Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Muzzleloaders PowerBelts

any actual use of them? i hear good and bad. seems some hate them but offer no real evidence of falure. others swear by them.

FYI they will be shot from an accurav V2 LR with 10-150 charges of white hots

I have used them since maxiballs and old TCHawkins were the thing.For elk I use the 348 gr ( I think it is little different weight now though.)TC claims the Platinums hold together better. The problem with all the bullet failure stories is guys push them too fast and use 295 gr PB's.Their Owner's Manual says they can load 150 gr of powder,so they do
My load is 80 gr of BH209 and 348 gr PB.The Aerotip and the Hollow Point are the same bullet if you take the plastic tip off. IIf you don't like the HP, stuff a 17cal air rifle pellet down into the HP with the skirt going in first.

I have probably killed 15-18 elk withPB's

Very easy to load and very accurate in my TC Encore. Killed last fall's buck very dead (pass through at 25 yards), using 295 grain PB's and two 50 grain pellets.

I've used them since they were originally called Black Belts. Always had good luck with them but have never turned one loose on anything larger than a whitetail. My favorites were the 405 grainers. Still have several packs of the Black Belt 405s along with a couple packs of 444 grain solid points in case I needed to stop a buffalo. What astounds me is that there are experienced shooters that expect they can drive a light for caliber, pure lead hollow point bullet as fast as possible and get good results. To me it's akin to working up an elk load for a .30-06 using 100 gr plinker bullets.

i was givena pack of the new 50 cal 338 gr ELRs to try. i havent ahd the chance to get out yet i am also try the new Federal BOR lock as they seem to get good reviews are are priced right

Keep powder charges under 100 gr. 777. Push them too fast, and they will come apart. It's just soft lead.

My brother found a powerbelt smashed flat against the backbone of a deer he shot probably 10 years ago. We shot barnes so this deer walked off from a spine shot. It may have been someone shooting too far or not having a heavy powder load, but I would never think about them after seeing that.

Probably smashed flat becasuse it was pushed too fast by having a too heavy a powder load.

Here is a 295 gr I found on the off side under the hide of an elk I shot. About an 80 yard shot. 90 gr of FFG black powder.Recovered weight is 290 gr



Here is a 348 gr PB I dug out of another elk,under the hide,far side. 247 gr recovered, 90 gr of BH209. About 50 yard shot. Since then I dropped down to 80 gr.

Yes I cannot verify the specifics of how that deer was shot. Just that when it was killed the powerbelt was smashed against the spine. I figured it was too long a shot because if the powerbelt was driven too fast the shock alone should have incapacitated a whitetail. But again I cannot verify anything about the shot with the powerbelt bullet.

EDIT: I will say I have also had a barnes bullet collapse on me though I did kill and find the deer. Shot was at 5 yards with 150gr 777 pellets. Entered the front left shoulder at an angle and ended up in the far right ham. Instead of expanding the nose collapsed on itself. I sent the photos to barnes but got no response. Still shoot the same bullet, but think about it a little more now.

They shoot the best in my Encore. I put in 70 grain by weight BH. Around here you really have a hard time shooting or seeing a deer beyond 100 yards in the thick mountains.

Myself and family members use the 270 gr. Platinum tip with 100 gr. load of various powders (Clean Shot) for me. Deer gets hit, the bullet exits, deer runs a short distance and expires.

I use the 295 hp in my triumph. Been using them every sense they came on the market. Killed a pile of game with no problems . Just don’t go over 100-110 grains of powder

They’ve always worked very well for me but I don’t push them fast like others have said. Have always used the 295 or 348 grain

im also going to try the Federal B.O.R LOK bullets

I've used the 295 gr Powerbelts in my Omega. They were easy to load but not very accurate. Moved on to TC Shockwaves and Hornady SST's until last fall I used the Federal BOR Lock 350 gr over 110 gr of BH 209 on an elk hunt. They were extremely accurate and shot fairly flat for a heavy bullet. Two issues I found with this bullet were lack of penetration and the bullet will pull out of the plastic collar sometimes if using a conical bullet guide. I'm sure they're fine on deer but IME they're too soft for elk. I'd seen quite a few reports of complete penetration with even higher charges so I didn't think it would be an issue. I'd stick with the 270 gr copper version if you try them. The copper bullets don't stick inside the bullet guide. Not sure why they don't make a heavier version of that bullet.

I've tried many bullets with Harvester sabot cups but none are as accurate as CVA Power Belts. Deadly performance on deer with a broadside chest shot.

Good hunting to you.

Sherwood

I've always used a Hawken and PRB. I got too old to use it anymore. Too heavy and vision is shot and I need a scope now.

So, I went to an inline and my load is Pyrodex Select 90 gr and a Powerbelt Aerolite 250gr. I've read all the warnings about Powerbelts. I prefer to see for myself. I feel it will work fine with proper shot placement and kept under 100 yds.

Same with me and my old TC Hawkins. PB's will work fine if you keep your loads less than 100gr.You might look at BH209 powder instead of the Pyrodex. It does not degrade over time and easier clean up.More expensive though

Yes, i've used a lot of it at the range. The problem is it's impossible to find 209 primers now. So, I went with Pyro and I can use a musket cap for ignition. I have those.

My buddy just shot a javalina with one and the bullet was bigger than a quarter and flat as a pancake. I would not shoot them at anything bigger than a deer and probably not even that. I just drew a muzzleloader elk tag and will be using the Barnes for that hunt.