.54 plains pistol.

[jbtusa]

I just got a Lyman .54 GPP for Rondy this past summer. I love the thing! It is accurate, reliable and put together well. I can't believe how fun a BP pistol is! I should have had this thing decades ago!

 

[Bear Rider]

I built a .54 caliber plains model as a kit about 15 years ago and used to shoot it extensively. There are only two issues with gun.

First, the gun is a little large if you have short fingers. The shape of the stock is such that the trigger is a good distance from the back of the stock.

Second, the grooves are shallow. This makes the gun more sensitive to the texture of the cleaning rags. Normally, the gun would shoot into 4 inch groups at 50 yards. However, one day I couldn't keep all the shots on the 30 inch square backer.

That morning, I was using some left over scraps from my newly-sewn shirt as cleaning rags. Evidently it didn't have enough nap to clean the grooves, because as soon as I switched back to my usual cleaning rags, the groups tightened right back up.

 

[rawhide]

yea I talked to some guys and they said the grip was big. wich is ok I can sand it down some. I do have large hands. hmmm. first thing I herd bad about the gun. have to keep that in mind. well any way now I'm torn between keeping my traditions .50 kentucky pistol or go with the lyman... I took second place over all this year at the rondy club I'm with! only problem is I don't have a .490 mould. all my rifles are .54 only gun I have thats a .50

 

[Bear Rider]

Provided that you are consistent in your cleaning practices, the .54 will serve you well. I could consistently keep all my rounds in the black on a bullseye target at 50 yards.

There's one other bit of trivia about the .54. It's the only muzzleloader on which I can look down the barrel and inspect the breech plug without using a bore light. The caliber is large enough in relation to the barrel length that sunlight is all that you need. :grin:

 

[rawhide]

yep... it's a big bore. I'm still going back and forth on getting one.

 

[jbtusa]

I hear the usual complaints about the .54 GPP being poor accuracy. Totally untrue. Put on sandbags, the GPP will scare you with how accurate it is! I was amazed once I shot mine off of sandbags to see what it would do.

 

[rawhide]

well I whent ahead and ordered it from tow. should be here in a few weeks. I looked in one of my load books and if I'm reading this right it will take up to 50 grains of FFFg! talk about a hand cannon! well mostly it will be used at rondy pistol shoots thinking around 15-20 grain loads. and as a back up when deer & elk hunting. any thoughts.

 

[buttonbuck]

my son and I build one a few years back at the beginning of his "adolescence" he prefers to shoot this gun rough as it is.... over any gun in the family arsenal.

 

[jethro224]

well I whent ahead and ordered it from tow. should be here in a few weeks. I looked in one of my load books and if I'm reading this right it will take up to 50 grains of FFFg! talk about a hand cannon! well mostly it will be used at rondy pistol shoots thinking around 15-20 grain loads. and as a back up when deer & elk hunting. any thoughts.

In Illinois a ML pistol must make 500 ft/lbs ME to be legal for deer hunting. 50 grains of 3F under a .530 ball puts the muzzle energy just above that. That was what made me decide to sell my Traditions Kentucky .50 and buy my .54 GPP.
She'll kick a little with the 50 grain load but it's not that bad. Still accurate. I use 30 grains as a target/woodswalk load and have won medals at Friendship and $ at rendezvous with my GPP. :thumbsup:

 

[rawhide]

sweet one other thing is the trigger adjustable on these? I know they have coil springs. but I havn't herd weather they are or not. thanks rawhide.

 

[jethro224]

There is no trigger adjustment screw but the trigger on mine is pretty darn good IMHO.

 

[rawhide]

ok kinda what I thuoght. just waiting for it to come now.