# What happened to the .45?



## Mavis13 (Oct 29, 2007)

I've been muzzleloading all my life and love it. I have an almost 40 year old TC Hawken in 45. I haven't been on a general rifle hunt since I got this gun when I was 17. I cast most of my stuff but since they upped the regs so I can't hunt with a patched ball I've purchased conicals for hunting. The last few years it seems no one must shoot a 45 any more as I can't find a thing in norther Utah for a 45 other than balls which I cast and don't need. I really like the 45 round and don't see why they have fallen out of favor. I can order stuff but hate to spend money just to find out it doesn't fly. Does anyone else shoot a 45? If so what loads and bullets do you like? Personally I've had the best accuracy from powerbelts but I'm interested to try something new. I have a mold for miniballs but they just don't fly right if I put more than about 50gr behind them and thats just not enough for hunting.


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## Vmax (Jan 28, 2010)

I shoot a Thompson Encore 209/45 150gr of triple7 "3 pellets" and a 195gr barnzs sabbot. I dont know if they will shoot in yours or not? My dad shoots the 50 cal like yr gun with 270 gr speer gold dot in a sabbot and it shoots as good as any of the new guns..


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## .54 (Sep 24, 2007)

I don't understand why you cannot hunt with a .45 patched roundball? Am I missing something?


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## Fishrmn (Sep 14, 2007)

> R657-5-11. Muzzleloaders.
> (1) A muzzleloader may be used during any big game hunt, except an archery hunt, provided the muzzleloader:
> 
> (a) can be loaded only from the muzzle;
> ...


'Cause they don't weight enough.

Fishrmn


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## .54 (Sep 24, 2007)

That sucks. I only remembered seeing .40 or better. But I have never ran into that problem. Thanks Fishrmn


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## Fishrmn (Sep 14, 2007)

I shoot a .45 caliber White Super 91 and 365 grain conicals, so it doesn't affect me. But you can't use round balls smaller than 50 cal.


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## Mavis13 (Oct 29, 2007)

A .45 patched ball is 127gr so even though they will go clear through a deer it's not legal any more. I can only guess it's in an attempt to compensate for those who can't shoot. My gun only took one deer with a round ball before it was banned but it was shoot through the heart ran a few dozen yards and that was it. It's not a big deal to me I started using powerbelts and they seem to fly about the same as my round balls (but not as tight of groups) at 100 yards or less and that's about all I'm comfortable shooting a deer at any way. Perhaps someone else has better understanding on the subject.


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## Mavis13 (Oct 29, 2007)

Fishrmn,
Where are you getting your 365gr conicals from? The largest I've found are 270.


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## elk_horn (Aug 6, 2008)

NO-EXCUSE Bullets I believe make a 45 caliber 365 conical...........Kents Shooter supply in Ogden, Utah.... carry the no-excuse bullets I think they carry the .45 but if they dont they can give the phone# to the guy who makes the no-excuse bullet and you can order from him!


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## Fishrmn (Sep 14, 2007)

Sorry I didn't get back on this one earlier. I've got a bunch of White's slugs. The no excuses are close, but not quite as good as the White's. I guess I've been using the 460 grain slugs. Here's a website for ya.

http://www.muzzleloading-bullets.com/

Fishrmn


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## manysteps (Sep 28, 2009)

I shot my first deer with a 45 and a patched round ball, but that was 20 years ago... The fact of the matter is, a 45 round ball just isn't heavy enough for deer... in fact, I won't even use a patched round ball in my 54 for deer.

If you insist on using the 45, I'd suggest also trying Hornady's "Great Plains" bullet.

Every gun shoots different for different bullets as well as powder charges. In preparation for our Crawfords LE hunt last year, we found that upping our charge by just 5 grains made a massive difference in accuracy.

Also, when you're sighting in and experimenting, swab your barrel in between each shot with a patch lubed with windex... just spritz the patch 3 or 4 times, run it up and down the barrel 4 or 5 times, and reload. 

I can't remember who gave us that tip, but it was a lifesaver at the range... pretty much eliminated fouling all together.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

manysteps said:


> Also, when you're sighting in and experimenting, swab your barrel in between each shot with a patch lubed with windex... just spritz the patch 3 or 4 times, run it up and down the barrel 4 or 5 times, and reload.
> 
> I can't remember who gave us that tip, but it was a lifesaver at the range... pretty much eliminated fouling all together.




-DallanC


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