Hunting Missouri Whitetails

[AAConklin]

Greetings from Missouri!

I am wondering if you all could recommend a good hunting bullet for Missouri Whitetail deer? I've got a stock 1:48 twist Cabela's Hawken rifle in .54cal.

I've taken a couple with PRB, and it does the trick but it just seems to punch right through the deer without expanding or transferring much energy to the deer.

Thanks for the recommendations!

 

[deermanok]

Hornady Great Plains bullets.
optics and ammo.com has them for under ten dollars a box. Free shipping.

 

[Idaholewis]

Hornady Great Plains bullets.
optics and ammo.com has them for under ten dollars a box. Free shipping.

Hornady Quit making those in .54 Cal, The only chance is some old Stock floating around, Which i have seen

 

[AAConklin]

Hornady Great Plains bullets.
optics and ammo.com has them for under ten dollars a box. Free shipping.

Yeah, I saw that and tried to order from them but when it came to checkout their credit card portal was down/no longer in service, they have not responded to an email about alternate payment methods AND the Better Business Bureau did not have positive remarks about the company.

I have yet to find another retailer that has them in stock since Hornady quit making the .54 a couple years ago.

 

[Renegadehunter]

If you want more punch (it will have more punch on BOTH ends ) and expansion I'd try a Maxi-ball.
Per Idaholewis's testing, I'd use one with only the bottom groove lubed and leave that giant upper groove empty, with a .58 cal 1/8" lubed wool wad over the powder. I'd start around 80 grains of 2f and work up from there in 5 grain increments until best grouping is found.
Be aware that conicals like a Maxi-ball can and will migrate off the powder charge as the rifle is jostled around. It is a good idea to keep that in mind and verify it is still on the powder on occasion. With the nipple uncapped of course.
I use a conical very infrequently, but if I do I like to put a coating of bore butter in the bore and on the rings of the conical. I'm not a big fan of bore butter, but find that it sticky's up the bore so that a conical that gets "engraved" by the rifling will stay put a little better.

 

[451whitworth]

If you don't cast, .54 cal bullets are getting hard to come by these days. Back in the '80's and '90's I shot a lot of deer with a .54 Maxi ball and it performed much as you described your experience with PRB's. On a ribs in ribs out lung shot shot they whistled right through with little to no expansion and weak blood trails. I always wondered if on a Maxi ball the tiny bearing surface shoulders deform back into the huge lube grooves making the bullet even smaller as it passes through(?). I've been using the Lyman 533476 modified to drop .541" diameter. It is a generous flat point with a thick skirt hollow base and it mushrooms nice and big. Member Idaho Lewis likes the Lyman .54 Plains bullet, it also has a decent sized flat nose but I don't get the accuracy compared to the Lyman 533476. Where in MO are you?

 

[Valkyrie]

How about No Excuses bullets? .54 Caliber 535 Grains

54 Caliber 535 Grains - NO EXCUSES MUZZLELOADING BULLETS

 

[TiggerLueb]

I had some success with T/C Maxi Balls. It looks like they are available at October Country.
Maxi Balls

Where are you in Missouri? I have a few that need to be re-lubed.

 

[AAConklin]

If you don't cast, .54 cal bullets are getting hard to come by these days. Back in the '80's and '90's I shot a lot of deer with a .54 Maxi ball and it performed much as you described your experience with PRB's. On a ribs in ribs out lung shot shot they whistled right through with little to no expansion and weak blood trails. I always wondered if on a Maxi ball the tiny bearing surface shoulders deform back into the huge lube grooves making the bullet even smaller as it passes through(?). I've been using the Lyman 533476 modified to drop .541" diameter. It is a generous flat point with a thick skirt hollow base and it mushrooms nice and big. Member Idaho Lewis likes the Lyman .54 Plains bullet, it also has a decent sized flat nose but I don't get the accuracy compared to the Lyman 533476. Where in MO are you?

I do not cast...at this point. I would love to get into it, but it is going to have to wait for now. I'm down in southwest Missouri, Joplin area.

