Best (and Worst) Muzzleloading Bullet Experiences

[Bam Bam]

In an effort to increase my effective hunting range, I purchased a CVA Optima LR recently. My goal is to find a bullet and powder combination that shoots consistently tight groups at 200 yards. I was going to grab 3 or 4 different bullets to try, but the sheer number of options really took me by surprise. Does anyone care to share their most (or least) accurate bullets for shots over 150 yards? Are sabots always more accurate out of muzzleloaders?

 

[Walkathon]

I've used 50 cal Hornady FPB in the past, and they shot well out of my old Knight Muzzleloader. Its a full bore bullet with no sabot. I didn't shoot at 200 yards. It was an open sighted gun and I only shot at 100 yards. I did shoot at least one deer with them and the deer didn't go far. Been shooting the TC branded bullets lately and they also worked well. Haven't shot them past 100 yards either. Good luck with your search

 

[7Bartman]

I've been shooting powerbelts for a number of years and while they seem accurate for me, I cannot recommend them due to very poor blood trails. I'll be following this thread as well.

 

[Mallardsx2]

Hornady 300gr sst low drag sabots and 84 (measured) grains of bh209…..

Super deadly.

I tried about everything, and that is what I settled on. It just works for my cva mr.

 

[utah400elk]

You didn’t mention caliber…

For a .45 caliber, Arrowhead 300 grn XLDs are extremely accurate in my knight rifles and Arrowhead rifle.

For .50 caliber, 460 grn No-Excuse and 285 grain universal fit Fury Star tip bullets have been the best.

All of these bullets have Produced sub MOA groups out of a scoped muzzleloader and the .50 calibers will hold 2-3 inch groups with open sights at 100 yards.

I have never recovered any of these bullets because every shot has been a complete pass through. The 460 grn no-excuse produced a complete pass through on a 170 yard cow elk shot.

My .50 caliber CVA Accura shot the Fury Universal fits very well. I would look at those in 285 or 320. The sabot is the weak spot in consistency and full bore bullets can give you much better accuracy (IMO). I have a couple Hankins bore sizers for my muzzleloaders (.45 and .50) and can get crazy good groups with full size bullets.

 

[SWNMELK]

I shoot Remington 700ML with the Badger 209 conversion, I have found it likes 250 gr. Hornady's (for muzzleloader they call them SST and for pistol they are FTX) with a Harvester Crush Rib sabot and 100 gr of Blackhorn 209 and a regular CCI 209 primer. My Knight likes TC Maxis either 350 or 375 gr and 100 gr of XX black powder (but not out to 200 yds). Works for me.

 

[CowboyLeroy]

300 grain Barnes expander mz over 77 weighted grains of bh 209 gets fist sized groups at 3 hundo. That's out of an accura pr.

 

[bayoublaster7527]

Great luck with hornady FPB in my .50 cva. Arrowhead xld shot well in my .45

 

[Sask hunter]

I like the Barnes 250 tsx in mine with 110 loose 777

 

[std7mag]

Are sabots always more accurate out of muzzleloaders?

Not out of the smoothbores i've shot.

Don't forget, companies are starting to make solid copper (mono) bullets for muzzle loaders too.
I know Cutting Edge offers monos for muzzle loaders, not sure about Hammer.

 

[BoulderBulls]

I have that exact muzzleloader. This year I used the Barnes 250 gr the hunt I was on was in a golden eagle winter range and copper solids were required. Took at cow at ~150 yards. She died but it took longer than I prefer. Upcoming season I'm going to find a lead one that flys good

 

[220yotekiller]

Not out of the smoothbores i've shot.

Don't forget, companies are starting to make solid copper (mono) bullets for muzzle loaders too.
I know Cutting Edge offers monos for muzzle loaders, not sure about Hammer.

barnes does as well

 

[elkantlers]

Hornady 300gr sst low drag sabots and 84 (measured) grains of bh209…..

Super deadly.

I tried about everything, and that is what I settled on. It just works for my cva mr.

This is what I use other than I throw the low drag sabots in the garbage and use a Harvester crush rib sabot. I was able to tighten up my groups with the Harvester sabot.

For Colorado I use the 350gr Hornaday FPB. They are a great elk bullet.

 

[buffybr]

I have three muzzle loading rifles, but I rarely hunt with them and have only shot 2 animals with them.

In the early '70s I broke my leg while skiing in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. It was a bad break that put me in three different casts for six months. For something to do while I was recovering, I bought a CVA kit and built a .45 caliber percussion Kentucky rifle.

Two weeks after I got out of my last cast, was the opening of what I remember as Colorado's first muzzleloading deer season, so a couple of friends and I went on our first muzzloading deer hunt. Fresh out of my leg casts, I was slower than my friends and we got separated.

It was an overcast day that turned to a drizzle, but not a hard enough rain to quit hunting. I remember taking cover under a large sage brush and holding the lock of my rifle under me to keep it dry. Not long after the drizzly quit I continued through the sage brush and jumped one of the largest antlered mule deer that I have ever seen.

