cal muzzleloader during Maryland's modern firearms season and had to go to 4 different shops to find one that carried anything in 54 cal. I have visited sporting goods stores in Virginia and Pennsylvania also and find very little in the way of 54 cal. Unless the rest of the country's sporting goods stores are very different than here in the mideast, 50 cal supplies are a million times easier to find on the shelves than 54 cal.

 

[Catof9tails]

IMO the 54 is the bigger better deal. If I was using roundball, I would not go less than a 54 for elk.

Cat9

"Now where did that mouse go?"

 

[Otter]

OK, I'll try to stay on task and answer the original question . . .

If you are comfortable ordering your supplies on the net, your sources are almost limitless, for any caliber - Track of the Wolf, October Country, Cabela's, Bass Pro Shops, are just a FEW of the common ones. If you need to buy your supplies locally because of a hesitation with using the net, well, then you may be out of luck unless you shoot a .50 or one of those in@&%$s and want to shoot plastic coated stuff. For myself, locally there is a Sportsman's Warehouse close by, they have a decent selection of .45, .50 and .54 cal balls, patches and such. Other than SW, it is pretty hit and miss around here, WalMart used to carry a decent selection but that started disappearing a couple years ago. For the most part, I cast my own RBs and make what I can for the rest of the accessories. I buy BP at a distributor about 130 miles away and make one trip a year to see him and bring back a supply of powder. If you can find a local muzzleloading club or find out where there are some rendezvous close by, check them out - you would probably be able to find some local sources that may not be "well known".

Have fun . . . I'd still go with a .54 . . .

 

[BrownBear]

Here's a factor to consider, one that no one has mentioned:

If at all possible handle and shoulder your arm of choice in each caliber. That's the way I ended up buying a 54 GPR rather than a 50 cal. It simply balanced better for my tastes. I'm so used to its feel now that a 50 GPR actually feels kinda strange. You might handle each one and choose the 50 over the 54.

 

[Rick Davis]

In terms of availability of supplies, would I be better off ... in .50 caliber or .54 caliber? Thoughts?

I'm reading your question to imply logistics, in which case it would probably be 50 caliber. Since 50 caliber is also very close to half an inch, you might be able to use improvised materials in an emergency. As far as general resupply, take a look at online vendors and their bullet offerings. If they offer more varieties of one size than the other caliber, you'll have an idea which one will be easier to find.

You haven't mentioned what you intend to use this for, but I've seen more off-the-shelf single shot pistols in 50 caliber. If you used ball bullets, they should interchange between rifle and pistol. The logistical advantage of this should be obvious. :grin:

If you're really concerned about supply, consider casting your own bullets. You should be able to start casting with a ladle, a mold and a cheap propane stove for under $100. That'll give you a lot more control of your inventory. I have molds for every application & bore size here, the only stuff I buy is lead, powder and occasionally caps or flints.

Now, I just re-read the posts...for target 50 should be fine but big game is another matter. You may have to make an executive decision whether you want your first ML to be a combination target/big game gun. Maybe two different guns, one 50 and the other 54 or perhaps 58?

Open question to all the hunters: How would a traditional 58 Minie work on big game? Say, 58 Minie, 60-70 grains 2F, '63 Remington Zouave.