Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Muzzleloaders modern muzzleloader with 48/1 twist

I am looking for , to no avail , trying to find a modern muzzleloader with a 1/48 " twist so I can just shoot regular home made bullets . does anyone ben make them? If I can't find one my only option is to get an Encore barrel custom made and I dont want to do that cause of cost.

Thompson center northwest rifle.

I would have to find a used one cause they are discontinued. This is what bugs me about muzzleloaders. They dont make what many people want . The Northwest muzzleloader is excepted all over the west and has a huge market that they wont tap into. How dumb is that?

Why do you need a 1-48 for homemade bullets? Do you mean round balls?

Look at the first rifle here. Its a 1-48 modern inline.
http://www.muzzleloadershop.com/factory-guns/traditions/

TC made 1-48 barrels for the Encore for a time, probably before the S&W takeover. Maybe ebay has one.

Have you tried conicals in your present barrel? If they don't shoot well, maybe you're pushing them too hard, or using the wrong powder. BP or 777 should work, BH209 not so much as per their instructions.

If we are talking about using conicals then a faster twist is just fine. All of the White rifle 50cals were a 1-24 and they are superb conical shooters. Nothing wrong with a 1-28 either. Ive seen a LHR Redemption 50cal 1-28 win 2 inline matches at Friendship including a 500 yard event. What is wrong is many T/Cs have the QLA cut poorly. Conicals shoot like hell from those rifles. Cut and recrown the barrel and they shoot fine.

Trying to shoot a conical too fast is one of the most common problems. Around 1300fps or a touch more is going to be the sweet spot for soft lead anyway. 80gr by volume of BH209 would be about max for a 460gr and less for stuff under 400grs. I know those sound heavy but recoil is not that bad at all with the lower powder charges. That chunk of lead holds its velocity extremely well past 100 yards. One of my favorite loads is a 460gr, 70-80gr of BH209 and a .060 thick veggie wad. Felt wads work too but the veggie provides a better seal with BH209. The conical should be sized a little on the tight side but still easily loaded without needing a short starter.

I think NoExcuses bullets offers a sample pack with a few weights starting at 420gr in 50cal

I have tried BH 209 down to 75gr. in my REAL 340 gr with cast soft lead. I could go with a heavier bullet or even down to 65 gr. It wouldn't bother me a bit. I am not looking for all this speed that many muzzleloader companies are pushing. I would be happy with 1,200fps. with a 340 gr bullet. I am actually looking for a close range deer load for this fall and a very good chance I will draw a bear tag in Sept. 2019. A good size bullet that does not fly all over the place is what I really need for knockdown power on the bear , the deer , well there is likely snow on the ground and a trail is a chip shot in snow.

And on second thought, does anyone know who can make me a muzzleloader barrel for an Encore?

Yep
Match Grade Machine
https://matchgrademachine.com/custom-thompson-center-muzzleloader-barrel/
HOA has them too
https://www.hausofarms.com/HausofArmsMGM-45-Caliber-Encore-SS-Muzzleloader-Barrels_p_1328.html

And Bullberry. They are using Douglas blanks now which are outstanding ML barrels. Ive got a Douglas XX on a custom i had built.
https://www.bullberry.com/black-powder-barrels

Another problem with my TC Impact. I noticed when the gun was open or closed that the barrel was not tight with the frame. It is actually loose and I can take the barrel and frame ant they move when I twist them . They move about 1/32 nd of an inch or so . Is this common. I almost hate to ask but unless I go to cabbalas and start looking to see if the pin is loos on all of them I have no way to know. My Encore does not do this and could be a clue to why the accuracy is not good. However, I do have it down to 2.5" @ 50 yds with BH209 and Alliant with several different bullets. I did however notice my 340gr .452 home made cast bullets went down much easier than my store bought .429 bullets. I decided to paper patch my home cast bullets and they were much stiffer going down the barrel and am sure this improved accuracy.

I have the factory encore muzzy barrel in 50 caliber. I shoot shock wave 250G sabots from walmart. It absolutely drills. I use Goex 3F blackpowder. EZ to clean.

I might just have it figured out. My Encore likes .429 and .451 bullets with 80 gr of BH 209 and Alliant . It does not like my .452 hand cast home made bullets at all. They fit quite loose so I am going to paper patch them. My TC Impact likes .429 , .451 Hornadys too but likes my hand made cast bullets as well but shoots the .429 and .451 store bought Hornadys 6" highers than my cast bullets. I am surprised how well I tamed down the fliers when i stopped cleaning the barrel every round, even with the Alliant. Neither clog the barrel enough to make the bullet too hard to get down the tube. Is this normal for you guys to have one bullet shoot 6" higher @ 50 yds? This seems to tell me these are cheaply made barrels . NO?