Reduced BH209 Load - Help Needed

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yoda4x4

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I could use some help… I’m looking at purchasing a CVA Wolf V2 for my daughter who’s soon to be 10 years old. Up till now, the only gun she’s shot is a 22LR rifle. So, this muzzleloader will be the first gun that she’ll shoot with some real recoil. I’d like to develop a load that can kill a deer at 50 yds with reasonable accuracy (2-3” group) using Blackhorn 209that has the lowest amount of recoil as possible. What do you suggest?

David
 
You could try loading up the gun with 40-60 grains by volume along with a patched round ball to see how she does with it.
I haven't tried the above in my Optima or Wolf rifle but it's an accurate load in my Optima pistol.
 
Big issue with kids and guns is the physical size and weight of the gun itself. Strongly recommend a good front rest, etc. on a real shooting bench when working with young 'uns.

That said, I've helped a small-for-age 11 year old boy shoot my .54 percussion, started with 30gr 3Fg and a patched ball and then second shot was 50gr with a patched ball and he had no issues once he realized it wasn't any worse than his dad's 243 he'd shot previously.

In your case, I'd have the kid start with a really light load and the lightest bullet you can get in a sabot or just a patched round ball and fire a couple of shots to get used to the boom, smoke, etc. since it is a very different experience from cartridge guns. Then step up the powder charge a bit, and then after a few shots there step it up to a functional but not full power hunting load that will fit your needs.
 
I would start at 50gr(V) with a cheap 45 185gr bullet, to let her get use to it. You may can start higher than 50. Let her shoot 50 then try 55 then 60 or ever how you want to do it.
You could load up 80(V) of BH209 with the 185gr and let her watch you shoot it. If she can shoot 80gr (V) with the Barnes 45ACP 185gr TAC-XP. At 50yds, if she put it through the ribs, put yours dragging boots, meat is on the ground.

According to BH209 load data, a 50/44 180gr with 80gr is around 1800 fps.
 
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My daughter was shooting 300 gr. Xtp with a load of 70 gr. Volume of BH209 with great results. Had a pass thru at 100 yards on a young mule deer for her first muzzleloader buck. This was out of a Traditions youth Buckstalker , very light weight rifle, but was not too much recoil for even her small frame. I did start her out at 50 gr. and worked up to the 70 with her shooting and she kept telling me to go up on the charge.
 
Barnes also has a 10mm 155gr TAC-XP bullet. I never tried it in my Optima V2 50. I always had better luck/accuracy with 45 cal bullets in the 50 cal. In my Optima V2 50 with the Barnes 185gr it was very accurate. I was pushing it faster.
load info - 74 gr. (wt) of BH209, Fed. 209A, MMP black sabot, Barnes 185 gr TAC-XP. The Barnes and MMP fit very snug in the Optima. The load above was mild in the recoil department.
 
Granddaughter all of 70 lbs soaking wet. Shoots a traditions buckstalker youth. 70grs volume bh209 with 250 gr xtp in black crush rib sabot with zero issues. Complete pass through on 4 deer ranging from 60 to 110 lbs and one pig around 90 lbs. Hope this helps. Also i carry a bog fieldpod to keep her steady and on target
 
Thanks everyone for your help. Physically my daughter should be fine as she's not small; she's like 4'5" and 95 lbs. But like I said initially, she's never shot anything but a 22LR rifle which has absolutely zero kick. And I don't want her to get scared or bruised with this new gun. Especially since my ex-wife, her mom, would probably have a fit about it. I'll start at 50 grains by volume and see how it goes.

David
 
Thanks everyone for your help. Physically my daughter should be fine as she's not small; she's like 4'5" and 95 lbs. But like I said initially, she's never shot anything but a 22LR rifle which has absolutely zero kick. And I don't want her to get scared or bruised with this new gun. Especially since my ex-wife, her mom, would probably have a fit about it. I'll start at 50 grains by volume and see how it goes.

David
Just be sure to start low and let her decide when to bump up the charges !
 
The thing I continually see in discussions about kids or women's guns is that gun weight is left out, or -- worse yet -- the gun is touted because it is light in weight. Should be just the opposite! Why? Principle of physics that every action has an equal an opposite reaction. So when the powder force pushes the bullet forward it also pushes the gun backward with the same amount of force. The greater the gun's weight, the more this mass can resist the gun's tendency to push backward with felt recoil.
I've shot some truly heavy-recoiling firearms, and among the worst was a single-shot "youth model" 20 ga. shotgun using a relatively heavy turkey load. These guns are continually given or auctioned away at fundraisers like NRA or National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF)! Talk about a way to induce instant flinch and dislike of shooting in a light-weight youth or woman!
So in addition to using the lightest powder charge and bullet or ball, add weigh to the "youth gun". Some lead weights taped to the foreend, and perhaps lead added to good-sized holes drilled in the buttstock under the recoil pad.
And get a strap-on recoil pad and modify it to fit the youth or woman. Use a slip-on pad on the gun too (if the gun has no integral recoil pad), if that does not make the "length of pull" too long for the youth or woman shooter.
And lastly, very importantly, hearing protection that is truly good, which immediately throws out those simple foam earplugs I so often see. Young people have their hearing fully intact, and the noise of guns going off, above that of a .22, will also cause a flinch to develop. The trick is to use some cleverness to get the light weight person be able to get down on the cheekpiece area of the gunstock, without the earmuffs interfering with this critical positioning need. If their cheek is not firmly welded to the stock as the shot goes off, the buttstock comes up and whacks their cheek, considerably increasing "felt recoil". To young people especially, the sound of the gun going off is a part of "felt recoil" to them, and can cause flinching just the same as physical recoil. A scope, being set higher than open sights, makes this issue less important. Also, use the soft earplugs too, under the earmuffs.
I agree with using a round ball to start off with, but recommend at least 50 cal. for deer. That, and even 50-60 gr. volume of Blackhorn 209, should do you well for close-range deer.
Aloha, Ka'imiloa
 
If i remember correctly, my girls both started hunting with 70 grains of T7 FFG and a .45 240 grain XTP. No issues at all. They are now shooting 80 grains with a Harvester 240 PT Gold, again no issues. The light weight bullet makes a big difference.

For practice my youngest shot 50 grains with a patched round ball. Recoil was extremely light and accuracy was surprisingly good with so little powder.

All were shot out of a Knight LK-93.
 
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