He wasn't more than 30 yards from me when he jumped up, and I almost instinctly raised my rifle, cocked the hammer and fired. There was a click...pause...BOOM. The drizzle gave me a hangfire. I had been shooting Trap every week that summer so I had learned to lead my target and follow through.

I reloaded my rifle and began following a slight blood trail. Then I heard a shot and a few minutes later another shot. I continued in the direction of the sound of the shots and found my partners standing over the buck. His antlers were in full velvet, 30" wide with 4 tyical points on each beam plus eyeguards and 7 more "trash" points.

One of my partners was very excited and asked if I had seen that buck. I replied, "Yes, I shot him." We then examined the buck and found 3 bullet holes. One bullet had entered the left side of his chest, one bullet had just nicked his lower leg, and the bullet that finished him had gone in the right side of his neck. I had only seen his left side and my partners had only seen his right side.

When we dressed him we found that the bullet in his chest had nicked both lungs and lodged in his off shoulder. It was my patched ball that I had cast from wheelweights so it hadn't expanded. The hit in his leg was superficial and would have healed. My partner made that shot as the buck jumped a barb wire fence by them. The buck ran past my partners and stopped in a draw with his head down and caughing blood from the lung shot. My partner then shot the buck in the neck, hitting his spine and killed him.

We took that buck back to Steamboat where we processed him and we each had a box of cut and wrapped venison. My partner that had aslo shot the buck had a sporting goods store in town, and he wanted to hang the antlers in his store. We agreed and I took my box of meat with me back to college in Fort Collins.

The next summer I went back to my summer job in Steamboat and went into the sporting goods store to see my friend. I didn't see those deer antlers on the wall and asked my friend where they were. He said "back in his shed." So I went to his house and there the antlers were on top of his shed and the weather and birds had destroyed most of the velvet. I was suprised that a dog hadn't hauled them away. I looked inside his shed and there was his box of meat that bugs had gotten through the paper wrappings and had ate all of the meat.

So at the end of that summer, I took the antlers home with me where I cleaned them up, stained them, and put them on a plaque on my wall. Years later I had them mounted and enjoy looking at them every day, some 40 years after we shot him.

 

[buffybr]

My deer story rambled way longer than I thought it would, so I'll make my second muzzleloader bullet story in a second post and shorter.

A few years after Colorado's first muzzleloader hunt, FWP changed the rules and required at least .50 caliber for elk hunting. So I bought a Green River kit and built a .54 caliber percussion Hawken rifle. I then moved to Montana before I could use that rifle on an elk hunt.

Here in Montana we didn't have a specific muzzleloader elk season so I've just taken the easy route and killed all of my elk here with my centerfire rifles.

In 2004 I heard that Turner's Flying D ranch near where I live was having a "management" buffalo hunt at a fraction of the cost of their "trophy" hunts. I booked one and decided to use my .54 caliber Hawken rifle.

We got within about 40 yards of my management bull and I put a 435 grain Maxi Hunter lead bullet just behind his left shoulder. He dropped instantly, but before I could get reloaded he got up and ran abut 20 yards, then fell dead.

My guide could get a tractor to him so he gutted him and put him in the back of my truck and I took him to a meat processor. That was the first animal that I shot and didn't process myself, and I'm very glad that I had it done. Two weeks later I went back to the processor and picked up 495 pounds of 1 1/2 lb packages of frozen burger and a box of frozen packages of backstrap and tenderloin steaks and roasts.

When my GF and I BBQ'd the first package of steaks, they looked, smelled, and tasted great, but they were about as tender as the proverbial shoe leather. I then ground all of the steaks and roasts and made them into jerkey.

I consider a buffalo shoulder mount an icon of the American west, and I enjoy seeing mine "eye to eye" every day.
I did have a camo jacket on when I shot him...

 

[drake2h]

I‘m curious to know how folks’ recommendations would change for an all lead, conical only (no sabot) state like Idaho.

 

[Wind Gypsy]

The sabot is the weak spot in consistency and full bore bullets can give you much better accuracy (IMO). I have a couple Hankins bore sizers for my muzzleloaders (.45 and .50) and can get crazy good groups with full size bullets.

This is what I've gathered from Luke at Arrowhead as well. Basically doesn't stand behind performance if you're using a sabot.

 

[Addicting]

I am a big fan of the Hornady bore riders. I did a thread on here about them with quite a few pics of the performance.

 

[Nick87]

Hornady 300gr sst low drag sabots and 84 (measured) grains of bh209…..

Super deadly.

I tried about everything, and that is what I settled on. It just works for my cva mr.

The 250's have been great for me. Shoot good and never had a deer go more than 10 yards iirc.

 

[LuketheDog]

I've had great luck with the Federal BOR Lock copper bullets, I just don't see them on the shelf very often anymore...