500 Yard 50 cal pacnor

[jeff]

After reading a few posts on some 500 yard shooting I changed scopes this am to a 6.5x20x50 leupold vxlll sighted it in at 1" high at a 100, 70 gr H4198 & 300 gr barnes. It took 23 minutes of elevation to do it, the end results were 3 shots no waiting time 5.2" group. No pics my damm phone camera went dead. So for what its worth, you dont need a $7000 gunwerks muzzleloader to shoot a minute group at 500 yards. By the way I have a new 45 cal [dd specs] laminated/pacnor for sale.
Jeff~

[hoz]

Very Nice Jeff!!

[Rifleman]

Jeff how do you do that with no waiting time? What was the temp today? Don't get me wrong, I absolutely believe you did it but just trying to figure out some of the specifics.

[jeff]

It was 58 I believe, the 1st two were 2" apart the 3rd was a little higher. If you read some old posts, I never wait to shoot groups.I actually had 16 shots down the tube in 45 minutes and the last 3 was the group.
Jeff~

[Rifleman]

I wonder if that is because of the superior quality of the Pacnor barrel. I see no other reason why, so I assume this is the reason.

[jims]

Nice shooting.

[Deleted]

.50 cal thats new,lol. You're the only .50 pacnor thats posted since i can remember. Great shooting and good for you.
Greenhorn

[DBinNY]

Very impressive Jeff.

[Dave W]

Great shooting and with the .50 to boot!

[dave d.]

:)way to go jeff i guess us sabot guys can shoot long range too ;D.

[500cadillac]

Which bullet and sabot?

[deadon]

That is some great shooting Jeff, Rusty

[wilmsmeyer]

I would bet that the 325 FTX would also hold it's own at distance for those with the bench skills needed looking for groups.

I think 300-325 grain bullets in .458 with the Harv BCR is a combo that makes this caliber shine at the "book" twist rates at longer ranges. I know the Pac-nors can be had with faster twists and that may be the ticket for the longer ranges where stability is paramount.

Biggest challenge is getting that first shot to land in the kill zone. Groups are great, but hitting the sweet spot on the first shot is a fancy feat when we lob these bullets into the wind at 2300-2500 fps with a low BC. Got a range finder and a great rest?

[jeff]

I already pulled the scope and went back to hunting mode on the 50 pacnor. It was out of steam at 500 yards and it isn't what muzzleloading is about, but now Im ready to back it up someday when Im told it can't be done and we bet a few greenbacks on it! ;D
Jeff~

[edge]

That is some pretty fancy shooting

edge.

[Rifleman]

I just can't figure out how he does it with no cooling of the barrel, this has me scratching my noggin.

[Deleted]

So what, you can shoot 500 yds, I want to see you kill a bigger elk than the one in the photo, what a stud...!!!,lol.
Good luck with that.!!!
Greenhorn

[spaniel]

May 31, 2011 22:37:07 GMT -5 wilmsmeyer said:

I would bet that the 325 FTX would also hold it's own at distance for those with the bench skills needed looking for groups.

I think 300-325 grain bullets in .458 with the Harv BCR is a combo that makes this caliber shine at the "book" twist rates at longer ranges. I know the Pac-nors can be had with faster twists and that may be the ticket for the longer ranges where stability is paramount.

Biggest challenge is getting that first shot to land in the kill zone. Groups are great, but hitting the sweet spot on the first shot is a fancy feat when we lob these bullets into the wind at 2300-2500 fps with a low BC. Got a range finder and a great rest?

The 325FTX will indeed, and doesn't require fancy fast twist if I could do it with 1:28 at 1950 fps....wind drift isn't bad at all compared to the 200gr bullets....but then again the difference between competition and field shooting is that in competition you HAVE to shoot when the wind is bad, field/hunting you can choose not to shoot or move to a more favorable angle.

[wilmsmeyer]

I, like Jeff, do little waiting when I target shoot. I do not rush, but it's rare that I have the time or patience to take 3 hrs to fire 12 shots. And cooling rods and gadgets are not for me.

There is something to be said about powders that potentially make "perfect" pressure. What I mean is a powder that doesn't RUSH to get the sabot/bullet going and one that never gets it going at enough pressure. I have spent many days woodchuck hunting in the summer. Set your gun on a bi-pod out in a field with the sun beating on it for over an hour and I guarantee it will be WAY hotter then if you shot 10 shots fast on a cool fall day. Made some good shots on days like that

I have shot a lot of H4198 and believe it is one of those perfect powders for not blowing sabots. I have also shot a fair amount of N110 in the beginning of my ML10 experience. In book load amounts I would get erratic performance and some mangled sabots when shooting strings fast.

Are some bores more capable of being "easy" on a sabot? Maybe...don't know. Jeff has a pac-nor (or two) and I have a stock barrel....one stainless and one blue.

Not sure, but I think Jeff is a big H4198 user....food for thought for the guy just wanting a single powder and shoot without as much waiting as people describe here. Can probably find an accurate hunting load with this powder.

Would love to know what the ideal pressure trace looks like that ends up being easiest on a sabot yet produced great performance. I'd bet it would be H4198 or a well planned duplex that get it done. (An I've never dabbled with other powders like Reloader 7 which looks like it could be close as a single)

[cuda]

I wonder how a barrel from Savage-barrels.com would do at long range? To see if it would be any where close to what the Pacnor barrel did using the same powder and sabot bullet combo. Just to compare the way they shoot. Nice shooting Jeff!

[Jon]

Cuda. I'm with you as I understand there are a few new to us barrel manufactures who's barrels have been ordered I'm waiting for results also. Nice shooting Jeff. What is your twist if you don't mind my asking?
Jon