Been awhile... Need help with conicals in my Black Diamond

[Confederate rifleman]

What's the trick to getting consistent accuracy and sub 3-6 inch 100 yard groups? I shoot 3f Swiss black and have tried Lee REALS and minies, T/C Maxi's and Maxi hunters Buffalo Ball-ets and Hornady Pa conicals. I'm thinking a Plan B load for when the day comes that all you shoot is what you cast. Sabot loads in my BDXR.50 are in the 1-2 inch range so 3-6 isn't too good by comparison. I'd be content with consistent 3 inchers. would wads over powder help? The QLA on my barrel seems quite good so That doesn't appear to be an issue. Any help appreciated!

 

[bp45cal]

Re: Been awhile... Need help with conicals in my Black Diamo

slug your barrel and size your bullets 6"groups at 100 need to be shrunk alot

 

[rubby]

Re: Been awhile... Need help with conicals in my Black Diamo

i would try 2f swiss,2f shoots better out of my guns,i could use 3f if i wasin a pinch,but2f is much better

 

[cayuga]

Re: Been awhile... Need help with conicals in my Black Diamo

My Black Diamond XR shot excellent groups at 88 yards (I thought it was a hundred yards at the time). I was shooting 85 grains of Goex 3f and a 460 grain No Excuses Conical. In the fast twist a long conical I believe tends to stabilize better.

 

[River Rat]

Re: Been awhile... Need help with conicals in my Black Diamo

Try this
90 grains Pryodex select
Win 209 primer
TC maxi ball
Wad

Make sure your scope is mounted correctly.

 

[txhunter58]

Re: Been awhile... Need help with conicals in my Black Diamo

On what do you base thinking that your QLA is OK? mine looked Ok as well, but the gun would not shoot normal full bore lead conicals well until I cut it off. I think you have experimented enough to say that probably your QLA most likely is the problem, especially since it shoots very well with sabots.

As I see it, you have 2 choices:

1) you could cut off the QLA. Not necessarily what you want to do I am sure.

2) There are a few conicals that will normally shoot decent out of a QLA gun: Powerbelts, Hornady FPBs, and Thors
Pretty much anything with a "bell" on the back that will expand in the QLA and help it act like a sabot. I really like FPBs and have killed 3 elk with them. My Omega shot terrible with all the conicals you mentioned trying, but shot 3-5 inch groups with the bullets listed here. But that was with open sights. If you want better than that, you will proably have to remove the QLA

 

[Confederate rifleman]

Re: Been awhile... Need help with conicals in my Black Diamo

Thanks for the help. I've wondered for awhile if the full bores are still obdurating when they enter the QLA. Its kinda ironic as it seems T/C designed the QLA for full bore projectiles. Why the QLA would effect a full bore and not a sabot is a mystery also. I don't want to cut off the QLA for a couple reasons. 1 it gives fantastic protection to the actual crown and 2 I don't want to lose any sight radius. My Black Diamond wears a Savage #10 aperture rear sight. Will try wads and other options and will get back to you. If it was easy everybody'd be doing it( and where would the fun be in that?!) Cayuga, I bet the recoil of those 460's is no fun!

 

[txhunter58]

Re: Been awhile... Need help with conicals in my Black Diamo

I always figured it is blowby that knocks the bullets off course in the QLA and it is easy to see why. The QLA is cut in the perfect center of the barrel, but the bore is slightly off center. So when the bullet enters the QLA, gas goes by easier on one side than the other, causing the bullet to tilt.

I suspect that a sabots plastic is not rigid and will mold to the shape of the QLA when it enters, preventing this one side blowby. A powerbelt has a rear plastic bell, that serves the same purpose as a sabot to prevent blowby.

If you dont' have to use a solid lead concial, give the FPBs a try. You will need a short starter since the rear bell is 0.507. You drop in into the QLA and place the short starter over it (with a pointy bullet loading jag) and give it a "whap". That sizes it to your barrel. You can then push it down with your ramrod. At best I was getting 3-4 inches at 100 yards with open sights (for me that was pretty good) with the occasional flier. But I wanted the option of shooting bigger lead bullets that were cheaper, so I cut the thing off.

Lower powder charges and wads are worth a shot, but they didn't work for me.