WORKING UP SOME NEW DEER LOADS

[cayuga]

I was working up some new loads for the Renegade with the stainless steel Green Mountain fast twist barrel 1:28 rate. The barrel has the Thompson Center 1x scope on it. I was going to try Goex 2f and Triple Se7en 2f for powders. I wanted to shoot some Hornady XTP 300 grain .430 diameter in Harvester Crushed Rib sabots. I also wanted to shoot some 375 grain Buffalo Bullet SSB's. I had purchased some Remington 40% hotter, #11 caps to give a fair try to again.

The range session did not start well at all. I swabbed the barrel as normal and popped three Remington #11 caps through the gun. I loaded 100 grains of Goex 2f and the Hornady 300 grain .430 XTP. I had the orange card set up at 50 yards. Pulled the trigger and nothing happened. Recapped, pulled the trigger the cap fired but the rifle did not. So I took a nipple pick and picked it clean of something these caps throw into the nipple. Then I put a grain of Goex right down the nose of the nipple and capped it again. This time there was a hang fire but the rifle fired. So with pure isopropyl alcohol I swabbed the barrel, ran two dry patches, popped a cap. And then loaded again.

This time I fired and it went off perfect. Perhaps the pure alcohol swab helped... who knows. So I loaded for the third shot and it fired fine again. Seeing the rifle was hitting approximately 2 inches high, I changed my POA and shot the rest of them. I had three misfires in the rest of the with the Remington caps. I did note that as I shot, the rifle was getting more and more dirty using the Goex. I could feel it as I swabbed with the pure alcohol patches.

Over all I was very pleased with the accuracy and the power of the load. It would make an excellent deer load I decided. Especially when you consider this is about as far as I would have to shoot.

I then took some Rusty Duck and swabbed the barrel clean. I also took an alcohol patch and swabbed the barrel. Then I took three dry patches and swabbed the barrel. Now I decided to change out cards and loads.

So I loaded 100 grains of Triple Se7en 2f and a Buffalo Bullet SSB. I capped it with a Remington cap and the cap fired but the charge did not. So I tried three more caps and could not get the thing to go off. So I took some Goex and put that down the nose of the nipple and capped it. This time there was a slight delay but it fired. I actually fired three rounds before I swabbed. Seeing that these rounds were hitting to the right, I adjusted my POA and fired the rest.

For some reason the Triple Se7en was not making a crud ring of any type, and the projectiles loaded perfect. After the third shot I decided to swab with a little Rusty Duck. After that I ran five dry patches down the rifle. I also popped two Remington Caps. I loaded and ... it did not fire.

This time instead of messing around with these Remington Caps, I got out my Dynamite Nobel RWS 1075+ caps. I capped the rifle and it fired fine. I then shot the rest of those shots with a slight adjustment in my POA and they shot perfect and grouped very well for a 1x scope set up.

Over all I am impressed with the rifle, the loads, and the accuracy. I am not impressed with the Remington Caps. I bought them for my Bison Rifle but since I changed nipples on that I have not needed them anymore.

I think I might hunt with the Buffalo Bullet SSB bullets and the Triple Se7en powder, but I am going to primer the bolster when hunting. I am not taking any chances, I will be using my RWS caps as well.

 

[Buglemintoday]

I bet those 375gr Buffalos are killers!!

 

[cayuga]

I talk to a fellow on line that used that same bullet and powder charge for an elk hunt. He had a cow tag. He shot a BIG cow elk at about 70 yard with his rifle. That bullet penetrated her, took out the heart and bottom of the lungs and lodged under the skin on the off side. There was still over 85% bullet retention and he said it mushroomed perfect.

I think on a Whitetail deer they would do a great job.

 

[n8dawg6]

i did some shooting this weekend w/ t/c greyhawk, pyrodex RS (got a lot of it i need to burn up) and CCI musket caps. i would say at least 50% of the shots were hangfires, and one time i had to pop 3 caps before it would go off. thats it for me and pyrodex in a sidelock

 

[cayuga]

I was shootiung Pyrodex today in a sidelock and it went off perfect. All I was using for caps was the RWS. Then I tried some other rifles and loads trying to decide what goes to what for deer season.

