shooting .395 in a .50 ....?

[the Black Spot]

anyone done this type shooting with way undersize roundballs and thick patching? work ok?  accurate enough for squirrels to 25 yards?
we are not allowed to shoot squirrels with anything over .40, so thought i would try some .395's with thick patches in my .50

[Uncle Russ]

.395 in a .50 is a pretty big step up. I have no idea how that may work.
On the other hand, I have shot a lot of .520 in my .54 cal using a sail cloth patch at .028, and that worked like a charm. But I don't know of anything "thicker" than sail cloth that you could patch with.
Seems you would need something in the neighborhood of .055 to .060 thick to take up the windage.

Good question! Maybe someone with a little first hand experience will chime in here and enlighten us both.....Steve, Captchee, can you hear me? Can ya hear me now!

Uncle Russ...

[BEAVERMAN]

Could try patching with buckskin!

[the Black Spot]

i may try the buckskin as patching also.

[nessy357]

Or double patching.

[vermontfreedom]

no experience here, but it'd be worth a shot for the experiment

careful of "the law" though - you might be shooting the legal projectile, but out of a non-legal rifle....some officers might take exception

patch suggestion: old jeans - they would be pretty thick, just make sure they're clean and free of grit. probably ought to mic 'em to be sure of the thickness

[Minnesota Mike]

careful of "the law" though - you might be shooting the legal projectile, but out of a non-legal rifle....some officers might take exception

This is outstanding advice. Point of fact is that you're in the woods with a 'big game' weapon regardless of what ball you claim to be using . . . you could very well be hunting with .50 cal ball after deer and dropped the bag with those when the warden found you.

I'd be very cautious about it.

r/
MM

[the Black Spot]

did some experimenting with 20 of fffg with  thumb started .395 in the .50. at 10 yards i got 5" three shot group. i will tighter patching.

[Gordon H.Kemp]

I think it would be great to experiment , but! you had best check the wording of the law. You may find it reads its unlawfull to be afield with a weapon "capable" of firing a projectile of "over"40 cal.  good luck!

[flintlockmdj]

If you are shooting a production gun, TC or some such, it will be cheeper to buy a dropin barrel new or used than to pay the fine for hunting with the wrong caliber gun.  Here in Georgia we have no maximum caliber on squirrels (for muzzleloaders) but we do have a minimum for deer.

[Captchee]

i here ya russ , you must have been in a dead spot  



yes  it will shoot  .
as others have said , you will have to go to a thicker patch . the tighter the better .
 As to accuracy ? Well  that’s going to depend . With the size of your target   it will take some work to find the load and patch size you need . Even then you may not find  the end result acceptable .

Also as others have said , check your laws .
 When I say that , im not saying read them  but call a CO and ask them first hand  if what your wanting to do is legal or not .
 Most states that im familiar with  the  wording is actually speaking of the  rifle and its capabilities .
 That being said though a lot of the states allow sabots  which allow folks to  shoot a projectile smaller then legal size  based on the fact that they are using a  legal caliber rifle .
So I would defiantly check  this out before  hand .
 If your told its OK
 Get the persons name and job description you talked to . Keep a copy of that with you while your hunting .

 now my personal oppenion is you would  be far ahead to just get a drop in barrel for your rifle .
 if its a production gun then you may be able to order one .
 if its a custom gun , its not all that big of an issue to  have a barrel done up  that will fit your stock