Heavy for caliber sabots?

[SteveJohnson]

Hi all, I'm new to this site and muzzleloaders in general. I have some questions somebody here can hopefully answer because nobody else I've talked to seems to know.

Recently I purchased a .50 caliber inline muzzleloader for black powder season, I really enjoyed the whole experience of hunting with it and intend to do it for years to come.

I'm interested in using .44 or .45 sabots but I'd to know some things before spending the money.
Can I expect the same muzzle velocity using the same weight bullets? For example a 350 grain .50 vs a 350 grain .44 sabot.
How accurate are sabot rounds?
How heavy of a bullet will my gun (CVA wolf) stabilize? I've seen .44 bullets over 400 grains.

I'd really like to get the best long range performance possible and I figure a heavy .44 or .45 bullet would retain quite a bit more energy and penetration due to the higher sectional density/ballistic coefficient.

 

[bestill]

I would recommend staying around300 gr and definitely45 bullet.
Less plastic is always better.

My best recommendation
Barnes290 TEZ use with supplied sabot

 

[ronlaughlin]

The supplied sabot may be too loose in a Wolf barrel. The short black Harvester may work better.

 

[GM54-120]

Its not so much the weight as it is the length. Required twist is based on weight and length. A 350gr 44cal is certainly longer than a 350gr 45cal bullet. More fps or a faster twist will be required to stabilize the longer bullet that weighs the same. A 1-24 twist would have a big advantage when we start talking about a 350gr bullet or larger.

In the case of a CVA though it states right in the manual not to use over a 300gr bullet in a sabot.