Hornady great plains bullet

[cafi95]

Hi everyone !

That looks incredible !

I recently had some trials with my .54 Hawken rifle (Pedersoli) low twisted (1:65").

« working » conditions :

100 yards.
100 gr. S3 (Swiss black-powder ”¦ )
425 gr. Hornady great plains bullet

The result is amazing as the holes are cut so accurately one can see the grooves (7) shape on the bullet  trace !

Even in a low twist rifle normally designed for round balls this bullet gives wonderful results.

Well, my rifle has to be adjusted (as firing in the target center would be better!). But well, I'm very happy with these first results !

To be followed !

Philippe

 

[BrownBear]

That's about what I expect from the Hornady GP. You might even tighten the groups a little by putting a lubed felt wad between them and the powder. Doesn't always work, but it does often enough to be worth a try.

If you get tired of buying those bullets, have a look at this mold from Lyman. They drop at 450 rather than 425, but shoot as well or better in my experience.

 

[jamesthomas]

Thats some good shooting!! Hows the recoil on that load? I love to shoot Swiss but my pocketbook does'nt So I shoot KIK which is close, JMHO.

 

[cafi95]

I was at first interested by purchasing Lyman great plain mold, but it looks a bit too expensive for the number of bullets I intend to shoot.

For regular target shooting, I'm using round balls (home casting) with 54 gr. S3 powder load. These trials with Hornady bullets are for the future, when I will use my hawken for hunting (but when ?).

So I've just purchased 4 boxes of Hornady bullets.

Some people said Lyman great plain bullet is not as accurate as the Hornady's.No idea.

Dealing with the recoil with such a load (and such a bullet weight),it seems at the beginning not to push too hard ... but after ten shots, that's enough of that ! One week later, my shoulder was still painful !

About Swiss black-powder, it's definitely for me the best one, but the most expensive !

The main problem is the shipping, even for France ! So I use half loads whenever
possible... :wink:

Philippe

 

[Spikebuck]

Same rifle, same bullet I have used. My target holes were always cut nice and clean just like that. You should be able to tighten that up a bit more with some load work. I was shooting a good number of 3-4" groups at 100 yards with a solid bench rest using 90 grains of 777. That was also with a tang peep and a small bead front sight, which helped me a lot over "iron" sights.

The kick wasn't that bad, but the thin buttplate of a Hawken can take it's toll on one's shoulder with a stout load and heavy conical!

 

[Rat Trapper]

I've had very good luck with the Hornady great plains bullets in both my TC Hawken 50 & 54 calibers. Fact is I have left my 50 cal TC Hawken zeroed for the 385 grain great plains bullet. That's my go to hunting rifle. Got plenty of others to shoot when I'm not hunting.

 

[cafi95]

Yes, in fact this bullet is perfect !

Even in a low twist rifle ! I addition it allows me to comply with hunting regulations in France (it's a "manufactured" bullet that gives more than the 738 ft.lbs requested at 100 yards . The energy should be around 1200 ft.lbs at 100 yards (with a 100 gr. powder load)

The main problem for me to improve the results is to improve my (poor) eyes ! I'm around 50 years old so I'm nearsighted and now ... farsighted :shocked2: !

With an open sight, that's a bit tricky for me to aim at such a distance ! (I don't want to put anything else on my Hawken ... just to keep it as close as possible to the original model).


Tomorrow, I will adjust the sight at 50 yards with the same bullet and load. At that distance it will be much easier to try different loads !

Philippe

 

[Kapow]

Listen to Brown Bear, he knows his stuff. I found that Hornady bullet, whilst accurate, disappointing on game, expanding too quickly. Others say they have had success. The Lyman bullet on the other hand is a take no prisoners kind of bullet. It kills everything it hits and flies almost as well with a lubed felt wad. What do you hunt in France? Got any photos to share with us?

 

[cafi95]

Unfortunately not yet !

Hunting with muzzleloading guns is something I intend do in the future. Very new for me.

Probably wild boars (but a bit dangerous with a one shot rifle !) and roe deers.

But before that, I'll begin with small games with a muzzleloading shotgun (I have not yet).

The main problem is to find other people who use muzzleloading guns for hunting in France. For small games that will not be a problem, but for big games, I must find other people hunting with the same type of guns.

I know few people are hunting like that in France. I have to find them through French hunting forums !

So far, I'm just adjusting my Hawken to be fully ready ... just in case !

The first step for me will be to buy a muzzleloading shotgun ... that could be done very soon ... and have a try for the next hunting season.

So, I've no ideas about the effect of the Hornady great plains on games ... :shake:


Philippe

 

[Rat Trapper]

The great plains bullet will work just fine for the game animals you listed. Roe deer are very good eatting and fun to hunt. The patched round ball in 45 caliber or larger would be more than enough for roe deer. I understand how regulations are written in the countries over seas. I was able to hunt in Germany for several years and really enjoyed it. I remember the Germans just couldn't understand bowhunting and seemed to think it might take seveal days for the animal to die. I'd guess it would be the same with muzzle loaders. They just have no idea how these things work.

