275gr .50 ELR Bullet With Savage ML II??

[Harley469]

I checked the forums to see if anyone had tried ELR bullets with their smokeless ML's and I only found a post relating to .45's and that didn't have any responses by anyone who had actually tried them with smokeless powder. I currently use 57grns of N120 with a 300gr Barnes Original/Fury Star Tip, with MMP sabots and have good results. That being said, it would be great if I didn't need to use a sabot, and have a bullet with a higher ballistic coefficient. I don't know if a 1:24 twist will stabalize the ELR bullet, or if the base will hold up to the smokeless powder. What do you guys think? I did buy a package of them to test this out, so we will see.

 

[GM54-120]

Im pretty certain a 1-24 will stabilize that bullet but i would suggest a powder with a milder rise and peak like 4198 or Reloder7 might be even better. The old 50cal sabotless PDF file list bullets upto 350gr and mostly 4198 for powder. About 64gr of 4198 with a 275gr-325gr sabotless

The better question does the ELR fit tight enough in a Savage bore. Might need to tinker with that a bit. Maybe a polywad would be enough?

 

[Harley469]

Im pretty certain a 1-24 will stabilize that bullet but i would suggest a powder with a milder rise and peak like 4198 or Reloder7 might be even better. The old 50cal sabotless PDF file list bullets upto 350gr and mostly 4198 for powder. About 64gr of 4198 with a 275gr-325gr sabotless

The better question does the ELR fit tight enough in a Savage bore. Might need to tinker with that a bit. Maybe a polywad would be enough?

I'll be sure and report back once I they show up. I will also try them in my 1:24 Pedersoli Hawken Hunter. I have to take a look at what the maximum charge is for that gun. Not sure it will accept a charge high enough to stabalize the bullet.

 

[dozer_xj]

I tried them in my 50 cal encore smi smokelss. Results on accuracy were meh BUT I think the twist rate on the SMI barrls is like 1:36 or something

 

[GM54-120]

Look at it like this....if a 1-24 will stabilize a 325gr FTX in a sabot, it will most certainly stabilize a 50cal 330gr. LOTs of guys shot them 325gr FTXs in the MLIIs with no problem at all. The poly tip length hardly effects OAL stability calculations. It weighs so little vs the bullet.

 

[Harley469]

Look at it like this....if a 1-24 will stabilize a 325gr FTX in a sabot, it will most certainly stabilize a 50cal 330gr. LOTs of guys shot them 325gr FTXs in the MLIIs with no problem at all. The poly tip length hardly effects OAL stability calculations. It weighs so little vs the bullet.

I always thought that OAL of a bullet was the major factor involved in the stabilization of a bullet?

 

[GM54-120]

What is longer?....45cal and 325gr worth of lead or 50cal and 330gr worth of lead?

As an example, a 50cal 400gr that is 1.3" long is easily stabilized at 2000fps in a 1-24 twist. It has a 1.8+ stability rating by JBM. The same weight and length bullet in 458cal drops to 1.5+ stability rating which is still ok. So its not just length because caliber will effect the max length too.

 

[jims]

Would the ELRs work in a NULA .50 also?

 

[GM54-120]

Would the ELRs work in a NULA .50 also?

I wouldnt try it with such a light contour. Even Savage does not approve of anything but sabots when using smokeless.

 

[Harley469]

What is longer?....45cal and 325gr worth of lead or 50cal and 330gr worth of lead?

As an example, a 50cal 400gr that is 1.3" long is easily stabilized at 2000fps in a 1-24 twist. It has a 1.8+ stability rating by JBM. The same weight and length bullet in 458cal drops to 1.5+ stability rating which is still ok. So its not just length because caliber will effect the max length too.

Maximum charge for my Pedersoli Hawken with the 1:24 twist is 110grns of black powder, so I am doubting I will have enough velocity to make these bullets work, but I will give it a shot when they arrive. Purchased them from Muzzle-loaders.com, and delivery always takes a bit from the west coast. Also bought some Arrowhead NSR 300gr bullets and and some Pittman 300gr bullets at the recommendation of my builder for my .45 smokeless, so I've got a lot of shooting to try out this weekend (also second firearm season here in IL, so not sure when I will get the range work in, but I will be out there with my ML's either way).