What size ball for new rifle .54

[Flintlock Whiskey]

Not new, but new to me. It is an Investarms .54 made in 1977. Beautiful rifle that will have to be pryed from me like Johnson did when he took Hatchet Jack's. Anyway, it is my first .54 and I know there are at least several people here that can tell me what size ball I should be using.
Thanks in advance.

 

[longcruise]

I've gotten good results in two 54s with 530, 533, and 535. The 533 is because I have a Lee 530 mold that drops at 533. ¿¿??¿¿ It was just a matter of adjusting patch thickness.

The guns; Tc 54 and Lyman gpr.

 

[Bushfire]

. 535 is my preference

 

[cynthialee]

I also use .535 in my .54

 

[Togo]

My TC Renegade seems to like .530 balls and .015 patch. I have an Ozark Mountain Hawken with a Green Mountain barrel that loves .535 balls and .018 patch.

 

[ETipp]

So far, and without further testing, my .54 GPR seems to like .530 RB, .018 ticking lubed with Tracks Mink Oil. Last time testing I was using 90 grains of 3F BP.

Its interesting that you posted this. Just last night before going to sleep I was studying an old Lyman Hand Book from back in the early 80's. I found the only listing it had on .54 caliber was with .535 RB with .015 patches.

That book was printed prior to the Great Plains Rifle release. The only one they showed was called "Plains Rifle" and it was a bit different than the GPR.

 

[tenngun]

I’ll go the other way. I had a . Green river barrel (now defunct and not to be confused with Green Mountain) I could load .535 and thin patch, or .530 ant thicker patch, but I got thumb sized groups at fifty yards and about an inch and a half at a hundred with a .527 and .2 patch
Chances are a .530-35 will work best but don’t be afraid to go low.

 

[tom_in_vt]

I prefer .535, but try .530 as well.

 

[Mtman725]

I use 530 18 th patching, but the only way to find out in your gun is to shoot some with different patching 10,15,18 and see which ones is more accurate. That's part of the fun.

 

[LME]

Not new, but new to me. It is an Investarms .54 made in 1977. Beautiful rifle that will have to be pryed from me like Johnson did when he took Hatchet Jack's. Anyway, it is my first .54 and I know there are at least several people here that can tell me what size ball I should be using.
Thanks in advance.

Every .54 cal. M.L. that I have shot, mine and others shot .530 and .535 balls and both were accurate as long as I used a very snug patch. My favorite rifle has a 1 in 66 twist riflings . If I told you how accurate it is you would not believe me and I wouldn't blame you.

 

[Thingamajiggy]

Have several .54's, 2 like .530 (TC and a custom made) and 2 like .535 (both Investarm). Patches are all .015 for me.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Not new, but new to me. It is an Investarms .54 made in 1977. Beautiful rifle that will have to be pryed from me like Johnson did when he took Hatchet Jack's. Anyway, it is my first .54 and I know there are at least several people here that can tell me what size ball I should be using.
Thanks in advance.

What will be your source for ball?

I prefer .530 and have killed several deer with that size, BUT I use a lot of Hornady swaged ball, and I mike them for size..., rejecting many On the other hand some folks will only use self-cast ball, and @longcruise above demonstrates that his mold is giving him .533 ball, and it does well. The mold will often give you many less rejects for size than swaged, manufactured ball, and you can sometimes order custom sized molds too.

LD

 

[Grenadier1758]

Not new, but new to me. It is an Investarms .54 made in 1977. Beautiful rifle that will have to be pryed from me like Johnson did when he took Hatchet Jack's. Anyway, it is my first .54 and I know there are at least several people here that can tell me what size ball I should be using.
Thanks in advance.

Answers are so dependent on the desired end result. Is it to be accurate on paper targets? Is it to be effective as a hunting load? Is it to be an easy to load round for woodswalks or second shots while hunting? Will you be casting the ball or buying swaged balls? Do you know the diameter of the land-to-land dimension of the barrel? Do you know the groove depth?

The easy answer is to just guess that the 0.530 or 0.535 ball in a 0.015 cotton patch lubed with a mix of Ballistol and water is to be used.

Your rifle will eventually tell you what combination of powder, patch, lubricant and ball should be used.

 

[Flintlock Whiskey]

What will be your source for ball?

I prefer .530 and have killed several deer with that size, BUT I use a lot of Hornady swaged ball, and I mike them for size..., rejecting many On the other hand some folks will only use self-cast ball, and @longcruise above demonstrates that his mold is giving him .533 ball, and it does well. The mold will often give you many less rejects for size than swaged, manufactured ball, and you can sometimes order custom sized molds too.

LD

I was going to buy some from track to try before investing in a mold of any kind. As far as custom molds, I really like mine from Calahan Bag Molds.

 

[hanshi]

I don't shoot my .54 a lot but a .530" ball does everything I want a rifle to do.