# barrel twist



## Fowlmouth (Oct 4, 2008)

I have 2 muzzleloaders, one with 1:32 twist and one with 1:28 twist. I was out shooting again today trying different bullets and came to the conclusion my muzzy with 1:32 twist doesn't shoot sabots as well as the 1:28 muzzy. I will have my daughter use the 1:28 muzzy with SST 250 gr. and I will shoot the 1:32 with TC 350 gr. maxi balls. Anyone else shoot a 1:32 twist and do okay with sabots?


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## timber_cruiser (Nov 2, 2007)

I had a 1:32 twist muzzle loader a while ago, and found that TC maxiballs worked well. The 1:32 twist is a compromise barrel design with 1:28 which works better for modern conicals and 1:48 twist which is better for maxiballs and round balls.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

1/48 is lousy for roundballs, it needs to be a lot slower like 1/66 or even better 1/72. 1/48 is a terrible compromise, being crappy for everything.

-DallanC


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## hossblur (Jun 15, 2011)

Back before I became "modern" I used to shoot Maxi hunters, that is a huge chunk of lead, and good shooting -350gr I believe


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## manysteps (Sep 28, 2009)

My Hawken is a 1/48 and it shoots round balls & powerbelts both great.


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## El Matador (Dec 21, 2007)

I have never had very good luck with sabots that don't fit tight, and even then some guns are picky about the powder charge. The twist may not be your problem. Bore diameters vary quite a bit, so a sabot that's tight in the 1:28 gun may be loose in the 1:32 gun. I shoot a T/C and it likes some of the fattest sabots out there, .506" or so. The SST's with the black sabots and the Barnes TMZ with yellow sabots both seem to fit nice and tight. I swab the bore between shots or they are too tight to load. Once you have a tight sabot you can experiment with different powder charges to find a nice accurate load. Every T/C I've played with can shoot 1" groups at 100 yards with the right sabot and powder charge.


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## Fowlmouth (Oct 4, 2008)

I did notice my 1:32 rifle was not as tight when loading as the 1:28 rifle. That's good information, I will try a fatter sabot with the SST 250 gr and see what happens. Thanks!


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

El Matador said:


> I have never had very good luck with sabots that don't fit tight, and even then some guns are picky about the powder charge. The twist may not be your problem. Bore diameters vary quite a bit, so a sabot that's tight in the 1:28 gun may be loose in the 1:32 gun. I shoot a T/C and it likes some of the fattest sabots out there, .506" or so. The SST's with the black sabots and the Barnes TMZ with yellow sabots both seem to fit nice and tight. I swab the bore between shots or they are too tight to load. Once you have a tight sabot you can experiment with different powder charges to find a nice accurate load. Every T/C I've played with can shoot 1" groups at 100 yards with the right sabot and powder charge.


To take it 1 step further, there are .44 cal sabots (.429") and .45 caliber sabots (.451"), both of which can shoot differently in various barrels. Slow twist roundball barrels are notorious for being overbore and shoot better fouled with a squid load.

-DallanC


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## Bears Butt (Sep 12, 2007)

DallanC...what is a squid load? I have never heard of that before.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

Lol! That is fat fingers on a tiny phone keyboard. I meant squib load.

-DallanC


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