Moose with my .50 or .54

[Greenmtnboy]

For something as big as a moose, use an alloy round ball, so that it is harder. The harder round ball will penetrate deeper, than a soft round ball of pure lead. The ball will weigh a few grains less when you add tin, or tin and antimony, but at the close ranges for shooting moose, it will hit close enough to your POA that it won't make a difference in accuracy. I also recommend using the heavier and larger RB for moose( the .54 caliber RB)

Paul what are the pros and cons with using a bit harder ball, ie accuracy, ease of loading, possible tearing of patches etc. Sounds like a dang good idea and I have a bunch of lead mix I use for my 45-70 and 38-55.
:hatsoff:

 

[paulvallandigham]

The biggest advantage to using alloy lead for PRB is that you get to use what you already HAVE! Because alloys are hard to control, you have to weigh the cast balls, which can be tedious, and sort them by weight. For 40 caliber and smaller balls, you want to stay within 2 grains of an average for best accuracy. For .45 and larger, you can probably get away with a plus or minus 5 grain sorting. Sorting by weight is usually done with visual sorting, to set aside wrinkled balls, or those with pin holes in the sprue. Both are a good indicators that you may have an air pocket in the ball, and the ball will weigh lighter than average.

The other problem is that alloy bullets come out a different diameter than pure lead balls. So, you want to measure them, and sort by diameter. Otherwise, you can get blown patches if the wrong patch and ball are used. My personal experience with .50 cal. round balls is that the variation from pure lead to wheelweights is rarely more than .002 ", but I have seen some that are further out than that, and I can't figure out why. The only plausible theory I have heard from discussing the mystery with experienced casters is that perhaps the mold block were not held tightly together for that cast. I don't like that theory, because I would expect there to be a seam burr on the ball if that were the case. But nothing else explains why they can vary so much in diameter out of the same pot of lead.

All I know is that to be safe, you need to sort by size. I didn't the first time I cast some of these, and found at the range that some balls went into the barrel TOO easy, and some were impossible to seat in the muzzle with my short starter! I finished the match using swaged balls, and took my castings home and measure and weighed them, and sorted out. The ones- only a few- that were very light or very heavy, were thrown back into the pot for future casting. i used the remaining ones to shoot matches at 25 yds, and 50 yds, off-hand, and didn't see where I had many problems. They did strike at a slightly different POI, but I was not good enough an off-hand shooter to hold the difference in my POA.

Good luck.

 

[lone hunter]

I've killed a couple with my 54 and maxiballs, no problem. As has been said, they react a little different after being shot. Takes them awhile to wrap their mind around what has happened.

 

[KHickam]

I never shot a moose with a muzzleloader - but I killed a nice roosevelt 6X6 once with one - I was shooting a .50 cal RB - did the job just fine - figure it would do a good a moose too. :thumbsup:

 

[lone hunter]

Yes Sir, 50 cal. will do the trick. Taking an elk is a much more difficult undertaking. IMHO :v
Congrats on your bull.

 

[kyle76]

I have been fortunate to have taken moose with a .54 and roundball, the big Alaskan species. I did a lot of penetration testing beforehand with dry newspaper. Using 120 gr FFG at 25 yards I only got 8" deep , with WW balls 12" and with heat treated WW 16". At 50 yards those HT WW balls still got 12-13" of penetration. Accuracy with a 1-66 barrel was in the 3-4" range at 50 yards. Plenty good for a critter this big. It was basically like shooting a smoothbore,as past 50 yards accuracy went downhill bigtime. Anyways my shot on the moose at 40 yards went through 1 rib and bulged the hide on the other side. She walked about 20 yards and lay down. Moose don't seem nearly as tenacious as elk or deer. I wouldn't have any problem using a .50 as long as you kept your shots close and used an alloy ball to increase penetration. Having said that,these days I use a rifled .62 and 150gr FFg. Good Luck

 

[akbrownbear]

Yep, at that range, it will kill a moose dead. Much past that and a smoothbore will hit somewhere, but you never know where and never in the same place twice. Thats the main problem with smoothbores, plus the fact thea energy sheds very fast past 50 or 60 yards, and the killing penetration is compromised greatly.

This is why I advocate rifled conicals for any distance shooting. A .50 or .54 smoothbore prb will kill anything up close with authority, even the big bears. Problem I have seen, though, is some folks will take a shot with a smoothbore at 100 yards or more, and wonder why they missed or wounded the animal.

Keep your shots in a decent range and you can kill anything with one.

 

[Elnathan]

Interestingly, Scandinavian hunters used to hunt the European Elk, the same critter as our moose, with .30-.40 caliber snaplock rifles back in the 17th century. They apparently waited until the elk got very close before firing...

 

Lots of bison were killed with .54 cal. guns and a bison is a lot smaller than a moose.

