50 cal muzzleloader barrel

[a4beltfed2000]

OK so since I have a ordered the 50 cal muzzleloader barrel have two questions: Is the rifling on the muzzleloader barrel 1 in 28 twist. I should be able to shoot saboted rounds then correct? Does the muzzleloader barrel use 209 shotgun primers or caps? So roughly what bullets are you shooting with? I was thinking around 240 Grain .45cal pistol bullet, I assume that you are using RS powder, where should I start with powder 80Grains?

[bubba]

Yes the barrel is a 1:28 twist.  It will shoot sabots and conical pretty well.  Generally the 1:28 twist is too fast to stabilize round balls, however some have had good luck with them.  They come with orange primer carriers and shoot 209 primers.  I have a sidekick and a huntsman.  I shoot triple 7 loose in both with a 250 grain saboted lead bullet.  Both are very accurate.  The other thing you may want to look into is a replacement ramrod.  It the sticky forum on here it tells about the hubbard rod, plus there are replacement breech plugs talked about on here a 25 acp and the carrierless 209 breech plug.  I suggest you read up on both of them as well as the ramrod. Feel free to browse the entire forum and you will get most of the answers you will need.  Good luck

[petemi]

I would save myself a lot of grief and get Nick at Metrics Unlimited to send you a carrierless plug for that rifle.  Then, I'd shoot cast bullets in it.  I never really understood sabots.......why reduce a .50 cal. to a .45 cal.  Just never made sense to me and the cast bullets shoot very well, and have more penetration and expansion when they get there, and cost less..........getting there sometimes takes a bit of waiting...they're usually big, slow and heavy, but they bang flop deer.  The last one I shot with the Huntsman was with a 470 gr. T/C Maxi Hunter at only 60 yards.  I hit him center of the chest and the bullet exited his right ham.  It threw him completely over backward, dead in his tracks.

Pete