.40 cal bullets questions

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they are not against the rules when used hunting which is what most people use their shotguns for, so a loose wad could then be the cause of fouling.
Generally with a wad better loads can be developed for hunting.




Most muzzle loading shotgun matches have rules and plastic shotgun wads are illegal. Use circle fly shotgun wads
 
Dennis did you come over from the Traditional board because if you dislike modern inline methods maybe its best you just ignore topics such as this one. Its clearly going to be sabot related if the OP is using a 40cal bullet in a 50cal ML.

The Optima V2 was never offered in anything but a 50cal and CVA has never offered a 40cal inline.
 
Dennis did you come over from the Traditional board because if you dislike modern inline methods maybe its best you just ignore topics such as this one. Its clearly going to be sabot related if the OP is using a 40cal bullet in a 50cal ML.

The Optima V2 was never offered in anything but a 50cal.
Inlines are ok if you know how to load them
 
Dennis did you come over from the Traditional board because if you dislike modern inline methods maybe its best you just ignore topics such as this one. Its clearly going to be sabot related if the OP is using a 40cal bullet in a 50cal ML.

The Optima V2 was never offered in anything but a 50cal and CVA has never offered a 40cal inline.

I own a .50 cal Optima and only shoot lead bullets. 1 inch groups at 100 yds from the bench
 
I own a .50 cal Optima and only shoot lead bullets. 1 inch groups at 100 yds from the bench
Do you use an overpowder wad? Find I get leading in the barrel if I don’t.

Back to OP. One thing I noticed with tighter sabots is that they quickly get real tough to load with Pyrodox when compared to 777 or even Swiss.
 
Do you use an overpowder wad? Find I get leading in the barrel if I don’t.

Back to OP. One thing I noticed with tighter sabots is that they quickly get real tough to load with Pyrodox when compared to 777 or even Swiss.

Usually load powder then about 20 grns of corn meal then conical. I never use BP substite usually 3F Goex
 
That blue Harvester 50x40 sabot is only .5045 loaded OD. Its not all that large as far as sabots go, plus its a crushrib which feels easier. Are you sure your jag is not going in the sabot and its what is making it hard to load?

How much does the bullet you are trying to use stick out past the sabot petals? If its virtually all the way below the petals, that is likely your problem.
There’s a picture of the 40 cal hornady 155 grain bullet in the harvester blue sabot designated for 40 cal bullets. Looks like you’re right. So please walk me through it. You’re saying my loading tip on my starter went inside the sabot and around the bullet and that kept the tip from “crushing” the petals inward? I tried two other tips and one of them didn’t have as pronounced a concave opening in it and made it much easier to load. Just trying to understand the mechanics of what’s going on. What’s the best all around loading tip? Is it best that the bullet stick out substantially from the sabot. I’ve never had a bullet not stick out until this combination. Thanks!
 

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155gr is a very small bullet even for plinking. There are 180s and 200s that would be better choices.
 
There’s a picture of the 40 cal hornady 155 grain bullet in the harvester blue sabot designated for 40 cal bullets. Looks like you’re right. So please walk me through it. You’re saying my loading tip on my starter went inside the sabot and around the bullet and that kept the tip from “crushing” the petals inward? I tried two other tips and one of them didn’t have as pronounced a concave opening in it and made it much easier to load. Just trying to understand the mechanics of what’s going on. What’s the best all around loading tip? Is it best that the bullet stick out substantially from the sabot. I’ve never had a bullet not stick out until this combination. Thanks!

Personally I don't think there's a best all around loading tip, at least not one that covers all bullets of all calibers. I would try dropping down to a .45 loading jag, or even a .40 of you can find one. You want to either have the tip of the bullet stick out far enough that you're just pushing on the bullet or else the jag be small enough to fit inside the sabot without getting pinched. You definitely want the bullet seated right against the base of the sabot.
 
Most likely its from the jag/loading tip entering inside the pedals but over the bullet and as you push down on the rod the tip is getting a little between the bullet and sabot there by making your load diameter larger. There are some tips that look a little like a punch that push the bullet from inside on the bottom of the hollow point. One tip that might work is the one packed with packages of PR bullets, its narrow and plastic.

Look at the tips in the middle and left in this link. I think I have one somewhere I would not use. I'll look around for it.

https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1002223940?pid=611804
 
Found them. The one from PR Bullets is the one on the left.

upload_2019-8-19_17-7-46.jpeg
 
155gr is a very small bullet even for plinking. There are 180s and 200s that would be better choices.

The 155-180 .40 bullets were the downfall of the .45 "super" inlines back in the day. Lots of bullet failures when pushed hard (would make excellent varmint ammo though).

Stick with the 200 HP or better yet, the 200 SST if you are going to be shooting .40 bullets.
 
Every Super 45 maker back then got on the "take 3 pellets and a 155gr" band wagon trying to hype 7mm-08 type performance. That load was still poor after going to the slower twists that followed.

Not much if any difference in cost between a 40cal 155gr and a 200gr. The 200gr is ok for hunting if you dont go crazy with the muzzle velocity. Plus its better suited to the sabots and twist rates.
 
Every Super 45 maker back then got on the "take 3 pellets and a 155gr" band wagon trying to hype 7mm-08 type performance. That load was still poor after going to the slower twists that followed.

Not much if any difference in cost between a 40cal 155gr and a 200gr. The 200gr is ok for hunting if you dont go crazy with the muzzle velocity. Plus its better suited to the sabots and twist rates.

Wholeheartedly agree!

Definitely do not push the HP .40 bullets very fast, but the 200 SST can take quite a bit more velocity than the 200 HP.
 
Yep, think about it like this. A 200gr 40cal at lets say 1800fps is close to a 44mag in a carbine. While its quite a bit over a 10mm carbine load with the same bullet weight. The XTP does start getting a bit fragile at this speed but a well placed shot is not all that bad. Hornady offers a similar bullet in HAP configuration instead of XTP. They are a bit cheaper and may expand a bit slower. Main differences are pure lead core and no expansion slits on the HAP. So its very much like the Nosler 200gr 40cal.

Personally ive had pretty poor results with 50x40 loads. You can get .451s as light as 180gr and enjoy a far better selection of sabots. Shoot a Barnes 45LC 200gr XPB around the same speed and you got a very very nice little load. Extremely light recoil and no concerns about the bullet being too fragile.

200gr SST is far better suited to much faster MV. Considering cost i would look at the Fury 40cals instead. Thinner jacket but its bonded to the lead core. Price is nearly the same as the SST. Around $44/50
 
I worked in a muzzleloader shop for 13 years before he closed his doors for good. The owner would often have me try out new products (rifles, powders, bullet/sabot combos) so we would know some things to recommend and what things not to bother carrying in the store. Back then a muzzleloader was my deer rifle for every season (before Indiana allowed centerfire rifles). I now have 26 years of muzzleloading experience with the last 5 years adding smokeless muzzleloading to the mix.

My only exposure to the 50/40 combo was the original .40 Shockwave (yellow-tipped SST) bullets in the smooth blue 50 cal sabots when they first came out. I was shooting a first generation stainless Omega back then with 125 grains 777 loose powder. It was an incredibly accurate load and it put down deer very well.

It was accurate enough that when I went to unload the muzzleloader at the range in the spring I caught a groundhog out on the 100 yard berm munching away and I put that 200 grainer straight through his head.

I recently picked up some of the Harvestor Crush Rib 50/40 to give a try sometime with the 200 SST bullets in my Sidekick just for the heck of it.
 

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