accurate

[tommyc279]

I am looking to purchase a muzzleloader and was wondering which rifle to purchase. I am not concern with brands, I just want the most accurate rifle out of the box. Please any feed back or advise would be very helpful. Also any other advise for trying to make a 250 yd hunting machine would also be helpful! thanks as always!

 

[trebark]

tommy - I have a Optima Pro 50cal with a 28" barrel. Loaded with three 50grain pellets of Triple7 and a 245grain bullet, it will shoot ~1moa at 100 yards. This load has sufficient energy and trajectory to go 250 yards.

 

[esshup]

I've got a Savage Muzzleloader and really like it because I can use smokeless powder (CF rifle powder) 43.5g IMR-4759 CCI 209M Primer, MMP short sabot, 250 gr SST = 5/8"w x 3/8" tall 3 shot group @ 100 Yds from a bench. It's moving @ 2300 fps. I can load it down for a kid or load it up for bigger critters. I've loaded it down with a 200 gr bullet for a 900 ft. lb. hit @ 100 Yds for my nephew, and loaded it up for wild boar - .458" 350 gr. TSX @2350 fps although you can hit 2515fps with 84 grains of H322. Not something that you want to target practice with for an extended shooting session!

I don't have to clean it until my season is done, no matter how many shots I shoot!

 

[243VLS]

t/c endeavor with 2 trp.7 mag.pellets make 120 gr. of powder and shoots 1/2" at a 100 yards I got the endeavor last year and shot 2 deer one at 168 yards and one at 146 both drt. little to say I love my endeavor oh and a 200gr. shockwave

 

[ATH]

If you want smokeless, get the Savage, bed the sucker or go all the way and install the 3rd pillar, and you'll have the best long range factory ML out there.

If you want to stick with BP and BP subs, I recommend the Omega because it is easy to bed and accurize -- not so the break actions.

My Omega has had pillars added and is bedded, and will shoot .75-1.00" at 100 yds for the majority of groups as long as I let the barrel cool. It holds similar accuracy out to 400 yds consistently.

I made one run with it to 500 yds with the 325gr Hornady FTX .458" and it was pretty good, 8" group with most of the spread being wind.

IMHO the best two long range bullets out there right now are the 200gr Shockwave (NOT the 250) and the 325gr FTX with the 265gr FTX coming in a close to that. I knock the 250gr Shockwave because a) it is ballistically inferior to both the 200 and 300 at long range, and b) I know the 200 performs well on game across a wide range of velocities (I've killed deer to 338 yds with it) and the 250 is a bit frangile. I have not shot any animals with the 325gr FTX yet but will this fall.

 

[smokepoler]

ATH, what loads did you use in the Omega? I haven't tried the 200 shockwave and have been having good luck with the 285 Barnes TMZs. TIA, SP

 

[dougedwards]

I have great respect for tradition but you did mention accuracy. There is no better way to adjust a load to a particular rifle than with smokeless powder choices. I have two primarily stock Savage muzzleloaders and they did NOT shoot well out of the box as Savage proclaims that they will. However with some testing and experimentation I finally discovered what loads each of them likes.

The blued barrel with a stock borrowed from a Savage short action varmit bull barreled rifle is a very nice shooter of 250 grain projectiles with the right sabot.

Shot #1 was from a cleaned barrel and all shots were taken at 100 yds in a left to right crosswind using a Weaver 4x32 shotgun scope with duplex reticle.

The stainless barreled Savage with laminate thumbhole stock is better at shooting 300 grainers but this particular range session produced some vertical stringing, unusual for this rifle and load which is usually quite proficient out to 300 yards.

I am sure that there are more accurate muzzleloaders out there but for the money you would be hard pressed to find a stock front stuffer that will produce such consistent results as a Savage 10ML. However, like most good things in life, preferred results might not come easily.

I remember the day when the terms "muzzleloader" and "accuracy" would not be spoken in the same sentence. In today's times we have choices. If Daniel Boone would have had access to an AR-15 I am sure that he would have used it. Today we have a choice to employ the use of ole' Daniel Boone's weapon or one of a more advanced technology. The choice is obviously a personal one.

Doug

 

[tome]

i wanted a savage till i saw what my shooting partner is going thru w/ a new savage ml. if you live close to a place to shoot and have time to sort out what the rifle likes to shoot.. have at. i'll stick w/ my knight .50 cal disc rifle. it shoots better than anything i've seen..but again a pia to clean..if you can find a used knight disc rifle that has been cleaned properly & can live w/ cleaning it after each use..you can't go wrong w/ knight..this thing shoot so good out of the box.i took the target back to the gun shop to show how it shot & was told that all of the shot that way.this one has a green mt. barrel that really shoots. buy the way..it has never failed to fire.

 

[ATH]

ATH, what loads did you use in the Omega? I haven't tried the 200 shockwave and have been having good luck with the 285 Barnes TMZs. TIA, SP

My standard load for the last 6 or 7 years, basically since the 200SW was introduced, has been the 200SW with 110gr ffG 777 powder (2050 fps). The reason for this charge is because groups open up significantly even at 115gr. I shot this out to 400 yds at targets and my longest kill was 338 yds (tactical scope with dial-up, calm wind). Getting very low on energy, complete pass-thru but nervous to shoot game past 350 yds.

This year I worked up the 325gr .458 FTX, 1950fps with 135gr ffG 777. Virtually duplicates the trajectory of my 200SW load through 400yds with significantly less wind drift, then is superior past that distance with double the energy. Shot to 500 yds one time, 800yd group mostly wind spread (vertical dispersion only 2-3").

There is some controversy as to how the FTX bullets perform at muzzleloader velocities; this is especially relevant when using them at the ranges I typically shoot across wide open fields in the midwest. Rumor is they are harder lead than the SW/SST and don't expand well. I don't buy rumors, I test them for myself. There is not a lot of hard facts as they were just released after most hunting seasons closed last year. I'll try them myself this year and report on performance.