20 guage round ball load for whitetail deer

[mossyhorn]

What would be a good starting load for hunting deer with a 20 guage and round balls from a jug choked gun?

[Not English]

A jug choked barrel shouldn't make any difference as far  as I know. I'm sure some one will prove me wrong as I don't have any experience with a jug choke other than conversation. I'm happy shooting a .600 round ball with a pillow ticking patch ( unknown thickness). It is a tight load. I can put a group in a 6" circle at 60+ yards. That's plenty good for Wi. deer in the woods. A .600 round ball  has a lot of wallop.

Dave

[mossyhorn]

I'm looking to find how much powder behind that ball as a starting load up what would be considered a heavy load?

[rich pierce]

60 grains is fine if it shoots well. Using 80 grains or so is probably more common.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

I shoot a .600" ball from a Lee mould, .018" patch and mink oil lube over 86 gr. FFg GOEX.  I'm pretty consistent with that load on targets out to about 135 yards, but I wouldn't shoot at a deer at more then about 75 yd. for a certain one shot kill.  At 135 yards, I see the whole head of the turtle over the wedding band as my sight picture.  I shoot a Peensylvania Fowler from Chambers.

[Brokennock]

I've been using 80 grains 3f behind either a patched. 600 ball or combo of .610 ball and wads, depending on which gun I'm shooting, for years. This year I started playing with "light" loads in one gun and found that 65 grains 3f is very accurate with either a loosely patched .595 ball or with a ball and wad combo. At 25 to 50 yards both ball combos shoot to the same p.o.a./p.o.i. with maybe a slight edge given to the patched ball for accuracy.

[mossyhorn]

Thanks for the info. Its been several months since I used the gun due to having it jug choked and the barrel being lost for 3 months in the mail. Really fortunate to have it back and able to repair the damages done while lost. Also replacing a loose lug that the solder joint failed and doing my first solder repair that appears successful. Also slotted the lug holes as Jim Kibler taught us in class at Western Ky while building one of his mountain rifle kits. I've also learned a lot for this forum
that I visit daily and I appreciate all the info that is so readily available here from so many fine builders.

[Daryl]

I shoot a 20 bore with a mild standard choke. Best so far is 85gr. of 2F GOEX .595" ball from a Tanner mould and .020" denim patch.

[RANGER94]

I also have a similar set up. Taking notes!!

[Bob McBride]

I also have a similar set up. Taking notes!!

It's been my experience 20 bores seem to have a sweet spot for rb's about 80g and another about 110g. One sometimes better than the other, but the second best one is often fine for my hunting charge if it's the lighter load.

[Daryl]

I'll have to try that, Bob. I've never been one to go light on a powder charge. 
That may be why our best smoothbore shooter uses 85gr. GOEX 3F.
At some bore sizes, though, the 3F and 2F run equal velocities. I don't know what that is, but my .69 Rifle does better, velocity wise, with 2F.

[Not English]

MossyHorn,  I forgot to mention that I shoot 80gr of 3f Goex. As mentioned earlier, I am happy with it.

Dave

[alacran]

I have a Tulle with a 44 inch Getz .62 caliber barrel. I built it about 20 years ago. It shoots moderately ok with 70 grains of Goex 2f, better with 85 grains of the same. But it shoots best with 110 grains of Goex 2f. However due to its architecture, it beats the excrement out of me.
 That is why I built myself an English style fowler.  So far I find the 90 grain load of Goex 2f works very well and is accurate. It does this without pounding me. I need to try it with more powder, just haven't had the time. That being said I would be comfortable hunting deer or elk with the 90 grain load out to 75 yards .

[Pukka Bundook]

I know this sounds all wrong, but when I built a matchlock on a 20-bore Colerain barrel, I only had .570" balls to try it with.
I found with a felt wad over 70 grs 2F (I think!)    and a .570" patched with a thick patch lubed with deer tallow, it shot pretty well like a rifle to 75 yards.
That winter I took a mule deer buck at 85 yards with it.  I thought he was closer or wouldn't have fired.
My theory is that as long as the patch holds the ball in the centre of the barrel on the way out, tightness doesn't seem to matter that much....

Richard.

