I have a 50 cal TC Pro Hunter ( I think). I have had it for a few years and have killed lots of deer & hogs with it.

Our muzzleloader season started last weekend. On Monday, I shot a deer and was shocked to hit it high given the rest I shot from. I went to the range and was surprised to find that I shot about 5 inches high at 50 yards. I cleaned and adjusted the scope to a zero at 100 yards. No problem.

Friday afternoon, I whacked a buck with a perfect shot at about 55-60 yards. I cleaned the rifle. I hunted again this morning. I had 4 speed loads that I decided to shoot before I left. I shot off a bench at 100 yards. The first was no surprise. I missed the bulls eye by about a quarter inch. I shot the second time, again from a dead steady bench rest. I was about 9 inches high at 100 yards! NO way was this me. I fired another and TOTALLY MISSED the target! I fired the last speedload at 25 yards. I was 5 inches high at 25 yards!

This was not me I am certain. I also shot my 300 Win Mag and had 3 shot groups that touched. This eliminated any error on my part as a possibility in my mind.

The scope is tight. I am using the same bullets and powder. This bench rest was ROCK SOLID.

Gentlemen, do you have any idea what might cause this? I would like to throw out a possibility and see what you experts think.

When I clean the gun, I generally do not remove the breech plug. I can't find the tool. I clean with Windex.I am wondering if the breech plug might have some corrosion that might cause some irregularities in point of impact. Your thoughts would be appreciated.

I imagine I will have a new gun on Monday. I am afraid to try this one in the woods again.

What was the load? Ron

3 of the 50 grain Pyrodex pellets pushing a 300 grain Hornady bullet. These are the prepackaged bullets with a sabot that has a little plastic stem that the 3 pellets are placed on.

I have shot the same thing for years. Never have I experienced this before.

Broken scope?

Larry,
Are the sabots the same? Do they feel as tight going in as the previous ones that shot well. Bloody muzzleloaders can give you fits. I have found that certain sabots with certain bullets work well and others suck.
I shoot a savage and burn smokeless, so it is a bit different. There is a little plug with a tiny firehole in the breech plug. This has to be occasionally replaced or cleaned or accuracy goes to poo. Maybe you need to take out the breech plug and clean the exit hole. Juat an idea.

It was completely cleaned. This situation occurred after 3 shots.

Yes, the sabots are all the same.

I don't like the idea of pellets. Ron

Change out your scope.

What is baseline normal with this rifle? I know you say you have killed a lot of deer and hogs with it but how does your go to load actually shoot every time you have shot in the past?

I'm with Ron and don't like the pellets. I have learned quite a lot from Ron and find my greatest consistency in loose FFg and FFFg Pyrodex and Pyrodex Select. Other stuff is more convenient, cleans more easily, but nothing shoots better when it comes to subs. I also feel 150gr of powder is excessive and could contribute to a potential scope issue even in quality glass? How old is the powder you were shooting? Some subs don't seem to perform as well once they have been opened for a while (American Pioneer in my experience).
Also, sabots can be a little cranky when it comes to fit and heat. As a rule I no longer use them (except in a NULA smokeless muzzleloader). With those speed loads how long were you waiting between shots? Sabots get really wonky when you shoot a muzzleloader cyclic.

Scope is a possibility but doesn't act like broken scopes I've had. The ones I have had break won't accurately re-zero (I mean they might get there but not with a precise adjustment), you said yours did, and I tend to get roving groups when I have had broken optics. Only once have I had one break so apparently that it was visible by looking through the scope and having a skewed reticle and fuzzy picture.

I'll bet its a scope problem. Try one from another gun. My guess is problem solved.

This gun has shot fine in past years. Never any need to adjust.

I am puzzled because it is ALWAYS high. Never left or right. It seems to hold for 2 shots then starts to go high.

I am getting a new rifle today with a Swarovski scope I already had mounted on it. I am sending the Nikon scope on the old guy back to be checked.

Why do you guys dislike the pellets?

I dislike pellets because I worry about consistency of charges and compression.

I tried Pyrodex pellets as compared to the regular Pyrodex powder with 2 different rifles. I just could not match the consistency and group size of the powder when I tested the pellets, so I stayed with the powder. That's why I don't use pellets.

You can't tune a load with pellets.
I like 80 grains of Pyrodex P in all my guns. Ron

Larry, how old are the pellets? Are they all from the same box? I have had issues with Pyrodex pellets, especially when they get beyond a year old. They are very hygroscopic, almost like silica gel. I only have one muzzleloader left that I use them in and if I am going to use that one, I get fresh pellets that year.

For the other muzzleloaders I went to Blackhorn 209. Much better than anything else.

Its been several days. Do we get to know what the solution was?

Sorry guys, I have been traveling a lot and haven't checked this.

All of the pellets were new and came from the same box.

I tend to think this is a scope problem. The issue is ALWAYS elevation, NEVER windage. The gun seems to shoot fine for 2 shots then it heads higher every single time.

I took the gun to my gun guys. I told them I wanted to to go over the gun in great detail. I also told them I wanted the scope sent back to the factory.

In the meantime, I got the newest latest, greatest from TC. I can pull the breech plug with my fingers. I put a 1.7x10 Swarovski on it. Shoots great.

Excellent solution.

Spent the afternoon sighting my Savage and finding a sabot/bullet combination for a friend.

Ended the day with another great line. Tried a red crush rib and a 250 Hornaday XTP. I let the petals long and the hung up with the loading jag. Disassemble and drive it out. My pard says "I don't like the red ones"

We trimmed some 3 petal ez loads and he has a usable load.

I also shoot savage and will not go back to any other mzldr, but the bloody things can be fickle trying to get a load worked up. The sabot seems to be the sticking point. I find my bullet/sabot dia needs to be .5045 and i will get good accuracy. I currently shoot barnes Spit fire t EZ with mmp hh 12 sabot on top of 555.6 vith n 120. 3 down so far this year, probably shoot another 10 with it yet.

quote:

Originally posted by youp50:
Excellent solution.

Spent the afternoon sighting my Savage and finding a sabot/bullet combination for a friend.

Ended the day with another great line. Tried a red crush rib and a 250 Hornaday XTP. I let the petals long and the hung up with the loading jag. Disassemble and drive it out. My pard says "I don't like the red ones"

We trimmed some 3 petal ez loads and he has a usable load.