best deer load?

[Karl B. Andersen]

Hi folks - I'm new to this forum and this is my first post here.
I won a 20 guage single at a NWTF event, and sent it in to have the .50 Huntsman put on. I love that concept!
Anyway, I'm traditionally a .50 T/C Hawken shooter, and this in-line stuff is a little new to me!?!?
Even with a scope on the Hunstman, which was tapped and mounted by NEF, I can out-shoot it with my Hawken and iron sights!!!
I can not seem to work up a load that I feel confident with out past 40 or 50 yards! I'm lucky to hit a dinner plate after that!
Can somebody cut my learning curve waaaaaaaaaaaaaay down and give me a load with Pyrodex as proplelant that should give me a respectable group with a decent knock-down bullet.
What should I use with this barrel? Lead bullets? Buffalo stuff? Conical sabots? no sabots? Hollow point? etc. etc. etc.
Help me here!
Karl
www.andersenforge.com

[tscott]

I have several muzzleloaders. My go to deer rig is the Huntsman that sits in a case for one shot into a deer each year. Nothing that I have shot is more accurate at 50 yards. Years ago I settled on 90gr 777, and a 295gr
Powerbelt. Any 209 primer make! I shoot roundball in everything else just to shoot cheaply. All shots on deer result in on the spot kills!
When I was sighting it in I found it helpful to remove and clean and grease the plug every 5 shots, remarkebly swabbing the barrel when doing plug, did not help or hinder accuracy. I think powerbelts in this gun are ideal, although I do think them too expensive. I won't hunt with anything else.

[Rwalter63]

While I don't have a Huntsman, I do have a NEF Sidekick which is almost the exact same gun. It too seems to like the 295g powerbelts. I tried a few lighter loads but they are not as accurate.

[mangulator]

kbaknife welcome to the forum.  My go too load for my Huntsman this year will be Winchester 209 primers, with two pyrodex pellets and 250 grain Shock-wave T/C bullet. Last year I used the same pyrodex load with a 240 grain XTP bullet and T/C mag sabot. I had no problem dropping deer.  

[Karl B. Andersen]

I'm seeing a pattern here guys! Thanks!
All four replies so far have used Pyrodex pellets, and I have used nothing but Pyrodex powder?!?!? Think that's a factor?
I'll be practicing soon with this info.
If there are more combinations that have been found reliable at 100 yards or mkore, I'd like to know about it!
kbaknife
www.andersenforge.com

[astrix]

My sidekick likes:
1.) 105 grns. BM3 or T7 with a Blackjack Hill 250 grn. devestator
2.) 105 grns. BM3 or T7 with 300 grn. XTP
3.) 105 grns. BM3 or T7 with a 300 grn. Barnes Expander MZ
4.) 105 grns. BM3 or T7 with 300 grn. Shockwave/SST
5.) 90 grns. BM3 or T7 with 250 grn. Shockwave/SST

All of these loads go down easy and group really well for me :grin:
Loose powders,I don't like pellets.
Gary

[Tcallbuilder]

kbaknife;
welcome to the fourm!!
Most guys here will swear by the powerbelt's.....and they are great!
but my favorite load for the huntsman is
Hornady .45 xtp/mag w/triditions .45/.50 sabot over 85grains pyrodex (loose) powder.
I use CCI (non mag) 209 primers.
This load will clover leaf 3 rounds at 50yrds all day long.

Aside from being really accurate, this is probably the least expensive cronical load you can find.
I buy the bullets off the handgun reloader shelf and the sabots from walmart.

Ive taken two deer in the last two years with this load and neither went much more than out of sight.


TCB

[Doug B.]

TCB......Are those the 245 gr. XTP's you purchase?  If so I bet you are spending a lot less than I am buying them pre-assembled in the little red Hornady box!

I have been using the T7 (85 gr.) with the XTP's as well.  Have had  reasonably accurate loads with it.  Just started playing around with American Pioneer Powder (90 gr.) with the XTP's.  Pretty descent combination.

This a GREAT board.  Thanks to everybody!

[Tcallbuilder]

Doug B.;
No the ones i use are 300grain but are the same hornady XTP bullet.
actual diamiter is .452

I never buy pre-packaged sabots.....they are a lot cheaper buying them seperate. Most any sporting store that carries handload supplies will have them....some Wal-marts have them.

