Reflection of Moments in Time

[ET1]

Today being a somewhat stormy day I decided to go through my muzzle loading gear and see what I have for supplies.
Powder supply looks good for the start in Spring
Good number of sabots available.
Around a 1000 primers.
Decent supply of bullets to start with.

Then in another corner I found some bullets no longer being manufactured and my mind drifted through a journey of using bullets with my 10ML-II.When the ML-II was brought home and opened the box I found some sample sabots and 250gr XTP.
The first outing with the 250gr XTP was a flop and bugger to load with the supplied ramrod.
Next up I wanted to try the 200XTP and got some reasonable results. Not feeling comfortable of taking a shot over 125yds so I started to look at other bullets.
Next up for a test run 250PTX that is now discontinued. Just started to get the 250PTX zeroed in and when I went to resupply I was told they were no longer available.
Next up was the hardnosed 250SST got it easily dialed in but found if you hit a deer say under 70yds it really fragmented inside the deer. But boy it was an accurate shooter.
Of course like before they discontinued the hard nose 250 SST.
Next up the new soft nosed 250SST with Flex Tip technology. It shot okay and didn’t fragment as badly like its predecessor.

As I move forward with load development I also want to include the 250Tez by Barnes and the 250MonoFlex by Hornady. Of course there will also be some additional testing for lighter bullets like the 225FTX and 200FTX. This should keep me occupied for some time, may be even a few years with the way things have gone lately.
The versatility of the 10ML-II has never ceased to amaze me and I always come back for more.


Ed

[MikePal]

All those trials seeking the perfect bullet and you haven't tried any of the offerings at Precision Rifle...shame..

[ET1]

Mike Pal

Well you almost got me, chuckle.
I used to order my MMP sabots from PR and one time I talked to Cecil who was taking orders that day. I did explain to him that my 10ML-11 responded good with 2300fps loads with 250gr bullets. Cecil response was that his bullets were not designed for that muzzle-velocity. If I were to reduce my load to less than 2200fps he would basically guarantee his 260gr bullet would shoot accurately. Back then in my early stage with the 10ML-II I was reluctant of sacrificing any velocity that had proven itself well. Since then I have gone with the more expensive Harvester sabots that shot better than the HPH-24 but I still have over 50 HPH-24 sabots kicking around. Who knows I might try some again now that I’ve lapped my barrel with 600grit compound and no longer experience the zipper affect when loading. Those MMP sabots may yet get used as I no longer have a bore that felt like a cheese grader.


Ed