Lyman .54 GPR hunter signature series 1-24" twist

[Hempstooge]

I chose this topic as I am trying to get my rifle going for a traditional hunt in December. This rifle is designed to shoot larger conicals and sabots with its aggressive twist rate. Now the bullets I have been casting are the lymen great plains 450 gr bullet, they have been more consistent than the 380 gn Lee r.e.a.l bullets I tried previously... but they still haven't made me happy. I use a 2 by 3 foot peice of butcher paper with a black 6" circle in the middle as a target, the goal is to get a group with rounds in the circle consistently. I cannot figure out a load that delivers any consistency at all, I've shot this thing over 100 times trying to get a group I can live with at 100 yards. The best I've gotten is 5 shots in a 1' group, with 90 gn's of pyrodex select. Now it kicks pretty hard at 90 gn's so going higher kind of concerns me, I always load the rifle the exact same way, I use a .58 cal wonder wad under the conical, I clean it in-between shots and I weigh the loads out to .1 of a gn. 90 gn's volume turns out to be around 66 gn's in weight so that's where I've stayed for a while. With that load I can hit within a foot of where I'm aiming. The bullet is .548 and is a very tight fit, and it thumps pretty hard. I'm just not sure what I need to do to make this thing more consistent. Any ideas?

 

[Michiganmuzzy]

Have you tried using a lighter load? Like start at 60 and try 5-6 shots then try 65grn and 5-6 shots... 70,75,80,85. See if one of them tightens up your groups

 

[deerstalkert]

what MM say's.
often less is best. i have a Mortimer that is ok with 65-90 g's. usually 2-2.5 inch at 100 benched.
drop the charge down to 45 and it shoots a clover leaf usually.
also try it without the over powder wad. made a big difference in my Hawken today.

 

[Hempstooge]

Hey thanks for the responses,
Um I haven't tried going drastically lower I have gone as low as 55 gn's by weight. I figured maybe where I was at may be light but now I kinda think maybe it's heavy. I'll give it a go, if I could shoot even a 5" group at 100 I would be very happy. Thank you guys for the advice

 

[mooman76]

You might try paper patching the bullets.

 

[Hempstooge]

 

[Hempstooge]

45 gn's by weight and I got a much better group. I had two hang fires and those are the far left and far right shots. I deal with hang fires pretty frequently I think it's the pyrodex select, but all in all much better!

 

[William Lincoln]

Adjust your sights. Also, depending upon where you hunt, try sighting at
75 yards. Most deer are shot at 50-100 yards in the Eastern states. Rather
than wound a deer at longer ranges, sharpen your skills and get closer.
Study your scent trail. Stand still for 30 mins if on ground. Make no sound
for an hour. Become still like a rock. Now if you have scouted your area you
have a good chance. In a stand you can be less cautious- but deer can hear
your breathing at hundreds of yards. I do not think the heavier slugs add anything.
That group looked plenty lethal to me, with sights adjusted. Take a young person
along for the excitement- but teach them Native American hunting skills where
you are silent and blend in. Early pioneers learned woodscraft and hunting
from the Native Americans, who in the beginning were friendly helpers ( until
they saw their lands being taken). Muzzleloading served important purposes,
not just defense, it also provided food and leather for survival. Yes, on the forum
we focus on accuracy and details of the arms --but do not neglect to enjoy the
end use that these guns were made for---dinner time!

 

[Hempstooge]

Adjust your sights. Also, depending upon where you hunt, try sighting at
75 yards. Most deer are shot at 50-100 yards in the Eastern states. Rather
than wound a deer at longer ranges, sharpen your skills and get closer.
Study your scent trail. Stand still for 30 mins if on ground. Make no sound
for an hour. Become still like a rock. Now if you have scouted your area you
have a good chance. In a stand you can be less cautious- but deer can hear
your breathing at hundreds of yards. I do not think the heavier slugs add anything.
That group looked plenty lethal to me, with sights adjusted. Take a young person
along for the excitement- but teach them Native American hunting skills where
you are silent and blend in. Early pioneers learned woodscraft and hunting
from the Native Americans, who in the beginning were friendly helpers ( until
they saw their lands being taken). Muzzleloading served important purposes,
not just defense, it also provided food and leather for survival. Yes, on the forum
we focus on accuracy and details of the arms --but do not neglect to enjoy the
end use that these guns were made for---dinner time!

