Been working to find the most accurate load in my TC Haken. Have always shot decent groups ~2"-3" @ 50 yards but lately have been on a mission to shrink that down. My rifle has always shot better 'dirty' with TC pre lubed patches and .490 RB's. I remember Dutch saying that my patches were too slick so I finally got around to working on that. Anyway here's my best load so far........60gr Pyrodex RS, TC pre cut patches (.015 on package, .008 smashed) with 4:1 Balistol lube. Saturated then allowed to dry. Home made No. 11 Caps, wiping w/ TC #13 between shots. Have made up some more to confirm results next trip out but looks promising. Could actually be better than I think with a good shooter with
Been working to find the most accurate load in my TC Haken. Have always shot decent groups ~2"-3" @ 50 yards but lately have been on a mission to shrink that down. My rifle has always shot better 'dirty' with TC pre lubed patches and .490 RB's. I remember Dutch saying that my patches were too slick so I finally got around to working on that. Anyway here's my best load so far........60gr Pyrodex RS, TC pre cut patches (.015 on package, .008 smashed) with 4:1 Balistol lube. Saturated then allowed to dry. Home made No. 11 Caps, wiping w/ TC #13 between shots. Have made up some more to confirm results next trip out but looks promising. Could actually be better than I think with a good shooter with good eyes.
Curious what others have found to be their most accurate load.
After having some issues and needing to have the crown addressed, I spent some time at the range this week. I found that my Renegade 50 likes a .490 Hornady swaged ball, .018” pillow ticking patch, lightly lubed on one side with Track if the wolf’s Mink Oil. I wipe the smooth side on the lube a couple times and load the textured side against the ball. 80gr of Goex FFFg. I run a spit patch and a dry patch between shots. If I cleaned it with TC’s T-17, groups opened up. If I used too much lube, or if I lubed both sides of the patch, groups opened up. I tried FFg and groups again opened up a lot. I’ve known for a while though that this rifle prefers 3F powder. And if I did not seat the ball very firmly over the powder, my groups opened up. It’s a definite shooter, but is certainly fussy if I don’t do my part. The following group is 4 shots at 50yrds using the factory Renegade square notch sight. The first shot was a flyer and the reason was I did not seat the ball firm enough. It was on the powder, but was not compressed. It’s interesting how such a little change can have such an effect. You really have to be willing to spend some time figuring out your rifle, only changing one thing at a time and watching the result in your groups. For me, 70gr aims of 3F was terrible. At 80 grains I watched the group go from 5” to 1.5”. Then I started watching the other details I talked about, changing only one aspect at a time Hope this helps!
I would also suggest recovering and inspecting your patches after you shoot. Are they burned up, show signs that powder is getting past the ball in the bore, tattered or burned at the edges, cut or torn, overall condition….
I would get rid of those pre-lubed TC patches. I personally have found them to be terrible. If they have been on the shelf for any time, they become weakened and brittle, the lube is t that great and I had nothing but problems with them in both this rifle, my Hawken and my Lyman GPR. TOW sells a big ol can of the mink oil for about $8 and they have good pillow ticking wads - try some .018 also. My rifle won’t perform with the .015 from a swabbed barrel. If I get some fouling in there from a few shots they work better, but not as good as the below group. The downside to the .018” in my rifle is that a 2nd shot is difficult to load, not impossible, but is a struggle if I don’t run a spit patch. For hunting, my 2nd shot will be a .015 patch if a follow up is needed, just because I can easily and quickly get it rammed home.
