# I need some "youth loads" for the muzzleloader



## postalhunter1 (Jun 5, 2010)

Well it's almost youth gun weekend and I would like some advice on some loads for smaller youth hunters. I believe it's very important to not overwhelm these new hunters with too much recoil, so I am planning on using full sized .50 cal muzzleloaders with lighter loads. If you have experience with this and have found a set up that works for you? I would like to know. What type of powder and how much? What bullet and what weight? And any other factors. Thanks in advance!!


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## bkr43050 (Apr 5, 2004)

I use the XTP 240Gr saboted bullets for all my loads at this point. I normally hunt with 110Gr Triple 7 loose powder but I have loaded with 90 for my youngest son before and it still performed pretty well. It obviously was not as flat shooting but the grouping seemed pretty good. Depending on how heavy the gun is and the age of the youth that setup may be adequate. If you have loose powder you could start with that shooting yourself and see if may e even dropping to 80 worked. I am sure that you will find a point somewhere in there where they stop performing properly.

My youngest son was 10 when he was shooting it comfortably just to give you an idea.


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## sherman51 (Apr 12, 2011)

i started both my sons off hunting when they turned 10. my first son started with a 45 cal. i think it was a tc cherokee. but my second son i couldnt find another 45 i liked so i bought him a small 50. but i used black powder and they both did just fine with 80 grns of powder. my first son shot round balls and my second son shot 250 grain bullets with sabots. then we switched to pyrodex somewhere along the way. now they both shoot 100 grns of triple 7 pellots with 250 grn bullets. good luck to you both.
sherman


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## fireline (Jun 14, 2007)

I used the same load as BKR35040 but with 80 gr, and it worked well.
We started at 60 gr and worked our way up 10 gr at a time.


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## Mad-Eye Moody (May 27, 2008)

80 grns of your favorite powder and a roundball will be great to 50 yards with very little kick, or a 44 caliber saboted slug.

How old is the youth? Have them practice close range with 50 grain loads and don't tell them you are loading hotter when hunting. They will never feel the recoil when shooting at a deer.


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## Snook (Aug 19, 2008)

It's been a while but 60gr Triple 7 and 180gr XTP shot very well out of my TC Encore... very little recoil! My 7yr old son shot his first deer with this load.


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## jamesbalog (Jul 6, 2011)

I shoot 80 grains of powder with a 240 grain sabot slug. That's all you need. No need for 150 grains of powder. 

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## deadrabbit (Sep 15, 2011)

Cabelas got a lead poly tip bullet that I shoot if I remember right its a 180gr bullet with 100 gr of powder and its plesant to shoot for a youth I know the 100 gr of powder seems a lot but its only pushing a 180gr bullet

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## sherman51 (Apr 12, 2011)

fireline said:


> I used the same load as BKR35040 but with 80 gr, and it worked well.
> We started at 60 gr and worked our way up 10 gr at a time.


i just talked to my youngest son, and he has a better memery than what i,ve got. he said we did our shooting with 60 grns then just before we went hunting i raised him to 80 grns to sight in and hunt. he only shot 3 shots with 80 grns because the bullet was only hitting about 1" higher with the 80 grns over the 60 grn loads. and that could have just been my son doing that. so he practiced with 60 grns and then hunted with 80 grns.

i know 80 grns is plenty enough to deer hunt. and you could probably get by with a lighter load as long as you keep his shots less than 50 yrds. i ended up using a double barrel 12 ga shotgun muzzleloader once many yrs ago. i shot a 690 round ball which is a big chunk of lead. and my owners manual recommended 90 grns of black powder, so thats what i shot. and i killed my deer that yr at 54 big steps. so if you shoot a light bullet with 70 or 80 grns of powder it should be plenty enough to take a deer out to 50 yrds.

its more trouble to shoot round balls but they are plenty good out to 50 yrds. i have taken a few deer between 75 and 100 yrds with a round ball and 100 grns of powder. a round ball only weighs 190 grns. so that would be a light load for him. a round ball and 70 or 80 grns of powder shouldnt hurt him at all. how old and how big is your son??

i would start him out with 80 grns of loose powder and a 240 or 250 grn bullet and sabot. and let him decide if you need to go lighter.

please let us know what you do and then let us know how his hunting goes.
sherman

you might also contact some of the gun companies and ask them what the minimum load would be for deer hunting. just a thought.


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## postalhunter1 (Jun 5, 2010)

Thanks for all the great info!! You guys are the best! The light load is actually for my 11 year old daughter. She's about 75lbs and sassy. But I don't want to get her flinching from start. I plan on doing some experimenting next week before the hunt, so I will give you guys some feedback on how the loads worked out and how we did on the hunt.


God, Family, Hunting......


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## Mason52 (Aug 21, 2009)

postalhunter1 said:


> Thanks for all the great info!! You guys are the best! The light load is actually for my 11 year old daughter. She's about 75lbs and sassy. But I don't want to get her flinching from start. I plan on doing some experimenting next week before the hunt, so I will give you guys some feedback on how the loads worked out and how we did on the hunt.
> 
> 
> God, Family, Hunting......


For many years I hunted with a 50 cal black powder rifle. I still hunt with it in the late black powder season if I don't have my deer. I used to target shoot with 50 grains of FF black powder and a patched round ball and hunted with 60 grains and still shoot the same load today. I have killed deer out to pushing 100 yds with it. Have also had a 7 year old niece sit on my lap and shoot this same gun with the light load.


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## rattletraprex (Sep 1, 2005)

I've have a T/C 50cal. Thunderhawk I bought years ago from some lady that won it and didn't want it,got it for $50. Couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with it and was ready to just hang it on the wall,after a lot of changing loads finally came up with something that works very well. I don't stray from it now as even the smallest adjustment makes a big difference. I use 90gr. Pyrodex RS loose powder,HP-XTP 240GR sabot and Winchester Mag. BP no.11 caps. It gets the job done as I've gotten deer from 30-100 yds. with it and most of them didn't go far.Don't know that I would use a light load for practice then a heavier one for hunting,practice with what you'll be hunting with. Find what works with the gun you have and stick with it. Good Luck this weekend!


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## sherman51 (Apr 12, 2011)

i talked to a tech at cva and was told to not hunt deer with less than 60 grns of powder with a 240 or 250 grn bullet. but he would recommend shots under 50 yrds with this load. and 70 or 80 grns would be a better load.

i would try her at 70 grns and see what she thinks. if she thinks its to much i would only do the 60 grns as a last resort.

hope this info helps you out. be sure and let us know what you end up shooting.
sherman


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