New member - new to muzzleloaders - Ontario Canada

[quaid]

Hello,
I've hunted white-tailed deer in Southern Ontario (Canada) for a decade. Our local regulations limit us to muzzleloaders or shotguns during the controlled hunt for deer, and I've had success using saboted slugs in a 12g rifled-barrel shotgun. The accuracy with the slug shotgun deteriorates rapidly past 150 yards. This year I've purchased a custom-built smokeless muzzleloader, with which I hope to extend my effective range out to 300 yards.

I've been searching and reading about lots of content here, largely in the smokeless muzzleloader sub forum.

 

[HC]

To the brotherhood

 

[ThreePoint]

Welcome from Coastal North Carolina. You're going to be so glad you joined this forum.
\

 

[deermanok]

Welcome from Oklahoma. I know something about slug guns but smokeless is not my forte.

 

[MTY]

Welcome from Idaho! I too am clueless about smokeless.

 

[UndeadPoet]

Welcome, from North Carolina!

 

[snapbang]

welcome, enjoy.

 

[deerlessbob]

Welcome.

 

[BuffaloSoldier]

Welcome from SE Missouri

 

[Oddieca]

Welcome, I'm from Southwestern Ontario as well. I have done a bit of smokeless muzzleloader shooting but only over the past 6 months or so. Still lots to learn which is the best part of these guns.

Jason

 

[ovbill]

Welcome, I'm from Southwestern Ontario, and you came to the right spot, I follow a few long range shooters, very interesting indeed

Bill

 

[Barn]

Howdy and Welcome! From Fort Worth Texas too

 

[gman57]

Welcome from NC ,relax enjoy the forum..

 

[Boone]

Welcome. How's the smokeless muzzleloader?

 

[quaid]

Welcome. How's the smokeless muzzleloader?

I have not shot it yet. I've been to my local range, but for clays rather than time at a bench. My first impressions are that it is a quality build. If I were to build my own I would probably substitute the CADEX stock for an MDT chassis. This stock is pillar bedded, but not a micro chassis like the MDT XRS. It feels good in the hands, regardless. There's a loading sled across the magazine port, which seems like a thoughtful addition but I wish there were some bottom metal or something to give the magazine port a finished appearance. I might be able to get something 3D printed to fill the magazine void. I have not yet bedded the picatinny rail or mounted the rings / optic.

I've acquired a few lbs of RL7 and a few hundred sabot+bullets to start out with. The powder was hard to come by. Everyone has been stocking up after the supply chain issues, which I'm sure is as true in the US as it has been in Canada. I intend to start with the 250gr SST kit, since the builder said these had worked well. Then I will try the 300gr SST kit, followed by 310gr 45 Dynamo in HPH sabot, and some 180gr 10mm FTX in 40x50 HPH sabots. I plan to post results on paper in the Smokeless sub forum when I have them.

I'm not sure if it's customary to run velocity ladders with smokeless muzzleloaders, but this technique has worked well for me in centerfire rifle load development to find "harmonic nodes". I'll start 10% below published 10ML-ii max charges and work up from there, first with a wide-step ladder (eg 1.0 gr steps) and then with a narrow-step ladder (eg 0.1 gr steps). I assume that pressure signs on the Arrowhead gen2 LRMP's will be similar to centerfire (flattened primers, difficulty operating the bolt, etc).

I'm not sure how much plastic fouling I should expect, but maybe a lot because of the 1:15 twist rate. I've got a big batch of Ed's Red ready to swab things out.

 

[jlynch75]

Welcome to the forum from New York. I have a lot of family in Ontario. I live in Rome, NY now but was born and raised in Niagara Falls. I've shot a lot of deer with 12ga slugs. But I like using my muzzle loader better.

 

[Hausser1]

Welcome from SE Michigan! Many years ago I had the pleasure of working with many folks in Oakville, Mississauga, Toronto and Barrie. Enjoy the forum!

 

[bdog]

welcome to the forum from another SW ontario dweller

 

[Boone]

I have not shot it yet. I've been to my local range, but for clays rather than time at a bench. My first impressions are that it is a quality build. If I were to build my own I would probably substitute the CADEX stock for an MDT chassis. This stock is pillar bedded, but not a micro chassis like the MDT XRS. It feels good in the hands, regardless. There's a loading sled across the magazine port, which seems like a thoughtful addition but I wish there were some bottom metal or something to give the magazine port a finished appearance. I might be able to get something 3D printed to fill the magazine void. I have not yet bedded the picatinny rail or mounted the rings / optic.

Hi Quaid, you clearly are good at what you do.Noticing the date, I thought you may have tried your smokeless muzzleloader already. Can you share about it when you do?

 

[4stringdude]

Welcome aboard! Good luck with your future hunts!!