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Favorite caliber to shoot

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My favorite has been my .54 rifle, Trudy. Lately though she has had bad accuracy problems, and I'm diagnosing them, but things don't look good.

LD
Dave, I had this very issue with a favorite. Just stopped doing groups. It lasted forever it seemed, about to get rid of it and then one day...It was back. NO CLUE. I could still shoot all the others. I changed nothing and it just started grouping again! Hang in there it lasted a few years for me.
 
Dave, I had this very issue with a favorite. Just stopped doing groups. It lasted forever it seemed, about to get rid of it and then one day...It was back. NO CLUE. I could still shoot all the others. I changed nothing and it just started grouping again! Hang in there it lasted a few years for me.
Thanks
I'm going to take a very hard look at the interior. It "feels" as though as I get very near the breech with a tight rag on the ramrod that for a tiny spot, the tension on the rag eases up, then resumes. Which may mean a "ring". It would explain the fact that accuracy went to manure, AND that I get six rather even burn through spots on my patches. I hypothesize that at that spot the hot gasses can "jet" round the patched ball at the barrel grooves and the ball doesn't properly keep hold of the patch. I tried some cornmeal as a spacer/filler, and the burn through stopped, but not the lack of accuracy. So I'm going to determine where the spot is..., use filler between the main charge and the spot to prevent my patched round ball from reaching that spot, and see what happens.

LD
 
My favorite has been my .54 rifle, Trudy. Lately though she has had bad accuracy problems, and I'm diagnosing them, but things don't look good.

I've seen this happen MANY times ... too much lube buildup in the bore. Clean it out really well with hot water and a good cleaner or solvent of choice. Then ... don't use as much lube or change your lube. I've seen this happen most often with paste lubes like Wonder Lube or Bore Butter.

Too much lube causes the patch to 'skip' down the rifling and accuracy goes south ...

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
My favorite caliber to shoot?

______ ... the next one I use! Whether she be ignited by tinder, matchcord, pyrite or flint, smooth or rifled ...
 
Thanks
I'm going to take a very hard look at the interior. It "feels" as though as I get very near the breech with a tight rag on the ramrod that for a tiny spot, the tension on the rag eases up, then resumes. Which may mean a "ring". It would explain the fact that accuracy went to manure, AND that I get six rather even burn through spots on my patches. I hypothesize that at that spot the hot gasses can "jet" round the patched ball at the barrel grooves and the ball doesn't properly keep hold of the patch. I tried some cornmeal as a spacer/filler, and the burn through stopped, but not the lack of accuracy. So I'm going to determine where the spot is..., use filler between the main charge and the spot to prevent my patched round ball from reaching that spot, and see what happens.

LD
Mine just magically started to shoot as it did before. VERY weird. Changed nothing in the load and went from 2" groups at 90 yds to 8" and NOTHING worked. Then one day, before posting it, I took it back out and with the original load was back to 2" groups. Like I said all others, including non-mentionanbles I was spot on. It was the gun not me.
 
I can't honestly claim a "favorite" caliber. Each of my guns is a favorite for some specific task. For example, for serious competition I use a heavily modified T/C Hawken with a Green Mountain Barrel with 1/72 rate of twist in .50 caliber. It's won any matches for me in the 27 years I've been shooting it. It's also a fun rifle for hunting caribou.

Alaska hunting regulations require .54 caliber or larger if hunting moose, bear or other large animals with a round ball. For most of my big-game hunting I use a custom built .58 caliber trade rifle. The most accurate load for that rifle is 120 grains of Goex FFg under a .575 round-ball patched in tallow-lubricated linen. That load allows me to shoot eight inch groups at 120 yards with no problem and it will kill anything I'm likely to encounter. On the other hand, it's a heavy gun to carry around all day (nearly 9 lb) and with that narrow butt-plate recoil can be brutal. Not something you want to shoot all day on the line.

The most common gun I carry in the field is a 20 gauge (.62 caliber) smoothbore, either a reproduction Tulle de Chasse or my shortened (24 inch barrel) trade-gun. I carry the Tulle nearly all winter long, shooting grouse, hares, foxes and beavers. I wouldn't hesitate to harvest either a moose or black bear with it. At ranges under 50 yards I shoot it just as accurately as my rifle, it's light weight (just over 7 lb) and has provided me many meals on the trail.

During summer, when the only open hunting season is for black bear, I usually carry the shortened trade gun, primarily for defense against grizzly bear should I be so unlucky as to encounter one during a trek. Loaded with shot, it's also harvested a few grouse and hares.

Swanny
Hello from Eagle River….we still need to meet someday…..
 
Mine just magically started to shoot as it did before. VERY weird. Changed nothing in the load and went from 2" groups at 90 yds to 8" and NOTHING worked. Then one day, before posting it, I took it back out and with the original load was back to 2" groups. Like I said all others, including non-mentionanbles I was spot on. It was the gun not me.

"Alle Kunst ist umsonst Wenn ein Engel in das Zündloch Prunst"
All skill is for nothing when an angel pisses in your touch hole.....18th century Germanic Proverb

Then I hope the angel stops messing with my rifle soon...

LD
 
I probably shoot my 58 cal military muskets the most, but if I had to choose one caliber it would be my 36 Kibler SMR since it's so light on powder and lead (and caps). Either that or my 50 cal Smith Carbine, it's a tough choice.
 
My favorite and most accurate rifle is my Tennessee in 40 cal made by Mark Wheland. Mark also made my hunting rifle a Lion and Lamb gun copy of Andreas Albritch, in 60 cal. Both are flintlocks naturally.
 
Mine is 45, no wait it’s 50, no,no, it’s 60, no it’s 44, uh, maybe it’s 62. Oh shoot! Can I get back to you on this? How long do I have to figure it out?
 

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