customizing pellets

[saltysenior]

 

before i blow myself up......has any one ever cut down a 50gr. pellet ,to lets say 40 grs.

[moto357]

i'd think for the price of them pellets, if i had to customize em to meet my needs, i'd rather just take a second to weigh out loose stuff.  more cost effective as well

[yooper77]

I think you would ruin more than you could use after cutting attempts.

You can try 50 grain and 30 grain pellets, but if you need more tailored loads, use loose.

yooper77

[pshootr]

dude, dont even think about cuttin down pellets unless you want some 2cd degree flash burns.use powder!!!!!!

[kevthebassman]

Loose powder brother, check into it.

[Bladeforger]

What they all said: get some BP or Pyrodex!!!

[saltysenior]

i do not have a place to shoot nearby....my 1 yearly trip to the range [60 miles] is to prove the rifles [5] are basically sighted in.....w/all this new stuff we have gone from a patched round ball ,good for 70yrds ,to a      in-line w/ all kinds of powders,pellets,twists,ignitions,scopes and a confusing array of bullets that some say can can hit a gnats eye at 300 yrds, with the power to kill the largest living thing on earth.......I myself ,want to keep it simple .........does it make sense to switch from pellets to powder...i am going to sit in a tree with a cva kodiak .45 cal w/ 2 50 grn.pellets behind a 180 grn. sabot type bullet....can i improve with a lower amount of loose powder.......thanks

[kevthebassman]

One range trip per year?

I'll probably draw fire for saying it, but I couldn't in good conscience put my sights on a living thing that I intended to give a quick, humane death if I had practiced one time all year.  60 miles isn't that bad of a drive, my range is 30 miles and I make the trip at least once a month.  You simply need to practice more.

One range trip is most certainly not enough time to work up a good load for a muzzleloader.

*flamesuit on*

[GRIMJIM]

I don't know, if you keep the ranges down.........

I personally practice a little more than that but to each his own. If you can consistently hit your target fine, just keep the ranges down to where you know you can hit it. It doesn't take Annie Oakley to down a deer at 25 yards.

You are right Kev, it doesn't seem enough time to develope a load. But to see where it shoots with two pellets it's plenty of time.

That's kind of old school hunting. At least from what I've seen with older hunters from around here. I go with a 67 year old guy that never fires his gun unless there's a deer in front of him. No sighting in, no nothing. He gets one almost every year. He can point and click that shotgun like you wouldn't believe. He downed a 15 pointer last year that came around a tree line out of a gully and surprised him. He shot it from the hip and dropped it like a rock.

IDK that's just me. I shoot with two pellets even though my encore will handle three. You may see an improvement with a little less or a little more but you need more than one trip to the range to figure that out.

[saltysenior]

One range trip per year?

I'll probably draw fire for saying it, but I couldn't in good conscience put my sights on a living thing that I intended to give a quick, humane death if I had practiced one time all year.  60 miles isn't that bad of a drive, my range is 30 miles and I make the trip at least once a month.  You simply need to practice more.

One range trip is most certainly not enough time to work up a good load for a muzzleloader.

*flamesuit on*

i 'm 71` ..i've done my practicing ....eyes dont work as good, gun [while ''practicing'' ,kicks more and makes a hell of a lot of noise to ears that can't hear t.v. ......i simply asked for a simple answer,not a preaching to..

[kevthebassman]

Well I didn't mean to preach but I get that way sometimes. 

GRIMJIM: To each his own I suppose, I know quite a few who don't practice, they all seem to hunt on the lease next door.  I'm always helping track gutshot deer because of them.  I'm sure there are guys out there who are just stone cold killers and fire one bullet per year to get one deer per year, but I can't say I know any.  The best shooter I know is the one who practices the most.

Saltysenior, the simple answer to your question of improving performance with loose powder is "try it and see."  Each gun is different and will have different likes and dislikes.  The only way to find out what will work for you is to get out to the range and give it a try.  I wish I could help you out more than that, but muzzleloaders are finicky and moody, like women.

[saltysenior]

  well i picked up a sheetrock knife,put on some glasses and cut 1/3 off a 50 gr. pellet.....no problem...

[saltysenior]

i always sight in my rifles....but how do you {I} ''practice''....can you call sitting comfortably at a bench rest, in the shade,w/ your rifle in a vise,shooting at a known  distance at a target that has and will not move,with your heart not running 4,500 rpm's, practice ? maybe you can duplicate those conditions on some ''hunts'' but not the ones i go on....