Muzzleloader barrel length

[ohiohunter]

How much does MZ barrel length matter? I am deciding between the CVA accura v2 and the MR. Will the 2" of barrel make a difference? Thinking about pushing the harvester scorpion pt 300gr pills on top of some black horn. What say you?

 

[J E Custom]

How much does MZ barrel length matter? I am deciding between the CVA accura v2 and the MR. Will the 2" of barrel make a difference? Thinking about pushing the harvester scorpion pt 300gr pills on top of some black horn. What say you?

The least I would ever cut a Muzzleloader barrel would be 26". 28'' to 30'' is good and for the best
combination of velocity and usefulness 30'' to 34'' Is about the limit.

36''+ will get you more velocity but at a handling cost. IMO a 30'' barrel is ideal.

J E CUSTOM

 

[ENCORE]

How much does MZ barrel length matter? I am deciding between the CVA accura v2 and the MR. Will the 2" of barrel make a difference? Thinking about pushing the harvester scorpion pt 300gr pills on top of some black horn. What say you?

With the production barrels, its not going to make a significant difference.

Lots of shooters like the Accura V2 and accuracy appears pretty good.

 

[FrontierGander]

you won't notice any difference. I went from a 27" to 30" and only gained less than 50 FPS.

 

[ohiohunter]

But what if I go from 27" to 25"??? will the loss of velocity be more noticeable? In the game of MZ where velocity is about 2000fps, 100fps is a considerable amount.

I'm not looking to shoot the fastest mz i can, but I do not want to lose to much w/ the shorter barrel. If the loss is only 50fps I think I can live with it, but if the loss is 100fps or more I think I'll opt for the 27"er. It would be nice to get the shorter lighter rifle, but if it comes at too much of a cost I am not heart broke to stick w/ the 27".

BTW, this is for an elk hunt.

 

[ENCORE]

But what if I go from 27" to 25"??? will the loss of velocity be more noticeable? In the game of MZ where velocity is about 2000fps, 100fps is a considerable amount.

I'm not looking to shoot the fastest mz i can, but I do not want to lose to much w/ the shorter barrel. If the loss is only 50fps I think I can live with it, but if the loss is 100fps or more I think I'll opt for the 27"er. It would be nice to get the shorter lighter rifle, but if it comes at too much of a cost I am not heart broke to stick w/ the 27".

BTW, this is for an elk hunt.

Velocity isn't always everything. You can shoot a heavier bullet and although you may lose some muzzle velocity, you'll retain more energy.

I'll throw out an example: (BC = .230)

• 300gr bullet
• 2,000fps velocity
• Energy at 200yds = 1,424fpe

Same bullet at 200yds

• 1950fps = 1,388
• 1900fps = 1,352

 

[ohiohunter]

Velocity isn't always everything. You can shoot a heavier bullet and although you may lose some muzzle velocity, you'll retain more energy.

I'll throw out an example: (BC = .230)

• 300gr bullet
• 2,000fps velocity
• Energy at 200yds = 1,424fpe

Same bullet at 200yds

• 1950fps = 1,388
• 1900fps = 1,352

Great illustration. I'm certainly after energy over velocity which is why I plan on using 300gr Scorpions, for elk I wouldn't shoot anything much lighter. But bullet weight can easily be changed, barrel length not so much. Which is why I'm asking about the barrel length more so than the load.

After looking at the black horn page, it looks like 1815 seems to be the median velocity for 300gr scorpion w/ 100gr charge. I'd imagine this is about what I'll shoot, maybe 110gr. Accuracy will tell.

 

[ENCORE]

Great illustration. I'm certainly after energy over velocity which is why I plan on using 300gr Scorpions, for elk I wouldn't shoot anything much lighter. But bullet weight can easily be changed, barrel length not so much. Which is why I'm asking about the barrel length more so than the load.

After looking at the black horn page, it looks like 1815 seems to be the median velocity for 300gr scorpion w/ 100gr charge. I'd imagine this is about what I'll shoot, maybe 110gr. Accuracy will tell.

It just isn't going to make a significant difference with production rifles and 2" of barrel length. My suggestion would be a heavier bullet and increase the charge to the maximum accuracy would allow. I have only 25" of USEABLE barrel length with my Ultimate, measured from the face of the breech plug to the end of the rifling.

