load combos for a 1:32 twist Lyman great plains rifle

[futureranger]

i got a Lyman great plains rifle over the summer and had some difficulty finding a accurate/consistent powder load and bullet weight combination. the rifle has a 1;32 twist barrel and from what I've experience patch and balls shoot just as well as 250gr cheap hp bullets and sabots backed by 90gr of pryodex. It has a spread of about 3-4" at 50 yards will a heavier bullet or higher quality bullet help much? thanks for the help.

 

[planetmobius]

I have the great Plains hunter in .54 and have been shooting the 450 gr Lyman plains bullet with a 90 gr charge and have been achieving about 4" groups at 100 yards. I have tried to reduce the charge and have experimented with various combinations but this seems to be as good as it gets with this bullet. Still, about half the group size that you are currently getting and what I consider to be acceptable for hunting applications. The bullet comes out of te mold just a little tight and are a bit tough to get down the bore especially after a little fouling is involved. But my alloy I have been using is not pure lead and it would probably help alot if it was. I had a brass ramrod fabricated to give me a bit more inertia to push the bullets home. I have killed two deer with this bullet and powder combination and am satisfied with it in this respect. Like you, I have experimented with the patched ball in the 1:32 inch twist and have terrible results with anything over 60 gr of powder for some reason. I have not experimented with any other bullet in this particular rifle.

 

[Misfire99]

planetmobius; I have been thinking about getting one of these rifles. What other bullets and loads have you tried with this rifle. Do you use a spit patch between shots?

 

[GENTLEMAN OF THE CHARCOAL]

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[futureranger]

do you think that using a heavier bullet will help stabilize more consistently, or will it not be worth the extra money?

 

[planetmobius]

Missfire99,

The 450 gr Plains Bullet has ben my primary projectile so far. I intend to do some more experimenting but have not done any so far. I will be interested to see how it handles modern sabotted projectiles. I know that this rifle is capable of better accuracy, I just have not found the sweet spot yet. I would reccomend the rifle in terms of quality and styling. It is probably one of the better off the shelf guns I have seen in a while.

Gentleman of the Charcoal,

Lyman also makes a version with a 1:60 twist specifically for round ball. This may be the one that you heard had great RB accuracy. The Great Plains Hunter has a more shallow rifling with a 1:32 twist specifically for conical projectiles.

 

[GENTLEMAN OF THE CHARCOAL]

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[Misfire99]

Well I took the plunge today. I went into Sportsman Warehouse to look at the BP rifles. They had the Lyman Great Plains Hunter for $420. That is the cheapest I have seen it even on line. The highest is in the five hundreds. It's sitting next to me right now. All I am waiting for now is the weather to warm up. I love to shoot but I want it at lest in the forties. Not in the twenties or the teens. A couple of days ago it was ten degrees. I doubt if the caps would go off in that kind of cold.

For some worthless information. The reason Russian military surplus ammo is always corrosive primed is so it will go off in extreme cold. Non-corrosive primers have a habit of not going boom when it's very cold. Modern non-corrosive primers don't have this problem as much.

 

[planetmobius]

Missfire99,

The caps will go off. I've fired mine in -20 up here in Wisconsin on some deer stand that I wish I was never on BRRRRRR! I've also taken it to the range in the single digits. It's uncomfortable but for some reason I seem to always have the 100 yard line all to myself. Go figure. Congradulations on the purchase. I think you will be pleased. Now go kill something.

Gentleman of the Charcoal,

Semper Fi. When were you in. I was in from 84-90. In IRR when the Gulf War started. Got activated but they finished the ground war in a couple of hours so I never left.

 

[planetmobius]

Futureranger,

I'm getting side tracked and forgot to answer your question. I think that the 1:32 is probably best with the heavier bullets. The 4" groups that I'm getting with the plains bullet isn't that bad and I feel confident that I will improve on this. I suggest that you give it a try. But before you go out and buy a mold and melting pot, put some of the commeercial cast bullets to the test. Or PM me with a mailing address and I'll be happy to send you some of mine.

 

[Misfire99]

planetmobius
I plan on it. Black Bear season starts in April here. I am really hoping I can get my stuff together to be out in the woods for that.

 

[sixgun MAK]

I have the 54 cal. I have the slow twist barrel for patched round balls, and the fast twist as well.

For the roundballs, I use .15 thickness patches with a 240 grain ball over 90 grains of Hogden RS.

For the fast twist, I use Hornady 425 conicals over 120 grains of Hogden RS. This load will rattle your bones, but out of my gun, it is incredibly accurate at 100 yards.

 

[futureranger]

shot my lyman .50 today and got some interesting results when i used the 240 grain conicals i got 1.5-2" at 50 yards (when i used 80gr-100gr of pryodex), but the 80, 85 and 90gr charges got round even groups but the 95 was strung out (almost a completely vertical 2" line) and it got even worse with the 100 gr charge. i cleaned between every shot, but i dont know why it does this. also the 80gr shot almost 6" lower than the 100gr charge at just 50 yards, is that normal?