Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Black Powder Elk Load?

Buddies Powebelt Double Lung

Ill take the thors 100-1 over the power belts.

We still have to use full bore conicals. No sabots.

A Thor is a full bore bullet.
Here's a Link

Ok I was thinking they were a sabot. Thanks Tom.

My Wife still uses .54 round balls that she pours herself. Can't seem to get it in her head that she needs a bigger and badder bullet. Course she also has killed a pile of elk with her Browning BLR .243. Stubborn woman.

I'll use the maxi-ball 370gr, or Hornady Great Plains 385gr next year.

I'm still testing to see which one shoots best.

Worked for me also, although I only have taken two with round balls. Took a couple more with T/C maxiballs (poured myself). However, if one wanted the "best", most efficient, longest range, etc, I think a very strong inline would be a great choice. There are some amazing, heavy, long-range bullets out there.

Just for the record, here's how Idaho's BP regulations read. This is for ML only hunts. You can use about any kind of BP rifle in an any weapon hunt. In-lines aren't prohibited but they are limited to percussion caps on a nipple that can be seen when it's cocked. Are there any of those out there?

Muzzleloader-Only Season
Any person hunting in a muzzleloader-only season, including
controlled hunts, must have in their possession a license with
a muzzleloader permit validation. During a muzzleloader-only
season, it is illegal to pursue or kill a big game animal with
any firearm, muzzleloading pistol, or weapon other than a
muzzleloading rifle or musket. In addition, the muzzleloading
rifle or musket must be:
�
Capable of being loaded only from the muzzle.
�
Equipped with only open or peep sights. Scopes and any
electronics are prohibited.
Except hunters with a visual disability may apply for a permit to use nonmagnifying scopes. (Applications are available at Fish and Game offices.)
�
Loaded only with loose black powder, loose Pyrodex, or other loose synthetic black powder. Pelletized powders are
prohibited.
�
Equipped with a single or double-barrel.
�
Loaded with a projectile that is within .010 inch of the bore
diameter. Sabots are prohibited.
�
Loaded with a patched round ball or conical non-jacketed
projectile comprised wholly of lead or lead alloy.
�
Equipped only with a flint, percussion cap or musket cap.
209 primers are prohibited.
�
Equipped with an ignition system in which any portion of
the cap is exposed or visible when the weapon is cocked
and ready to fire

Sounds like a traditional long or midrange percussion rifle built around a fast twist .45 barrel shooting 450-550 gr paper patched bullets would be ideal.

Here is one that gets used for micro-elk. Careful, she's ugly and could hurt your eyes.

Thanks. Was not aware of those apparent changes. Good rules. I actually bought a .54 Kodiak double for elk hunting some years ago, then found out I could only use a single barrel in Co.(I'm pretty darned sure it used to be true.) I carried my Brown Bess (75 cal smoothbore flintlock) last year and passed on several opportunities, then decided I was all done with elk hunting because I really didn't want another one, so didn't shoot. Maybe I'll have to go one (?) more time just to bloody the Kodiak.

I use my inline (scoped) only during "regular" firearms seasons. It is far too capable for muzzleloader seasons. Almost unfair.

About Idaho - I should add that you need a 45 cal for deer and a 50 for anything bigger.

Oh hell! I thought you were writing about Colorado. I should pay attention to what I'm reading. So Nevermind; The damn Kodiak will just have to stay in the safe!

That .50 min for elk is probably a good thing. But a .45 with an 18-twist barrel and 450+ grs of lead is a better elk rifle every time.

THAT is a beautiful rifle, Brent! Details?

Ed

Ed, you seriously need to get your eyes checked. That thing hurts to look at so much that I rarely hunt it. But for a muzzleloader it reaches are far as any rifle there is.

It is a Blue Grouse underhammer action (basically a Hopkins and Allen type of action but with a screwed on barrel. All out of 4140 steel. The barrel is a Badger 18-twist .45, profiled as if it was going on a standard weight Shiloh Sharps. It shoots 100 grs of Swiss 1.5 fg and 475 gr bullets, paper patched here. Bullets up to 550 grs are fairly standard for the barrel so heavier is available.

It has 4 sets of sights, barrel sight (100 yds) "tang" sight (200 yds), and then tapped for eternally adjustable scopes like a Lyman STS 25x that I use for target shooting out to 200 yds and it has a fourth receiver sight that uses a different style of vernier for ranges out to 1000, which I never really care to shoot with this rifle. Platinum lined nipple is required for these rifles.

I stocked it (no one to blame but me). And also did the bluing and wood finish. One day, I'll restock it.

As it lays here, it is basically a .45-100 Sharps in muzzleloading form w/o the brass. It will kill an elk as far as you are a good enough rifleman to make a decent shot.

You could build one in .50 cal but for a good longer range bullet, the recoil would be pretty brutal. The .45 is about perfect.

i've used the 348gr powerbelt out of two different 50cal rifles, with equal success on colorado elk. 90-100grs of powder was most accurate in my rifles.

That is less than impressive.

Now those look cool. Anyone else have any experience with them?

Last bull I saw shot with a Muzzy soaked up the lead. They were the "No Excuses" bullets. I was not very impressed with those either.

There is not a tougher or better terminal ballistic bullet out there than the Thor (pure copper hollowpoint)

That said, if you hit any elk with a 50 cal 460 gr no excuse bullet in a vital area, he is not going very far. Great bullet too.