 

[Dr. Vette]

Great illustration. I'm certainly after energy over velocity which is why I plan on using 300gr Scorpions, for elk I wouldn't shoot anything much lighter. But bullet weight can easily be changed, barrel length not so much. Which is why I'm asking about the barrel length more so than the load.

After looking at the black horn page, it looks like 1815 seems to be the median velocity for 300gr scorpion w/ 100gr charge. I'd imagine this is about what I'll shoot, maybe 110gr. Accuracy will tell.

I'm trying several different bullets and loads right now, including the Scorpion, to also get ready for an elk hunt. With both 110 and 120gr volume (actually 77/84 by weight) of BH209 my groups with the Scorpions are the worst at about 6 inches. I didn't even measure them they were so bad.

So, you can't always believe everything Toby says.

My best are with the Nosler BT, the Hornady Monoflex and the Barnes T-EZ. I'm hoping to make it out Saturday morning for my next shooting session.

 

[ohiohunter]

What gun are you using?

 

[ENCORE]

I'm trying several different bullets and loads right now, including the Scorpion, to also get ready for an elk hunt. With both 110 and 120gr volume (actually 77/84 by weight) of BH209 my groups with the Scorpions are the worst at about 6 inches. I didn't even measure them they were so bad.

So, you can't always believe everything Toby says.

My best are with the Nosler BT, the Hornady Monoflex and the Barnes T-EZ. I'm hoping to make it out Saturday morning for my next shooting session.

I tried the 300's and they wouldn't shoot for crap out of the Ultimate. Now I'll give Harvester a ton of credit, they sent me just about every sabot they manufacture and still, they would not group.

If I could hunt with any bullet and it shot excellent, it would be a Barnes. I know of a lot of guys with CVA rifles that shoot the T-EZ bullets.

 

[ohiohunter]

I tried the 300's and they wouldn't shoot for crap out of the Ultimate. Now I'll give Harvester a ton of credit, they sent me just about every sabot they manufacture and still, they would not group.

If I could hunt with any bullet and it shot excellent, it would be a Barnes. I know of a lot of guys with CVA rifles that shoot the T-EZ bullets.

Harvester is a hell of a company. They won't hesitate to help you.

I do love barnes, I want to try out the scorpions b/c of their cost, weight, and the crush rib sabot. I'll have to see how the t-ez's shoot.

 

[Dr. Vette]

What gun are you using?

TC Impact. I actually have two I'll be setting up, but currently working on one at a time. The second one will be the backup rifle for Dad and I on our hunt this fall.

Dad has a TC Triumph, and it shoots the Scorpion PT Gold 300s with 120gr (actually 84 weighed) of BH209 at 1.1 inches at 100 yards. He's sticking with that load for now.

I'm going to try various loads of the Hornady GMX and Barnez T-EZ in mine as those two grouped better at 110gr (77.0) than anything else. I suspect that lower charges may be more accurate than higher charges based on initial testing. I also ordered some Federal B.O.R. Trophy coppers to see if they work well or not. There are not a lot of reports of actual in-the-field testing on game. And, I ordered some Bloodlines to test too; a sample pack plus a pack of 250s, as the 250s have a smaller diameter (.451) and will likely fit my bore better.

 

[ENCORE]

TC Impact. I actually have two I'll be setting up, but currently working on one at a time. The second one will be the backup rifle for Dad and I on our hunt this fall.

Dad has a TC Triumph, and it shoots the Scorpion PT Gold 300s with 120gr (actually 84 weighed) of BH209 at 1.1 inches at 100 yards. He's sticking with that load for now.

I'm going to try various loads of the Hornady GMX and Barnez T-EZ in mine as those two grouped better at 110gr (77.0) than anything else. I suspect that lower charges may be more accurate than higher charges based on initial testing. I also ordered some Federal B.O.R. Trophy coppers to see if they work well or not. There are not a lot of reports of actual in-the-field testing on game. And, I ordered some Bloodlines to test too; a sample pack plus a pack of 250s, as the 250s have a smaller diameter (.451) and will likely fit my bore better.

Every T/C I've owned, shot Barnes TMZ bullets extremely accurate. I preferred the 250gr TMZ. Favorite load was 107grs by volume or 75grs by weight. Drive right through a whitetail, bone and all, at 200yds. Barnes perform flawlessly down to 1,100fps.