Mossy Oak Forum / Hunting / Black Powder / Due diligence with a smokepole... / Latest Posts

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

garylloyd — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 00:06:38 GMT

I shot a yearling doe years ago. Was the first one with a smoke pole. I used a very low charge of 45 gr. out of a .45 cal and got a entrance and exit hole. She only went 40 yards and piled up. Good blood trail too. I have put a .54 cal barrel on scence and have shot 8 deer and never had to look for them.

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

Flintlock1776 — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 12:24:55 GMT

That's a shame cracker. I shoot a Remington 700ML with open sights and have not had that happen.

As I get older I am tinking of adding a scope. It fits the same as my 30.06 Rem SS rifle so I shoot very confidently with it.

I keep the ML shots strictly to 100 yards or less and with my sabot and power load 'brown is down'.

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

pabowhunter — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 06:58:37 GMT

Just about all my smokeploe deer have been during our late season with snow on the ground. Kind of makes for easy tracking.

Welcome to the Mossy Oak forums elkchaser. Those elk can be some tuff animals. Good to see you've been putting them down.

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

Elk_Chaser — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 03:10:35 GMT

I have never shot a deer with a muzzle loader, but I have shot a couple of elk. I had pass through shots on both, one that went through the far shoulder at 80 yards. The first elk was shot with a 444 grain black belt bullet with two fifty grain pyrodex pellets, the second was shot with 100 grains of loose 777 behind a 300 grain sabot.

Neither elk left much of a blood trail at all, but I have experienced the same problem on elk with a 7mm Mag. I believe elk hair absorbs the vast majority of the blood exiting the wound (both were shot in snow). Blood from the first elk was initially found several hundred yards from the shot, where it had laid down in the snow (on the exit side). The second elk had two drops in the snow after the sabot exited the shoulder and no other blood until it dropped 100 yards later.

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

PA_RIDGE_RUNNER — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 17:37:15 GMT

I have been hunting with a smoke pole for many years, most of it with a flintlock. During that time I have used a big variety of bullets from the lowly prb, maxiballs, buffalo ball-ets, powerbelts (ugh) and a variety of sabotted bullets in my inline and a 1:28 twist flintlock. Since the middle 70s I have killed a whole bunch of deer and nearly all that ran off left a good blood trail. I did have a doe in Kansas that I hit high clipping the top of both lungs that did not bleed at all till after about 80 yards and then only a spot about every 15 feet. I did find her about 150 yds from the location of the shot and looking very bloated. When I went to field dress her the blood litteraly spurted out like I had just cut an artery. In most all my deer kills I have had a complete passthroughs except for the powerbelts. I am also not a fan of long shots with a muzzleloader keeping my prb shots to 75 yds or less and my sabotted bullets to 100 yds or less. I use only gooex in 2 or 3f and my most powerful load is 90 gr.

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

adkmnthunter — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 22:06:35 GMT

I shot a 4 pointer on Saturday with a T/C Encore 209x50. 2 pellets of pyrodex and a 245 grain Power Belt Areo Tip. The deer ran about 40 yards up hill leaving very little blood but when he hit level ground the blood poured out of him and he dropped. I hit him broad side right behind the front shoulder and a complete pass through.

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

INBowhunter — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 13:35:37 GMT

This give me the idea for a new topic. Check the whitetail forum.

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

FL_Cracker — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 12:34:58 GMT

Thanks everyone. I wasn't trying to preach... it's just that two of the guys at my club had shot and thought they missed until we went back and actually found the deer for them.

Nearly everyone was hunting with a Traditions in-line, 209 shotgun primers, 100 grains of 777 or pyrodex (loose) and a 197-250 grain jacketed hollowpoint with a sabot and the deer were shot right behind the shoulder in the heart or lung. The skin folded over on the entrance wound and they didn't bleed externally. They went about 100 yards and kicked over. We found the bullets in the skin.

I wasn't trying to say that I'm scared to kill one with my ML as that isn't the case, I'm more than confident, and was putting 1.5" groups at 200 yards with it the weekend before and have killed a few in years past with it. Some had blood trails, some didn't. They didn't go very far regardless.

I just wanted to warn some folks that may be new to black powder hunting and what not. It's just one of those things in hunting that is good to expect and prepare yourself for.

(& Blazin, no I haven't shot that many out of the SAME gun... ..I've been in Civil War reenacting for 12 years and have shot most out of a .577 caliber three band Enfield...like they used in the war... )

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

INBowhunter — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 07:08:41 GMT

A Knight MK-85 was the only firearm I used for about 10 years until buying a new rifled barrel 870 last fall. I have taken a lot of deer with that muzzleloader, most shots at less than 50 yards. Most have had very good blood trails.

FWIW, I shoot 100 gr of loose Pyrodex and a 240 gr saboted hollow point. I HAVE found that non-hollow point bullets don't seem to have the knock down power or leave as nice of a blood trail.

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

NerdHick — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 19:21:13 GMT

I've only shot one with the ML and she didn't go anywhere...I don't use a scope, just the sights that came with it...therefore I don't like to shoot unless they are close...to me thats half the point...

but you need to know your weapon no matter what you are hunting with...

RE: Due diligence with a smokepole...

Blazin270 — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 18:20:33 GMT

I hear that My Crackered friend! Now..I hope you did'nt shoot thousands of rounds thru the same muzzle loader...That could be a severe problem! I've shot six deer in my short career of muzzle hunting and only had to track one. Only one was over a 50yrd shot, perfect senerio, Folded at 100 plus yards. The one I had to...(I say track only went 100yrds) Gut shot on the run..No blood but mortaly wounded and it was a long story short. It's amazing how fast you can reload them smokepoles! As far as blood trails...It depends. I've been lucky enough not to have to worry about that...The one I shot 2 years ago painted a nasty road for 30yrds and I watched it crash hard into the timber. For sure it depends on where you hit em...But you still definitely need to LOOK if you think you did'nt! Track em and Stack em Don't loose the faith in the ole flame thrower! These little tests will come up every now and then! I just prolly cursed myself!

Due diligence with a smokepole...

FL_Cracker — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 15:15:44 GMT

Hunting with a smokepole has a different element of uncertainty/fear for me nowadays. Not only the smoke making it hard to see if you got a hit, but the lack of a blood trail can be kind of dis-heartening. With a bow and usually with a rifle, you'll get a pass thru shot and a good blood trail (best case scenario). With a bow, you also have the luxury of usually finding your arrow and being able to tell how good of a hit you got on them.

Out of 8 or so bucks killed at my club with charcoal burners, NOT ONE left any sign of a blood trail and NOT ONE had a pass thru shot. Just thought I'd warn some of you folks if you didn't know. Most of ours ran maybe 100 yards at the most and dropped so you really gotta listen and watch for where they run off to as that might be the only way you can track them. If you don't find anything it doesn't mean you didn't hit them. Keep one loaded as they might not even know you're there as my buddy Vance jumped three deer up that had bedded down next to the 6 point he killed Saturday.

I missed twice on a buck at over 150 yards and spent about 10 hours total searching high and low for any kind of sign of him. It wasn't until my buddy saw the same buck Saturday afternoon that I felt better.

Anyway, just something to think about.... I've shot thousands of rounds with muzzleloaders and I think it's extremely important to be confident in your own shooting ability and to not give up hope, even if you think you might've missed, because there's a good chance you didn't and that deer is holed up some where dead or dying.