[RANGER94]

I also have a similar set up. Taking notes!!

It's been my experience 20 bores seem to have a sweet spot for rb's about 80g and another about 110g. One sometimes better than the other, but the second best one is often fine for my hunting charge if it's the lighter load.

 Bob - I assume 2F?

[Bob McBride]

I also have a similar set up. Taking notes!!

It's been my experience 20 bores seem to have a sweet spot for rb's about 80g and another about 110g. One sometimes better than the other, but the second best one is often fine for my hunting charge if it's the lighter load.

 Bob - I assume 2F?

Yes, typically, though I do always test 3F as some guns seem to prefer it. If a certain gun likes say 110g of 2f better than the 80g-ish load then I will often run through 60-80 of 3F to see how that stacks up.

[Tim Crosby]

I shoot a .600" ball from a Lee mould, .018" patch and mink oil lube over 86 gr. FFg GOEX.  I'm pretty consistent with that load on targets out to about 135 yards, but I wouldn't shoot at a deer at more then about 75 yd. for a certain one shot kill.  At 135 yards, I see the whole head of the turtle over the wedding band as my sight picture.  I shoot a Peensylvania Fowler from Chambers.

  Taylor,
  A question: When you say "I'm pretty consistent with that load on targets out to about 135 yards," Are you talking about a small group? I'm just wondering, that is about twice the range I can do anything with a smooth bore.

  Thanks, Tim   

PS: Now that I think about it it could be a rifle. TC

[Daryl]

Same here(or closer), Tim, but Taylor shoots that Pennsylvania fowler really well on gongs & he's consistently good with it.
Seems to me, iirc, that mould of his casts oversize, at about .608".

[hanshi]

My gun's a .62 and cylinder bore.  I started with 60 grns of 3F and settled on 70 to 75 grains of 3F.  Tried 2F up to 100 grains.  Shot well but certainly no better than 75 grns of 3F.

[bob in the woods]

.62 cal smoothbore, 38 inch Colerain barrel ,  R E Davis round faced lock, 100 gr FFg [ paper cartridge]
with .600 ball.   One shot at 35 yards, Friday at 4:15 PM = one immediately expired spike buck.
We had some for dinner tonight.  The destruction was massive, although the ball did not exit.  Hit the lower neck and travelled through to the right shoulder.  If you're hunting in the woods and at ranges under 50 yards or so, a smoothbore is awesome, and much lighter than most rifles. The weight is one reason I've been carrying this smoothbore a lot lately.

[Sparkitoff]

I just worked with my 20 gauge (technically its 19 gauge) double. It has two different chokes. One barrel wants a .610 ball and the other a .626 ball. I found the best results with 80 grains Goex 3F.  Used a card wad over powder, cushion wad then ball and an over-shot card. Both balls hit same spot out to 35-yards. At 50 yards one barrel is slightly higher and left of the other, but both still in around a 5-inch groups of 3-shots from each barrel.

[Daryl]

That's really good shooting for a SxS smoothbore, Sparkitoff.

[Rifleman1776]

Unless you are very experienced and proficient shooting patched round balls with a smoothie, I suggest you limit your shots to under 50 yards. I'm a proponent of moderate loads and have found about 60 gr. will kill a deer just as ded as 100 gr. and ruin much less meat. For a smoothie use of a was between ball and powder will aid tremendously for loading after the first shot.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

Tim, Daryl hinted at the answer to your question.  I have never shot for group past 50 yards, but being satisfied that the gun will shoot into about 4" at 50 yards offhand, my luck on a trail walk shooting at a variety of steel targets out to 135 yards, has been very rewarding.  At the BC Rendezvous a couple years ago, I Aced a 32 shot trail and several of the targets were at rifle range.  I love shooting the PA fowler with round ball...it is very pleasant to shoot and shoots centre.  And Daryl is correct too about my mould.  It's a Lee, and is nominally .600"but casts .613".  I'm an advocate of tight combinations, so that suits me fine.

[jcbays]

I shoot a .600 from the Lee mold as well.  I use a linen patch (extra 100 yards)...ok, that was a joke from the stupidest line in a great movie... seriously, I used linen because I had a bunch of it.  The bore was .620

Thanks
Jeremy