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mpgavin1987

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Have been reading and learning a lot from post.
Bought my Optima Pro Magnum and traditions scope 1x32 several years ago when I was drawn for a muzzleloader permit in a bow only wma. Used it that season then stored it away.

My questions are:

What range do most people sight in at?

How long do you leave your muzzleloader loaded before taking the breech plug out and removing the pellets?

How good of a grouping is good enough for you?


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All my rifles are sighted in at 100yds

I don't use pellets, I only use loose powder and usually shoot it at the range when I want to unload.

An inch or less at 100yds makes me happy
 
I sight in at a hundred yards and that's about as far as I'll shoot at deer. If I'm getting 2 or 3" groups at a hundred yards, I'm okay with that. I've shot better on some days, but I don't worry about allowing the barrel to cool between shots or swab between shots.
I leave my gun loaded unless I'm hunting in the pouring rain. I use BH209 these days, but I've used pellets in the past, both Pyrodex and 777.
 
I'm also new to muzzleloaders. My wife got me a CVA Wolf .50 Cal with a 9X32 Scope.
I knew when I shot the gun there would be smoke but I guess I didn't realise how much.
How am I suppose to see if I hit the deer I will be aiming at? I'm currently using two 50 grain
White Hots, a 209 primer, and a PowerBelt™ Aero Tip and Hollow Point 295 grain bullet.

I'm also wondering if anyone can reccomend a cheaper bullet I can use for target practice?
 
bp

Harvestermuzzleloading.com is a good place to buy bullets, sabots or both, without killing what's inside your wallet.

Click the Products link and (for example), buy a 50-pk of 260gr Scorpion PT Golds and a 50-pk of Harvester Crush Rib Sabots.... black ones in 50/45cal.

Or go to gun reloading aisle and buy a 50-pk of Hornady XTPs in 240, 250 or 300gr. Also 45cal bullets and use 50-pk sabots with them.
 
mpg
I shoot at 50 - then 100 yard ranges
I never leave my load-in. I shoot it-out every day while hunting. Just do it away from where you hunt.

I am happy with 3-4" at 100. I use no rest or bags hunting. It's all off-hand / free-style shooting.
The kill zone on deer is roughly 8", so 3-4" works for me at 100.
 
There are plenty of sabots that tend to cost less than Powerbelts. Check Cabelas.com, muzzle-loader.com, Midway, or Bass Pro.

With sabots, and a scope, you can reasonably hope for 1-2 inch groups at 100yds. Maybe better, with some fine tuning of the charge. Which is a good reason to ditch the pellets and use granulated powder. Sometimes 10, or even 5 grains more or less, can make a big difference. And it's cheaper.

I will leave the charge in my ml for up to the entire week or two that I have to hunt. I just remove the #11 cap at the end of each day, when I get back to my vehicle.

What range you should zero at is a more personal preference. My MK-85 is 3 inches high at 50yds and zeroed at 100yds. So in the heat of the moment, if the deer is 120yds or less, I don't have waste too many brain cells thinking about hold-over. Also, my rear peep sight is as high as it will go. I'll have to shim it, or get a shorter front sight if I want to zero higher. I'll probably do that at some point, because where I hunt, I can often see deer at much greater ranges. If most of your opportunities are going to be closer, you may want to sight in for closer. Maybe 75?
 
What range do most people sight in at?
I sight in at 50-yards, 1-inch high. With my lousy eyesight, this ensures I have honest results. I use a chrono to get velocity and a good program to get the ballistics flight for my bullet. The 1" high at 50 yards gives me not much about 1.5" low at 150 yards. Then I confirmed it at 100 yards target and ringing 200 yard gongs. I've killed at 109 yards, hitting exactly where it should have hit.


How long do you leave your muzzleloader loaded before taking the breech plug out and removing the pellets?

I always remove the 209 primer, but leave in the power and breach plug. For up to 4-weeks. Then I shoot it out. Since I do that, I do use anti-sieze on the threads.


How good of a grouping is good enough for you?

I'll take shots to 200 yards with a scope, as the range results show the rifle capable of it as long as I have a rest. So, I really like a 1" group at 100 yards.
 
bpage1124 said:
I'm also new to muzzleloaders. My wife got me a CVA Wolf .50 Cal with a 9X32 Scope.
I knew when I shot the gun there would be smoke but I guess I didn't realise how much.
How am I suppose to see if I hit the deer I will be aiming at?
I'm currently using two 50 grain
White Hots, a 209 primer, and a PowerBelt™ Aero Tip and Hollow Point 295 grain bullet.

I'm also wondering if anyone can reccomend a cheaper bullet I can use for target practice?

The Smoke blocking your view is part of the attraction for a lot of us, adds to the fun. Need to make the first and sometimes only shot count. :wink: It clears quick enough to see one run a bit or see it on the ground.

Power belts, and Pellets, are not a popular bullet here. They are too expensive for what you get. You can do much better and do it less expensive than the PB. A lot of the bullets we use are made for the 44mag, 45 long Colt, 454 Casull. A couple good bullets for you to shoot and hunt with are the Hornaday XTP and the Speer Deep Curls. I would go with the .452 diameter bullets in the Harvester Crush Rib sabots in your Wolf. My Nephew has one of the older models of the wolf and it loved the Crush rib with a Hornaday .452dia 300gn XTP with 2 777 50gn Pellets. If you have a Cabela's near you you can usually get both of them there, or order on line. Loose Powder is a better choice than the pellets as it is much less expensive, gives to more flexibility in load development and the bottles are sealed so don't draw moisture like the boxes for pellets.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/39157 ... -box-of-50

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/71943 ... -box-of-50

This would be good with a 2 pellet load too.
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/39325 ... -box-of-50

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/44872 ... pack-of-50
 

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