NEWBIE QUESTION?

[big burt]

i am still very new to muzzeloading, and i am trying to decide what kind of set up to use in the way of bullets and powder and how many grain bullets and how much poweder to use! i have tryed to look around and there is just so much out there i dont know where to start. im lookin to shoot 100yds with enough knockdown power for whitetails.

i have a new cva optima with a bushnell trophy 3x9x40 scope.. what do you guys suggest?

 

[BuckDoeHunter]

My son's Triumph is setup to shoot 80 gr. BlackHorn 209 powder, CCI 209M primer, and a 250 gr Barnes TEZ all copper bullet. He has taken 3 deer this year ( 2 does and 1 buck ). His furthest shot was 105 yards. His closest was 30 yards. One deer dropped in its tracks, the other two only ran 20 yards and fell over. The two runners had great blood trails. If you plan to shoot further than 100 yards, I would increase the powder charge some.

I really enjoy shooting BH209 powder. No swabbing between shots. Easy cleanup. Very accurate. Good bullet velocities. But it is expensive. I will probably never switch bullets. I love the all copper construction. It has great penetration, virtually no weight loss, great expansion, and is lead free. We eat alot of deer, so with no lead, its one less thing for me to worry about.

 

[shooter44n45]

80-100 grains of just about any of the powders will be int he sweet spot. As far as bullets, I dont like anything smaller than 250 grains and prefer 300 sabots or heavy conicals. Any of those will do just fine out to 100 yards and will take a deer down with authority. Heavy conicals sure buck the wind but at 100 yards, wind should not be a huge factor when shooting deer size game.

 

[big burt]

thanks for some of the info guys, i am currently shooting powerbelt platinum 270gr with 100gr trip7 and the trip7 209 primer. it accurate but i have herd horrible things about the bullets when it comes blood trails. i havnt yet shot a deer with one but i really dont think its woth it to find out by loosing a deer.

keep the info comin guys!

 

[shooter44n45]

thanks for some of the info guys, i am currently shooting powerbelt platinum 270gr with 100gr trip7 and the trip7 209 primer. it accurate but i have herd horrible things about the bullets when it comes blood trails. i havnt yet shot a deer with one but i really dont think its woth it to find out by loosing a deer.

keep the info comin guys!

If your bullet his bone and is pushed hard it may blow up and not penetrate. If you make the shot to the vitals, it should work fine.

 

[BuckDoeHunter]

I've lost two deer with powerbelts. Some of it was my own fault for pushing a smaller bullet to hard (I never would have thought 2 50 gr. pellets was too hard) but with a Barnes bullet, I can use any size powder charge I like without having to switch bullets. Some people like pb, but I dont.

 

[big burt]

thanks again for the advice, the barns look promising. its honestly looking to be a toss-up between the barns 300gr tez or the hornady 300gr xtps and honestly is the powder going to make a huge difference, whats the big difference between the trip7 and the buckhorn 209 powder??

 

[shooter44n45]

BH will give you more velocity and less pressure with less powder, shoots clean and is not as sensitive to moisture. You pay for it in the price though.

 

[frontier gander]

90gr Pyrodex P with a 348gr Powerbelt.

i'd show u a target picture of the optima i had but photobucket keeps screwing up on me. Had the same scope setup as you too.

 

[big burt]

90gr Pyrodex P with a 348gr Powerbelt.

i'd show u a target picture of the optima i had but photobucket keeps screwing up on me. Had the same scope setup as you too.

that seems like a heavy bullet for only 90gr of powder? and that will still have the power for takedown at 100 yds?

 

[frontier gander]

thats strong enough for 200 yards

 

[big burt]

thats strong enough for 200 yards

wow i guess im underestimating the powder charge.

 

[frontier gander]

remember the buffalo hunters used a .45cal with a 405gr conical and 70gr blackpowder. 200-300 yard shots were normal.

 

[big burt]

what? i have never herd or read that. where can i read about that haha.

 

[stinkworm]

My son got a new Optima this year and has taken 3 deer so far. I was really impressed by the way it shot the 200gr. shockwave, under an 1" @ 100yds. I tried them in my Encore and 3 shoots made 1 hole @ 100yds. I killed a small doe yesterday, 60 yds shot broadside. placed the bullet behind the shoulder. She ran 75yds and expired. Be warned they leave no blood trail what so ever, none nota. At the place she was standing a lot of hair and only three drops of blood from the exit of the bullet. Only one single drop of blood about the size of your pinky nail in the 75yds she ran. I'm now back to my Barnes 250 gr. because they leave blood trails that blind men can follow. Had to come back and edit the post because I forgot to mention the powder charge. 100-110gr. load of BH 209 in the Encore and my son uses 105gr.of BH in his Optima.

 

[big burt]

My son got a new Optima this year and has taken 3 deer so far. I was really impressed by the way it shot the 200gr. shockwave, under an 1" @ 100yds. I tried them in my Encore and 3 shoots made 1 hole @ 100yds. I killed a small doe yesterday, 60 yds shot broadside. placed the bullet behind the shoulder. She ran 75yds and expired. Be warned they leave no blood trail what so ever, none nota. At the place she was standing a lot of hair and only three drops of blood from the exit of the bullet. Only one single drop of blood about the size of your pinky nail in the 75yds she ran. I'm now back to my Barnes 250 gr. because they leave blood trails that blind men can follow. Had to come back and edit the post because I forgot to mention the powder charge. 100-110gr. load of BH 209 in the Encore and my son uses 105gr.of BH in his Optima.

ya i like the fact that the powerbelts platinums i have group very well but im concerned about the lack of blood the entry and exit wounds let out. thanks for the info

 

[frontier gander]

they leak great. This was with a 225gr Aerotip with 80gr 3f T7 @ 80 yards. She stumbled 5 yards.

Key to a fast blood trail is hitting them down low in the heart/lungs.

 

[spitfire100]

I use 250gr shockwave bullets and 100 gr of BH 209 or Triple 7 loose powder. They all work good and you can't go wrong.

 

[hiney]

Crazy thing about muzzleloading is how guns shoot differently. You and your buddy can have the same gun, load it identically, and they will both shoot totally opposite of each other. The fun part is finding what your gun likes the best.

 

[big burt]

ok, well i think that answers my question. i think im gonna stick with what i have for now, but i want to try the barns expanders, or the hornady xtps next. maby a 300gr rather than 270gr and stick with 100gr of trip7.