Real World smoothie/roundball accuracy?

[Skychief]

What kind of groups (@25, 50, 100 yards) do you guys shoot with patched round balls out of your smoothbores? I want to have an idea before experimenting with roundballs in my new smoothbore. Thanks!

Oh yea....be honest now! :nono:

 

[Cutfingers]

At 25, cloverleafs, 50, 3" groupings and at 100, anybodys guess, but usually in a 12" pieplate. All benched, of course. Off hand, I'm simply happy to have it ignite on a consistent basis. Do a lot of experimenting with powder, patch and ball. I use, in my 62, 70 grs FFF, an over powder card and a 600 ball with .010 patch. My barrel measures .615. Hope this gets you started.

 

[trent/OH]

I shoot a Japanese-made Brown Bess, and the Bess has never been known for it's target accuracy, but out to 50 yards I'm confident in shooting minute-of-Redcoat.

 

[nw_hunter]

62 Cal GM in my Renegade.......4in.@50yds, and pie plate groups at75yds off my shooting sticks (Bi-Pod type).That is with 75 grs.of 3fgoex and a thin patch.I think sweet Sue just might elk hunt with me this season. :grin: My next test with it will be for penetration at 75 yds.

 

[rabjr]

I'm pretty much like Cutfingers, clover leaves at 25 and and about 3" groups at 50. At 75 if I'm not on a paper plate I'm usually pretty close. I do have a rear sight. My gun is a .735 bore and I use 82gr 2F with a lubed fiber wad, .15 lubed patch and a .715 ball.

 

[Stumpkiller]

6" at 50 yards and I am a happy camper. That's with a more-or-less front sight/bayonet lug or bead and just instinctive "Arrow Sighting" down the barrel. A smoothie with official front and reat sights should do much better.

I've had five shot 4" groups at 50 yards where I was aiming but enough 8" at the same distance to know a smoothie has a tendency to throw knuckle balls that begin to go wild about that range.

100 yards? Not with a round ball out of a sightless smoothbore. At least in my hands. Maybe 3 for 10 anywhere within an FBI silhouette at that range.

 

[Many Klatch]

I can usually hit what I am aiming at if it is big enough. I hit an oxygen tank gong at 120 yards with my Bess yesterday. The Bess will do cloverleafs at 25 yards, and then it starts to spread with distance. 75 yards is about the max for making a group on paper.

Many Klatch

 

[Old Charlie]

I have not been able to shoot as well as thease folks with my .62 cal trade gun. At 100 yds. I get a drop of over 2 feet. At 50 yrds I can keep them in a paper plate Most of the time.
That is shooting 80 grains of 3f goex and a .600 patched round ball, with Wal-mart pillow ticking for a patch. That is a tight fit in the barrel.
I got some 2f and am going to try that. Some say they do better with the 2f in thease smooth bores.
Old Charlie

 

[Eric Krewson]

I can usually put 3 shots in a 4" circle at 40 yds. Just about the time I think I have a perfect load the next shot may or may not hit an 18" square target at the same distance. Those occasional knuckle balls are frustrating.

 

[Robert Egler]

Shooting a Green Mountain 54 cal smoothbore barrel on a Traditions Hawken at 25 yards I get 3 shots in a 2 inch circle. Haven't shot farther, plan to do that this afternoon.

 

[Rancocas]

I shoot a .62 with a 42 inch long barrel. There is a front sight only, no rear sight.
At 50 yds, using a 80gr. charge of 3F and leaning against a tree for support, I get 4 inch groups. However, I don't like the recoil with this load. The stock comb smacks me in the cheek pretty good. It's okay for hunting, but I don't like it for target shooting.
Using a 70gr. charge of 3F my groups open up to about 6 inches. Still good enough for deer at that range, and the recoil doesn't bother me at all.

 

[slowpokebr549]

My twelve bore with a heavy tick patch and a .686 ball will hold a 6 inch group at fifty yards.I load about 70 grains of fff.Groups get pretty iffy after that.

