Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

[Dragonheart]

Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

I had a chance to shoot some at my dad's place.  I experimented with several variables.  At 90 grains of ffg Goex, the rifle had a crack sound to it.  This was the load I settled on. 

.50 Caliber 1 in 60 twist, Great Plains rifle
75 grains ffg Goex
.490 round ball with sprue
.020 Pushing Daiseys patch-lubed with bear grease- October Country
Standard nipple

50 yrds off bench, swabbed between shots, with glasses on...aging eyes

Shot off hand at 30 yrds at the plate...

 

[exMember]

Re: Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

Can't complain about that! Very fine shooting!

I love the horn! That is one hell of a curve to it.

 

[Dragonheart]

Re: Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

My brother made it from a buffalo horn.  

 

[exMember]

Re: Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

love it! he did one hell of a beautiful job on it. I especially love that brass spacer between the wood/horn. It really makes the horn pop.

 

[Dragonheart]

Re: Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

Took the Great Plains out for evening hunt.  No critters.  Took my young'un along...

  

 

[Marty1]

Re: Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

With that group you're certainly ready to enter the woods!
Good luck hunting.


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p.s. It's great to see our next generation enjoying the outdoors!  

 

[Buck Conner1]

Re: Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

I see your wearing your possible (shooting) pouch and horn at a good height, this is what was mentioned in another post. "Dragonheart" is able to work from this height (or he would have changed it), can control it from flopping around when moving through the forest with arm pressure too. 

Many get setup in their mind, then haven't tested and retested their gear and find issues when in the field. This picture shows our friend has given some thought to how he wants his gear to be carried and still workable, good job.  :ttups:

 

[Dragonheart]

Re: Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

I was sitting with my back against an oak tree and butt on the ground.  Had just put up a few branches as some cover for a blind and got settled.  The does came out and soon cleared the brush, my set trigger already set, I placed the blade and the buckhorn in alignment and squeezed off the shot.  

Buckaroo!  She kicked like a bronco out of the chute.  The other does scattered thru the brush.  I was still and quiet, listening for any movement in the leaves.  I slowly, quietly, and carefully reloaded, powder-patch-ball, yes, that order, powder-patch-ball, I repeated in my mind.  I made my way slowly to the edge of the thicket.  

No blood?  I made a move back to the left, then back right, YES!  A speck of red...  I very slowly moved thru the thick.  More blood, but only some drops.  Then I saw a huge splotch and my deer laying just past there 5 yards away.  She was near the end.  Dispatched second shot.  As I saw the smoke exit her side, the mixed emotion in taking an animal hit me.  The natural world can supply us with so much, we tend to forget the wonder of it all until we hunt.  I looked up for a moment as she passed on, her spirit now to be reborn in another form.  

I thought to myself, Lord thank you, thank you.  Truly a Thanksgiving.  

  

 

[Buck Conner1]

Re: Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

I slowly, quietly, and carefully reloaded, powder-patch-ball, yes, that order, powder-patch-ball, I repeated in my mind.

When excited we have seen many get the rotation wrong and they are done for the day if they can't pull the ball. 

I have forgotten or didn't keep count of the times we had customers come in with this problem We would show them different ways to cure the problem from compressed air to putting powder it the vent or nipple, but for some reason the same guns would come back several times in a season. Then the story was it was my son, my daugther or wife that has done the reverse rotation of loading. 

I have been hunting legally since I was 10 years of age (earlier illegally) with anything from military surplus guns to whatever we had, my dad use to preach to us "Powder-Patch-Ball" when using his original muzzleloaders (usually Rev War or Civil War muskets). 

I can still hear him saying "Powder-Patch-Ball", thanks for bringing that up, for me it puts a smile on my face.

 

[exMember]

Re: Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

You sure put that load to use in a hurry! Congrats.

 

[Hylander]

Re: Lyman Great Plains .50 caliber

Very Nice setup and shooting, also love that horn.