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Contemplating using my 58 cal "Zouave" this deer season. Any basic comments on load,round ball or conical? Any stories to tell?
Deer hunting with a zouave
- Thread starter user 31232
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best load is an accurate load with enough power behind it . 80 grs. is average i think.
I have taken most of my deer with a 3 band Enfield shooting 60grs of 3F and a standard minie ball. I have also taken with the same load in JP Murry carbine. They normal don't run very far if at all.
hanshi
Cannon
See which load is more accurate; a minie or a patched round ball and then use that one.
That gun has the folding sights out to three hundred yards. Minie or ball will turn Bambi french at that range, but I would stay at a hundred yards or less no matter what you shoot.
Lock99
32 Cal
Spend some time target shooting with it and get used to where it shoots and then go get them deer! Once you use a 58 caliber for deer hunting you won't go back to those 50 caliber pea shooters. I use 85 grains of Select pyrodex and Maxihunters or Buffallo bullets and they have stopped every deer I have shot at. I used a 12 gauge shotgun for 20 years prior to that and that gun is collecting a lot of dust now.
I enjoy target shooting with mine also, they are heavy guns so they absorb a lot of the recoil.
I have a Black Powder Guide book from 1976. I always get a chuckle reading it. I'm quoting from it; " Navy Arms .58 caliber Zouve is a man's gun and feels really good when it spouts flame, smoke and lead".
Need I say more??
Enjoy!!
I enjoy target shooting with mine also, they are heavy guns so they absorb a lot of the recoil.
I have a Black Powder Guide book from 1976. I always get a chuckle reading it. I'm quoting from it; " Navy Arms .58 caliber Zouve is a man's gun and feels really good when it spouts flame, smoke and lead".
Need I say more??
Enjoy!!
I don't use a "Zouave", but I do hunt deer with an original Colt Special Musket, mfg. 1862, so basically the same thing ballistically. A 60 grain charge of 3f or sub equivalent, with a standard 510 grain traditional Minie (sized .580 from Pat Kaboskey) works just great. My gun will not shoot accurately with 2F or Pyro RS, I believe it doesn't develop enough pressure to expand the base of the Minie, unless I up the powder charge. At 100 yards I cannot hit a man silhouette, except by random chance, using 2f. Using 3f Goex, Swiss, Pyro P or Hodgdon 777 I get very good groups at that same distance. When I choose 3f 777, I back the charge down to 50 grains, as it goes over 1200 fps with a loud crack using 60 grains. My gun seems to handle it fine, but I don't want to risk a Civil War Vet for a few more fps. A 60 grain charge of Pyro P, or 3f Swiss will give a fella 1100 fps, which is more than plenty. Goex 3f will get you just over 1000 fps, which is still more than enough. Roundballs are very accurate, but hit 18" high at 50 yards in my rifle, so I stick to Minies. These are my experiences. I would never exceed 60 grains, especially with a heavy conical, in an antique, and believe it is completely unnecessary even in a modern repro.
morehops52
50 Cal.
It didn't take long for me to realize (for me) that a .58 CW rifle might not be my best choice for W . PA woods hunting. I now use lighter and somewhat faster pointing rifles. That's just me but I admire the stout fellers who can do it!
In terms of muzzleloaders, there's nothing like the effectiveness of a big, solid, large bore chunk of lead to put a big game critter down in short order.
If one is going to be on the go while hunting, I concur 100%.
Out of all the years I lived out west in the big mountains I chose a short, light, fast action unmentionable as my primary big game tool. Being always on the move it payed off big time. I had several other heavy hitters but found they were miserable trying to pack those big, longer barreled things around. Not to mention they were noticeably slower getting on target. With "Ole Shorty" I have taken quite a few big game critters that were running. One of which was bear.
I'll be using my Lyman Great Plains Rifle this season for stationary hunting (tree stand). Doubtful it will be used if I'm on the go. If I plan on walking around I will use my tried and proven New Englander. Shorter, easier to handle and lighter.
With that said, its to my belief that if I had a big ole .58 Zouave I might hunt with it but I wouldn't use if for mobile hunting.
This is the BEST answer I've have heard on ANY subject to date - it is PRICELESS
The first deer I ever got was with a 58 cal zouave back in 1975 in Reedsberg Wis. 80 gr. 3f and patched round ball, polypatch, with that patch it was a real 1” or same hole gun and at 100 yds. To bad people didn’t use the right size ball and let them go loose from the patch, they sealed the best! I have about 30 or more for a 50 cal that are back of my case, I’ll have to dig them out and shoot a while, I doubt there are any more around.
coupe
coupe
The article I read ( n-ssa ) says Patch round ball 70- 80 grains BP will kill a deer.
No so good with the Mini.
I can say the round ball has little drop at fifty yards. Mini drops a few inches 40 grains BP
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I'd absolutely hunt with it. Whatever projectile gave best accuracy. Should be a dandy rifle for deer.
In about 1993 someone gave me a Zouave. I was at a gunsmith shop for another purpose and mentioned it. He got all excited and told me it was one of his favorites. He gave me some powder, a powder scoop, musket caps and 555 grain flat point conicals he made. Not knowing anything about this, I sighted it in dead on at 100-yards. Next day climbed a tree and waited for a deer. After about an hour I looked down and there's a deer standing right below me. I aimed right on but shot way over him. I reloaded and waited longer. I look down and here's another deer standing in virtually the same spot. I aimed much lower and got him. I thought I missed, no reaction that I could see through smoke and no blood at the sight. As I walked out I happened to see the deer in a little depression. The hole was same size in and out and for some reason no blood came out. That's the only time I hunted with a Zouave. I think it is a fine rifle and good goal to hunt with it! Good luck
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My first 4 muzzleloader deer went down to my Euroarms P53 Enfield and a Lyman 575213OS, lubed with the old heat and dip Bore Butter over 60 grains of either Elephant or Goex 3f.
All one shot kills. Messy chests too.
Every time I popped a cap on a yankee, I almost felt bad having seen what a minie could actually do to flesh and bone.
Sigh. I miss reenacting...
All one shot kills. Messy chests too.
Every time I popped a cap on a yankee, I almost felt bad having seen what a minie could actually do to flesh and bone.
Sigh. I miss reenacting...
While not a theory carved in stone, patched balls usually shoot better out of repro rifle muskets and two band rifles than out of originals. Repros have consistent shallow depth rifling from breech to muzzle. Finding a loadable patch/ball combination is basic. In an original, the rifling depth in progressive depth from .004 at the muzzle to .015 at the breech. A patch that fills the groove at the muzzle and still allows the ball to be started will not fill the grooves at the breech. That can cause blown patches. The solution is an over sized over powder cushion wad that seals the grooves at the breech. After all that, for me it's moot. The arm was meant to shoot minies and that's what I shoot out of my originals. I don't own ny repress.
