Besides a round ball, what is the most accurate and powerful round that I can shoot big game with in my 50 caliber muzzle loader?
I okorder /) So a properly loaded T/C Hawkins with a conical is darn close to a 44 magnum fired from a rifle and more than standard 44 magnum ammo fired from a revolver. Now with some black powder rifles that can use larger charges of modern black powder substitutes you can get much more power. However you can’t do that with the T/C Hawkins because a 120 grain charge of Triple 7 could destroy the gun with catastrophic results; as in KABOOM barrel explodes! But with a less powerful charge of 90 to a max 120 grains of FFg black powder it’s a potent rifle with a heavy projectile. Warning not all modern made .50 cal Hawkins can handle over a 100 gr charge of BP because some cheap clones don’t have quality barrels. In fact some that where made in Spain and other countries, didn’t even have pressure tested barrels and blew up on people.
There are a bunch of conical bullets in many styles out there in .50cal. Thompson Center makes one called a Maxi-ball that shoots well in my Tryon. Try as many as you can find and go with the one that groups best.
A 370 grain Maxi Ball would be best for hunting. For accuracy you'll have to experiment with powder charges. I suggest you start with 75 grains and work your way up in 5 or 10 grain increments. Every black powder rifle is different. For example mine works best with 100 grains. At 105 and 110 the accuracy started to go away.
I would start with the T/C MaxiBall, which has given good accuracy in every Hawken-type rifle I have tried it in. Its terminal performance on deer-sized game is excellent. If you put it in the engine room, you will be enjoying venison this winter. Follow the charge weight recommendations for whatever propellant use are using while keeping in mind that the caplock Hawken will not stand up to the heavy charges that are safe in modern inline rifles. Good luck, good hunting.
After round ball you have the LEE REAL BULLET, Maxie Ball, Mini Ball, and their are a few new ones that use sabots. Each gun is a little different so you have to try them out to see which one works best in your gun. I LOVE THE ROUND BALL AND HAVE TAKEN WHITE TAILS OUT TO 115 Yards with them. It is a trail and error process to see which load and projectile will serve you best.