 

[AAConklin]

If you don't cast, .54 cal bullets are getting hard to come by these days. Back in the '80's and '90's I shot a lot of deer with a .54 Maxi ball and it performed much as you described your experience with PRB's. On a ribs in ribs out lung shot shot they whistled right through with little to no expansion and weak blood trails. I always wondered if on a Maxi ball the tiny bearing surface shoulders deform back into the huge lube grooves making the bullet even smaller as it passes through(?). I've been using the Lyman 533476 modified to drop .541" diameter. It is a generous flat point with a thick skirt hollow base and it mushrooms nice and big. Member Idaho Lewis likes the Lyman .54 Plains bullet, it also has a decent sized flat nose but I don't get the accuracy compared to the Lyman 533476. Where in MO are you?

These seem to be available at TOTW.

Bullets and Ball-ets for muzzle loading guns - Track of the Wolf

Does anyone have experience buying from here? They state that the skirts are easily damaged in transit and are not responsible for any damage. Seems like significant risk that completely alter accuracy with even the slightest skirt damage.

How has your mold been modified? What do your bullets weigh?

 

[451whitworth]

These seem to be available at TOTW.

Bullets and Ball-ets for muzzle loading guns - Track of the Wolf

Does anyone have experience buying from here? They state that the skirts are easily damaged in transit and are not responsible for any damage. Seems like significant risk that completely alter accuracy with even the slightest skirt damage.

How has your mold been modified? What do your bullets weigh?

My mold was modified by opening up the driving band diameter to .541" from the standard .533" (first three digits of the mold #533476). You could throw those bullets down the bore of any modern .54 calibre at .533" diameter. I guess that's fine for hot and heavy battlefield reloading, haha. The bullets weigh in at 432 grains without lube. I actually have two Lyman 533476 molds. One is an old Ideal/Lyman that drops .536" and the one I modified is from early 1990's production before it was dropped from the line up. I have ordered from Track of the Wolf many times. I'm on the STL side of the state.

 

[AAConklin]

My mold was modified by opening up the driving band diameter to .541" from the standard .533" (first three digits of the mold #533476). You could throw those bullets down the bore of any modern .54 calibre at .533" diameter. I guess that's fine for hot and heavy battlefield reloading, haha. The bullets weigh in at 432 grains without lube. I actually have two Lyman 533476 molds. One is an old Ideal/Lyman that drops .536" and the one I modified is from early 1990's production before it was dropped from the line up. I have ordered from Track of the Wolf many times. I'm on the STL side of the state.

I grew up on that side of the state, over in Eureka.

Would you consider casting me some bullets from your modified mold? I would gladly pay you for them, and for shipping. What would you charge?

 

[451whitworth]

I grew up on that side of the state, over in Eureka.

Would you consider casting me some bullets from your modified mold? I would gladly pay you for them, and for shipping. What would you charge?

I would give you some if you were in the area to pick them up. I never/can't go to the post office as they are never open when I'm off work.

 

[AAConklin]

I would give you some if you were in the area to pick them up. I never/can't go to the post office as they are never open when I'm off work.

If I get back up that way I'll let you know!

 

[AAConklin]

I would give you some if you were in the area to pick them up. I never/can't go to the post office as they are never open when I'm off work.

So, I decide to try the bullets available from TOTW (Lyman 533-476 hollow base) and see what kind of results I get. Where should I start a powder load at? And these just get loaded directly on top of the powder correct?

 

[Saxtonyoung]

I believe those are going to be too small for you unless you plan on paper patching.

 

[bstorric]

I would give you some if you were in the area to pick them up. I never/can't go to the post office as they are never open when I'm off work.

I'm not trying volunteering you for extra work but I just learned this recently. You can do everything from home online and just give it to the postal worker that normally does rounds in your area. My wife works from home and does this frequently. Just package it up, pay for the postage online and print off the postage label. Tape the label to the box and either put it in your mailbox with the flag up or hand it to your mail man/lady. UPS does the same thing, just put it out where your normal delivery items are dropped off and I usually put a note with large sharpie print (so they know its outgoing), asking them to get take it

 

[AAConklin]

I believe those are going to be too small for you unless you plan on paper patching.

What would be considered an acceptable bore diameter for that bullet to properly engage the rifling?

 

[Hatchet Jack]

Like Valkyrie suggested above. Get some No Excuses .54 cal 535 grain bullet. Or you can order some Bullshop .54 cal bullets as well. I believe Bullshop's .54 cal bullets range between 420 to 450 gr. They also have them in Lyman Great Plains bullets.

 

[Saxtonyoung]

I never owned a Cabela's Hawken but I bet its closer to .540 then it is .533