54 vs blacktail deer

[rawhide]

I know it's ben asked alot here but what would be a good load for black tail using a .530 ball out of a cva haken 28 inch barrel 1:48 twist. mind you I have hunted elk with this gun with real bullets and it works wonders out to 70-80 yards. but I want to try a ball on deer. would 60 grains of 777 FFFg be enough or should I load er up hotter?

 

[Ft. Jefferson]

It depends on the range at which you will likely be shooting. 60gr would be a good load out to 75yds or so. I'd bump it up to 80grs for out to 125yds. i load 70grs 3f goex for deer in both my 54's and go to 90gr-3f for elk, all good at 100yds. Hope this helps, Buzzard

 

[BrownBear]

I know it's ben asked alot here but what would be a good load for black tail using a .530 ball out of a cva haken 28 inch barrel 1:48 twist. mind you I have hunted elk with this gun with real bullets and it works wonders out to 70-80 yards. but I want to try a ball on deer. would 60 grains of 777 FFFg be enough or should I load er up hotter?

Accounting for the increased "power" of 777 at around 15%, that load is roughly the equivalent of 69 grains of 3f black. And it's surely plenty powerful for blacktail and a lot more. My favorite 54 (GPR) is happiest with 90 grains of 3f Goex and it's truly got more geewhizz than I feel I need for blacktail. I wouldn't hesitate to use 70 grains of 3f Goex, the rough equivalent of your load, on blacktails out to 100 yards if I was willing to shoot that far. I'm more of a 50 yard deer shooter though, so that's theory on my part, but pretty educated theory.

Sighted in dead on at 75 yards, my load is roughly an inch high at 50 yards and 2-3" low at 100. I bet your load of 777 would only be a little different.

My experience with blacktails from SoCal to Alaska tells me that 75-yard sight in is a goodun. Try it with your gun, and if you anticipate some longer shooting pay attention to where it's hitting at 100 with that sight-in. If it's too low for you, you might ease up the charge a bit. But that's an issue of trajectory and not killing power.

I've only recovered one ball from a blacktail, a good buck facing me at 55 yards. The ball went in the front near the base of the neck, completely severed the spine and stopped just under the hide on the back. Just a whole lot of bone and solid meat, and it still darned near exited. Broadside shots? I hope you're not counting on recovering any balls for your collection! :rotf:

 

[hellerodsyahoo.com]

X2-- just use the load that you always use and feel most comfortable with. I have killed many blacktail bucks here on the central coast of Cali. with my 54 flinter and have recovered about half my flattened out roundballs. The longest shot taken was just over 50 yards :>)

 

[Mort Scott]

my load for blacktail is 80 gr. with round ball . Plenty of range and knock down power.

 

[Pete Gaimari]

http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/257541/

 

[BrownBear]

I just finished some shooting and was curious about your load. Didn't have any 777, so I tried 70 grains of 3f Goex and 80 grains of 2f Goex (also a rough equivalent of your load, velocity-wise).

Both hit roughly 4" low without changing my sights. Rifle was a GPR capper, which has a 32" barrel and 1:60 twist, rather than your 28" and 1:48.

Close enough for government work, and the best answer will be to try your own load for comparison.

As for power? Oh man, no sweat.

 

[rabjr]

Give me 90gr's of 2F or 3F in my .54's and I'm a happy camper. :thumbsup:

 

[rawhide]

I tried 60 and 70 grains out to 80 yards and it's spot on. I figured it would work on deer. most shots I seen here in western wa. or at the most 80 yards or so. to bushy for longer shots. just was wondering. I want one shot kill. don't wont to have to track a wonded deer all over the mountian!

 

[BrownBear]

I want one shot kill. don't wont to have to track a wonded deer all over the mountian!

Put the ball where you want it, and that's what you get. I've had one blacktail go 30-35 yards after the hit. The rest all dropped within two or three hops, or couldn't get it together to hop at all. Notably faster than 50 cal, and the 50 cal is plenty quick on the job.

 

[Dave K]

Brown Bear is right. It is up to the shooter to make sure he doesn't track a deer all over. Any cal. within good reason, can be very effective if the shooter is efficient. Cal.size doesn't make up for poor shooting. So yes, a 54cal. can be a very good cal. if the shooter is a good shooter.

 

[William O.]

My .54 Trade Rifle has a 29 inch barrel along with a 1:48 ROT and with 85 grains of 2f Goex is accurate enough for me to take first place in several shooting matches. That works out to about 73 grains of T-7 which is the only substitute powder that I like. It should have plenty of power for deer of any size if you put the ball in the right spot. FWIW, my TR shoots the REAL and Great Plains bullets fairly well too.

 

[tg]

If you use 60-80 gr 3f and hit the right spot it will work I have taken lot of Costal Blacktails with .40/.45 and on up to .72 but any of them have to hit the right place.that 54 with a Ball is good for Elk as well so is the .50 ball.

 

[KHickam]

I killed blacktails with a 50 caliber - dropped like stones - never got a shot at one with a 54 cal when I owned one - but it worked on eastern Washington mule deer - dropping them in their tracks too :thumbsup:

 

[rawhide]

well I think it will work to also read my lyman book looks like my load will work out to 100 yards. so now I just got to buy my tags.

 

[BrownBear]

....so now I just got to buy my tags.

And if you're like me, lots of extra ball and powder to practice for longer shots! :grin:

 

[rawhide]

yup ad her at the range yesterday sweet shooting shoots spot on at 80 yards with that load. :thumbsup:

 

[BrownBear]

Yup. Longest shot I've ever tried on a deer was later lasered at 94 yards. Missed him clean! Yet just the day before I had been doing just fine at 100 yards at the range. Go figger! :wink: