Best 50cal projectile for hunting

[eaglesnester]

I have a 50 cal Hawken. I live and hunt in Northern B.C. The moose tend to be large, over 1000lbs. I know a 54 would be a better choice for these critters, however I am stuck with the 50 and I must make do. Now having said that I wish to use the best round possible to make a clean kill as possible. My shooting will be limited to no more than 70 yards and 70 grains of Tripple 7. Many of you have said that the 370grain Maxiball does not perform well on game as there is little tissue destruction and hydrostatic shock. The round tends to pass through and through and the holes plug before the air gets let out of em.
Would the Great Planes 425 grain round be a better choice? Is the Great Planes round a conical? Have read on the forums that a conical (Mini Balls) can turn and deflect inside an animal causing a poor wound channel and lost game.
Is the Great Planes bullet a kind of Mini Ball? Sorry for the questions but I do not wish to make my game suffer, I want to put em down quick and humane. If the 50 will not do the job I will only use the 30/06 for hunting larger game.

Cheers & Tighter Groups: Eaglesnester

 

[gmww]

I used the great plains .54 on buffalo and like it very much. For large animals I'd go with as heavy a conical as possible for penetration.

 

[poordevil]

I would think a round ball would deflect easier than a heavy bullet. I don't know where that story started. I heard it for the first time on this forum.

I never shot a moose, but I would think the heavier the better

P

 

[roundball]

I live and hunt in Northern B.C. The moose tend to be large, over 1000lbs. I know a 54 would be a better choice for these critters, however I am stuck with the 50 and I must make do.

While I'm a dedicated fan of the patched round ball, if I was going after moose with a PRB I would use a larger caliber than a .50.
If your circumstances are that your choice is a .50cal muzzleloader, I applaud your attempts to ensure a clean kill and I'd agree one of the currently available conicals would be a better choice than a smallish .50cal PRB.

From a couple seasons of conical testing back in the early 90's my experience was that T/C's .45 and .50cal Maxi-HUNTERS were very accurate and devastating on deer.

I also tested Hornady's .45/285 and .50/385grn Great Plains bullets and they were excellent as well. FWIW, I used 100grns Goex 2F and an Oxyoke prelubed wool wad over the powder with all 4 selections, for woods shots on whitetails usually in the 35-50yd range.

For moose, if it was me, I'd bump up the powder charge to the max 110 or 120grns (check T/C's load charts) and use either the .50cal Maxi-HUNTER or Hornady .50cal GP bullet (whichever was most accurate) and go get a moose...rather see you bag a moose with a muzzleloader using a conical than a .30-06 :grin:

 

[necchi]

I wouldn't use a 50 ml on your BC Moose.(period)Those ARE Big-Tough critters!

You mentioned humain,,plus the first thing a darn moose is gonna do is head for a deep water swamp an die!

I thank you for considering the ML gun, and if I was in a situation where that's all I had and had day's to quater and haul meat for survival, I'd use it. But if your licensed for centerfire up there I'd leave the ML at home.
I'd use the biggest Barnes TSX I could make fly well. That's IMHO and worth every penny you paid.

p.s. I believe this is the first time I have ever told a feller not to use an ML! If I'm off on this one, or the post is inappropriate for the forum, I apologize to moderators.

 

[Kentuckywindage]

you can use a .50cal on moose. heck they kill them with recurve bows along with compound bows.

round ball will deflect off bone and such, a heavy conical will blow right through bone.

350+ grain conical will do the job. I personally would stay away from a lead conical with a hollow point. You want a good solid flat point. Powerbelt sells the 444gr flatpoint in both lead versions or one with the copper coating. 444gr with 70-90gr charge would be plenty

 

[larry wv]

My feelings are ..More powder ..remember 777 is stronger. Use a big conical AND you will have to wait for a real good shot. Not some quartering type shot. If you mess up OR the moose doesn't feel like dieing it will be like Necchi said. Lost and in no mans land. I could kill a moose with a .22 mag but doesn't mean I would get a bite of it. I know a few people that have killed them with a bow and they said they are tough. I had a maxi-ball turn in a buck. It was fired with a 1-66 twist. Prob not real stable. Only one out of many that I know of to turn. Rest were 1-48 twist. Larry Wv

 

[Bearbait2]

Mr. eaglenester,
Though you did not mention them, the Lee Improved-Minnie is very effective on Moose, speaking from personal experience.
The mold is inexpensive and perhaps you know someone who could cast them up for you, if you do not cast bullets yourself.
Best Wishes

 

[eaglesnester]

I do have the Lee Improved Minni mold in 370 gr. I tried paper patching with 70grains trip 7. Boy I want to tell you the paper patching sure do seal em up some. I found a huge difference in the pressure between patched mini and none patched. That darn thing like to took my shoulder off when I touched er off. Very accurate at 27 yards, cutting same hole and shoooting cloverleafs off a shooting stick. Will have to move out to 50 just as soon as the snow clears out of the back road to the local range and I can get back in there.It sure would be great if she held her accuracy out to 70 or so. That 350gr mini seems like she could punch through a brick wall.

 

[nkbj]

Bumped into a GM 50 cal LRH for a good price. So, need something to take advantage of that 28" twist. Hopefully this will be my best 50 caliber for hunting. Here down south we don't have to worry much about big critters excepting hogs with thick shields. This just might punch on through. http://i791.photobucket.com/albums/yy192/SNARGLEFLERK/50PPHB.jpg

 

[William O.]

Take a look at these; http://www.prbullet.com/ul50.htm
The "Keith" bullet has a nice wide meplat, great for penetrating and leaving a nice wide wound channel. They have a bullet slection chart so you can see what weight conical is going to give you the best accuracy for your rifle's rate of twist. You might also want to look at the Buffalo bullet "ball-et", half ball, half conical. I've used these out of my trade rifle (1:48 ROT) and they are very accurate, especially with a fiber wad between powder and ball. http://www.dixiegunworks.com/produ...=3625&osCsid=813d04ec81ac72532312b59e9670f2b2 http://www.thegunworks.com/custprodgun.cfm?SubCat1ID=61&Cat1Name=Round Balls & Bullets
Increase your powder charge a bit as well, as long as accuracy doesn't suffer. Since you are using T-7 just subtract 15% from what your max. powder charge is and don't exceed it. Your owners manual should list the maximum for RB as well as maxi-ball type conicals when using traditional black.

 

[Headhunter]

If I was going Moose hunting with my Fullstock 50 Hawken, I would dump 90 Grains of FFFG GOEX down the barrel, and load a patched round ball on top of it. Cap it, and shoot any moose on the face of the earth with it. Take pictures, Build a fire with Flint & Steel, then whip out my knife and start skinning and quartering. Put a BIG chunk of Backstrap over the fire.

Then, after the work was done, I would set by the fire, eat intill I almost pop, smoke my pipe, and reflect on how inferior the 50 cal patched round ball and Goex is while I clean my rifle.

Headhunter

 

[larry wv]

You forgot the part about tracking it into the swamp. Larry Wv

 

[roundball]

:grin:
Many have never actually shot really big game animals...reminds me of the old saw:
"heck, my grandpappy always just used a .22"

(sure he did)

 

[tg]

I would use a .50 PRB and a stout load of powderon Moose if I could be withing 30 yds with a good slightly quartering away shot and had a good "plan on where to go if Bullwinky got irratable with me while expireing, not the best choice as with a bigger ball one has a better chance of making a good kill with out all the above caveats.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Whether a conical will deflect, or go straight usually depends on the shape of the bullet. If its round nosed, or a semi-wadcutter, with a wide meplat, its more likely to fly straight on, just like a Round ball will. If its pointed, or has a hollow point, depending on the design of the hollow point, but bullets have been known to deflect from the line of fire.

