Saboted 280 WFN

[Walks with Fire]

Hello Veral and forum members;

I researched the forum and the Beartooth bullets website/forum concerning the use of hard cast bullets in a sabot for whitetail deer hunting using a Green Mountain LRH flintlock barrel with a 1/28" twist, .50 caliber and 28" long. The charge levels could go up to 110 grains of 3F or 120 grains of 2F powder.
I saw a .44 ss 325 LFN muzzleloader bullet on the Beartooth website but was unable to reach them at their phone number listed; this bullet doesn't show on their price list either. I would think the SS bullet would release from a sabot better than the lube grooved bullets would but didn't know if that would be true or not either? I did see that a poster advised removing the lube before placing in the sabot but didn't say if they actually shot the grooved bullets from a sabot or not.  Another bullet that I would want to try would be the .452 280grain WFN, my shots would not exceed 125 yards and I would think a 100 grains of Goex 3F could launch them at least 1300 fps. I think this or perhaps even the 250 grain weight would be best but I would like some advice before I order any bullets.

So my questions are: Would the lube grooved bullet exit the sabot well enough to hold a 3" group at 100 yards or would it be best to try the SS bullet instead? I don't know how accurate .430 bullets would shoot from my rifle in this weight and length.  Hornady XTP 300 grain .452 in a black sabot holds 3" easily @ 100 so if I get the right weight and .452 diameter it should shoot well. I really like the idea of the large meplat cast bullet in place of the hollow point design of the XTP. The 300 grain XTP doesn't seem to expand much on deer and it doesn't have that big meplat that in my estimation would probably slap a deer pretty good at the ranges I am shooting my flinter at.

I would be buying the bullets to start and perhaps a mold down the road. From what I have read about these bullets I should see great performance on deer size game without heavy recoil and muzzle blast. I didn't see any posts about anyone using them in a sabot with 1/28 twist GM barrels or even inlines. My real black powder would not be able to reach the speeds of inlines either. It seems I should be able to hit the 100-130 DV with black powder loads though.

If anyone has any experience along these lines please feel free to pass your opinions along. So would the .452 280 WFN be a good choice?
 
Thanks.

[srussell]

ill not even try to answer for Veral. but i have one of his molds.(280grain .44    sized to 432) and in my t.c. hawken with the 1:28 twist it will hold 2/3 in all day long with a sabot and 90 grains of 2f.  that combo will just flat hammer a white tail.i also have one of his molds in .45 wfn 300grain drops at .453  i really don't think that any thing on this Continent could stand up to it. sorry Veral didn't mean to jump in front of you

[Veral]

Thank you for the answer Russell.  It just happens that  the LFN is my first recommendation, and I did write that the last time I came to the forum, but my computer blanked out and lost the post.
  With the 44 LFN at 280 gr you'll get a good killing DV without extreme velocities or pressures, which I would also want to avoid with the flinter.  No need to have any more flame and smoke spewing out the touchhole than necessary.

Grooved bullets will work just fine in sabots, but the optimum is to have me make a mold to produce smooth sided bullets, and with a small bevel base so they set flat in the sabots.  300  gr 44 or 320 gr 45 cal  is optimum weight for cap lock muzzleloaders and with faster twists, as the heavier bullets get started  with a bit more precision.