 

[cafi95]

Yes that's the problem !

Hunting regulations are a bit ambiguous in France, so it's not so simple to know what is permitted or not !

More than that, depending of where you're hunting, the rules are not the same due to hunting "associations" that are managing the hunting territories ... with there own rules (of course in compliance with the general hunting law ...).

The main problem with muzzleloading guns is to know how to manage safety rules while hunting ... in particular when passing by "regular" hunters. That puzzles me a bit and I'm going to open another topic on that specific point.

I have everything to learn about that ... mainly because so few people in my country are hunting like that ! :idunno:

So it's time to begin !

Philippe

 

[Kapow]

I wish you the best of luck Phillipe. If I were you I would work up a load of minimum 80gn powder behind a patched roundball. In that .54 you will be very successful on boar and deer. I have shot my share of both, especially pigs and it is very effective. I doubt the deer will go more than a few metres. The boars will do what they always do. Spin around a few times, run a few metres and collapse mid stride. Have confidence in your rifle and don't think for a minute that you are undergunned.

 

[Spikebuck]

I found that Hornady bullet, whilst accurate, disappointing on game, expanding too quickly.

Interesting...my experience after shooting through numerous large northern whitetails is that the expansion was minimal. While very deadly, I kind of wished they expanded more than they do. In fact, I've dug literally dozens out of the hard clay soil where I shoot and even in such relatively hard impact areas, they are just mushroomed nicely and not fragmented. I've found very high weight retention on those I've dug out.

Always find the completely different results different people get to be intriguing. :idunno: Maybe it's because they are spinning the opposite direction down-under! :wink: :grin:

 

[Rat Trapper]

I never had any problems with the Hornady great plains bullets in either my 50 or 54 TC Hawken rifles. My 50 is a tack driver with the 385 grain bullet and 90 grains of Triple Seven 2F. With conicals put a felt wad under the bullet and if they don't shoot the way you want up the powder charge. Conicals seem to shoot best with heavy charges.

 

[Kapow]

That could be the difference! I only had one bad experience on a deer the size of whitetail. Shot twice at 50m and no penetration through rib cage, either bullet. It was the opposite of what I had expected. I do need to do some more shooting with them to see if it happens again. But I am a little suspect of them now. I have read of others having similar experiences but many more not, so I honestly don't know what the answer is. Charge was 100gn FFg .54 cal.

 

[will5a1]

On a broadside shot on our Ohio whitetails, for me the Horandy great plains bullet in .54 always passes thru both lungs and out the other side, except once, on a large doe, it did not, stopping just under the skin on the far side. Charges were between 90grs FFFG and 105gr FFg. The deer always were knocked down, some would get up and stagger a few feet. I have a T-C New Englander in .54 that the Horandy bullet is very accurate in, and I seem to have better luck with the Horandy bullets than T-C's Maxi's.

 

[oldfrank]

I shot a small deer last season with the Hornady Great Plains bullet. When the smoke cleared I saw the deer running into some tall weeds looking unhurt.
The shot was about forty yards and I was amazed I had missed.
I sat in the stand for another hour and then got done to confirm my miss. There was tons of blood and lung material sprayed on the ground. I found the deer about 20 yards into the weeds. Complete pass through both lungs.

I was expecting the shot to knock the deer down but I can't complain about the final results.

 

[BrownBear]

I was expecting the shot to knock the deer down....

I think that's the biggest contributor to lost deer.

Guys are expecting the deer to drop when hit with "all that power." When it doesn't show a sign of a hit, they assume they missed. After shooting hundreds of deer (literally) with all sorts of arms over the last 50 years, virtually all the knockdowns I've experienced have been hits in the CNS (central nervous system). Heart/lung hits seldom manage it.

 

[cafi95]

Very interesting !

The bullet expansion must probably be a very dynamic process depending on many factors (bullet shape, velocity, target actual resistance ...). Not simple to be sure of any result on games.

From another hand, the lead hardness must be a factor. It would be interesting to know the actual Hornady harness (I have no hardness tester).

When casting my own bullets, I'm using pure lead ... but does Hornady ?

On high powder load, the aft of the bullet obviously must expanse into the barrel to reach the grooves bottom (just working like a Minié bullet), but without any deformation of its forehead. Probably the Hornady bullet hardness has been properly adjusted for that purpose !

Missing can be a problem with dangerous games ...

Does anyone already experienced hunting boars with a one shot muzzleloading rifle ?

Because if you miss, the wounded boar may not miss you ! :surrender: You have to run very quickly while reloading !!

That's one of my main concern before having a try !

Philippe :wink:

 

[Spikebuck]

I seem to have better luck with the Horandy bullets than T-C's Maxi's.

Me too. I could not get TC Maxi-Hunters to group at all from my slow-twist barrels. I always thought it was because the Hornady GP has the hollow base to expand and catch the rifling much better while the solid flat base of the TC did not expand as well into the rifling and therefore didn't fly as well. Just my theory. :idunno: