All I would like some recommendations for my rifle. First it has .437 stamped on the barrel what caliber? I want to use this gun as my small game rifle with the chance to shoot a small pig or two. So with that said, I was thinking about sighting it in with 50 grains of BP. Today it shot great groups with that load ,just several inches low. The second question is, would 50 grains of powder do the job on pigs out to 50 yards.
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- Thread starter Poynor
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galamb
58 Cal.
If that .437 is related to the bore it could mean that it's (nominally) a 44 caliber (.437" land to land measurement) OR it could be the grove to grove measurement.
If the latter, depending on the groove depth that could make it possibly a 42 caliber with .0065" grove depth (or something that would give you the total measurement).
Is it enough for pigs? Sure. If your tightest groups come with 50 grains, then it's enough. You can probably safely go up to as much as 80 grains in that caliber, so I would try it at 55, 60 etc and see if your group tightens up any.
With 50 grains, at 100 yards, you should get something in the 250/260 foot pounds of energy - enough for a pig which would probably be shot at a somewhat shorter distance.
I have taken deer with my 40 cal, shooting 65 grains of FFF. Put the ball through the "boiler room" and they don't go far...
If the latter, depending on the groove depth that could make it possibly a 42 caliber with .0065" grove depth (or something that would give you the total measurement).
Is it enough for pigs? Sure. If your tightest groups come with 50 grains, then it's enough. You can probably safely go up to as much as 80 grains in that caliber, so I would try it at 55, 60 etc and see if your group tightens up any.
With 50 grains, at 100 yards, you should get something in the 250/260 foot pounds of energy - enough for a pig which would probably be shot at a somewhat shorter distance.
I have taken deer with my 40 cal, shooting 65 grains of FFF. Put the ball through the "boiler room" and they don't go far...
That's interesting, I've never seen a rifle marked with ball size rather than bore size...it's certainly unique. If so, it's just marginally under the standard for a .45 long rifle which usually take a .440" or .445" ball. Any listed .45 load should work for you. My original .45 load from the 1960's on was 75 grains of FFFg. Have upped it to 90 but found it really unnecessary for whitetail deer, the 75 grain load got each one I tried if I kept the range around 75 yards, or less. Good luck with your rifle, it should do you well.
Perhaps a little more information about the rifle besides .437 on the barrel would get more information. 
hotoSmile:
hotoSmile:
Standard? Wat standard?
Ain't no standards in this muzzle gun game.
But, I'll confess, us modern types have pretty much devolved the game into a few calibers considered "standard". Back in the day there were .42; .47; .52; .56, etc. calibers. They were made in the size the builder or customer dictated. I have a ca. 1800 Belgium damascus (smooth) barrel that is 17 1/2 ga. Not nuttin' "standard" about that. My guess it is the size the mandrel was that it was made on.
Edit: forgot to mention, often barrels were freshed and that made them larger. The gunsmith had to also make the rifle owner a new mould for the larger bore.
Billnpatti
Cannon
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If you will send me the following information, I can send you the amount of metal you need to file off your front sight to bring your POI up to the POA.
1. Distance to target.
2. inches low for POI
3. Distance from front to rear site
Or, you can figure it for yourself using the following calculation:
D = (A/B) X C
Where:
A= inches from front sight to rear sight.
B= inches to target.
C= inches you want to raise the POI.
D= thousandths of an inch that needs to be removed from front site.
Once you know how many thousandths of an inch you need to remove from front site, use a feeler gauge to mark the amount of metal you need to remove from the front site. Alternatively, you can use a micrometer to measure how much you have removed from your site.
1. Distance to target.
2. inches low for POI
3. Distance from front to rear site
Or, you can figure it for yourself using the following calculation:
D = (A/B) X C
Where:
A= inches from front sight to rear sight.
B= inches to target.
C= inches you want to raise the POI.
D= thousandths of an inch that needs to be removed from front site.
Once you know how many thousandths of an inch you need to remove from front site, use a feeler gauge to mark the amount of metal you need to remove from the front site. Alternatively, you can use a micrometer to measure how much you have removed from your site.
Here is a couple of pic's of my gun I've had this gun all my life it was built for me when I was born. Maybe I didn't explain what I was trying to find out very well. I'm a infantryman not a writer hahahahah
1. What caliber is a .437 ball--- I have shot .437 balls that I got from Dixie gun works and with some pillow ticking from wal-mart they shoot great.
2. The gun shoots great groups with 50 grains of BP. I want to use this gun for my small game/Pig gun. I'm station down in Fort Stewart GA and this place is loaded with pigs. So I want to make a load that will not tear a squirrel in half but will put smaller pigs down inside of 75 yards. So is 50 grains pushing hard enough for pigs.
hanshi
Cannon
I agree it's nominally a .44 caliber rather than a true .45. I have a very old H&A underhammer that is marked .45 and loads and shoots great with a .440 ball. However the recommended ball size is .435".
Back in the early 1970's there were several muzzleloading guns with .44 caliber barrels on them.
The flintlock "Kentuckian" I bought was a .44. Navy Arms sold a .44 caliber "Kentucky Rifle" and I'm sure there were others.
The flintlock "Kentuckian" I bought was a .44. Navy Arms sold a .44 caliber "Kentucky Rifle" and I'm sure there were others.
Billnpatti
Cannon
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Hit both the squirrels and the pigs in the head with that load and you will have no problem. If you hit a squirrel in any meaty part, you will ruin that part of the squirrel. Hit a pig anywhere other than the head and he is likely to run a ways and may be hard to track. What you have in my opinion is a gun that is just a tad bit big for squirrels and a tad bit small for pigs. For squirrels, I like a .36 or a .32 caliber. For pigs, I like a .50 caliber or larger. Okay, Let's talk about your load. If you adjust your load to about 35 or 40 grains when hunting squirrels and move up to around 70 grains for pigs, you can make your rifle do double duty. Try those loads and see what happens to your accuracy. If your rifle doesn't like either of these loads, don't use them. Shot placement is the most important thing and if either of these loads is not accurate in your rifle don't use them. But if they are, that's the way to go. :hatsoff:
Interesting rifle. Looks like it could be a parts gun put together by a fairly competent builder. No telling how old the barrel is.
Call it whatever you want. You can even call it Suzie if you want. :wink: Methinks .44 cal. would be the nominal caliber.
Call it whatever you want. You can even call it Suzie if you want. :wink: Methinks .44 cal. would be the nominal caliber.
Standard starting load is 1.5 gr per caliber, 50 cal = 75 gr 2f, 45 cal = 67 gr 3f, ( 3f to 45/ 2f 50 and up). This is a beginning load, you need to work up what patch and lube combination shoots the best. I would start with .440 ball, 15 thousands pillow tick patch, and 70 gr 3f, lubed with Crisco or Bore Butter. 50 grains of either 2 or 3f is way too light to hunt pigs with.
Bill makes a very good point in that shot placement is everything and that is the key factor when it comes to killing hogs. Realize that this rifle will limit the effective range you will have if it is accurate with a higher powder charge of 70 grains or so. What you might have is a target shooter and sometimes small game rifle, not meant for hogs and deer sized critters. Then again, a .45 is plenty for deer if again, you recognize the range limitations and can place the round ball exactly where it needs to go in order to make a quick, humane kill. If it proves to be accurate with larger powder charges, then I would practice my hunting and shooting skills so I could get within 50-60 yards of a hog. I would also read up on hogs and know that their vitals aren't quite in the same place as a deer.
