Tom
08-09-2016, 03:26 PM
I have read Skirmish Line articles and the threads on the Bulletin Board "Smoothbore Theory" and "50 Yard smoothbore is driving me up the wall." I gained a lot of useful information that has been beneficial.
I have a Model 1816 H&P conversion (Hoyt Barrel) with a bore diameter of .687. The stock has been glass bedded.
It shoots like a charm at 25 yards. I am the reason it misses.
50 yards is a different story. To paraphrase one the title of one of the threads "It's driving me up the wall." I shoot from the bench and most times I get 2 shots in the black and the other 3 hit the 8 and 7 rings. Most of the times the shots in the 8 and 7 rings hit left.
I have a Lyman and a Pedersoli mold and they cast around .680-.681. I have shot them roughened and dimpled and shot them smooth. Either roughed or smooth by the 3rd round I'm tamping them in and sometimes it takes work to get them to the breech. Rounds that have been tamped to the breech are not so accurate.
I have another Pedersoli mold that casts around .673-.674. I use a mill file and the mill side of a farrier file then I turn the farrier file to the spike side to roll them around. After that the rounds are around .678-.679. It goes down the barrel real nice. When the barrel is clean the ramrod pushes it down on its own.
I have shot them with 3 coats of Alox, musket lube, and no lube or Alox. They do not shoot so well. It is better with 2 or 1 coat of Alox with 1 coat doing just a little better.
My barrel does not like Goex. It shoots best with Swiss 2 F. I went up 5 grains to find the best group.
So here is what works wondrous at 25 yards but struggles at 50. A roughened round ball cast between .673-.674 roughed to .678-.679 with 1 coat of Alox. A powder charge of 60 grains Swiss 2 F at 25 yards. A powder charge of 74 grains Swiss 2 F at 50 yards.
Any advice to improve at accuracy at 50 would greatly be appreciated. I thank you in advance. All the best.
I have a Model 1816 H&P conversion (Hoyt Barrel) with a bore diameter of .687. The stock has been glass bedded.
It shoots like a charm at 25 yards. I am the reason it misses.
50 yards is a different story. To paraphrase one the title of one of the threads "It's driving me up the wall." I shoot from the bench and most times I get 2 shots in the black and the other 3 hit the 8 and 7 rings. Most of the times the shots in the 8 and 7 rings hit left.
I have a Lyman and a Pedersoli mold and they cast around .680-.681. I have shot them roughened and dimpled and shot them smooth. Either roughed or smooth by the 3rd round I'm tamping them in and sometimes it takes work to get them to the breech. Rounds that have been tamped to the breech are not so accurate.
I have another Pedersoli mold that casts around .673-.674. I use a mill file and the mill side of a farrier file then I turn the farrier file to the spike side to roll them around. After that the rounds are around .678-.679. It goes down the barrel real nice. When the barrel is clean the ramrod pushes it down on its own.
I have shot them with 3 coats of Alox, musket lube, and no lube or Alox. They do not shoot so well. It is better with 2 or 1 coat of Alox with 1 coat doing just a little better.
My barrel does not like Goex. It shoots best with Swiss 2 F. I went up 5 grains to find the best group.
So here is what works wondrous at 25 yards but struggles at 50. A roughened round ball cast between .673-.674 roughed to .678-.679 with 1 coat of Alox. A powder charge of 60 grains Swiss 2 F at 25 yards. A powder charge of 74 grains Swiss 2 F at 50 yards.
Any advice to improve at accuracy at 50 would greatly be appreciated. I thank you in advance. All the best.