lyman deerstalker help

[jpbvs]

A friend of mine went the inline way so I gave him 50 bucks for his lyman deerstalker. He always shot conicals, but I'm considering going prb.
Could those who have experience with these rifles tell me what you use in them.
THANKS

 

[playfarmers]

I used a .50 Deerstalker for about 16 years or so, until I treated myself to a new muzzleloader. Even then it would have been a .54 Deerstalker, but they didn't have one in stock so I got a .54 Trade rifle instead. I shot everything I could out of it and most shot well, but I ended up using nothing but .495 round balls the last several years. My load was 80g of Pyrodex rs, or 2f Goex, wonder wad, 18th pillow ticking patch with stumpy's moose snot, before that I used wonderlube. I took at least 25 whitetails with that rifle, from 12 ft to over 110 yards. I would still have that rifle, but when they cut the rifling into the barrel they made chatter marks, and that made it a brute to clean. I just got tired of spending so much time cleaning at the end of the day.

 

[BrownBear]

My wife's is the 54 cal. As far as I know she's never put a conical through it. Her small game load is 35 grains of Goex 3f or Pyrodex P behind a .530 ball and .018 home lubed ticking patch. Her deer hunting load is 80 grains of either powder behind the same ball/patch combo. She shoots ragged holes at 25 yards with either load and cloverleafs at 50 yards. No sighting change for either. Nice. It's outfitted with a TC hunter peep sight, which is a direct screw-on with no drilling and tapping. It's about the fastest handling muzzleloader I've ever shot.


No experience with a 50 cal Deerstalker, but coincidentally I use those same powder charges in both my 50 and 54 cal Great Plains rifles. If anything they're more accurate in the 50.

Good deal on a good gun BTW. It may not be traditional enough for purists, but I measure success in pounds of venison and snowshoe hares. On that count, it's tops.

 

[BruceW]

I'm a complete newbie to bp, so take this only as you see fit. I recently acquired a used clone of a lyman deerstalker(54 cal safari arms), have put maybe 40 rounds through it, all prb.
So far: I've tried 60, 70, and 80 gr gooex ffg, no difference in accuracy. As long as it's clean I can shoot bullseyes from 75 yds. About the 3rd shot accuracy starts to fade, after 5 I'm tossing rocks. Clean it and I'm good again.
I noticed today I'm blowing my patches(.15 t/c pre lubed) so I'm going to try hornets nest between the powder and the prb. I tried a second patch, but both were blown.(put a patch down on top of the powder, then seated the ball and patch)
I've been cleaning it in the field with hoppes #9+ to a dry patch. Soon as I figure out where to buy lestoil I'll start making moose milk.
I also tried "extra lubing" the pre lubed patches with a drop of the hoppes; bad idea, accuracy went out the window for me.
I'm very surpised with the accuracy, to the point that while I had planned on hunting with it next fall, I'm planning on taking a doe with it in Nov.
Again, please keep in mind I'm new to this. I am in no way making recomendations, just posting my results so far in hopes it may help. In short, I'm impressed.
Biggest thing I can say is, "man it's a lot of fun". My wife even shot it today with 60, and then 70grffg, and loved it.
One other thing I'd say is if you've heard horror stories about cleaning, they're bunk. When I get home I clean it with a mop and soapy water, then pour boiling clean water down it, hang it upside down for an hour, then oil followed by a dry patch. Cleaning is no more work than if you're shooting, say, imr4198.
Hope this helps,
Bruce

 

[Zonie]

Bruce.
If the hornets nest doesn't make a difference, see if you can find some patches that were not lubricated by the factory.

Lubricate the dry patches with spit, Crisco, Olive Oil, cooking oil or whatever suits your fancy and see if they also are blown.

Some of the Pre-lubricated patches have been sitting on the shelf for years and the cotton fibers can break down and weaken making them blow even with moderate powder charges.

I've had some pre-lubricated patches that worked fine but I've also had some that would tear when they were fired no matter what I did to prevent it.

 

[William O.]

You may also want to try a fiber wad in between the PRB and powder charge. It's the only thing that will get conicals to group decently out of my Lyman Trade Rifle with it's 1:48 twist rate.

 

[paulvallandigham]

Cleaning patches should be softer, and looser weaved, than the patch you wrap around the ball. Use water, spit, or windex, or any water and soap combination to soak lightly the cleaning patch.

I recommend cleaning after each shot. That way, you are not guessing when you are going to find it difficult to seat the PRB down on the powder, or fail to do so. :shocked2: It also provides the most consistent accuracy, as your barrel is in the same condition for each shot.

You will need a cleaning jag, in addition to the loading jag that comes on the ramrod of your gun. I encourage you to buy a solid range rod, with muzzle protector( Made of brass, or nylon) to use to both clean and load the gun. Leave the gun's ramrod for loading the gun in the field. You won't find yourself shooting that many rounds in the field that you need to stop and clean the gun.( Unless, perhaps, you consider it sport to shoot squirrels out of trees with a .54 cal. RB!) :rotf:

Find a target load that puts the balls in small groups off a rest at 50 yds. 70 grains of FFg powder is about where most of these Lyman rifles shoot well. Then, for deer hunting, find a hotter load-say 90 grains of FFg- to flatten the trajectory a bit more. Most deer are shot well under 50 yards, but on the occasion that you have a longer shot, the hotter load will allow you to hold dead center on the deer's chest, and still hit it out to about 120 yards. That is a very long shot with open sights. :shocked2:

Welcome to the fun. Check the suppliers with Links on this forum. Go up to " member Resources" on the Index page here, then scroll down to "articles, charts, and Links". click on links, and then click on the names of the suppliers. In almost all cases, you go to their website, and on- line catalog where you can shop at home. Call the 800 numbers listed and inquire as to availability, and new price to order from these suppliers. You can either order over the phone with a credit card, or make other arrangements to send them an order with your payment. They can tell you how much shipping costs and Tax, if any, must be added to the total bill.

 

[BruceW]

Wow, thanks for all the great tips guys!

 

[Dave Rosenthal]

If it's a .50 cal (you didn't say), you can try 60 grains of 3Fg, a lubed felt wad, an .018 pre-lubed pillow-ticking patch and a .490 Hornady ball. Your launch tube (barrel) is just slightly shorter than mine (I have the Trade Rifle w/ 28" barrel), and I'm currently using 72 grains of 3Fg Goex. If 60 works for you, try increasing in 5 grain increments UNTIL your groups open-up, or you get over 80 grains, which ever comes first. That shorter barrel becomes a flame-thrower at 80 grains, with lots of powder burning OUTSIDE the bore, and gets dirtier quicker due to unburned powder, requiring more cleaning after X number of shots.

Good luck with that $50.00 smokepole, and welcome to the forum :thumbsup:

Dave