50 cal BP elk loads?

[Gunnerboy]

Im new to the whole hunting with a muzzleloader and i got a new cva 50 mag so i was wondering is 100gr of pyrodex ffg with a 385gr bullet good for elk at 50-75yds or should i go up to 120grs of powder?

 

[frontiergander]

100gr is good. 120gr is just to much wallop at your end of the gun LOL

 

[MCgunner]

I would shoot the big 385 Minie behind 90 grains, myself, so 100 would be plenty. You're not going to get much more out of it with any more powder, not enough to write home about. With BP stuff, it's the LEAD that does the killin', not the speed of the bullet.

 

[Busyhands94]

100 grains should be fine. but remember that shot placement is everything.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

Consider if you were hunting elk with a government BP cartridge of .45-70 you would be launching a 405 grain projectile (in some loadings) over 70 grains of BP. We should be able to agree that a .45-70 cartridge would be good for elk..., it was good for buffalo. Your load then would not go amiss with a 20 grain lighter projectile, and 42% more powder.

Bushyhands94 is correct..., you load cannot correct for a poor shot, so shot placement will always be the key.

LD

 

[Gunnerboy]

Alright thank you all, im an avid handloader so i wasnt sure if the extra grains of BP would make a differance like smokeless does.

 

[arcticap]

i was wondering is 100gr of pyrodex ffg with a 385gr bullet good for elk at 50-75yds or should i go up to 120grs of powder?

I don't know which model that you have or what your manual says. But the Optima Elite manual says not to load more than 100 grains of powder with a .50 conical. That does not include Powerbelts that have a plastic skirt.
And also not to load more than 100 grains of powder with a saboted bullet that weighs over 300 grains.

FIREARM TYPE MINIMUM MAXIMUM
.50 .50 Conical Powder FFG 50 100


CAUTION: Do not use conical lead
bullets weighing more than 400 grains in your CVA
rifle.

CAUTION: Do not use saboted bullets
weighing more than 300 grains in your CVA rifle.

http://www.cva.com/pdfs/OptimaEliteWarrantyBook.pdf

 

[Gunnerboy]

i got the cva buckhorn magnum and are suppose to be able to handle 150grs

 

[arcticap]

That's only for projectiles of a certain weight and type. Please read the manual for your gun thoroughly including the loading chart on page 9 below. CVA seems to only recommend maximum 150 grain powder charges with their Powerbelt bullets and magnum pellets.

http://www.cva.com/pdfs/BuckElkWarrBook.pdf

 

[MCgunner]

Consider if you were hunting elk with a government BP cartridge of .45-70 you would be launching a 405 grain projectile (in some loadings) over 70 grains of BP. We should be able to agree that a .45-70 cartridge would be good for elk..., it was good for buffalo. Your load then would not go amiss with a 20 grain lighter projectile, and 42% more powder.

See, I sorta think of my BP rifles as 50/90 Sharps with no brass to worry about. Now, i realize the 50/90 shot a heavier slug than 385 grains, but hey, they were top of the line buffalo guns back in the day. My CVA can handle 150 grains, or so the manual says, but I don't bother. I don't need no 50/110 sharps and my shoulder don't need it, either. Besides, I'm loading with 777 so it's probably more like 110 grains of BP, 100 anyway. I burn 90 grains pyrodex RS in my Hawken 'cause that's what it seems to like best for accuracy. As they told you, accuracy is essential.

 

[frontiergander]

CVA's these days are rated for 150gr loose powder with sabots/conicals. They used to state in the old manuals that the max load with loose powder was 100gr but that was simply due to their testing showing that the 28" barrel couldnt burn up anything over that. Once you start getting over 110gr Powder you just start blowing unburnt, wasted powder.

With a 385gr conical, theres no way in heck you'd want to use 110-150gr loose powder as the kick would be like someone hitting you across the shoulder/cheek with a 2x4.

 

[Gunnerboy]

120gr with the 385 wasnt that bad in recoil my 30-06 bites me more than that load did, and its good to know that after 110grs that powder is wasted so i think i will stick with 100grs for my load it was the most accurate anyways.

 

[J-Bar]

Can't say anything about elk, but I can verify that a deer hit with a .54 caliber Hornady Great Plains solid lead bullet pushed by 100 grains of Pyrodex looks like one of those cartoon characters that get hit by a falling piano...they just don't go anywhere.