Hunting & Fishing Smokeless muzzleloader Good or Bad?

[rkgsmith]

I've been researching the smokeless muzzleloaders and wanted some pros and cons. One of the forums I looked at was talking about loads and such. One comment that was made concerned waiting between shots. One guy wrote that you have to wait 10 or 15 minutes between shots. Can somebody chime in on this?. I like the idea of the rifle, but waiting that long is a definte NO in my book. Are they worth the extra money? Doubt I could shoot over 200 yds. where I hunt, so would the smokeless get me anything more than I have with my current inline?

 

[jcdean]

Re: Smokeless muzzleloader Good or Bad?

I have a TC and can hit in a 5 inch circle at 300 yards with it on a boringly consistent basis. I can not tell you if it would be worth the money, but where I hunt and how I hunt old smokey is more than sufficient.

 

[hahco]

Re: Smokeless muzzleloader Good or Bad?

with the Savage muzzleloader, the short answer is "yes." for best accuracy, you have to let the barrel completely cool down between shots. most ppl think its a function of the sabot. a smokeless ML is shooting at a pretty high velocity for a plastic sabot, and if the barrel is already hot the sabot will break down, degrading accuracy.

not an issue for a single shot deer rifle, but if you're at the range you'll want to bring some other artillery to keep you occupied during the wait time.

 

[Dennis_in_VA]

Re: Smokeless muzzleloader Good or Bad?

Probably not an issue if you're shooting a jacketed projectile sized for your barrel (like the Bad Bull or Richard Franklin's smokeless front stuffer).

 

[rkgsmith]

Re: Smokeless muzzleloader Good or Bad?

That makes sense as far as the plastic sabot goes. From what I'm reading some guys are resizing their bullets so that they are able ram them down the barrel with a little resistance. May be too much work for the gain I'd get. But still may toy with the project.