Caliber

[Joe S.]

Hmmmm..........been reading this thread awhile now.Be honest I scratch my head at these type threads.Folks having to track their deer,not much blood trail,deer was not knocked off its feet,super human deer?You put a good hit on the animal its going to die,plain and simple.A good hit and you do not recover it,its on you and you need to be a better tracker.Caliber, to each his own,what ever works for you,is comfortable to shoot and can shoot it accurately what ever it is and legal for what your after,common sense I think.Interesting read but all the science,theory and hunting story's in the world won't explain some of the things you see or don't see out there.Did shoot a buck one time with an old double barrel one time,didn't know both barrels would fire.Hit that buck,real up and close with both barrels of double "0" broad side.Saw all four of the bottoms of his hoofs,his shoe size,up in the air,I would say that's knocked off your feet.Why who cares,was pretty neat to see,just as dead as one you tracked fifty yards too,maybe a little more so

[hanshi]

[/quote]
So, now I'm confused....was it you or the hog that flipped over feet leaving the ground...... This is why I have a flip phone instead of a smart phone, I'm too stupid to figure complicated stuff out.
[/quote]



Those of us who use flip phones, myself included, are officially called "dinosaurs". 

[Joe S.]

hypothetically what would be the best caliber to hunt dinosaurs,the reptiles that is

[Dewey]

hypothetically what would be the best caliber to hunt dinosaurs,the reptiles that is Grin


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double-barreled_cannon   

[Joe S.]

Yup,that would do it

[nosrettap1958]

As I am finishing up a half stock rifle I am debating on which caliber I want it to be....


Right now it's a 1" Green Mountain LRH fast twist 50cal...I didn't spend an arm and a leg for the barrel...so having it bored out wouldn't bother me...

At first I wanted to shoot a heavy conical or possibly a sabot...I'm not a fan of 50cal roundball performance..ive shot several deer with them...killed them..but just never happy with the results..


I'm thinking of 58, 60 or 62cal. (not certain I can take it clear to 62cal or not..i THINK I can..).



I don't shoot a million balls a year so cost isn't an issue...i don't cast lead (yet..lol) so I'd be buying them...


Mostly only deer hunt and shots are usually 30yd average if I had to guess..some closer...farthest has been 75yds or so...


Mainly looking for solid performance.....also don't like the weight of a 1" 50cal barrel... sucker is plain ole HEAVY and having it bored out will reduce the weight a bit....


Any thoughts on caliber???   

Sounds to me that you have lost confidence in the 50 caliber and won't get it back any time soon. Time to move up then. 

[Mauser06]

Wouldn't necessarily say I've lost confidence in the 50....I've killed somewhere around 15 deer with it...and I haven't lost one yet.   


I think I do have to go bigger just for myself to see for my own eyes if the performance is what I am after or not....


I've never had one go over 100 yards...hard track record to argue with and compete against....i know that....if I don't see what I want from a bigger caliber no loss...easy to drop in another barrel into this stock....and I'm certain this won't be my last build...so I can adjust the barrel caliber to suit next time...

[wvbuckbuster]

First deer I ever killed with a round ball was from a .40 cal. Next had a .50 cal and used it . Built a.54 and have used it on a couple of deer. They all died some quicker than other. Some run far some close. Bought a .50 cal. the other day that belonged to friend of mine who died two years ago. Plan on using it this year in memory of him. All said and done if you want a bigger bore try it. You won't be satisfied till you see for yourself. Besides it's another reason to have another gun. Let us know how it works out for you. Dan.

[stuart cee dub]

Going back to the original question on this thread....
If you have a percussion gun with a patent breech and you want to go to a thinner walled barrel and/or have it bored out have at it. Flint should be ok too.

But if you have a percussion drum set up ,.58 or more especially a .62 the barrel wall starts getting thin and  has less threaded support for a drum .Those are the practical considerations on safety. Solid and sufficient support on a drum is very important.

That being said since the distance  isn't long big calibers out of short barrels has worked for centuries making fast handling easier to carry guns that make big holes.

I built a .62 english style sporting gun with a patent breech 1'' across the flats at 29.5''.
Great hunting gun. I have since sold it but it was a sure killer .Tastes changed.
 
For hogs a stout revolver is a good backup.

[Mauser06]

Thanx guys!   Good post... everyone has their flavors..




Stuart, it is a flint...28" barrel..



For now I'm going to leave it a 50....going to try a couple Conicals in it....


I really think I will end up building a longrifle and giving dad this gun of he will start flintlock hunting...

Also still might put together a 58 cal barrel for it...order it long and use the cutoff to make a pistol barrel as well...that's my latest idea lol......


After I test fired it a bit I started to like the weight of it...it's a little heavy...it's a little muzzle heavy...but it makes for a steady hold....

[Old Ford2]

Make it a .62!
One shot in the air, and all the deer just lay down waiting to be picked up!
Fred

[Osprey]

Looking back over my records, since I started building and shooting longrifles about ten years ago I've killed 16 whitetails (Maryland and Iowa) and 3 sika with them loaded with roundballs.  Almost every whitetail the ball was found just under the skin on the far side.  None went over 80 yards (1), most fell 30-50 yards after the shot, four fell dead on the spot.  Not much blood trail on any of them.  Only had a problem finding one, but that doe fell and died in a marsh hole and was covered with mud and water, took a bit to figure that one out.  Used .40, .45, .54 and 16 ga balls and all worked. 

The key is shot placement.  With an arrow I want heart/lung, becuase that kills by blood loss.  With a ball or bullet I only aim heart/lung if it's a long shot for the size of the target area, anything under 50 yards I aim high shoulder with a gun.  That takes out one or typically both front legs, some lung and several major arteries.  Even if they don't bleed they still plow a pretty good trail to follow pushing their front end.  Some meat loss, but when you hunt an area with ultra thick cover and a 30+ deer limit for the season, you want dead and dead fast.