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Yup, this forum is deader than last years deer, I can't seem to get any feedback on the hunting effectiveness of the 50-90 Sharps rifle.

Maybe not to many man enough to shoot the .50 to give solid advice

I'm trying to figure out why 700 grs at 50 cal and 1340 fps wont penetrate, lol.

I cant help you with that. I never used the .50-90 for a hunt. I can say this with the .485 gr .44's I use for Buff that I never recovered a bullet shot at 1280 to 1320 fps. The last one I took I quartered one with a shot just behind the front elbow and it quartered him and came out by the hind leg going through the bone and never stopped. That is a lot of mass going through and going through that large leg bone.

I might take the .50 just for the heck of it for my next one when the freezer gets low but I will use a 720 gr at around 1280 or close. I haven't loaded any since the Goex express ended. I should get bussy and shoot some ladder loads with the 1.5 OE and see what comes up. I still have around 140 of the express powder sitting on the shelf since 09.
The 2.5 .50 with the 1/22 ROT shoots the heavy 700 grainers quite well. I know it will blow a 60# sand bag all over the place.

That's because anything above 45 cal is field artillery or in a wing gun bay

Thanks Kurt, I have heard the big 44's do a fine job and have seen my own 45's do outstanding work, I'm trying to figure why I read 50's wont penetrate and shoot as flat as the 44's and 45's.

If a 50 cal bullet exceeds a 44 or 45 cal bullets velocity, sectional density, and ballistic coefficient, it has to fly just as flat and I believe it's momentum will overcome it's diameter enough to not inhibit penetration.

I'll just have to go and shoot some big game and find out for myself, I don't expect to be let down.

It won't let you down. I can tell you this. Comparing the sight setting at the Shiloh Buff at 1100+ yards using the .50, .44-100 BN and the .40-70 the sights are almost identical with the at 183 points on the staff of my rough riders and #1's. Very close. I can use the same settings and hit or close by.
The .50 at the Quigley got my in 13th place with some very rough 30 mph full factor left winds and I still had sight adjustments at 800 yards where the .45's had to hold off to stay on the iron.
Don't count the .50 short. What gets in the way of most shooters that shoot the .50 and that is they cant control the torque ot stand the recoil. If you can control the .50 with the 1/22 twist using 115 gr + with the 700 gr 1.5" long bullet it will hit well.

Many Thanks for that too Kurt, I have always believed the 50's extra weight would buck the wind better, and gravity doesn't give a chit how heavy a projectile is given equal BC's.

I can handle to torque, but will admit, that 50 with 700 grs at 1340 fps does indeed kick, my 50 only weighs 11 pounds and has a shotgun butt and a 30" barrel.

Woody you were baptized in prop wash"..crossfireoops


I like that. The C-124 had plenty of that. LOL.

There actually was a .50-90 Farmingdale for sale on GB. The auction ended a couple days ago, and someone got a good deal on it. I was tempted but finally passed on it.

I'll add, there's also now a original Remington Rolling block on there, which was rebarreled to .50-90. It looks a bit light for the caliber

Gunner The .50 recoil has a effect on the elevation from the muzzle jump over the smaller lighter calibers. But at 1300 plus fps that bullet is not in the 30" barrel to long

LOL, dang Woody, I missed this post, and concur, recoil from an 11 pound 50-90 is rough from the bench, it's nowhere as fun as to shoot as my 40-65, 45-70 or even 45-110 bull gun, that bull gun is a big thundering accurate pussycat.

I'm gonna give the 50 a fair shake on some heavy game Kurt, even if I have to take it to Africa.

Thanks Kurt, Greg pinned that on me a few years back and yes the 124 had plenty as well since I flew a few Ranch Hand missions out of PhuCat..I started working at a small municipal airport during my HS years doing field maintenance,washing airplanes and supervised tire changes.Pay was used for my budding gun hobby as well as gas for some free flight lessons from a neighbor. Then Uncle came calling so "prop wash" has flowed through my veins for many moons.

Woody,

When I was in the 82nd I was a gunner and for a assistant gunner I got a brand new cherry (new recruit) I was cleaning the M-60 so I told him to go down to the arms room and get me a can of prop blast to get the dust out Well he went down to the arms room and asked the arms sgt. for a can of prop blast and the sgt. said you have to go up to the Co. office to ask the first sgt for a order to get it the first sgt told him to go back up and get your gunner, he has to pick up the slip from me to take down to the arms sgt.

And the Bosun' sends the new deckhand below for a bucket of fresh live steam,...

...wonder if there's bad consequences for this kinda' thing now,...

Hurt feelers, discrimination, and all that

GTC

Cross, the morning haze is about to burn off, the target will get sharp in the clear morning light, I'm about to head to the bench to see what the new paper patch bullets I cast from a custom Brooks mould will do in the 50-90.

Bullet weighs 704 gr and is sitting on 110 grs 2FG Schutzen black powder, it will start it's journey via a 1 in 22 RH twist 30" barrel.

I have NEVER seen kinetic energy on AR400 like that evident when I connected with 300 M. Pigs, shooting a similar load out of that rasty old original hunting roller that Gullo's hauled all over the planet,...once I got the hold off doped, it was no big chore to connect.
WAY to light a rifle to be shooting prone for anything resembling a "string" though.

That FF Schuetzen that I've got here is pretty LIVELY, and energetic powder, hang onto your hat.

GTC

The 50's do indeed carry some major momentum Cross, I busted a 200 yard steel gong at Sharpsguys a few weeks ago with my '86 in 50-110, it's 680 gr grease groove bullets leaves at a sedate 1240 fps, but, OH HELL, when it lands!

I installed a Smith Enterprises ladder barrel sight to let me at least hunt with the lever action out to 200 yards, it's 100 and 150 yard settings were right on too.

The loads I built for my 50-90 Sharps have the paper patches Rooster lubed, I do this to make the paper patch ammo more hardy out in the field, in and out of a shell belt, on and off a horse, rain, pickup, etc, etc.

Just fired four at 100 yards, they went into a bit less than 2"s, I can't stand at a bench with the rifle cupped in my left hand on a rest with the butt stock on my shoulder and shoot any better than that, I only use the full buck horn ladder rear barrel sights.

Saw plenty of pp confetti immediately out the end of the barrel in the smoke cloud, i shot this group without wiping or blow tubing, on the last shot, I chambered then ejected a live round in the fouled barrel, reloaded then fired the last shot.

Need to move the rear sight a bit left to get the group centered, I haven't chronoed this load, the way it shoots, I don't think it's gonna matter in a hunting situation ;]