Caliber Advise

[dillroy]

I'm thinking of building my first rifle, I just don't know what caliber to make it. I'm thinking either .45 or .54 cal GMR 7/8th or 13/16th octagon barrel I will mostly be using it for Trekking, Deer hunting, and target shooting, Ive been In to Rev war reenacting for most of my life and I own a Bess and a Charly so I'm used to flinters and big calibers, that's why I'm thinking of a .54. Any suggestions?

Dillon

 

[paulvallandigham]

You will find it difficult to get a barrel in .54 caliber that is that small in diameter. Its getting towards the unsafe side. Remember, dovetails, or hangers have to be mounted to both hang the stock to the barrel, and provide for sights. Its the distance from the BOTTOM of these dovetails to the GROOVES in the barrel that determine safety.

It really depends what you want to use the gun to do. If you are hunting, then the .54 makes more sense, than the .45. Not that a .45 can't kill, with an accurately placed shot. The heavier ball of the .54 maintains its velocity better, and bucks the wind better than the .45 will at distances of 100 yds and beyond. If you are shooting inside 50 yards, even a gale force wind is not going to move either ball far enough to cause a miss on a deer-sized target.

Guns are tools. You choose tools for the work you have to do. Any of them can be used for plinking, or trick shooting, with the right loads, but when there is work to do, you want the right tool. So, decide what you want to hunt with this gun, and then decide on caliber, barrel length, Style, Rate of Twist, shape and depth of rifling.

 

[longcruise]

I'm going to suggest *none of the above*. Especially if you want a 7/8 barrel. May or may not be available in a .54. I'd say go with a .50 for adequate horse power for deer and similar sized game. You can get a 7/8th .50. If you like the .54, you can get it in a 15/16th which really is not that much bigger. All in all, the .50 would make a great target caliber and a good big game caliber.

 

[dillroy]

oops those dimentions were just for the .45 barrel the .54 comes in 3/4 and 15/16, sorry about that

 

[dillroy]

Im going to get my parts from Track

 

[tg]

I would go with a swamped barrel in .54 for the rev war period, a Lancaster would be a good style unless you have another preference.

 

[Stumpkiller]

When I figured I was going for one good flinter I opted for the .54 as the optimal whitetail deer caliber. I can load it light for squirrel and target . . . but generally just shoot it with my moderate deer load.

 

[Walks with fire]

Here in PA a small game muzzleloader must be 40 cal. or smaller and big game must be 44 caliber or bigger so cross over guns are not possible. I shoot 50 caliber for deer and don't own a 54 caliber but I will soon.

In my opinion a 54 is superior to a 50 caliber when shooting roundballs. Hunting partners with 54 caliber guns have better blood trails and shorter recovery distances. The 50's work but the 54's extra weight and diameter are a step above. A 15/16" 54 will weigh a little less than the same in 50 caliber and is the barrel I will put on a PA Hunter stock.

I would pick a 54 caliber over the 50 even for deer sized game.

As far as wind drift and trajectory goes they are almost identical with top loads of 100 in the .50 and 110 in the .54. The heavier ball of the .54 does hit a bit harder though (about 100 fpds @ 100). Either of the above loads will drift about 2" @ 50 yards and about 8" @ 100 yards in a very modest 10 mile per hour wind. Shooting in the wind can play havoc with roundball loads; and it doesn't just affect left to right but vertically as well in certain winds. Both speed and weight play into it but you can't push the .54 fast enough to beat the faster lighter .50 by much.

People use roundballs to shoot over 100 yards at deer size game; I don't. I limit shots to a maximum range of 80 yards and sight my roundball barrels in to be 1" high at 50 yards. I have faster twist barrels and heavier projectiles to shoot over 80 yards. I like roundballs and I do shoot them alot; just not at deer over 80 yards.

 

[zimmerstutzen]

Just as a general rule of thumb, with moderate loads, a caliber round ball traveling to 100 yds, retains about that same percentqage of it's original energy. ie a 75 caliber round ball retains about 75% of it's muzzle energy while a 50 cal retains about 50% and a 40 caliber retains about 40%. etc. There are some variables, such as whether the round ball starts over or under sonic speeds etc., But considering both the extra muzzle energy from the larger ball and energy retention to 100 yds, I would want the largest caliber gun I could comfortably carry. Now, in a long rifle configuration, for a light barrel that balances, 54 is about the largest, but in a half stock hawken style probably about a 58 or 62 is the largest.

 

[cowpoke1955]

tg is right. A .54 swamp barrel will give you more power, less weight and better balance.

 

[Dphar]

I'm thinking of building my first rifle, I just don't know what caliber to make it. I'm thinking either .45 or .54 cal GMR 7/8th or 13/16th octagon barrel I will mostly be using it for Trekking, Deer hunting, and target shooting, Ive been In to Rev war reenacting for most of my life and I own a Bess and a Charly so I'm used to flinters and big calibers, that's why I'm thinking of a .54. Any suggestions?

Dillon

Make it with a 50 caliber "B weight" swamped barrel. Nice light Kentucky will result with enough power for about any use. Very typical caliber.
Much better than a small straight barrel on many counts.
I would recommend a Jim Chambers kit, style of your choice.
Dan

 

[hanshi]

Yes, swamped is the way to go. Once you go swamped you'll never go back.

 

[Tommy Bruce]

I'll chime in and vote for the b wieght swamped barrel as well. If you are using a pre-carved stock, inletting the swamped barrel won't be that bad. A 38" swamped barrel in this profile in either .45 or .50 will make a great carry gun and won't eat you out of house and home at the target range. Moving up to the next bigger profile swamped (c wieght) would still provide a nice balanced gun in 54 cal. Once you handle a rifle with a swamped barrel you will understand why they are worth the extra cost.