BEST CALIBER TO HUNT DEER W/ FLINTLOCK RIFLE

[Mike in FL]

I am looking at the Kibler Woodrunner. I hunt white tail in Virginia, in fairly heavy cover. I am leaning towards .54 at this point

What part of VA sir?

 

[Tom A Hawk]

I have a few 50's and 54's and they both work just fine. Although I am partial to .54. When contemplating a new gun I'm likely to pick something I don't have. Which is probably why I'm now building a .58.

 

[Hood2]

I prefer the large caliber as I feel there's a better chance of getting a pass through and it is a larger diameter which means a better blood trail.

 

[64Springer]

I prefer the large caliber as I feel there's a better chance of getting a pass through and it is a larger diameter which means a better blood trail.

This will remain an age-old discussion.

That neither side will win.

I prefer smaller calibers and lighter projectiles that fly faster and flatter.

 

[Brokennock]

"And the beat goes on,,, and the beat goes on. La dee da de dee......"

 

[GREENSWLDE]

.45" killed thousands of Red & Roe Deer in Scotlands in muzzle loading era. What was good enough for them should be good enough for to-day . Black powder loads are no longer permissable in UK owing to lack of muzzle velositly of over 2000 fps.requirement. Pity so many fell to M/Ls in Victorial period. The Funny Farm at the Top are now talking about taking off the season on Stags as they think this will limit the Over population.. If a .45" 450 grain bullet will Flatted out at 1000yds in Sand it should be good enough for deer at 100/150 yds.. Not even allowed to shoot foxes or other Vermin with it. O.D.

 

[büchsenmacher64]

Well they’re dead with a .40 and you can eat tge neat, they’re a little deader with a .45 and your wife will eat the meat. With a .50they’re really dead and even your most picky kids will eat it.
A .54 makes them so dead there is a moment of silence in the forest when they go down, and your friends at work will try your home made jerky and some will like it.
A .58 makes then so dead flags are flown at half staff and Twitter will try to get you kicked off.
Martha Stewart Will personally call you to give you recipes to cook it. A .62 will make tgen so dead the Chi-coms will protest in the UN, and David Ramsey will ask if he can come over to dinner. A .75 will make them the deadliest and tge angles in heaven will weep for the deer and vegans will want some.

That’s like the best answer I’ve ever heard.

 

[DementedMindOfJac]

What is the groups opinion on the best caliber to hunt deer with using a flintlock rifle.? I am considering .45 .50 and .54.....

already have a .50 so i am leaning that direction since i have all the balls already.....

Thoughts?

The parameters are so broad that I'll take the liberty to shrink them to my thorax of the woods. Whitetail, and pretty small. Slaughter out about 100lbs average.

Anything .45 up, at the range I'm liable to shoot at, under 50yds, with patched ball.
From .45 on, it only really matters of you stick to RB. My .45 throws a skirted 350gr ball at ~1330 fps with a 90gr 3F charge.

Parameters...

 

[tenngun]

"And the beat goes on,,, and the beat goes on. La dee da de dee......"

View attachment 238567

If it wasn’t for beating dead horses what would greybeads do for entertainment

 

[Appowner]

Last deer I took was one of those antlered dogs you find in Florida. That was 45 years ago with a TC Renegade in .54. The 54 was also one of the reasons that was my last deer.

A 54 can be too much for some shots.

 

[Sidney Smith]

I prefer the .54 caliber. It gets the job done quick and easy. Most all of my shots are 50 yards or less, and I get easy pass throughs, with nice big blood trails. Usually they don't get far. Did have one I hit at about 40 yards, manage to run about 150 yards after being shot. Don't know how it managed that, but the blood trail was like somebody ran through the woods with a 5 inch paint brush, slinging it everywhere.

 

[zimmerstutzen]

You can get a 54 in any configuration that a 50 comes in. a 54 bucks wind slightly better, makes a hole 15% larger than a 50, more chance of blood loss and shock stopping the animal. A 50 is convenient simply because nearly every store that has muzzle loader items has 50 caliber projectiles If you are going to hunt open fields where long shots are likely, a 50 may drop less, but only to the extent that it continues to move fastr than a 54. It will also slow down at a slightly greater rate than a 54.

 

[olskool]

i shot this doe with my 54 at 93 paces. complete pass thru, she ran about 60yds and no blood at all. it is thick in SC,,,,,,,,,,,,

 

[Christophero]

I have a number of 50's. A couple years ago purchased a used 54. Been hunting with Roundballs after being a dedicated heavy conical shooter. I do like the umph of the .54 rb over the .50 rb on deer. Both work but bigger is better in my experience.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Since we're sharing photos....,

All done with a .54 BUT a .45 would've done the same. The buck was already fired up due to running from fox hounds, and went about 100 yards. The other two fell where shot.

LD

 

[smokepolehall]

Lots of nice n dead tick toters y'all posted. I like them, pics n dead tick toters. Ummm sure be good eating freezer meat.

 

[Johnny Tremain]

Had a 58, went to a 54. Then to 45 cal.
Wanted a 40, 45 is the minimum for this state, so I went with 45 cal.

My Rice barrel puts a RB at 2033fps, using a max charge. I use a lesser charge at 1650fps and still dropsem like a rock.

 

[OldMaineWoodsman]

.45, .50, and .54 caliber have all been proven on deer.

I have had very good success with the .54 caliber round ball. All of my deer hunting in Virginia is done on State Wildlife Management Areas, so it is important to be able to recover a shot deer quickly. The .54 is accurate and will handle any Whitetail.

With that said, how well you shoot the rifle, and how confident you are in it is more important than caliber.

 

[Nav]

There is no replacement for displacement. Bigger balls have higher BC, and hit harder. I don’t believe there’s such a thing as too much gun in big game hunting, and certainly not in ML. That’s said, I’ve hunted a few seasons in the VA Great Dismal Swamp, and the deer I kilt were no bigger than dogs. Maybe the get bigger as you go higher, but those sea level deer were almost not worth it. In the pics I’m holding them up by their hind legs like a rabbit.