.62cal "Large Buckshot" loads

[roundball]

FYI...if anyone is interested, I tested "large buckshot" type loads in my .62cal smoothbore flinter, using 80grns Goex FFg and Hornady .440's & .490's in paper shot cups.

Quanty four of the smaller .440's had such offset in their stagger stack that they opened up too fast, 15-18" patterns and the patterns were so erratic and unpredictable that I stopped the testing after a half dozen shots.

However, quantity three .490's were outstanding...they stacked a lot more vertically due to their larger diameter and gave very consistent 3-4

 

: Your velocity will be that of a 20 bore shooting a 1 1/4 ounce shot charge.
: Sounds like a very good pattern, though & consistancy of 4" to 5" patterns is very good indeed, especially when they are predictable as in consistncy of pattern as well as Point of Impact relative to the sights.
: Perhaps a further test as to powder charge, (increase?) is now in order.
Daryl

 

[musketman]

However, quantity three .490's were outstanding...they stacked a lot more vertically due to their larger diameter and gave very consistent 3-4

 

[roundball]

Daryl - Yes, it'll be interesting to see how 90 & 100grns FFg will pattern;

Musketman - I haven't shot any round balls in the .62cal yet, although I've now got some...but I don't recall anything unusual about the recoil compared to the 1+5/8oz #6 turkey loads I had it set up for;

 

[musketman]

I haven't shot any round balls in the .62cal yet, although I've now got some...

What size do you have, .600, .610?

Could you imagine thumping a deer or a bear with three .490 roundballs at 30 yards... :shocking: (assuming local laws allowed it)

You'd knock the socks right off of it...

 

[Stumpkiller]

An ounce of lead kicks like an ounce of lead regardless of the shape it leaves the barrel in. A ball, a cylinder or a bunch of smaller balls.

I stuff nine .35 balls in my 12 gauge New Englander for an impressive way to empty a gallon jug full of water.

 

[roundball]

I had tried some .550 Warren 'spruless' balls in a TC .56cal smoothbore and accuracy was great, so I ordered some of their .600's to try in the .62.

Here in North Carolina, there's no limitation on using smoothbores, and no minimum caliber published, so .50cal balls in a smoothbore are OK legally.

I would personally run more stringent penetration tests with more powerful hunting loads to satisfy myself myself they would make a humane kill and at what max distance, etc.

 

I have some .310 lead balls I could try in the .62 smoothie, but I haven't yet. I fooled around with some 1 oz. #6 shot loads today. The load was 70 grains Elephant 2fg, one over powder .125 card wad, a plastic shotcup, and an over shot wad. At 30 yards a rabbit wouldn't get through the patterns and the shot does penetrate one side of a steel "tin" can.
I'm still not happy with the 10" and larger 50 yard "groups" with the .600 patched ball.

 

[tg]

You will probably get 4-5 inch groups at 50yds once you find the right combo, I could get that size in my .58 useing .535 or.550 balls as well as the .562 balls, it just takes some playing around and a rear sight does help, both of the .62 guns I have had would group at 4" or less at 50yds, I do use 3f powder in that cal. 60-90gr

 

[RussB]

"FYI...if anyone is interested, I tested "large buckshot" type loads in my .62cal smoothbore flinter, using 80grns Goex FFg and Hornady .440's & .490's in paper shot cups."

Good Morning Roundball...........I would be interested in hearing a bit more on the "paper shot cups" you mentioned.
Also, What patch & ball combination are you using for your regular RB shooting.
I also have a .62 smoothie, and I have a heck of time finding a good combination to go with my .610 ball.
Any information appreciated.
Respectfully, Russ

 

[roundball]

You can download a writeup about how I make my paper shot cups from my server space at the URL below.

The formatting was lost when I put it out there but if you save in into MS Word or a text file, it'll either realign itself automatically, or as you read through it it'll be obvious after each numbered sentence where you'd want to do a 'return" and get it lined back up manually.

