I just bought a Ruger Old Army, 7.5" stainless, adjustable sights. It is currently somewhere in the US postal system, en route to my house. To deaden the anticipation, I've been doing a lot of research. I wanted to verify some of my findings with the community.
I've purchased .457 balls, and .456 220gr conicals. I intend to use the balls for targets and smallish game (turkey, maybe?), and the conicals for larger stuff, like deer and boar. After digging through all the load data I could find, this is what I've come up with:
(all loads listed are for volumetric equivalent)
Max load for round ball = 40 grains 777 (I've seen people running 45, but I don't wanna go that high)
Max load for 220gr conical = 35 grains 777
Hodgdon has stated pretty explicitly that they do not recommend running more than 35 grains of 777 under a ball, but I've heard of so many individuals who load heavier than this, that I can only assume Hodgdon was being conservative. Anyone have any light to shed on this?
Also, what do you guys use for caps?
Beyond the question of loads, I've heard a few gripes regarding the Old Army. The most popular are "it's too heavy, and it is unbalanced." I'm wondering what those that actually have the gun think. I'm not a cowboy action shooter or any of that, so I don't care much about how traditional it is. I'm just interested in function.
If, in addition to the above, you think there is something I should know about the Old Army, I'm all ears. Thanks in advance for any info/advice.
I've purchased .457 balls, and .456 220gr conicals. I intend to use the balls for targets and smallish game (turkey, maybe?), and the conicals for larger stuff, like deer and boar. After digging through all the load data I could find, this is what I've come up with:
(all loads listed are for volumetric equivalent)
Max load for round ball = 40 grains 777 (I've seen people running 45, but I don't wanna go that high)
Max load for 220gr conical = 35 grains 777
Hodgdon has stated pretty explicitly that they do not recommend running more than 35 grains of 777 under a ball, but I've heard of so many individuals who load heavier than this, that I can only assume Hodgdon was being conservative. Anyone have any light to shed on this?
Also, what do you guys use for caps?
Beyond the question of loads, I've heard a few gripes regarding the Old Army. The most popular are "it's too heavy, and it is unbalanced." I'm wondering what those that actually have the gun think. I'm not a cowboy action shooter or any of that, so I don't care much about how traditional it is. I'm just interested in function.
If, in addition to the above, you think there is something I should know about the Old Army, I'm all ears. Thanks in advance for any info/advice.
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