Double PRB Load

[rodwha]

On another forum loading a double ball was mentioned which is what is known as loading for bear from what I understand as one would have their typical game load and were a bear encountered another ball would be loaded.

My understanding is both balls should be loaded at once as the second ball could spring off of the first ball.

Out of curiousity I ran numbers through my ballistics app using Hodgdon data. Elevation was set at 900', 25 yd intervals, a 0 of 100 yds using 80 grns of 2F Pyrodex RS as this would be a minimum energy level of a typical hunting load (.50 cal). I used the 348 grn PowerBelt as its the closest weight to 2 balls (354 grns), though I believe a bit more velocity is achieved with the PRB. This is what it gave me:

1 PRB 1701/1137, 845, 633, 494, 409, 354 1.3, 2.4, 2.1, 0.0, -4.1
2 PRBs 1336/702, 536, 435, 372, 327, 292 2.2, 3.6, 2.9, 0.0, -5.5

Anyone here with experience doing this? I'm curious how far off the balls print from each other and how effective this is. It looks as though a double ball load is still effective out to 100 yds.

 

[desidog]

My double loading experience only goes as far as my old Diana .177 RWS-34; but i found that the second projectile will have 1/2 or 3/4 the speed of the first one, and subsequently falls quicker. Of course, piston vs powder may change things...

 

[rodwha]

I found some real world results on a traditional forum.

It seems the decrease in velocity is about as expected. Results showed virtually same hole at 25 yds and a figure 8 pattern at 50 yds. I'd suspect 1.5-4" of separation at 100 yds.

 

[AJumbo]

I tried this with a .54, rifled 1:48". The charges were between 80-100 grains of 2f, ,530 balls with thick ticking patches. The result was mostly a fun day at the range. Best accuracy gave me a 2" spread between impacts at 50 yards, but I don't recall how much powder was involved in that particular load. I suppose I might hunt with the load in question if my shots were under 50 yards, and the game wasn't bigger than a mulie. The rifle has a 1:66" barrel now, and I've never tried dual-ball loads in it. Might be a fun thing to revisit.

 

[Loyalist Dave]

In the old Thompson Center manuals for the Hawken rifles, they listed "double ball" loads to use for .45 caliber, patched, round balls. Apparently they didn't know they were more than adequate for whitetail deer, OR they thought their customers had that belief.

(iirc) an article in Muzzleloader magazine dealt either with double-ball loads, or cut ball loads [round ball sliced in half] a few years ago.

In either case they were good at least out to 50 yards. The projectiles in a double load might deform where they come into contact with each other while in the barrel, when fired...I don't think that would harm their flight....

Kind of academic unless one lives in a state that allows buckshot for deer and allows the buckshot to be fired from a muzzleloader, for the majority of states define a muzzle loader when legal for big game as firing "a single projectile" loaded from the muzzle.

I've never had a problem with a patched round ball of .440 or > hammering a white tail, so would not see a need to double the mass of my lead going down range.


LD

 

[rodwha]

At one time we thought we might move to VA which would put me in bear country. I might just want to do so were I loaded with one. I'd hate to track a wounded bear so 2 nasty wounds means faster bleeding where I stand.

Were I hunting bear specifically is likely use a REAL.

This is mostly a curiousity and have no idea if it's legal and whether or not bear overlaps deer hunting.