 

[Idaho Ron]

I am not so sure I buy that. I have seen a lot of moose in Idaho. Some real big ones that made the record book. I have NEVER seen a moose that is as big as a bull bison. Ron

 

[KHickam]

Moose may be taller perhaps but not near the mass of a buffalo.

 

[akbrownbear]

Guys take buffalo up here regularly with .54's. As I said, a .54 will kill anything within the right ranges. It's a thumper, whether a conical or round ball. However, my own opinion is an animal this big will take a heap of killing, and I prefer conicals in a rifled barrel for these big animals. That's just me personally, tho......

 

[Greenmtnboy]

Thanks Paul,
looks like I will be doing a little R&D when I get home. I realy don't want my 54 expanding at closr range on a moose, I want full penitration.
:hatsoff:

 

[Blizzard of '93]

I'd say you are right when choosing a conical. The old timers did not have them but if they were available I'll bet many of them would have used a conical slug. Basically the heavier slug gives more 'punch' to the shot - remember that shot placement is King, penetration is Queen. A conical would maybe completely pass through a non-vital area and the animal would run off, maybe un-recoverable.

 

[Ron LaClair]

If I had to choose between a .54 and a .50, I'd go with the .54. I think with a heavy load of 100gr's of powder or more it would do the job providing the shot was broadside behind the shoulder at 50yd's or less.

I took a moose with a flintlock in 1979 in northern Canada. At the time that I was planning the hunt I had two .54 rifles, a flintlock and a percussion but I thought my chances would be better with a larger caliber so I had Jud Brennan make a custom German Jager in .62. As it turned out I don't think I would have gotten the moose with the kind of shot I made with a lesser gun.

Before I went on the hunt I did extensive testing at the range. I wanted to shoot the heaviest load I possibly could and still achive good accuracy. I ended up shooting 200gr of 2FF behind a patched .610 RB.

When I got my chance it was at the south end of the moose going north. At 50yd's or less the ball entered the inside of the left ham, traveling full length and stopping just under the hide to the right of center of the brisket.

The moose stopped at 100yd's and allowed me to put another ball into the meaty part of the neck doing no damage. When I was loading the 3rd ball from my loading block he walked into the timber and laid down. He never got up from there. The first ball had traveled through paunch,liver,and lungs before stopping. The ball was cast from pure lead and hit no heavy bones and was only slightly flattened on one side.

 

[paulvallandigham]

If you are hunting moose, by all means use a conical, and test both pure lead and alloy lead castings. You will normally get further penetration with a harder alloy, and the bullet( conical) will stay together better when it hits bone. However, by harder, I am talking about a lead/tin alloy. Stay away from Antimony, which makes the lead brittle! If a conical with antimony hits bone, its will give you a caliber size hole through the bone, but there is no guarantee that the bullet won't shatter, and break up into pieces once it leaves the bone. You want a conical that will stay together AND penetrate vital organs inside the ribcage. Use a lead/tin mix for that.

I do like using conicals for deep penetration. While a moose is not the hardest animal to kill, it is large, and has large, heavy bones. The chest cavity can be more than 2 feet across, depending on the age and sex of the animal. Conicals will give you the necessary penetration, even when they are cast from pure lead. You can kill a moose with a lead RB, but even there, I would want to use a lead/tin alloy to cast the ball to help it keep its shape, and penetrate further after hitting bone.

A 230 grain RB out of a .54 caliber gun is going to penetrate a lot of flesh and bone. It usually will completely penetrate a deer's chest on a broadside shot. Many moose have been killed using that Lead round ball, so I am not suggesting that choosing to use a lead RB is wrong, or even less effective. I just encourage hunters to plan for the more difficult shots they may actually have in the woods, rather than those picture perfect broadside shots that are put on targets for practice. A Conical has the extra weight to punch through even more flesh, and still break bones.

 

[Headhunter]

I am very partial to my 50 Full Stock Hawken. I know I would use it. I do also have a 58 TC Renegade. I use it when its rainin.

Headhunter

 

[Idaho Ron]

Moose vs Bison
I had the chance to see a big bull bison yesterday. The bull weighs between 2800 and 3100 pounds. He was weighed once at 3100 but the man said he was a little thiner now than when he weighed him.
It is over 6' tall at the hump. He was the most impressive animal I have ever seen on the hoof. He is a pet at a local farm. I am still amazed by his size. Ron

 

[Rat Trapper]

Having lived in Alaska for 5 years I've shot couple moose. I agree with the idea of using a conical bullet. Remember, if moose is on dry land keep shooting and try very hard to make him dead on dry land!! If you ever get a dead moose in water, you will regret every shooting that moose!

 

[peeweet]

I really appreciate everyones thoughts on this! I will practice with the .54 and keep the shot at or under 50yds,failing to close the distance to that range I will use the .50 and a 495gr conical.I will have a buddy so taking both rifles is the best scenario I think.