Jeremiah Johnson greatly increased the interest in hunting with muzzleloaders back in the 1970s. Manufacturers and importers are still benefitting from that movie. Hawken rifles evidently did not have a large role in the fur trade, but that does not make them any less desirable for enthusiasts today. A fifty caliber roundball rifle will do a number on a deer with a reasonable charge of powder, and will typically punch all the way through the heart/lungs to the hide on the other side. Modern muzzleloaders have a faster twist than the originals and can use Minie balls, saboted pistol bullets, or other "long" bullets cast of soft lead. Those projectiles will easily go completely through a deer. There is some interesting and informative history in the following videos. I need to warm up my bullet molds!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
I have a 54 caliber Hawken. I use a 147 gr .308 sabot. There is a big difference shooting a Hawken as there is a delay in the rifle firing after pulling the trigger.
Will a 30 cal stabilize OK in a 1 in 48 twist? That would be a great choice if the spin is good enough in my rifle. I just got a 50 cal Minie mold to make loading easier. I have used 58 Minie on deer and it is impressive.
The riffling is 1:48 but the sabot case has aggressive riffling ridges that stabilize the .308. The Pyrodex load comes out to a slightly less than full 30-06 shell of the powder. When I hunt with it I go out with 5 06 shells full of powder corked off. I leave the rifle locked in truck so it is at temperature and fire off a cap before I leave. I also strap on my 44 mag pistol.
Thanks for the info! Mine is a TC Hawken, so it is also 1 in 48. I will be looking at saboted ammo...
Post a Comment