I have not yet tried round balls in my .62cal smoothbore, however, there are a number of folks here that have either already posted about that, or would be glad to repost to help you

http://www.members.aol.com/wjcutbush/62calShotCupTurkeyLoad

 

[RussB]

Thanks Roundball, Made for very interesting reading. Seems you have your "Ducks in Line" when it comes to these things.
Respectfully, Russ

 

In testing some buck shot and buck and ball loads recently, my brother and I found that 3 to 4 or even 5, .350 balls accompanying the regular ball load had a positive result on the target. By that, I mean they patterned quite closely out to 30yds.to the main ball with the pattern radially imprinting around the large ball.
: With 3 buck + the normal ball load, typical in the .69 US & French muskets and .75 British muskets paper ctg. loads of the 18th and 19th century issue loads, the patterns were very close and didn't even start to spread until the 25yd. target range had been exceeded. Out to 75 & 80 yds., these issue loads gave virtually 100% hit ratios from the muskets. This type of load would be very good on called animals, including bear and other carnivours with the smoothbored musket-type barrels that seem to be popular now.
: Often, the main ball seemed to become more accurate with the addition of the 3 buck shot. FURTHER TESTING in this regard is necessary & might help with sometimes errant accuracy from the smaller 20 bore barrels.
: The 2 to 3 larger bore balls, as in .54 cal. of .526" to .535" balls might just be an excellent option for deer and balck bear. Since TOW & others sell these balls in swaged or cast form in small quantities (50 bags?), this type of testing becomes cost effective & possibly a way of increasing the effectiveness of these smoothbores.
: At times, in the past, for night guard duty, loads of buck for the .69 muskets increased from the normal 9 balls to 15 balls of triple Ought size. Based on this, a 20 bore should handle upwards of 500gr. to 600gr. of shot or buckshot quite easily, and perhaps more, as long as the shoulder lasts.

 

[Liver eatin’ Johnson]

I have a question about large shot loads - when I was a dumb kid I cut open some of my Dad's buckshot shells ( KIDS - DO NOT TRY THIS - IT IS DANGEROUS ! )and found to my surpeise that they were actually split shot tied together in groups with a thin line - here is part of an article discribing that...

Tied buckshot. This is rather rare type of the shotgun load. It must be hand-loaded, but the results might be surprising. Tied buckshot is made by using nylon string to tie together a few large buckshot balls. Typically, this is done using buckshot sizes such that only 9 balls fit in one load, making the loading less laborious. Each ball is slit to approximately half its diameter, and the end of the tying string is pinched by squeezing the ball back together. The procedure is repeated for each ball. The free ends of the strings are simply tied in a knot about 4-6 inches from the balls. It is a very good idea to buffer such loads to prevent the strings from tearing during the shot.


Anyone ever tried that with their muskets?

 

[Stumpkiller]

Arrrrr. Chain shot. Ships used to fire it to shread the sails and rigging of the enemy. Occasionally it was heated so it would burn where it snagged in the rigging.

Top is "Chain Shot", lower is "Bar Shot"

Talk about wooden ships and iron men.

 

While I've not seen the 'tied buckshot myself, I had heard of them, and made my own when loading shotshells for migratory birds. They worked "after a fashion", but of course tying all those # %$#(*&@% 4's together was a pain.
: Putting tails of ribbon on round balls with wood screws did work though and might be an answer for those having trouble with accuracy with RB in their smoothbores.- Just a thought - it worked quite well in shotshells & will also work with patched round balls. The ribbon keeps the ball from spinning, and therefore trues it's flight. What makes balls from smoothbores fly untrue is spinning - just like a curve ball from a base-ball pitcher. The actual flight of a round ball from a smoothbore is the same, the curve becoming exponential in it's deviation, the longer the range. Keeping the ball from spinning, with a patch in the bore, or by peening as in a golf-ball, or with a tail as mentioned, will help.

 

[musketman]

Chain shot was also used in the Civil War, sometimes with a 10 foot long chain...

It would mow down ranks at a time...

 

[Liver eatin’ Johnson]

Daryl,

You just gave me a vision of the next inline muzzleloading advancement - wire guided projectiles :shocking:

 

HA!- there are indeed, few concepts that are truley "New".

 

Remember the post a while back I made somewhere about the guy I know that built the ball tumbler to dimple his balls?
Wonder if dimpling balls in the smooth bores would help accuracy?
How would one attach a ribbon to the roundball and still use a cloth patch?
Has anyone heard of using a "bullet" in a smoothbore like the Foster type slug that can work well in the smoothbore 12 gauge?
In the "old days" before rifled shotgun barrels and sabot slugs we did a lot of experimenting with the foster slug and some of us got 3" and better groups at 100 yards by "tweaking" the factory shotgun slug.
I think some research is in order here.