Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Muzzleloaders Rookie ML sighting questions

I am new to the MH scene, with fairly extensive centerfire handloading experience. Reading here and first shoot at the range is proving that the two are very different.

The question I have come to in sighting in with a Traditions Vortek Ultralight LDR Magnum western, is that when shooting a TC 370 gr. maxiball with 110 gr of Tripple 7 FFg, and using musket caps, I am getting good groups. As I have worked the loads up to the 110gr of powder, and adjusted for maximum elevation on the rear open sights (factory sight) I remain 10 inches low at 100 yards.

The question specifically is can/should I continue to work powder loads upwards to increase velocity and "flatten" trajectory so that I can zero at 100 yards, can increased powder move impact up the target by 10 inches with the same bullet, or is it more of sight issue and I should be looking for an upgraded sight to install on the gun? I am ok with some additional recoil with the powder increase, but seems as though I should be able to zero at 100 yards with this load.

For referrence, I have shot a 320 grain maxiball and it is about 8 inches high with the same load and no change to the sights.

Application is for elk hunting, so my intuition is for the heavier bullet.

Any advice is most appreciated.

no, you actually could switch to a slower shooting powder like pyrodex which will cause point of impact to be higher.

I'd look more into the sights than powder to be honest.

Factory sights?

Not sure how to fix your issue but 110gr is a heck of a load with a Maxi. Im surprised it groups at all.

NoExuses and Bullshop sell much heavier conicals if you are interested in big lead.

Bigblock, yes factory sights. I understand the slower powder comment. At the shop, I was being somewhat encouraged toward FFFg powder but opted for the FFg powder for that reason. I also thought the slower powder would be best for the longer 30inch barrel in this gun.

Isn't pyrodex more moisture absorbant and more corrosive? That perspective is why I opted for 777.

You need a longer bullet for your twist. The maxi works better in a 1-48 twist. Which is what TC had in mind with the maxi.

Ive shot plenty of Maxis with good results in a 1-28 twist but not with anywhere near 110grs of powder. REAL conicals are even worse when it comes to a faster twist from my experience.

Checkout the conicals from NoExcuses. They are cheaper and lots of 50cal guys love them. Ive only shot his 45cals and i think some of his 54cals....very nicely made boolits. 50/$25

http://www.muzzleloading-bullets.com/index_files/Page319.htm

Dan at Bullshop offers a larger variety and some lighter ones but he can sometimes be hard to contact.

The maxi never shot good from an inline for me. They did in some TC sidelocks though. Although the NoExcuse shot even better from a Renengade I had. Almost spooky accurate.

Yeah, i love conicals in my 45 smokers for hunting. It all depends if im in a stand or stalking. While stalking i find conicals to be a little bit more convenient.

Easy to load and they hit like the hammer of Thor too. T/C Maxis seem harder than pure lead and i dont care for the WonderLube they use.

NoExcuses are top notch in quality and uniformity or at least they were. I have not bought any recently.

Yeah, that lousy bore butter on maxi's gets hard as a rock in cold weather. Worthless stuff.

maxiball shot great in both the LRD and Strikerfire I had. 80-90gr clean shot 2f.

Did it shoot any higher with less powder?

Does the crown look symetrical?

It really sounds more like a sight problem to me, to be off 10"

Is the front sight adjustable at all, or can you cut it down?

If not, maybe you could shim the rear sight

I think I'd try some different bullets before I did any real modifications though

Thanks everyone. It did not shoot any higher with less powder, and the crown does look symetrical. I have some Hornady Great Plains purchased. If that doesn't work, I'll give the No Excuses bullet a shot but I'm running out of time to play with loads before the hunt.

Any further insights are appreciated.

Shim the rear sight, maybe? How about a peep, with greater range. Weird problem. Not sure how much time is left, but if the rear sight just screws on, I would start shimming....

Just try a load of yours to 90 you will like it deer will not know that your using 20 less gr

Your getting 18" total height differences with only 50 gr. bullet differences on the same load??? Your gun is flinging them, not shooting them....IMHO

At this point I would agree that shimming most likely your fix for this hunt year. I really think you have an issue more geared toward your choice of projectile/powder. You could try stepping into something else like a Powerbelt Aerolite, or many of the others the members have mentioned. Start at about 80 grains with that long barrel.

Went shooting again today. Found some hotter caps, and using the same load (110 gr Tripple 7 FFg and 370gr maxiball). With hotter caps, I shot 1 1/2 inch high at 50yds, 2 inches low at 100yds, and 9 inches low at 150. Shot sub MOA group at 100 yds with the factory open sites. I am good with this for now, and after this hunt will probably work on getting a peep site installed with greater elevation adjustment, then work up some additional bullets and loads.

Thanks everyone for your replies and thoughts.

Yep, I would not change a thing for this hunt, you are good to go!

Just for reference, I shoot 460 gr bullshops (no excuses would be very similar and easier to get) with 90 gr of fffg 777. That is to say that you don't want to go with more powder unless you get a stouter bullet. If you are using factory maxiballs they are a lead alloy so they are tougher than pure lead, but even with them, you can push too hard and get too much fragmentation of the bullet.

txhunter,

Thanks for the referrence. From what I could find on powder info, would it be accurate to say that your 90 gr of fffg would be equivalent to more than 100 gr of ffg?

I am shooting a 30 inch barrel, so thought the ffg v. fffg would be the way to go to get a slower burn but witht he longer barrel still get a full burn. Am I thinking of this correctly?

I had been under the impression that fffg was for shorter barrels and pistols.

Thanks

change your rear sight to a peep or receiver sight and this may be your fix. If you really want to try another powder then use Blackhorn 209

Bea175,

I would love to use Blackhorn 209, but am hunting Idaho so am required to use musket cap and F&G regs prevent the use of 209 primers. I am under the impression that musket caps do not reliably ignite the BH209. Am I correct on this?