Encore 209x45 or 209X50?

[LJOHNS]

Which should I buy?  Seems to me that the 45 would be the best choice.  Flatter shooting and still plenty of energy for most everthing.  What do you all prefer?

[Wolfhound]

50 caliber is better. There are far more bullet options with a 50 cal than there are for the 45. Also, some states have a minimum bullet diameter. Here in Illinois it's 44 cal. With a 45 caliber muzzleloader your ONLY bullet options here are round ball or conical as saboted bullets for a 45 are in the 357-40 cal ranges. Basically 50 caliber is to muzzleloaders what a 12 gauge is to shotguns. 50 caliber is the standard. ML experts, and ML enthusiests like us have determined that the 50 is the optimum performer for whitetail deer which is the primary species hunted for with muzzleloaders.

[wpayne]

I am a happy 45cal owner and I don't regret my choice BUT my next muzzleloader will be a 50.  You have more bullet selection, accesories are easier to find, it is legal in more states, and with the Omegas the 50 balances better than the 45 due to the slightly lesser barrel weight (both barrels are the same outside diameter, the 50 has a larger bore and thus less metal/weight).

You can load the same bullets in the 50 that you can the 45 with the right sabot(s) and use the same amount of powder, the myth of a flatter shooting 45 are just that, myth.  

I bought into the supposed lesser recoil from the 45 but after researching, recoil is mainly a funcion of powder charge, bullet weight and gun weight.  If the 50 can shoot saboted (or double saboted) 45 bullets of the same weight as the 45 can, and uses the same powder charge volume as the 45 does, and weighs nearly the same as the 50, how much less could it recoil???

My opinion is, the 45 will do the job that I wanted (whitetail) but in retrospect the 50 would have probably done that job (and countless others) better.  Hindsight is 20/20 I guess.

[smoky]

I was contemplating the same decision and decided on the 209 x 50 for one reason.  Most reports I read concerning the 209 x 45 (including all brands of muzzle loaders) indicated that more often than not,  the lack of accuracy was a real problem.  And from personal experience, I have watched a close family member's level of frustration rise with his 209 x 45 that just won't shoot like his 50 cal.  I think it was determined that a particular twist rate may have been the culprit.  However, I have heard many great reports about the 209 x 50, and that was enough to make my decision on.

My 2 cents

Smoky

[toytruck]

I have the .45 Encore in 1:20 twist the original barrels that came out two years ago.  I have never shot a sabot with my gun just conicals including the powerbelts. I have killed four deer with the 225 grain powerbelts and they didn't go far, but only one left a blood trail and had a pass though wound.

I am in the process of experimenting with heavier conicals and so far it likes the 275 powerbelt, 385 no excuses and 478 Whitworths.  This is at 25 yds. and using pyrodex P.

I only own one other muzzleloader and that is a .54 Renegade and I went to .45 to shoot conicals instead of the sabots.  My longest shot this past season was about 110 yds. down hill and the doe was dead in her tracks.

I like the .45 it kills just as dead as a .54, but if I had to do over I probably would have gone with the .50 caliber.  Guess I just like a new challenge and I figured if I couldn't use the .45 bullets in one gun I could use them in a sabot in the .54.

[grouse]

Which should I buy?  Seems to me that the 45 would be the best choice.  Flatter shooting and still plenty of energy for most everthing.  What do you all prefer?

.50cal no doubt. Alot more options i think.

[TCAS]

My 45  Bulberry shoots fantastic with powerbelts and even a little better with Dead Center 195g.  It is the lightest recoiling muzzle loader I own.  I actually  have one in Stainless and one in standard finish. ...Lovem,

However they are very sensitive to powder charges, small changes seem to have big effects on accuracy and it seems like my 50 cal are less fickle to develop loads and the 50 seems to also be less sensitive to muzzle fouling.

If I had to do it all over again I would still choose the 45 but go custom, the factory barrels everyone has on this site don't seem to shoot well.

that my OPINION

TCAZ

[Underclocked]

TCAS, please read the thread jeff223 started.  A serious alternative for the .45 shooter, IMO.

[TCAS]

interesting, but that little gun looks to much like a toy for me.... I'm a big fan of big fat heavy barrels on my muzzle guns and scopes in 16x range...you know just like the one Old Dan Boone used.

Would you hunt with a 65 grain charge of 777, seems light for critter hunting.

TCAZ

[Underclocked]

That's 65 grains by weight, about 81 grains by volume.  You betcha!

[RandyWakeman]

Which should I buy?  Seems to me that the 45 would be the best choice.  Flatter shooting and still plenty of energy for most everthing.  What do you all prefer?

No way can the .45 be flatter shooting.

[LJOHNS]

Seems like you all prefer the 50 over the 45.  Most everyone I talk to say the same.  Good enough for me.