Charleville this season?....Oh yeah!!

[Hillbillytroll]

After a lot of lead slinging and different loading methods, I finally got my my 1777 Charleville shooting like a champ. I've found that 80 grains of FFG, a .678 ball, with tow over the charge and tow over the ball will allow me to put balls in a paper plate all day long at 50 yrds offhand.
Granted it's not you're run of the mill smooth bore hunting weapon, but by golly it sure works!
Dang ain't smoothies fun! Especially when you get them tuned the way you like,em!
Come Nov. 12, old Charlotte's going huntin. Maybe not the most popular of smoothie's to hunt with, but she suit's me just fine.

[RobD]

well now that sounds awesome on all accounts!  i love smoothbores, to me they're THE guns of the 18th century and i just can't be without at least one of 'em  yers sounds like a goodie and you yer smooth gal tuned up just right.  congrats, sir!  go make some meat!

[Ohio Joe]

Paul, I think that's great!  :lt th

[Hillbillytroll]

Thanks gentleman.
I'm slowly learning that smoothies aren't all that mysterious to get shooting where you want them to, but in my case it takes a lot of trial, error and patients.
They surely are a breed apart from a rifled barrel, but getting one to shoot consistent....... Well shoot! That's half the fun!

[RobD]

yessir, the smoothie is a good all around gun that can do both shot and ball, with the ball part being the tougher nut to crack ... sometimes.  it will usually take experimenting with load data - bp powder granulation, charge weight, ball diameter and how the ball is loaded (patched, towed, wadded, bare, and if left smooth or file knurled).  lotsa trials, but that's half the fun and a good reason to be shooting (besides hunting).  

fwiw, i don't like naked lead down an ml barrel so typically i start ball load experimenting with different patch thickness's that are very well pre-lubed with melted in "gato feo" bpcr lube.  i use swiss 3f because there's less fouling to deal with, and with a smoothie there are no grooves for it to hide in so it might need cleaning 'twixt each shot.  the last smoothie i had (from chris walker, and just sold) was a .62 that had decent pie plate accuracy to 50 yards without fouling control between more than a few shots using a .600 ball (lee cast) and a well lubed .010 patch strip, 3f in the tube (70 grains) and in the pan ...