what is the best .50 cal projectile for elk in CO where you can't shoot sabots?

Anyone shoot Lee REAL buulets?

www.thorbullets.com email them and ask about the 247gr colorado thor. i get to test them and shoot them a lot. I wouldnt be afraid to use one on an elk! in fact, i will if i draw a tag next year!

www.thepowerbeltforum.powerguild.com for more info on the thor

If you prefer modern...powerbelts

Powerbelts work OK on elk if you shoot very close and do not pump up the charge too much. I have had complete pass through on double lung shots with Powerbelts but with only 90gr. of Black Mag3. Shot was at 90 yards.

Powerbelts just won't "shoot" in my T/C encore. Best I can get is 6" groups.

powerbelts not shooting in your tc is pretty typical.

quote:

powerbelts not shooting in your tc is pretty typical.

So what is the answer???

ledvm - in a .50 or .54, round balls work just fine to 100yards. Just make certain you double lung them. The elk's trail will usually be shorter than if they are shot with bullets.

In a .50TC 48" twist shallow rifling, try an .018" patch and .490" ball, in the 66" cut rifled barrels, use a .490 or better yet, a .495" ball and a .020" patch. Neetsfoot oil or Track's Mink oil work well for lube with BP. Please use real BP. The phoneys will eat holes into your bore, just like clorox would, only not as fast is all.
A bit of emery and the end of your thumb will slightly grind and polish the crown allowing easy loading with tight combinations that allow you to shoot all day with perfect accuracy and no wiping.

I have not personally tried these bullets, but if I were going elk hunting with my muzzleloader I would go to www.prbullet.com and try the Ultimate 1 Keith Nose Solid Bullet. These are pure lead bullets of the Keith Style (wide flat meplat). If you read much on the handgun hunting forum on AR you'll notice plenty of handgun hunters who prefer cast lead bullets with a wide flat meplat for their ability to penetrate. I use PR Bullets Duplex Dead Center for deer and really like them (these are sabboted, so won't work for your application). The PR Bullet website has lots of good information about muzzleloading. I have no connection to PR Bullets. Just a satisfied customer.

Buffalo Bullets usta work well for me in my .50 cals,, they still make them?

I shoot the 385 grain Hornady Great Plains HP (#6620) with 100 gr Pyrodex P in all 3 of my White Whitetails, and all perform outstanding. It is .509" and engraves perfect in the .504. I shoot a bore button below it with Natural Lube-1000 plus on it also, to keep from burning out the base and leading my barrels. Hornady Great Plains also has both a 410 (#6625) and 460 (#6627) grain with flat point that perform well on elk. I bump the powder up to 110 gr of Pyrodex P for these heavier ones.

Traditions has an excellent 300 grain hollow point/hollow base bullet in 50 cal that works well. They come unlubed, and they fit nicely. Tried the same load and seemed to scatter somewhat, so backed down to 90 grains and it was perfect. This is sometimes used as my antelope load for longer shots.

The 320 grain Maxi-Balls shoot OK in the Whites that I have, but the longer 370 grain ones don't shoot worth a darn in anything except my TC Greyhawk.

Good luck finding the one that works for you. That's half the fun of blackpowder

My favorite 50 cal bullet is one I make my self. I have a 1-28 twist stainless steel Green Mountain barrel. The bullet is a Lee C-501-440-RF it is a 500 S&W bullet. With pure lead it weighs 460 gr out of my mould. I wrap them with two wraps of 25% cotton paper. Then I size them to .501 and they are ready. The bullet’s length is .910” so it should be ok in CO. I have seen three deer killed with them. I know Deer are much smaller than elk but I will tell you. A friend of mine shot his deer in the shoulder from a quartering to him shot at over 100 yards. The bullet broke the main shoulder bone and exited out the flank. The rug was yanked on that deer. I shot my deer at just under 117 yards and the bullet plowed on through. Again I understand that deer are smaller but from what I saw these 460 gr bullets should do the trick. Accuracy for my rifle with the 1-28 twist was outstanding. The rifle my buddy used was a short TC White Mountain carbine. It has a 1-38 twist I think. They shot very well out of that rifle too. Ron

Hi Ron,
Do you have any idea what the velocity is for that load?
Looks like a real Hammer, that's for sure.

John

Yes. That load comes out at 1310 FPS and 1753 FPE. At 150 yards it is still over 1100 FPS and the energy is 1255 FPE. It does not go below 1000 FPE until after 275 yards! Ron

Ron - seems you are running a BC of about .280 - isn't that a bit high?.

Actually Lee lists this bullet at .296 and from the tests I have done with my Ohler chronograph I think that number is very close. Ron

I've had great luck with the 335 grain aerotip powerbelt for elk.

quote:

Originally posted by Idaho Ron:
Actually Lee lists this bullet at .296 and from the tests I have done with my Ohler chronograph I think that number is very close. Ron

Thanks Ron - The numbers are very close - depends as well on temp, elevation, atmospheric conditions, sight height, etc - all make a difference in figures and computations.