Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
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Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
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Topic: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets? (Read 3591 times))
Dixiedog
Shooter
Posts: 61
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Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
on:
April 23, 2016, 01:49:57 PM »
Do the big bore .45 and .50 cal PCP air rifles shoot only dedicated pellets or could you also shoot cast bullets like would be used in a handgun reloading application like .45 long colt bullets? The reason I ask is that pellets seem to be very expensive most are $30+ for a box of 50 vs the $100 or less per 500 on cast handgun bullets
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Jefferson, ME
supertech77
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Posts: 2292
Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #1 on:
April 23, 2016, 02:25:26 PM »
45 cal bullets at what ever diameter of your bore,like 454 or 456 or 457,will be cheaper in the long run if you buy a mold and poor your own,i also recommend you contact nelsonsammo for some made bullet pricing,he makes some great bullets, and his price,s are more than fair, he is at vendor gate i think,and he post a lot on big bore texan as well.also what big bore are you thinking of using them for?
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rainstorm 2 357.[stock]
shin-sung Fire 201 / 357 [tuned] 9mm
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Shooter
Posts: 89
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Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #2 on:
April 23, 2016, 02:49:03 PM »
Obviously you'll need a lot of power to push the weight of a bullet that size to much velocity, but you can also cast pellets cheaper than buying them. jkingsouthafrica post a lot of big bore pellet molds in the Big Bore section here, of course pellets that big are not light wt. either, but lighter than bullets
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Florida , Jacksonville
n2omike
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Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #3 on:
April 23, 2016, 03:04:02 PM »
I would think it would depend upon the barrel.
Bullets generally have a MUCH higher rate of twist in the rifling, as they rely on spin ONLY for stable flight.
Pellets have a much lower rate of twist, as their skirts create drag on back, which helps stabilize them. Pellet barrels also generally have a choke at the end.
A pellet barrel with slow twist and a choke isn't going to be the best choice for bullets, and a "bullet barrel" with a high rate of twist and no choke isn't going to be the best for a pellet.
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Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #4 on:
April 23, 2016, 03:34:27 PM »
Big bore airguns are not typically chocked . Most big bores are meant to shoot cast bullets and/or round balls other than the .30 and .35 that are set up for jsb pellets . Some of the .30 and .35 pellet shooters might be chocked but I am not sure . Cast handgun bullets may be to hard for airgun use depending on the alloy used . Getting setup to cast them yourself is pretty affordable . My setup was about $100-$120 for casting .500 round balls . Lee casting equipment and molds are affordable and a great place to start .
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QVTom
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Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #5 on:
April 23, 2016, 03:35:19 PM »
It's all about the gun. There are bigbore pellet guns, then there are bigbore airguns for slugs and a few in between.
Bigbore pellet guns. Generally speaking they are smaller bore designs stretched to the larger calibers of 30, 35 and some cases 45 and 50 cal. These guns do not have the power and strength in their actions to shoot slugs at any reasonable velocity. Examples are Hatsan Carnivore, Edgun, Cricket, RAW, and some others. Many of these are fine guns; they are just not designed for slugs and any attempt will be disappointing.
Bigbore slug guns. These are designed from the ground up to shoot slugs at realistic velocities to deliver high energies down range. They have strong actions, higher pressure reservoirs and barrels with appropriate twist rates for the heavy slugs. Examples are American Air Arms Slayer, Quackenbush, Airforce Texan, Extreme and some others. Generally the price for this power is a low shot count and single shot in most cases.
The in between. Evanix makes a few "bridge" guns that will shoot pellets and some very lightweight slugs. They are the Rainstorm and Sniper models. Although these guns may be considered slug capable their performance is only barely acceptable with the lightest slugs and the larger caliber models offer cannonball trajectory at best. The recent introduction of 45 and 50 cal diabolo pellets (Nielsen and South Africa) make the 45 and 50 a viable option. I should add, the smaller Sam yang guns fall in this category too.
Tom
«
Last Edit: April 23, 2016, 07:48:50 PM by QVTom
»
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rsterne
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Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #6 on:
April 23, 2016, 04:15:01 PM »
Excellent post, Tom.... The choice of pellet or bullet will depend on the gun, and the intended target.... I haven't seen a .45 or .50 cal with a twist rate slow enough that instability is even a remote possibility, the manufacturers seem to have forgotten that the required twist rate is determined in calibers, so for large calibers, a slower twist (in inches) is the way to go, even for bullets.... However there are at least a few big bores where the twist rate is much higher than needed for pellets, or even lightweight slugs....
