Lyman Trade Rifle and sabots

[Harleysboss]

Hi all new guy here with question. I've got a 54cal Lyman Trade Rifle percussion 1-48 twist. I primarily shoot PRB out of this rifle with nice groups. As of late I have been kicking around the idea of trying some sort of sabot combo. I have tried the 300gr Precision rifle sabots but they seem to laod very easy. I have also tried the Great Plains conicals and they too seem to be undersized for my bore(almost no pressure needed to seat). Are there thicker sabots that I should try? Which maker or brand? I just would like the sabot to fit tighter to make a better seal. Any load info that has`worked for others would be great. Just want a good place to start my experiments. Thanks.

 

[cayuga]

Are you going to shoot a .452, 458, or .500 bullet? I have the same rifle in flintlock in both .50 and .54 caliber. My .54 caliber shoots 405 grain Powerbelts very well. I also purchased some red Harvester sabots and was shooting 240 grain .452 out of them with so so results. I mean I could hunt with it, but not long range. Its best load is of course a .535 roundball in a .018 patch with 85 grains of 2f black powder.

In the .50 caliber I was having some luck shooting my home cast conicals and some 240 grain XTPs...

Somewhere around here I have a bag of .54 caliber sabots made to shoot a .500 grain bullet. I think I will size down some to .501 and see how they shoot. Now you have me interested.

 

[cayuga]

Also... welcome to the forum. Its great to have you here.

 

[LarryBud]

Welcome to the forum.

I have a pile of 54 cal Knight lead cast in sabots. Shoot me a pm and send some your way. If they work well, I'll sell some to you on the cheap.

 

[Harleysboss]

I sent a PM Thx.

 

[Harleysboss]

I came across a company called HawkBullet.com and they offer a variety of ML bullets. Interested in the .500 FP 300grn matched with their 54 cal sabot .498-.500. Im thinking that combo would maybe fit tighter in my rifles bore. What do you think?

 

[excess650]

Both MMP and Harvester make sabots to accept various diameters of projectiles. Check their sites and see what is available.

A sabot needs to be at least snug in a clean barrel, and this is assuming a powder that is easily ignited. A tighter sabot is better with hard to ignite powders. My preferece is for real BP in a MLer, and particularly in a sidelock. It is a MUST in a flintlock.

 

[GM54-120]

Harvester makes a 54x45 sabot and they load loose. Using a .458 bullet instead of a .451 will tighten them up.

MMP makes a 54x50 Purple sabot and it loads tighter. I would guess a 300gr 50cal might stabilize in a slower twist. MMP also makes a 54x50 Red sabot just for Barnes and it loads even tighter but you can only buy them with Barnes bullets.

If the 300gr wont work, Rainier makes a 275gr HP. You can get them at MidwayUSA in packs of 100 or more.

http://www.midwayusa.com/find?sortby=1& ... ionid=6269

 

[Harleysboss]

I went out and shot 3, 3 round groups today using the Knight 54 cal sabots with the 300grn lead bullet. started at 80 grns 2f Goex. Shots were at 68yards by lazer range finder. Went from 80 to 90 and stopped at 100 grns. the 80 and 90 were just at 2 3/4 " and the 100 was right at 2". I was pleased. The holes were crisp with no keyholes, so I would guess that the bullets were stable in flight. They still loaded pretty easy with little resistence to seat them. Maybe the .500 bullet combo would be just a smidge tighter. More testing!