Sabots - clean or dirty?

[ronlaughlin]

MS.....that 77 grains weighed is equal to 110 grains by volume.

It depends..........depends on the lot # of the powder. There is at least one lot of Blackhorn powder with a density of 77g weight : 100g volume.

 

[MrTom]

I've sampled four different lots and found the broadest weight spread between them at 4 grains /100 volume.

 

[MSalyards]

Your right though, My bad. Blackhorn advertises 70 gr for 100 gr volume.

 

[valentind44]

With 90-100gr of BH209, you shouldn't have sabot fouling, at least that's been my experience. With 80gr of 777, they don't even show any blackening Box à Louer. Larger powder charges mean more powder burned OUTSIDE of the barrel, contrary to some published data. 275gr Barnes 45cal bullets are same hole accurate for me. Hope this helps you!

Thank you for this information that you shared with us. This helps us a lot indeed.

 

[Neumonic]

Thanks for the info. The difference between the testimonials here on MM and other blogs and youtube is that I don’t feel like I’m being pressured like a car salesperson to buy one’s product.

I bought Barnes and Hornady sabots/bullets at Cabela’s. I believe they sell the Harvester sabots but I have to buy the PT’s online. The BH was $50 for the 10 oz. bottle, $15 more than Midway USA and other places. I bought several bottles because they price-matched Midway’s price. I also avoided the hazmat shipping charge. The T7 is $30 for a 1 lb. bottle and $24 with a Midway match. I notice that the reviews for T7 are mostly about how clean it is and the added accuracy. I understand that the shelf life for the BP substitutes are long term if unopened. ML season is two months away and store reps tell me it’s hard to find either of these on the shelf once ML season begins.

The Whitetail here in NC typically aren’t as big-bodied as those back home in PA, and the habitat creates shots 100 yds and less. What helps you determine the best bullet wt. for your ML? I see your 300 gr. Scorpion plus a 240 and a 260. Thanks again for the tips.

Barnes 250 grain TEZ bullets are probably known to shoot well out of most ML’s, tough to beat their quality but they come with a cost. I recently tried some of the Harvester 250 grain bullet/sabot combo and they weren’t as accurate out of my Traditions as the Barnes but weren’t off enough that I wouldn’t use them. The other bullet sabot combo I tried recently was the Harvester Scorpion 260 grain, these have given me my best accuracy to date and are more reasonably priced than the Barnes so they will be in my ML this hunting season. First time not using a Barnes ever, pretty excited to see how they perform on deer. Lastly, I have gone from pellets to BH209 and back to pellets just to change it up. The pellets are dirty and the crud ring is real but the Scorpions load so much better in my Traditions I could have shot all day with just a couple barrel cleanings. On that subject, not a bad idea to run a couple patches after every 5 shots imo, gives the barrel a couple more minutes to cool down plus you will see if your accuracy is affected at all?
Enjoy the forum and the ML!!

 

[1 raggedhole]

I have a accura pr and it loves bh209 and the 300gr hornady American whitetail, its just a 300gr xtp in a low drag sabot. Running 80gr measured at 100 yards im shooting 1 to 1.5 inch groop all day. Haven't usd them on a deer yet but there hornady so cant imagine them being bad.

 

[birdog]

It depends..........depends on the lot # of the powder. There is at least one lot of Blackhorn powder with a density of 77g weight : 100g volume.

New to ML and trying to figure things out. So will the same weight of BH shoot the same regardless of the density variance from lot to lot? I think it may not be enough to notice but you have me wondering.

 

[James Sparhawk]

Fouling from modern sabots is soooooo overstated its a joke. Thats a crock perpetuated by CVA to sell Powerbelts. Let the barrel cool between shots, dont blow/drill a sabot and you are fine. If the barrel feels warm to the touch its too warm. Let it cool in the shade or get a cooling rod.

If you shoot A LOT, clean your bore with either Brownwells Wad Solvent or Montana Xtreme Copper Cream 3 maybe 4 times a year.....No need to use it on a regular basis unless you are certain you blew a sabot. Most shooters dont need to use solvents like that more than once a year.

I been shooting sabots in my inline. Thanks for letting us know to let the barrel cool between shots. Oh, and don't be afraid to throw your brush away and use a new one.

 

[James Sparhawk]

I had trouble cleaning up after my sabots, but I was not letting the barrel cool. But last week, I used a new brush several strokes and the plastic fouling came right out. I have excellent groups and range with TC shockwave 250 gr sabots.

 

[James Sparhawk]

Also, brushes are only $3 bucks, so replace often. Just like a chainsaw file, I use to buy them by the boxes and everyone wondered how I cut so quickly. After I used a file twice, I would ditch it.

 

[ronlaughlin]

Been using the same file on the little Homelite since 1986. Seems like it takes a while to get the tips of them cutters to feel charp.

 

[ronlaughlin]

New to ML and trying to figure things out. So will the same weight of BH shoot the same regardless of the density variance from lot to lot? I think it may not be enough to notice but you have me wondering.

Don't count on it.