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Buck and Ball?
- Thread starter Halftail
- Start date
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laffingman67
45 Cal.
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:rotf:
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Make sure it's allowed in your regs Halftail. A buck/ball load would be prohibited here.
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BAD IDEA... but you can try it at the range...get a BIG piece of paper!!! I would not use it hunting deer. (hmm..coyote??? maybe...if there was a pack of them! ha! IMHO! or rather.. IMSB..(in my smooth bore!)
Russ T Frizzen
70 Cal.
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As Swamp Rat pointed out, it may not be a legal hunting load where you live. In any case, at usual deer hunting ranges, it isn't all that effective anyway.
Many years ago, some friends of mine worked up buck and ball loads according to the old military specs and found that they were of use when lines of soldiers faced off in battle in Rev war style at close range. When used this way, the buck scattered and hit all up and down the line. I don't recall the range for this test, but I think it was probably around 25 yards.
When aimed at a specific target, the term accuracy became meaningless. Buckshot by itself patterned O.K. and patched ball loads hit with decent predictability. Mix the buckshot and ball together and the "group" became somewhat more random--say about the size of Oklahoma-and perhaps larger if the wind was blowing. The guns used were Besses and the shooters knew their business. The range for target work was 40 yards I believe but this was a long time ago.
Many years ago, some friends of mine worked up buck and ball loads according to the old military specs and found that they were of use when lines of soldiers faced off in battle in Rev war style at close range. When used this way, the buck scattered and hit all up and down the line. I don't recall the range for this test, but I think it was probably around 25 yards.
When aimed at a specific target, the term accuracy became meaningless. Buckshot by itself patterned O.K. and patched ball loads hit with decent predictability. Mix the buckshot and ball together and the "group" became somewhat more random--say about the size of Oklahoma-and perhaps larger if the wind was blowing. The guns used were Besses and the shooters knew their business. The range for target work was 40 yards I believe but this was a long time ago.
I worked up a load in My .62 with a .600 ball and six .30 buck shot atop it it is pretty tight out to 10-15 yds at that range it will put a lot of lead in a deer, any further and it is not a good choice, you can "bag" the shot with cloth and extend the range the projectiles stay together but it was not consistant in my tests.
To share a related piece of info, I experimented with a .62cal smoothbore at the range one day, trying multiple round balls.
4-.440s in a paper shot cup:
The stagger stack was too great and they went off in 4 directions making incoinsistent, 15-20" patterns at 30yds.
3-.490s in a paper shot cup:
There was no stagger stack as they were larger and they grouped very well at 30 & 40 yards...got 4-5" groups consistently.
Just with 80grns of Goex 3F they easily blew through 4" of hardwood on the sides of one of those power company wooden 'cable reels'.
4-.440s in a paper shot cup:
The stagger stack was too great and they went off in 4 directions making incoinsistent, 15-20" patterns at 30yds.
3-.490s in a paper shot cup:
There was no stagger stack as they were larger and they grouped very well at 30 & 40 yards...got 4-5" groups consistently.
Just with 80grns of Goex 3F they easily blew through 4" of hardwood on the sides of one of those power company wooden 'cable reels'.
Many Klatch
69 Cal.
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I nailed a feral cat with a buck and ball load at about 20 yards with my .60 smoothbore. One roundball and four 00 buckshot makes a nice load.
Many Klatch
Many Klatch
Buck and ball is a military innovation designed to increase shot dispersion and hit probability at the combat ranges of the time. A hit anywhere on a man, (even on a man other than the one you were aiming at) with one of the buckshot, would wound him. When the state of the art medicine is taken into account, it would probably eventually kill him. It was still used in the Civil War by troops armed with smoothbores. Period accounts have New Jersey troops at Gettysburg taking down their buck and ball loads and making pure buckshot "shotgun" loads for their pieces.
Since a deer will not surrender, and will probably just run off and die, unfound, with anything other than a lucky hit with a buckshot, I would not use it even if it were legal.
Since a deer will not surrender, and will probably just run off and die, unfound, with anything other than a lucky hit with a buckshot, I would not use it even if it were legal.
Russianblood
45 Cal.
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Buck and Ball loads can be fun on a woods walk (if allowed) but they are NOT for hunting. Now a double ball load, that's a different story . . . :hmm:
"Buck and Ball loads can be fun on a woods walk (if allowed) but they are NOT for hunting."
actually, if leagal they can be an effective hunting load at close range but the range is quite limited, not a very versitile load but one that could be used under the right conditions which like the double ball will put a lot of lead in a deer at one time.I put a lot of them on paper and am confident of their use at the specific range I tested, if a deer stepped out of heavy cover at 10 yds or less the ball would hit at poa and the six shot would be in a pattern around it with in 8-10 inches of the ball.I worked it up for ambush at dusk near heavy blackberry and wild rose cover as a "stopping" load and am quite confident it will work.
actually, if leagal they can be an effective hunting load at close range but the range is quite limited, not a very versitile load but one that could be used under the right conditions which like the double ball will put a lot of lead in a deer at one time.I put a lot of them on paper and am confident of their use at the specific range I tested, if a deer stepped out of heavy cover at 10 yds or less the ball would hit at poa and the six shot would be in a pattern around it with in 8-10 inches of the ball.I worked it up for ambush at dusk near heavy blackberry and wild rose cover as a "stopping" load and am quite confident it will work.
Russianblood
45 Cal.
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Ten yards or less . . . :rotf: :rotf: :surrender:
Not exactly buck and ball,but out of fun at the range I tryed shoot adn ball on my bess.One ounce of #4 and 3 .45 balls.Loaded shot,ball,shot,ball...so that the 45s wouldn't get wedge in the barrel. The pattern I got was pretty decent having all 3 45s inside 8in at 25 and surounded by shot.Next time I should try that on a watermelon :rotf:
