# long range muzzleloading



## deerhunter14 (Aug 18, 2012)

How far can you accurately shoot with your muzzleloader?


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## Nicodemus (Aug 18, 2012)

When my eyes were good, 100 yards and a little better. About 50 yards max now.


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## dawg2 (Aug 18, 2012)

Only shot mine to 100.  It's a Pennsylvania flintlock.  Never tried any farther, but I need to.


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## frankwright (Aug 18, 2012)

I am limited by my eyes to about 50-60 yards with my open sighted Hawken style rifles.

I have a scoped inline sighted dead on at 150.


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## Redleaf (Aug 18, 2012)

Not sure what "accurately"  is,  but I shoot my Harpers Ferry at 200 yards in the musket matches and do ok with it.  Offhand my 10 shot groups usually end up being about 2 feet.  I've got a couple of bullet shooting guns that will shoot 4 to 6" groups off bags at 200 if the wind aint blowing.  Never shot any further than that.  Hammered a nice 8 point at 90yds with that Harpers Ferry once!


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## Gecko (Aug 19, 2012)

I will not shoot one past 175.  Given my set-up that is all I will ask of it.


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## miles58 (Aug 19, 2012)

I can hit what I want with mine at 200.  I can kill deer at 150, but likely will never use it past 100 on a deer.

Dave


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## Bernard goldsmith (Aug 19, 2012)

Hit one at 65 yds with my 58 musket.


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## fishtail (Aug 19, 2012)

I sight each of mine at 100 yards but I ain't ever performed past 80 yards.


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## 1gr8bldr (Aug 19, 2012)

deerhunter14 said:


> How far can you accurately shoot with your muzzleloader?


Accurate, that is relative to the shooter. Guns are capable of holding tight groups at 300yds. A friend saw a deer who went a little to far from his usual hideout on my land, whom I called white foot. He ranged him at 210 yds following a doe. He shot at him but he stood still as if he had not even shot. He sobered up, ranged him again and took a serious aim. This time he dropped him in his tracks. Shooting 150grains, the first bullet had hit him but only penetrated a couple of inches. The next hit him in the spine. Accuracy is not the issue. Knectic energy is


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## deepfryit (Aug 19, 2012)

I hunt the blackpowder season still using archery tactics and set ups. targeting shorter range upwind oppertunities . i cant remember any of the 21 deer i have harvested during muzzleloader season being shot past 40 yards. i save the bean field set ups for the big guns later during the rut . its pretty rewarding to blow pyrodex smoke all over your deer after you squeese the old smoke pole off ! maximum respect to the guys that can stretch them front loaders out ...just not for me


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## deerhunter14 (Aug 20, 2012)

HMMMM....I might need to reconsider if it only went in 2 in at 200, I was thinking it would do better.Ive got 1 with scope 1 without . Both are set for 200, but I would really have to be on a good rest to do it in the field.The guns however will do it consistently. Thompson center guns, T.C. bulletsYellow with 2 leafs.I do like the fact that at 100  I aim low app.8 inches and its on.That allows me to see the deer better in low light and it keeps the sights out of the way.At 50 and 150 its app4 high.


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## deepfryit (Aug 20, 2012)

you have a tc with iron sights that you can shoot 200 yards! man your way better than me brother. for fun i looked through my old hawkins .50 with iron sights at a stop sign i ranged at 178 yards.the bead covered the entire sign so im not sure how you could place a projectile right were you want it at 200. but good on ya if ya can


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## formula1 (Aug 21, 2012)

*Re:*

I have a T/C with scope.  I can shoot it consistently at 200 yds within 6 inch group.  Just 25 yds more and it appears way more inconsistent (10-15 in groups).  This is with Blackhorn 209, 110 grains, and a 300 gr Nosler partition. So I limit myself to 200 yds.

I have shot a doe at 182 yds off a shooting stick with this load. DRT! That's the only long range hunting experience I've had as everything else has been close in.


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## deerhunter14 (Aug 25, 2012)

I filed the front site at a angle on each side to kinda make an upward v look.This helps expose deers bodys as well as the target which is a primary reason I have em sighted at that distance.I sighted both of em like that and the scope on the one gun that has see through mounts.That way I dont have to remember anything on any of my muzzleloaders.As far as sighting them at 200 iron sights I never said it was easy,in fact determination was the only way I accomplished the task.Very dificult to say the least.


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## Southern Cyote (Aug 25, 2012)

Smokeless Powder Muzzle Loader...
HANKINS SPML-45 - $3295.00


I am offering one of the most powerful and accurate 45 caliber muzzle loaders in the world. The muzzle loaders I build will Produce sub one inch three shot groups at 100 yards. With a muzzle velocity of over 3000 feet per second and a whopping 5000 foot pounds of energy. The SPML-45 will effectively take down game at over 500 yards. This is truly a long range 45 caliber muzzle loader.hankinscustomrifle.com, look at there gallery half way down the list you will see the rifle unbelievable. nice rifle though


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## collardncornbread (Aug 26, 2012)

Southern Cyote said:


> Smokeless Powder Muzzle Loader...
> HANKINS SPML-45 - $3295.00
> 
> 
> I am offering one of the most powerful and accurate 45 caliber muzzle loaders in the world. The muzzle loaders I build will Produce sub one inch three shot groups at 100 yards. With a muzzle velocity of over 3000 feet per second and a whopping 5000 foot pounds of energy. The SPML-45 will effectively take down game at over 500 yards. This is truly a long range 45 caliber muzzle loader.hankinscustomrifle.com, look at there gallery half way down the list you will see the rifle unbelievable. nice rifle though



Well there you go then.


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## one hogman (Aug 26, 2012)

It depends,  if you are using a scoped Inline or open sights, With my scoped gun out to 150 but with sights about 60 to 75 yds is the max I feel confident.


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## Redleaf (Oct 7, 2012)

I'm gonna trade in all my muzzleloaders for a plasma rifle in the 40 watt range.


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## tv_racin_fan (Oct 7, 2012)

You don't want to be tryin to kill something with a round ball much past 100 yards. General rule is the ball will have roughly the same percentage of muzzle energy as caliber at 100 yards. Thus a 45 caliber round ball will have 45% of the energy it had at the muzzle, a 50 will have about 50% and a 72 will have about 72%. That changes dramatically with an elongated projectile. Sectional density and ballistic coefficient and all that technical mumbo jumbo.

Higher the mass the slower the velocity/energy loss.


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## killitgrillit (Oct 7, 2012)

400yds, yes it's a muzzleloader, and it is smokeless.


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## scambooger (Oct 7, 2012)

try to keep all my shots under 100 yds, iron sights on my  old .58 cal musket seems to cover the target area up too much after that.


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## pdsniper (Oct 8, 2012)

I have a Confederate Whitworth Rifle it's what the Southern Snipers used during the civil war and this one has a 6x scope on it the bullets are hexagonal and a lot of work to make but the gun will shoot well past 500 yrds they have documented accounts of confederate snipers shooting union troops at twice that range but there are not many of these rifles floating around either but there are several muzzle loaders out there that will shoot well past 300 yrds but like what was all ready said it depends on who is shooting it and how accomplished they are with a rifle


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## one hogman (Oct 8, 2012)

That is a collectors item for sure!!!! Hard to finf bullets I would think,


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## Supercracker (Oct 8, 2012)

pdsniper said:


> I have a Confederate Whitworth Rifle it's what the Southern Snipers used during the civil war and this one has a 6x scope on it the bullets are hexagonal and a lot of work to make but the gun will shoot well past 500 yrds they have documented accounts of confederate snipers shooting union troops at twice that range but there are not many of these rifles floating around either but there are several muzzle loaders out there that will shoot well past 300 yrds but like what was all ready said it depends on who is shooting it and how accomplished they are with a rifle



I believe both Dysons and Blackleys in England have modern made Whitworth molds. Just an FYI if you were looking.

Also don't forget, Rigbys claim to fame in the mid 19th century was percussion target rifles for 1000yd matches. very long range muzzleloaders are nothing new.


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## NCHillbilly (Oct 8, 2012)

Depends on what you have and how good of a shot you are. A friend of mine shoots 1000 yd. matches with an 1861 Sharps ML. A better question for hunting would be, how far can you shoot accurately and still retain enough energy to cleanly kill a deer? I usually hunt with open sights/traditional MLs, so I limit my shots to 60-70 yards or preferably less. I killed one at 120 once, but I wouldn't shoot that far now.


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## pdsniper (Oct 8, 2012)

I have been using no excuse 50 cal bullets and then I use a swedging  die to form them in a 30 ton hydraulic press then clean the excess off the sides then they go to the lathe and I machine the base of the bullet so it's perfectly flat then weigh them and make them all the some weight, yea it's a lot of work but thats the price you pay to shoot a cool rifle and it drops White tails very well and best of all I did it with a bullet I made with a traditional muzzle loading rifle


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