Bob
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Dixiedog
Shooter
Posts: 61
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Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #7 on:
April 23, 2016, 07:33:44 PM »
The rifle I was checking out was the Texan.....just started looking around a bit and then saw the price of .45 cal pellets and was taken back a bit. It's cheaper to shoot my .454 casull Alaskan than an air rifle with the price of pellets.
If a rifle like the Texan can shoot standard pellets it would be fairly economical to shoot for me, I've got thousands of bullets available in my reloading stash ranging from 240-340 grains
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Jefferson, ME
QVTom
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Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #8 on:
April 23, 2016, 07:46:03 PM »
The Texan is a slug shooter for sure. Forgot that one on my list. nonjacketed, unlubed and not too hard, you'll be on your way. FYI the Texan is a .458 bore not 452, this excludes a lot of pistol bullets.
Tom
«
Last Edit: April 23, 2016, 07:51:18 PM by QVTom
»
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maraudinglizard
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Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #9 on:
April 23, 2016, 07:59:06 PM »
There are plenty of molds on the market to cast from and shoot through the Texan. I have a sam yang 909 that shoots .45 muzzle loader rounds mostly Lyman and Lee molds. I have a mold from African Air Ordinance for the Hatsan Carnivore .357 since it will only shoot pellets. The mold has already paid for it's self. Jeremy does sell molds for the larger calibers. I also recycle my lead to recast so that saves me a lot money as well. Good soft lead and the right mold and your are set.
http://www.africanairordnance.com/
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wimpanzee
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Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #10 on:
April 23, 2016, 09:18:12 PM »
I shoot EPP-UG slugs in my .45, $40/250
http://www.whyteleatherworks.com/BigLube.html
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Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #11 on:
April 23, 2016, 09:59:13 PM »
I sell the EPP slug, if you order 200 it is $46 plus $7 shipping and mine are on the shelf, no waiting 2 months for your bullets. I also use lead with no antimony added so they are much softer because I only cast for airguns so my lead is the same soft mix.
Plus mine are sized to your needs: .457, .454 or .452 what ever you need for your barrel.
http://nielsenspecialtyammo.com/collections/45-cal/products/45-caliber-sized-458-457-454-or-452-168-grain-cast-bullet?variant=14858241668
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supertech77
supertech77
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Posts: 2292
Re: Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?
«
Reply #12 on:
April 24, 2016, 12:43:23 AM »
as i was hoping ,you got some great info from some very knowledgeable people, and also having a Texan",i can honestly say,you will be very impressed with it, yeah she,s long and lean,but oh so mean,,,,i shoot 460/330 pure lead i mold myself bought the mold off ebay new,,sweet combo,505+ fpe.,,those are my 100 yard hunting bullets,now neil make,s a 457/ 278 or so bullet that is good 240 + yards,now my sam yang 909,s love the epp 454 bullets,they too are a lot of fun,
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Virginia
umarex e.b.o.s full auto bb hpa adapted]
[break barrels}
wfh, 22 NP [tune
22 cal [tuned] ruger air magnum
25 cal [tuned] ruger air magnum
np trail 22,[tuned]
(pcp's}
B-50 177 [tuned]
B50 22 [tuned]
850 22 [tuned] hpa mod done regulated]
mrod 22 [tuned] custom stock
mrod 25 [tuned] bullpup custom vip stock]walther barrel
Sumatra .25 cal 500[stock]
condor .25 [tuned]
condor .257 hot rod [D.N custom valve system] 90ci tank doug noble custom adapter,r&l custom barrel,with spare r&l custom barrel,
bulldog,357 power tuned,max shroud custom extension installed.
rainstorm 2 357.[stock]
shin-sung Fire 201 / 357 [tuned] 9mm
Sam-yang 909 twin tube [aaf tune kit] 45 cal
Sam yang 909s , 45 [tuned]
TEXAN 457 . [stock ] with r&l shroud
eqip, 5x20x sight,paladin mk390
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Big Bores....Pellets or Bullets?