If i wet patch...then dry patch between shots and load consistantly this huntsman with this load will out shoot any MZ ive shot.....thing just keeps making the first hole bigger out to 50yrds.

Im not sure that it drives enough velocity down range to make the most of this bullet's expansion......but.....even so a .452 through and through hole is a serious problem for a deer or any thing else for that matter!

TCB

[buckbeast]

My favorite load is 295 gr copper-jacketed powerbelt pushed by 90 grains of FFFG Goex blackpowder. The blackpowder may be a little messy, but it is what I always have on hand.

Buck

[tscott]

Before I settled on 295 powerbelt, 90gr 777, I used .490 Hornady roundball, .10 lubed pillow ticking, to get the Huntsman on paper at the range. This would be a good cheap way to do some plinking with the Huntsman.
I continue to agree with you folks... POWERBELT for deer! I would have confidence in roundball on deer also.

[Longcruise]

I would have confidence in roundball on deer also.

You are right on.  If a huntsman will shoot a round ball accurately with 60 gr or more of ff or equiv, it's a 100 yard deer rifle.  I know these guns aren't made for RB, but those big powder charges and 250 to 300 grain slugs just aren't needed to take deer :grin:

[tscott]

There must be something that I am missing with roundball in modern inline rifles. In the local paper here in NC the last 2 "book bucks", were taken with inlines, and roundball! I have just had so much success with Powerbelt. Perhaps some day when I run out, and am too cheap I may try my roundball plinking' loads on deer!

[randyb]

My Huntsman(scoped), from the bench, hand held over bags will put3 shots of 2 Pyrodex 50gr. pellets under a 290gr. Powerbelt bullet, either the pure lead or the jacketed into 1.5inches if I do my part. This at 100 long paces. The type of primer, I have'nt noticed any difference in.


Old Mudshark

The only difference is I use 100 grains of Triple 7.  Being a traditionalist, I finally broke down and bought an in-line to take out to the woods for deer season.  I took a nice button buck (MMMMM...Tasty!) with the 290 grain powerbelt (Which is much easier to load than any of the others that I tried) and the deer just dropped, no kicks, nothing.  I never seen anything like it, and it was not a spine shot, it was through both lungs , just behind the shoulders.

[lockup]

i use 240 gr hornady 2 50 gr pellets shoots great  but i wish gun was longer the forearm seems alittle short for my long arms

[TheCrowkiller]

My load for deer is 100 grains Pyrodex RS, a Winchester primer, a T/C mag sabot, and a .430 cast pure lead bullet out of a Lee 310 grain mould. With my scope, it grouped into less than 2 inches at 100 yards. Unfortunately, I had to use the iron sights for muzzleloading season. I'll probably use Black Powder when the Pyrodex is used up.
This is my first year with the Huntsman, but I have taken several with a .54 Renegade with either Maxi-Balls or roundballs and 90-100 grains of FFFG.

[jdbe]

110 grain pyrodex followed by either the 300grain Hornaday sst  ( poly point)or the 250 grain xtp which is a hollow point.  If you cannot get either of these to hit well using between 90 and 110 grains of pyro, then I would wonder about the gun.  After 110, the patterns seem to open up.  The xtp is easier to load and almost as accurate as the sst.  If you plan on hunting under 50 yards then the xtp is the way to go as it will put a hurting on the animal.  Over that range, I like the poly tip.  If you are using the gun only for deer, then you can go to a lighter bullet, but you will have to experiment a bit with the grains.  I use mine for elk and smaller and thus want the heavier sabot.  Either of these bullets have controlled expansion so weight of them is not an issue on deer though you can go lighter and be fine.  Who the heck wants to switch loads for different animals.

[jritter]

Still working on my best load with my sidekick.  I have been shooting 295gr. powerbelt and 90gr. pyro select with winchester primers.  Great 1 1/2" pattern at 50 yards, but opens up at 100yards.
At 100 yards, it was shooting 3" high pattern, then I wet, dry swabbed the barrel and the pattern went about 3" low with a flyer (could have been me).  The best groups were maybe 4"-5".  Some guys around here have been having consistency problems with the powerbelt, so next weekend I am going to shoot 3 rounds with 250gr. T/C shockwaves to see if the groups tighten.  

Joe