 

[n8dawg6]

yeah, ive never had this much trouble with it, maybe it was the caps. previously i had been using navy arms musket caps. i cant imagine these cci musket caps being too weak, though. i popped a few w/out earplugs and had ringing ears. i could actually feel a little blast on my face coming just from the cap. but that greyhawk hangfired every other time. very irritating

 

[cayuga]

I have some of them CCI musket caps and I agree.. they are powerful. I did get some Remington 40% hotter #11 caps to see if they would cure my Bison. I had more misfires in one day using them then with ten tins of the RWS. I just could not trust them. They throw a small piece of something into the nipple and if you forget to pick the nipple you will have a misfire. Maybe the CCI musket caps were doing the same thing on you.

 

[Semisane]

Hey cayugad, my experience with Remington #11's has been the same as yours - guranteed misfires every 3 or 4 shots with my New Englander. CCI's are working every time.

I've never tried the 40% hotter Remingtons (didn't even know they made them) but the regular Remingtons just don't do it for me.

 

[n8dawg6]

that is interesting that yall are having that much trouble w/ the remingtons. i have used those exclusively w/ my white rifles and, 1. they are the only thing that fits, and 2. ive never even had a hangfire with them.

on the other hand, i have never used them in anything but the whites, so i have no idea how they'd do in a sidelock. i do notice that they do not explode into small pieces like the RWS caps do. it actually makes it easier to remove the cap fragments, but that might indicate they are quite a bit weaker.

 

[cayuga]

Something strange that happened yesterday and again today that I can not explain. No crud ring what so ever in the rifles I am shooting. Today I was shooting two different rifles. Using Pyrodex RS, and .430 300 grain XTP's and 375 grain Buffalo Bullet SSB's.

No crud rings. I shot Goex, Pyrodex RS, Pyrodex P, Triple Se7en 3f, and APP 2f. And really no crud rings to mention. I was shooting my Wolverine LK-II to make sure it was all set up for the modern season. I loaded six rounds, shooting Pyrodex RS and never swabbed the barrel. Granted I was using the Harvester Crushed Rib sabots, but those things were sliding down the barrel like magic. And accuracy was exceptional until the very last shot #6. After that it started throwing them, so I swabbed. And yes, the patch was filthy, but loading was not hard.

The one powder that was a real disappointment was the APP. I got poor accuracy, and one shot would BOOM and the next would POP. I just can not figure that powder out. Next trip to the city I am going to get some of the APP 3f. I will shoot that in my Black Powder Shotgun and revolver. Other then that, I think it is through as a rifle powder. I do not care if Jim Shockey swears by it. I have tried countless bullet and powder combinations and not one would I trust hunting with. I have better luck with it in my sidelocks shooting roundball.

 

[cayuga]

I wanted to do a couple things today. One was to push the rifle and bullet that has been working for me to the max powder charge and see what happens. Also it was very windy. I'd hate to guess the wind gust speeds. So I wanted to shoot in the strong winds with the 1X scope and the GMB rifle. I was set up at 50 yards. I shot the .430 Hornady 300 grain XTP and the .452 Hornady 250 grain XTP. With both of them I used the crushed rib sabots made by Harvester. Also I shot three shot groups without swabbing, using Graf's & Sons Black Powder in 2f.

These was with 120 grains of loose Graf's 2f black powder and the two bullets. The one low shot was not a flier or accident. I had loaded a standard black .452 sabot that somehow got mixed with my crushed rib. I almost had to hammer it down the barrel. So I aimed low to see if it would hold true to the cross hairs. It did real well other then loading the devil.

This load has power. No other way to describe it. I could watch the bullet hit the steel trap and just shatter. It would be a good deer load.

 

[Ron S]

No Crud Ring

Cayuga,I've found that by using a #11 percussion cap,with T7 there are NO CRUD RINGS! My Grey Hawk,and White 504 White Tail both use #11 caps. Both will shoot T7 without developing the crud ring. My Pro Hunter on the other hand, uses 209 primers,and get's the crud ring every time using T7 . I guess it's true that by using a milder cap,the crud ring is eliminated. Ron