anyone have a .50 smoothbore?

[adkmountainken]

.62 and .54 get the most attention but I was just curious if anyone here shoots a .50 cal smoothbore? i'm looking for something a little different and had pondered a .50 smoothie.

[Mike Brooks]

They shoot shot and ball great.

[deepcreekdale]

I had Jason at Rice Barrels make me a 45 cal smoothbore for a Christian Beck double rifle I made a few years back. .36 cal rifled barrel on the right side, the .45 smoothie on the left side. The customer says it is the best squirrel gun he has ever had. Like Mike says, smooth barrels do great with both shot and balls at appropriate ranges. You wont shoot much beyond 50 yards but why bother? That is why you have the rifled barrel! And who shoots squirrels at > 50 yards anyway.

[Daryl]

At one time, I had a .44 Smoothie. I lapped in about .004 or .005" jug choke and it shot round ball and shot splendidly. I used 44gr.3F 1/2oz. of 7 1/2's and broke 10 straight with it from 16 yards.
At 50 yards, it would just about stay on a snowshoe hare's head - like under or around 3", mostly.  That was 25 years ago when I could actually see.

[T*O*F]

I had a 1-1/8" Douglas smoothbore barrel in .50 cal.  Didn't know what I would use it for, so I had it turned down to an octagon to round, tapered barrel.to make one of those very early, fancy French guns.  Another project I haven't gotten around to yet.

[James Rogers]

I have a .54 smooth oct/round here with a 1  1/16 breech and quick taper.

[Hungry Horse]

I would suspect it would be pretty useless for talking game. I own an original Lehigh .45 cal. smooth rifle that for its age is in very good shape. I suspect it's in such good shape, because once it got out of those itty bitty eastern states it was so useless that it spent the next hundred years in a closet.

  Hungry Horse

[Pennsylvania Dutchman]

My Dad has a percussion fowler with a octagon to round .50 caliber barrel. Maple stocked, it is very light, probably around 4 lbs. I hunted rabbits with it as a kid, the rabbit didn't have a chance if I did my part. A .50 caliber smoothie would be very adequate for taking all sorts of small game and the size of the state wouldn't make any difference.
Mark

[Daryl]

Mine was used for bunnies only and for that, it worked a treat.  At 50yards, it would have easily taken deer, if it's accuracy didn't suffer from added powder.

[thecapgunkid]

So far I have made a 50, 54 and 62 smoothbore and they all shoot about the same at 25/50  and they seem to clean easier than a rifled gun.

You'll start playing with loads and it'll take more time because of versatility, so don't get discouraged if it takes a little longer to group.  I like using paper cartridges.

I put rear sights on all of 'em and compete with rifles on trail walks without any issues.

Don't shoot yore eye out, kid

The Capgun Kid

[Kermit]

I currently--and probably forever--own a .50 smoothrifle, Peter Berry-ish, using a 46" Longhammock barrel. Great with #6 or smaller shot on little furries or roosting grouse. Shot a Columbia blacktail doe some years ago at about 30 yards. Did the job.

A friend built a .40 flint smoothrifle years ago for hunting in a shotgun-only area. Since .40 was the smallest muzzleloader allowed, he figured he had both requirements met. He never had a game cop stop him, so we'll never know. He did take Columbia blacktail with it nearly every year.

[somehippy]

I've had the hankering to build me a lil 45-50 Cal half stock, englishish flintlock "bunny gun" for some time now, just sounds like too much fun.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I'm like TOF...I have a project waiting for my attention:  a .50 cal smooth bored JP Beck smoothrifle in a cherry stock.  The barrel is a Getz 50 1/2" long octagon to round and swamped.  The wood also from John Getz but inlet by Mark Wieder of Jack's Mt. Stocks on his JP Beck pattern.  A smooth rifle in the Virtual Museum was the inspiration for this one.

[Carney Pace]

I have a Jackie Brown So. Carolina  style flint smoothrifle.

I do not hesitate to use it in a match against  rifled guns, If I do not win cannot blame the smooth rifle.

We have several targets that are over 100 yds and a miss is my fault-- see Herb,s post about peep shoot. I was using a .40 rifle ( should have used the smoothrifle).

It impressed me so much I have acquired 2 more smoothrifles, .54 and .62

Carney