Federal 50 Caliber Muzzleloader Bullet Revisited

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Last winter i tried to purchase more of these bullets, but they were out of stock at the store. I requested i be notified when they came in stock. Last week an email came, and some of these copper conicals were ordered. You can understand why i figure these bullets were made recently, and are not old stock. This morning a trip was made with jugs and stuff to see how these bullets would perform.





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That front jug had a large opening, so it was filled with a mixture of jointer chips, sawdust, planer chips, and sand dust. Then water was added. It was quite heavy when finished. The 'trap' was 25 yard away from the rifle. The powder charge was 50g of Blackhorn. The bullets were clocked at 1140 fps with the chronograph set at the same 25 yard. The video of the capture can be seen HERE. Following are a few stills taken from the video.





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The bullet penetrated through the three jugs, 813 pages of the phone book, and was found on the ground near where the phone book lay.






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At home i realized the bullet had a piece of a milk jug in it's nose, so i removed it and photographed it again.





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Too bad. We know a Barnes, or Bloodline would expand in the same test.
 
Disappointing that it did not expand. That close with that kind of explosive impact and it didn't open? Not something I would want to happen on an elk hunt.
 
That is, just butt ugly for FEDERAL, at that distance you would think they would have done a POWERBELT DOUBLE. :poke: Ron I have some f you need to do more testing. FREE
 
Hello, the powder charge was 50g Blackhorn.

Surely you would use more than 50g of powder whilst elk hunting. That bullet was only traveling at 1140 fps, which is the speed it would have at over 200 yard if the powder charge were 115g Blackhorn.

Please send me no powerbelt.
 
WV Hunter said:
Interesting. I wonder how that bullet would have looked fired with 100gr powder?
Thoughts?

It would expand perfect until you got out far enough to lower the fps to what Ron shot.
 
WV Hunter said:
Interesting. I wonder how that bullet would have looked fired with 100gr powder?
Thoughts?




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That is what it looked like when the impact speed was 1335 fps.






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Going by that information from Federal, a load of 100g will have the bullet slow to 1352 fps at 150 yard. Can't say what it would look like at 25 yard. Perhaps it is time for another experiment. Jugs is what we need, jugs, jugs, and more jugs.
 
I'm a big milk drinker. I've got jugs coming out my ears, and does that ever hurt.
 
I would not trade my never used, dust-covered box of 230 gr XTPs for these Federals, one-for-one.
If the bullet does not expand, or only expands at x-numbered speed, it never sees the inside of my bore. That includes the highly touted, deep-penetrating Lehighs. I prefer to stick with lead and/or copper-clad at moderate speeds for up-to 150 yard harvests, which is the maximum distance where 95% of deer are taken.

It seems so many bullets are being discussed here for 200-400 shots. The audience for those lengthy shots is so-so small in this industry. It reminds me of FOX TV setting up earth-wide media coverage to broadcast/aid a small group of office workers in India. FOX wants the whole world to see the coverage, despite the outcome only affecting an almost non-existent fraction of interested parties. In summation of this, once the world finds out the bullets don't open, they turn their cheek and purchase elsewhere.

I used to post heavily on muzzleloader boards, then stopped several years ago. When I returned in December, I noticed immediately that the average joe shooter was missing-mostly and companies that represent bullet-making, gun making, sabot-making and breechplug-making, were doing most-all of the posting.

We need more average-Joes to return to various Muzzleloader boards. I'm talking the 95% group that shoots 150 yards and under. So wherever you are, please return and lets talk basic muzzleloading, offering our helping hands, once again.
 
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