I always recommend shooters do their own Comparative, Penetration testing with their guns and choice of bullet.

If I were hunting Moose with a MLer, it would be with a .54 at a minimum caliber, and preferrable with either a .58 or .62 caliber rifle. I don't have problems using Wheelweight cast RBs for this kind of shooting, as the RB that hard will penetrate deeply, and not mushroom very much even if it does strike bones. The large caliber, and the Heavy Weight of balls for the .58 and .62 caliber barrels makes it more than likely that the ball will completely penetrate the body of even a Moose.

I have no doubt that under best of conditions, a .50 caliber RB, which only weights 177-180 grains, will Kill a moose. However, it would not be my first choice of calibers, as I believe its still too small for hunting moose. Will a .50 cal. conical work? Yes, IF you have a .50 cal. Barrel designed to shoot Conicals! That is a mighty Big IF! to overcome.

You don't need heavy powder charges behind a Conical bullet to kill moose, Either. Those big bullets will deliver a lot of shock to the internal organs of the moose, and the damaged done by the Primary wound channel will quickly drop the blood pressure of the Moose, depriving its brain of the oxygen needed to sustain motion, and life. 80-100 grains of Black Powder- 2Fg is my recommendation is more than enough to push these big slugs as fast as your shoulder can stand. :shocked2: :surrender: :hatsoff:

 

[Little Wattsy]

:grin:
Many have never actually shot really big game animals...reminds me of the old saw:
"heck, my grandpappy always just used a .22"

(sure he did)

EXACTLY!!! :hatsoff: :hatsoff:

 

[jan buck]

i have shot a moose on the island of Newfoundland.
shot with c. rifle. with the 4th shot put into it it spun in a circle and fell over.
they are tenacious for sure.
i feel that a properly placed maxi ball would do the job.

 

[Dphar]

Whether a conical will deflect, or go straight usually depends on the shape of the bullet. If its round nosed, or a semi-wadcutter, with a wide meplat, its more likely to fly straight on, just like a Round ball will. If its pointed, or has a hollow point, depending on the design of the hollow point, but bullets have been known to deflect from the line of fire.

I always recommend shooters do their own Comparative, Penetration testing with their guns and choice of bullet.

If I were hunting Moose with a MLer, it would be with a .54 at a minimum caliber, and preferrable with either a .58 or .62 caliber rifle. I don't have problems using Wheelweight cast RBs for this kind of shooting, as the RB that hard will penetrate deeply, and not mushroom very much even if it does strike bones. The large caliber, and the Heavy Weight of balls for the .58 and .62 caliber barrels makes it more than likely that the ball will completely penetrate the body of even a Moose.

I have no doubt that under best of conditions, a .50 caliber RB, which only weights 177-180 grains, will Kill a moose. However, it would not be my first choice of calibers, as I believe its still too small for hunting moose. Will a .50 cal. conical work? Yes, IF you have a .50 cal. Barrel designed to shoot Conicals! That is a mighty Big IF! to overcome.

You don't need heavy powder charges behind a Conical bullet to kill moose, Either. Those big bullets will deliver a lot of shock to the internal organs of the moose, and the damaged done by the Primary wound channel will quickly drop the blood pressure of the Moose, depriving its brain of the oxygen needed to sustain motion, and life. 80-100 grains of Black Powder- 2Fg is my recommendation is more than enough to push these big slugs as fast as your shoulder can stand. :shocked2: :surrender: :hatsoff:

Twist is also a factor.

Dan

 

[Dave K]

Roundball....

I have no doubt that under best of conditions, a .50 caliber RB, which only weights 177-180 grains, will Kill a moose. However, it would not be my first choice of calibers, as I believe its still too small for hunting moose. Will a .50 cal. conical work? Yes, IF you have a .50 cal. Barrel designed to shoot Conicals! That is a mighty Big IF! to overcome.

Dan, I think that paragraph covers it pretty well.