 

[WV MZL HUNTER]

My 56 cal. T/C Smooth bore shoots 3" groups at 50 yds. and around 6" at 75 yds. To un-reliable at 100 yds. for me.

 

[jdstrang]

Armi Sport Model 1842 .69-cal. fired standing offhand: sub-two-inch at 25, sub-five-inch at 50. Eighty grains 2F, aluminum-foil-patched Lyman .678 roundballs, sprue up; thrice dipped in 50-50 beeswax/Crisco lube. Farther? Affiant saith naught, for affiant knoweth naught.

 

[Leatherbark]

Jackie Brown Carolina Smoothbore in .62/100 caliber...........Cloverleafs at 25, 4-6 inches at 50 yards........Paper plate maybe at 75............at 100 it shoots probably 12 to 15 inch groups ....................this is all with 70 gr.of 3f and a wheel weight ball of .600 and a .018 patch lube with whatever..............Bob

 

[Flint62Smoothie]

When I can't put all 5-shots into a 6", 'maybe' an 8", black circle OFFHAND at 50-yards then it's time for me to go back to daily snap-capping with a 'flint' made of teak wood, with a penny blanced out on the barrel (round part) and to also start shooting the pellet gun offhand again ...

That's with a fowler with only a front sight, as the dry-firing helps condition and retain the 'muscle memory' which is the cheeking ... and this is the rear sight.

Alas, I fear lack of a rear sight and the exterior ballistics of roundalls really combine to hurt us when reaching out to 100-yards. I'd bet I'd hit a man-sized target 1 out of 3 times from a rest, but as that RB deaccelerates from supersonic speeds post-75-yards (but pre-100)... your INHERENT accuracy goes to heck.

FWIW my load is 0.010" homespun patching, TOW mink oil lube, 70 grs Schuetzen FFFg powder.

 

[Zoar]

Yeah I agree if I can't put all the shots into (and well into) an 8 inch black target OFFHAND at 50 yards then it is time for me to take a break. I usually go for ragged holes and quite frankly using big O .53" dia round balls it is easier to do than it is with a 30 cal and under modern gun. I do notice for me the Speer round balls in .530 hit to a different point of aim compared to the Hornady in .530. I haven't miked them yet but they are also NOT the same OD even though the label says they are. Amazing. But the other day I shot 5 Speers and got 3 that were near ragged hole and two outside by 2 inches and then I shot 2 Hornady and they were ragged holes but 4 inches left and 2 inches down from where I was aiming, but still ragged holes which I was sorta impressed with... But the strong lesson is: I need to pick one or the other because I refuse to monkey with my sights constantly. I need some Hornady time. I only shot two so far. But if this box shoots better than the boxes of Speer I have shot then they get the nod. If they don't, I'll stay with the Speer. Or consider other options.

 

[scroggwe]

With my Pedersoli Brown Bess, I'm getting similar groups as Cutfingers. With my .62 Kentucky Fowler, I'm still experimenting with patch/ball combinations. It seems to shoot a little low at 50 yards if I aim along the top of the barrel. Still trying to find a consistent cheek weld/sight picture.

 

[Deadeye]

I shoot my Fucil de Chasse a lot and always offhand. Bore is .620, I use a .600 pure lead ball and a .013 ticking spit patch. The best I've
done (not average but the best) is 3 shots at 125 yds. in 5 " and 5 shots at 140 yds. in 7". This is a NO REAR SIGHT FLINTLOCK. I use 70 grs. 2F up to
70 yds. and 1 gr. per yd. for longer ranges. I used 140 grs. for the 140 yd. shots. I have 3, .62
cal, 1-.69 and 1,.73 and have found no difference in accuracy regardless of the powder charge, my guns are just as accurate with 140 grs as they are with 50 or 60 or 70 or 80. I don't use any wads just powder, patched ball. Put some time in shooting them and you'll find them to be much more accurate than most seem to think.

 

[paulvallandigham]

If the accuracy doesn't change, regardless of load used, does adding that additional 1 grain per yard change the POI? If so, how much?