hunting with ROA

[frontloader]

hi yall I ve been lurking a couple years.decided to join the other day.there is a wealth of info here! This year Ive decided to hunt deer/hogs with my ROA.I want the quickest most humane harvest possible with my pistol/load and marksmanship.Im always working on the marksmanship part.untill I get better I will limit my shots to bow hunting range.my hunting load will be a 250 gr lee REAL bullet cast from air cooled wheelweights.tumbled lubed with Lee liquid alox over 35 gr. of triple 7 no wad and cci #11 caps.The ROA is more accurate than I can hold at 25 yards,about 2" group.
btw I chronyed that load at 1016 fps. Do any of you guys shoot/hunt with the 250 REAL bullet in your OA ? if so what kind of velocity are you geting? and has anyone harvested any deer or hogs with it? please share your experince . thanks........frontloader

 

[kanook]

I got a 125lb spike at 50yds using my ROA.

I filled the cylinder up to the rim with Jim shockey's gold, put a roofing boot lead ball on top of it and crammed it in.

It ended up being my first revolver, first BP, and first BP revolver deer. So we laugh that 1 shot got 3 deer

 

[lonewolf5347]

I shoot the ROA sometimes with triple 777 3F a full load on the cylinder 43.0 grains with a .457 Rb
I would bet any deer out to 50 yards can't walk away from a boiler room shot.
I would think it would be closed to a 357 mag pistol

 

[frontloader]

Hi Kanook.....so where did you hit the deer? did the rb stay in the deer? 50 yards ,good shootin .please give detalis. thanks frontloader

 

[kanook]

I was in a tree stand, the deer was walking from my left to right, I waited till I knew the shot would not hit a shoulder on entry but would on exit.

After being hit the deer went about 40yds downhill and was recovered in the branch (stream,creek)

If it wasn't going downhill, I think it wouldn't have made it as far.

I took a look for the ball but didn't find it. Their was no blood trail at all and was hard to locate the entry if you didn't know where to look. It was a solid heart shot and once the pumper stopped that was it. My friend skinned and cleaned it for me, he didn't look for the exit or the ball either, so I don't know if it exited or not.

I don't know the FPS with that powder and load, I do know that that is the most accurate with my revolver and is why I use it. I was giving some 777 and have yet to try it. If it is as accurate with a little more FPS I will give it a try.

I don't like not having a blood trail and I've had this happen with my 6.8spc as well and that one did exit for sure.

 

[MCgunner]

Full charge of 777 puts my Lee 220 grain cast hp bullets over the chrony at over 1300 fps. Should give you an idea, but it's a serious powerful load. It should take any whitetail on the planet at 50 yards, not a problem. Never shot anything, but paper with it, though.

One problem, last two shots sometimes creep forward with that hot load and cause cocking to be a little hard on the last two as the end of the bullet just does contact the forcing cone. Shouldn't be a problem for hunting, but I download the thing for plinking, don't shoot the full power stuff.

 

[AbitNutz]

I may have hit on a solution to high powered loads causing bullet creep. I had the same problem only I shoot 220 gr BigLube bullets. About the same as the Lee. I sent the cylinder to Clement to have the it deepened. Now it holds about 8 grains more of triple 7 and really screams. However, I get no bullet jump at all, Why? Well, if I look with a bore light inside the cylinder it's looks rougher than I would have thought...I bet that may be deliberate and may just hold the bullet better...because something sure does.

The other possibility is that I always use my Dick Dastardly loader now. It could be I'm just compressing it harder...

Clement is about to be sent the ROA again next week for installation of the Power Custom stainless billet Colt grip frame and beveling and serrating the front sight.

 

[frontloader]

abitnutz, what kind of velocity are you geting with that deeper cylinder? Ive been thinking about sending it to mr Clements.Then Wisnet at classicballistx emailed me that they were taking orders for September for their aftermarket cylinder that holds about 11 grains more. I read here or somewhere that he was geting 1350 fps with a 250 gr bullet. Now thats in the" Ruger Only" neighborhood for a .45 ..........frontloader

 

[AbitNutz]

Wisent emailed you and said Sept? Hmm...may have to tag him.

11 grains is on the high side. I have both an older Classicballistx and the original ROA deepened by Clement. I initially thought that the Classicballistx held more but it doesn't. They both hold about 8 grains more.

I started working up some velocity tests using my CED M2 using a pure lead Hollow Pointed BigLube 210 gr. I quit at an average of 1375 fps because...for the first time....I started to get barrel leading. It was enough to really effect the usual pinpoint accuracy. I still had a couple more grains I could add when I started to notice the problem.

I haven't had a chance to forgo the hollow pointing, cast up some harder bullets or change the lube to see if I can cure it.

The ROA is on its way to David Clement next week to have the Power Custom billet stainless Colt grip frame fitted and the front sight beveled and serrated. So I won't see it for a while.

I'm still stuck for grips...the guy I desperately wanted to do them was CLC custom grips but he declined as he only does Ruger frames....ack!

 

[frontloader]

abitNutz....ahhh in that case its a lot cheaper to send it to mr clements. as I posted above Im shooting a 250 gr Lee REAL bullet a little over 1000 fps .. no bullet creep.are you shooting soft lead? it could be thats not enough recoil to move the bullets foward or the LLA bullet lube. have you tried the LLA? I would like to get about 1200 fps with a 250 gr bullet with the deeper cylinder.we will see. btw how do you like the Power Custom colt grip frame?

 

[MCgunner]

I'll admit, the bullets I'm shooting that creep are range scrap, not pure lead. I'd prefer pure lead for hunting, anyway.

 

[BHP FAN]

try Aloxed pure lead conicals.

 

[AJumbo]

Every conical I've tried hits WAY high at even 15 yards, even with the rear sight bottomed out.The charge is all the 3f/Pyrodex P I could get behind the bullet. The stainless OA I used to have had a pinned-on front sight, but for whatever reason, the blued ones like I have now have a one-piece front sight. I considered getting the front sight changed out, but then I'd have a dedicated conical slinger. Funny how Ruger rifled the OA barrels for slugs, then sighted them for round balls. Has anyone else run into this problem?

I tried Maxi-Balls once, but I think the chamber won't hold enough powder to reliably upset the base of the slug upon ignition; I'd get three or four shots into 2" at 20 yards (about 14" above POA), and the rest would be....well......elsewhere. Maybe an aftermarket cylinder or a bore-out by Mr. Clement is in order. More power is never a bad thing. I haven't tried 777 yet, since I have a fair amount of Pyrodex P and Swiss 3f on hand and use them in my other arms as well.

 

[frontloader]

hi Ajumbo.....yea I have the stainless in 7.5" with the pinned front sight made in 1995.and it shot way high at 25 yds. for right now I put some JB weld on it to make it taller. I read somewhere that a front sight blade for 5.5" .44 mag BH was the same but taller. I called Ruger and explained ,the tech did not know what I was talking about. needless to say they a sent complete front sight for a single six. wrong. Ill try again this week. try the Lee REAL bullet in 200 or 250 gr or the Lee 230 gr conical .they have all shot very good out of all my OA.....FRONTLOADER

 

[AbitNutz]

My 5-1/2 ROA shoots dead on at 25 yards no matter what the projectile.


However, It doesn't matter anymore as I now hunt deer with my car.