Round Ball size for 20ga. Smoothrifle

[VALongrifle]

Friends...I need some help as a new smoothbore shooter.

I've shot rifles and muskets for 35 years, but I am awaiting the arrival of my brand new baby Smoothrifle in 20GA.  The research I have done shows a round ball caliber of .615.  With a nice, wet patch...it mics out to .15, less wet about .12 or so...so the question is should I go with a .60 mold or even.595, or up to .605...and just use the same ticking thickness all the time?  Would .005 either side of .60 make that much difference in a smoothie???

Thanks,
Pat

[JoeG]

.595 has worked well for me
 they load easy and group good.

[Kermit]

I have molds in both .600 and .595, and can't tell much difference. The .600 seems to me to shoot cleaner and maybe easier to load after a few shots. In a clean barrel, first load, I don't think I could tell you which I'm loading. I have no scientific or statistical evidence to support any of this.

[Daryl]

 I use a .596" ball from a Tanner mould and .020" patch in my choked 20 bore smoothbore.  The starter puts them below the choke and they are very easily pushed down to the powder. I shoot pure lead balls and they must obturate some, as the patches are re-usable - no burns or scorches.

Taylor was using a .600" mould, that cast a little oversize, also with about a .020" patch in his non-choked smoothie.  He is VERY difficult to beat in a smoothbore match. He may NOW be using the 595's that he also has or had in a Lyman Mould, I don't know.

[Hungry Horse]

 My old trade gun was made from an old .20 gauge 30" shotgun barrel I bought from Dixie years ago. Its bore was .625, and I shot .595 balls in it. With that gun I outshot a friends rifle on a trappers run, and won a ball split event against rifles. My current trade gun is an old Curly gun who's bore is .620, and length is 42". I shot it with the .595's, but couldn't get it to shoot like my old trader. I got a .590 mold from a friends estate and tried that, with the old patching I had used in the previous gun. The new combination is much better, not as good as the old gun, but better.
 I did discover that Curly guns from back in the day, can vary widely, when it comes to bore diameter, and barrel contour, and should always be judged individually.

                  Hungry Horse

[hanshi]

The 20ga flint gun I own has a tight bore.  I have a .600" Lee mold and a Tanner .590" mold.  A lead .600" ball from the Lee mold does well with a thin patch.  Cast from WW the ball measures around .606" and is fired bare ball.  The .590" ball can take a rifle patch.  I prefer to shoot ball cast from WW though my first load in the woods is likely to be a lead, patched .600" ball.  Reloads will be either the patched .590" WW ball or a WW .606" bare ball.

[VALongrifle]

Thanks everyone for your input.  I'm going with a Callahan .595 caliber mold and see how it goes...I may go up to .600 if I need to.

Keep off the skyline,
Pat

[George Sutton]

It depends on what the bore measures. I have a smoothbore that shoots well with a .600 roundball an a .010 patch. I have another that like a .610 round ball and a .015 patch.

You have to take it out and shoot it to determine what it likes. There is no magic formula for shooting these guns.

Smoothbores....you either love them or hate them

Centershot

[Daryl]

Or - simply have a love/hate relationship with one. Love it for trap shooting with it as it produces beautiful even patterns, but past about 30/40yards shooting patched round balls - we hates it's nastiness.

[B Staley]

Try a .600 or .610 RB witha a wad over powder and ball no patch needed.....

[Virginiarifleman]

My 62 Cal Getz Smoothbore barrel does really well with a .600 RB and pillow Ticking Patch.

[iloco]

I had to use a 590 to get a good smooth fit with my Fusil De Chase using a 42 inch Colerain barrel.

[Leatherbark]

If you buy balls for your gun a .595 comes in 50 round bags and is a better bang for your buck than the 25 .600 balls that come in a bag.

Bob

[satwel]

Same for me as iloco. .600 ball was too tight for my 20 gauge-required a very thin patch. I found a .590 mold and now I can start a normal patch and ball combo with thumb pressure.

[Virginiarifleman]

I Use a .600 RB in my 62 Cal Getz with a Ticking patch, good accuracy and loads fairly easily.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I have a Chambers' PA fowler with a 46" barrel.  I shoot 84 gr. of FFg GOEX, a .608" ball from a .600 Lyman mold, and use a .020" cotton patch.  I require a short starter for this load, but once in the bore, the thick patch carries enough lube solution to get the ball all the way to the powder without any fowling build up - all day long.  I never need to wipe between shots.  I just discovered that this same ball shoots very nicely in my .62 cal. Hawken rifle, with the same load.  Previously, I used a .613" ball from a .610 Lyman mold in this rifle, and admit it was tough to start a ball. 
Most 20 gauge smoothies I have seen load easily with a .600" ball and a .020" patch.  Add these together....620"  Le voila!!  Bore size and no compression.  How can that be too tough to load?