I'll get it sighted in, just needed a good group, I may play with it bit more and see how hot I can get the load before it starts to get inaccurate again.. but I live in montana, im mainly just hunting the mountains on either side of the highway where I live. If I don't get an elk in the regular season that's what I'll be going for, if I do I'll head east and see about a nice big buck. When I get it dialed in at 100 I'll shoot at 75 just to note the difference, the range I use has a 200 yard target too but I'm not very positive this thing is too capable at 200 yards.

 

[William Lincoln]

In Montana you have to stretch it out some to 150 but the same principles apply as to
hunting. I am an old guy having hunted the better part of a Century. For Elk yes you
do need the heavier lead. The challenge is get closer and also bring a kentucky or similar
pistol for back up since you might have to track a blood trail and finish it off if your shot
isn't sufficient. Large animals are harder to kill- all things being equal. Your rifle has the
go power for Elk but you have tough hide,bone, muscle and uncertain terrain. In two minutes
that Elk can cover half a mile wounded. You are fortunate to have those game options.
My advice is of course general and aimed at the whitetail hunter. I have hunted Elk but
not in Montana. BUT no matter what I am hunting I am going to get as close as possible,
even crawling if needed, and remember, unlike the hunter with multiple rounds, you have
one good shot-- the closer the better penetration to vitals and a cleaner kill on average.
Good hunting and good luck. Show us a pic of how it goes- especially if you fill the
freezer.

 

[Spikebuck]

Hemp, I tried looking this bullet up but couldn't find a spec or picture to show if it is a solid or hollow skirt base. I've shot a lot of lead conicals out of my .54 Pedersoli rifles, but never had luck getting tight groups with solid base bullets. My .54 rifles all had slow twist barrels at 1-65 and shot Hornady GP 435 gr conicals exceptionally well with 90 grs of 2F Triple 7 or 2fg black powder...no wad. I could not get the solid base TC hunters to shoot as they would tumble even with a wad.

You have fast twist, so probably not comparable to my former setups but thought I'd pass along the info.

 

[Hempstooge]

Hemp, I tried looking this bullet up but couldn't find a spec or picture to show if it is a solid or hollow skirt base. I've shot a lot of lead conicals out of my .54 Pedersoli rifles, but never had luck getting tight groups with solid base bullets. My .54 rifles all had slow twist barrels at 1-65 and shot Hornady GP 435 gr conicals exceptionally well with 90 grs of 2F Triple 7 or 2fg black powder...no wad. I could not get the solid base TC hunters to shoot as they would tumble even with a wad.

You have fast twist, so probably not comparable to my former setups but thought I'd pass along the info.

Sorry for such a late response, it is a solid base conical. But I was able to make it accurate out to 150 yards for hunting. I am switching to a minie ball this year

 

[Rock Home Isle]

I chose this topic as I am trying to get my rifle going for a traditional hunt in December. This rifle is designed to shoot larger conicals and sabots with its aggressive twist rate. Now the bullets I have been casting are the lymen great plains 450 gr bullet, they have been more consistent than the 380 gn Lee r.e.a.l bullets I tried previously... but they still haven't made me happy. I use a 2 by 3 foot peice of butcher paper with a black 6" circle in the middle as a target, the goal is to get a group with rounds in the circle consistently. I cannot figure out a load that delivers any consistency at all, I've shot this thing over 100 times trying to get a group I can live with at 100 yards. The best I've gotten is 5 shots in a 1' group, with 90 gn's of pyrodex select. Now it kicks pretty hard at 90 gn's so going higher kind of concerns me, I always load the rifle the exact same way, I use a .58 cal wonder wad under the conical, I clean it in-between shots and I weigh the loads out to .1 of a gn. 90 gn's volume turns out to be around 66 gn's in weight so that's where I've stayed for a while. With that load I can hit within a foot of where I'm aiming. The bullet is .548 and is a very tight fit, and it thumps pretty hard. I'm just not sure what I need to do to make this thing more consistent. Any ideas?

See if you can post an image of the muzzle of your rifle, something that shows the crown and some rifling.

 

[Howie1968]

I agree on the Hornady great plains 425 is the first I try. You may want to try the no excuses 535 bullet a try it's a longer bullet