.54 Cal shooting a .520 PRB?

[Davemuzz]

I didn't know this until today, but Hornady does make a .520 diameter RB for the .54 cal.

Just wondering if anyone has ever tried these and if your success was bad, just OK, or  great?

Dave

[OldMtnMan]

I believe those were made for the .53 cal Hawken. Although you can use them with a thick patch in a .54.

Usually, the biggest ball you can use is better.

[rich pierce]

I’m with Pete. Tighter is better; I’ve gond to 0.005” under bore size. But with a .45 GRRW barrel I have with narrow lands I’m going to try s bore diameter ball. 

[Daryl]

That's a GREAT idea Rich.  I did that in the Goodoien .40 and found literally no difference in loading, and for match (bench) shooting, it was slightly more accurate.
Those balls were, however VERY difficult loading in LB's coned .40.
We(Taylor & I) did try some .508"rbs in his Rice .50. Loading was quite easy with a .020"patch.

[rfd]

there is no substitute for testing.

lots will depend on HOW you want to load - tight or loose or somewhere in between, the kind of rifling and its depth and twist rate.  then there's the patch and ball ... and lube.

i've settled on a .526 ball and greased .015" cotton patch cloth.  i've got a tanner mold that drops "pure" lead at a tad over that diameter. 

the interesting thing about patch material is how clever it is to be called a certain thickness and then hard mic out a huge amount thinner.  how does it do that?  i wonder?

[Flint62Smoothie]

FWIW I have a few hunting friends w/ swamped longrifles in 54 who use that 0.520” Hornady roundball with an albeit thicker patch and they have great hunting and target succes. Let’s just say that you would not want to shoot against them, unless you were a good shot!

[smylee grouch]

rfd nailed it, there is no substitute for testing. Give them a good day at the range and see how they do. 

[OldMtnMan]

I went to a .54 for the bigger ball. They hit game harder. I'm a hunter and that's my only concern.

If you're killing paper and gongs a smaller ball may be better. Never tested it, so i'm not sure.

[Davemuzz]

I saw this on another forum....so hence my post here. But when I go to the Hornady web site, they don't list the .520 ball size in their M\L projectile section. But I see that some retailers do have them.

[smallpatch]

Davemuzz,
I just can't see getting decent accuracy out of a .020 under bore size ball.  Even a .020" patch will not seal the rifling.
It's not going to load easier after the barrels gets fowled with all the extra blowby.
Start with a .530" or .535 ball.  Readily available, and will require lots less work to fine tune.

[45-110]

are you sure your barrel is a .54? i bought a new old barrel blank last year from a builders estate thinking it was a .54 for my next plains rifle build. found out right away that even a .530 ball was too tight. measured the bore and learned it was .535. so now shooting a .526 ball and that seems to load and shoot well.
kw

[Davemuzz]

Davemuzz,
I just can't see getting decent accuracy out of a .020 under bore size ball.  Even a .020" patch will not seal the rifling.
It's not going to load easier after the barrels gets fowled with all the extra blowby.
Start with a .530" or .535 ball.  Readily available, and will require lots less work to fine tune.

I'm using .530 for now. Accuracy with a "hunting load" of 85gr. Goex FFF shoots well. The fellow that stated he used the .520 was using pillow ticking of .20 or .22 and stated he could thumb the ball in the barrel.

I suppose that may work with mild charges for "range day" plinking. Easy to load I suppose. But just wondering if anyone here had tried these and what their experience was with 'em.

[OldMtnMan]

Might be ok for a quick 2nd shot when hunting if needed to finish off the game due to a bad shot.

[smallpatch]

But why? It seems a ball that is readily available, and the proper size to seal the bore, and allow loading additional rounds without running a cleaning patch would  be most desirable.

[xx54]

I shoot a .538 that loads and shoots very well in my 31'' Getz. i have an old lyman mold i have only seen two .538 molds

[EC121]

I use a .526 ball but with .023" canvas patches in my round bottom .54 barrels.  No more cut or blown patches with good accuracy.  I also use .595 balls with .023" patches in my .62cal. rifle.



 I shot this target last August with the .62.  On the bench at 50yds.  Shot the 3 on the right then knocked the sight left a bit and shot the other three.  I can still load it with the wooden rod. 

[Bob Roller]

Sometimes when a old rifle is found with a ball mould it is about two calibers undersize.**
Back in "The Day"of only flintlock guns a fast reload was preferable to one hole target
accuracy. If it would shoot "minute of man"at close range it was acceptable.
**Possible barrel recutting but not the mould.

Bob Roller

[thecapgunkid]

No shortage of ideas and good advice in this forum,  but in the end follow your own judgement.  I tend to be more tactile than analytical only because I came into this from the living history side first, before I started shooting.  That drives me to consider how a body with an eighteenth century apprenticed curve of learning  would have thought and dealt with limited resources.  Throw in a reluctance to cast, and I always start sighting in with purchased round ball ( talk about a hypocrite) two sizes down with a thick patch.

Being leery of working too closely with molten lead, and not having the patience to seek precision, I always admired the math-and-measure boys because they do what I could never have the patience for.  I don't even own scales.

When I get the group I stop and settle in and can't even remember the number of grains in my measure anymore.

So, follow what you learned here and test.  Keep an ear open for the techies, and you'll do all right.

[Smokey Plainsman]

These are what I shoot from my Pedersoli Harpers Ferry smoothbore pistol:



This is five shots one handed standing at 10 yards. Good enough for me.

[Daryl]

Usually a big difference in breach pressure between a 40gr. pistol load and 90 or 100gr. rifle load.
 

[Marvin S]

I believe those were made for the .53 cal Hawken. Although you can use them with a thick patch in a .54.

Usually, the biggest ball you can use is better.

Yep, made for the Santa Fe Hawken. Even though marked 54cal most are 53cal, mine is.

[Daryl]

It is a piece of one of those barrels that comprises the.54 cal. barrel of my flintlock pistol. I use a .526" dead soft ball and linen patch in it, with 55gr. 3F GOEX powder. It will shoot into 2, to 2 1/2" at 50 yards with that load, from a rest, of course. The heavier than normal powder charge is due to the rifle r/b twist.

[sonny]

I use  the 520 ball with thicker patches in my smoothie an it shoots with accuracy out to 50 yards. I did notice when I shot on the range with my friend, he used a 535 ball an 90 grains 3 f in his smoothie an he was able to shoot more accurate at 70 to 80 yards then I did with my 520 an 80 grains of 3f............sonny

[wmrike]

I have had the exact same experiences as 45-110.  A garden variety 0.530 ball puts up a hellava fight going down the bore, more than I can deal with over the course of a normal shooting session.  My cast balls are 0.527 or thereabouts and they are still a work.  I have been of a mind to try some .0520s with fluffy patches.

[Daryl]

I hear fuzzy bunny tails work really well for wadding round balls. They allow lots of blow-by to centre the ball.