54 Cal Round Ball Penetration Test

[Zoar]

I've been wanting to do some penetration testing with my 54 Cal Lyman Trade using pure lead round balls.

I set up two rows of bales of heavy wet Hay then behind it set up two layers of rough cut (therefore TRUE) 2 inch by 8 inch boards.

I tested at 50 yards and using 90 grains of 3F behind a .530 pure round ball.

RESULTS: Pass through the hay every shot. Then passed through the first 2 by 8, finally buried in the SECOND 2 by 8.

Impressive. I haven't dug out the round balls yet from the second boards. But I am more confident in my muzzleloader using "soft" lead balls now.

 

[catman]

Here's a 54cal RB over 75gr of 2F @ 42 yards I recovered last week out of a doe, she did NOT get up. I have a 54 cal RB next to it for a comparison.

Powder/patch side:

Hit side:

A side shot to compare:

 

[Zoar]

Great photos! Thanks.

These penetration test results are very revealing. I keep reading stuff from other hunters who swear that you have to have hardened round balls to "work". I am a fan of lead.

 

[J.D.]

That is interesting. I keep reading about round balls recovered from deer, but I have never had a round ball that did not pass through.

 

[swquiro]

Catman,
Very impressive expansion! Can you tell us the path that the ball travelled in that doe? The .54 is a super deer caliber.

 

[jtmattison]

I've been pretty impressed with roundball penetration.
Shooting 90 grains of Goex 2f I've experimented with 2x6 lumber and at 50 yards I get total pass-through of 2 boards with a .535 ball.
When I added a third board the ball was just sticking out the far side.

I know one thing for sure. I wouldn't want to be shot with one!

HD

 

[Goldhunter]

Have you tried it farther distances yet? say 75 and 100?

 

[Emet Huntsman]

Wish I had kept the .50 RB I recovered from a deer -- looked like a mushroom cap. The ball had actually folded back on itself -- looked to be about 70 caliber after it stopped!
Was shooting a lighter load than normal -- 50 gr instead of 70.

 

[PGTMG]

That is interesting. I keep reading about round balls recovered from deer, but I have never had a round ball that did not pass through.

I have to agree never had one stay in. Must be using to much powder. :hmm:

 

[bingo1952]

You can't push these RB's fast enough with any reasonable powder charge for hydrostatic shock to come into play so my theory is that a ball stopped just under the skin of your chosen game animal has achieved maximum energy transfer and will give the greatest amount of knock down power. When the trees or the hill finally brings it to rest part of it's energy has been carried out of the offside with the ball and is wasted on said ground or vegetation. JMO :v

 

[rabjr]

It's funny, I've taken a few now with .54 ,.58 and .715 roundballs. Every .54 cal load using 90 gr of either 2F or 3F passed through. The heaviest charge was in a caplock .54 long time ago where I used 110 gr of 2F and this angled shot which hit the liver ended up under the far side hide. The shot was at 60 yards and the buck took only 3 steps, getting closer to the ground with each step then collapsed. The ball looked similar to the one pictured above. Thats the only ball I've recovered.

 

[roundball]

Statement #1
"...a ball stopped just under the skin of your chosen game animal has achieved maximum energy transfer..."

Statement #2
"...and will give the greatest amount of knock down power..."

Two different statements and situations.

Statement #1 is true...but there's more to it...unfortunately it means that the ball simply didn't have enough energy to make it all the way across the chest cavity (for example) and was slowing down significantly from the time it entered, ran out of gas as it was crossing the chest...creating a smaller wound channel and doing less and less damage as it did so, finally dying out inside;

Statement #2...I have a different view of this...a significantly faster projectile will be delivering / transferring higher levels of energy (higher MV = higher ME, etc) and will do so across the full width of the chest cavity in this example, creating a larger, longer, more traumatic wound channel the full width of the cavity. (ie: more knockdown power to use your words). And if it has still yet more energy to dump into a hillside, so be it...that doesn't take away from the carnage it just caused as it tore across the full width of the chest cavity.

At least that's the way I see it...

 

[maypo59]

My take on it is that it takes "x" amount of energy to get through a deer, whether or not you have any energy left over after you pass through.. is just, well, gravy. As far as this example and test goes.. I will try to get down to my target stand in the morning and get pictures of the "test" myself and friends did this weekend. Think, high quality, fire proof home safe, vs .50 and .54 at 80 yards. :grin:

 

[Birddog6]

Could be because of the amount of powder used. I find that I can usually recover 50% of the balls shot into a deer. If they hit a bone the ball is normally just under the skin on the far side of the deer. If I miss a bone the ball normally goes thru the deer if I am within 50 yards of it. I only use 75 grains of FF Scheutzen for a deer charge & that has always been more than enough to take one for me.

One time I shot a buck at 65 yards looking straight at me, hit him in the center of the breast & the ball went all the way thru the deer long ways & thru the rear hind quarter & was just under the skin on the far side of the hind quarter. Hard to believe it went all that way & never hit a dense bone. He ran 30 yards & dropped dead.

Shot placement is the neame of the game, fellers......... One Good Shot in the right place.......

:thumbsup:

 

[flaming canvas]

You can't push these RB's fast enough with any reasonable powder charge for hydrostatic shock to come into play so my theory is that a ball stopped just under the skin of your chosen game animal has achieved maximum energy transfer and will give the greatest amount of knock down power. When the trees or the hill finally brings it to rest part of it's energy has been carried out of the offside with the ball and is wasted on said ground or vegetation. JMO :v

A ball that is traveling at higher velocity will cause more upset in the lead on impact. The greater frontal area will then transfer more energy. Is the difference enough to be significant? I dunno. :2

I would much prefer to have the exit wound for a heavier blood trail.

 

[catman]

I hit this deer from the back side of the very end of the ribs and it travled to the front on the high side and I couldn't see where it had ever touch any of the ribs at all. This was the first round ball that I've ever recovered, as all have went through the animal. It was late in the evening, in the shade and was a quartering away shot a little up hill, on the last day of legally taking Doe with a ML. After looking at things closer I shouldn't have taken this shot, I got lucky (a none gut shot). I thought it was a broad side shot and wasn't.

 

[PGTMG]

I shot a deer once at over 70 yards with a 40 caliber over 65 grains of FFFg broadside and it went straight through.
Shot only one deer farther and the rest alot closer.
Was kinda of joking with my remark but am now begining to wonder. Think it is time for a penetration test on my 54.

 

[Finnwolf]

I agree you can't drive a roundball fast enough using black powder to kill with hydrostatic shock. That is the mark of the modern rifle.

Without clouding the issue with facts, I have always felt that the roundball kills much as does the arrow - damage to the vital organs and death due to blood loss. I feel that the shot that passes trough the animal causes more blood loss and much faster blood loss.

 

[Bob J]

Shot a doe at about 10 yards the first time I hunted with the GPR: .530 ball backed by 110 grains 2f went thru both shoulders, deer sprinted about 70 yards and dropped. Ample blood trail as it bled out both entry and exit wounds.

 

[Protrucker]

Well.......I've never done penetration tests on boards or wet bales, but I did get great penetration on animals last year.
Check this out: http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/215053/fromsearch/1/tp/2