warthog load par excellance

[65bsaA65]

Gentlemen:
     On one of the websites I frequent (ammoguide.com), I came across a loading for a 50/140 Sharps, a cartridge and gun I've always been in love with.  A 515 grain bullet at almost 2000 fps. and 5002 ft./lbs. of muzzle energy.  Now, that's a warthog load.  Right in there with a .458 Winchester.  Bet the recoil is...memorable.  It's a smokeless load; don't know what powder.
     To keep this post within the parameters of the Darksider veiwpoint, one of Sam Fadalas' cartridge loadings for the 50/140 (with BP or Pyrodex cartridge) w/670 grain bullet produced around 3500 ft./llbs. of muzzle energy.  I don't have my copy of Fadalas' book handy, but I remember it said that with equivilant volumn loads, the bp out-performed the pyrodex handi-ly.  Another serious Warthog load; should kill anything on this continent that might want to kill you back.
     I can't afford 3 grand plus for a rifle; have to stick with my .50 and .54 front stuffers at present.  If the gods of smoke and thunder should smile at me, I expect that a Sharps 50/140 would be in the offing.  Any pards out there have any experience playing with one of these?

[Dick Dastardly]

Not that, but in the ballpark.

El Paso Pete had a 50-110 (from memory).  His black powder loads were a pleasure to shoot.  Yes, they did offer some recoil, but they also were very enjoyable.  We shot out to 300 yards and I felt the gun wasn't even challenged.

From your post, you have a higher energy gun in mind.  Soon you will be able to clap with your shoulder blades.  There is a limit to pleasure.  Mine is maybe more subtle.

DD-DLoS

[Texas John Critter]

Look for a Rolling Block from Navy Arms in that caliber.  I got mine for $350 on a trade.  Brass and dies will set you back that amount again.  I had three loadings, a 500 gr plinker load, 650 gr spitzer load and a 720 gr kills on both ends load.  I never did ring it out all the way to 1000 yards but it was a shooter.  I was using Fg and FFg Goex in it at the time.  Not a real killer in terms of recoil but you knew for sure you had just lit something.

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[Steel Horse Bailey]

Texas John Critter said:

"... a 720 gr kills on both ends load."



        

Don't be fooled; BP HAS   the horsepower for any animal on earth - if YOU can shoot it right!  By that I mean if you can stand the recoil of the amount of practice needed for the RIGHT shot.  (A PAST Heavy Mag pad comes to mind for practice purposes.    )

[Texas John Critter]

I wouldn't be afraid to take that rifle after anything short of.......hell I'd hunt anything with it.

12 - 15 rounds was all I could shoot of the "real" ammo.  I would start to flinch so I would stop.   I would get a headache and my shoulder would be bruised purple the next day.  I imagine if I kept at it I might of developed a better tolerance but my Sharpes .45-70 I could shoot all day.   I doubt I would run into anything here in MI I couldn't stop with the .45-70.

[Dick Dastardly]

Pards,

A big slow moving chunk of rotating lead has the potential to do in anything with two or more legs on this planet.  Cast rite, the chunk of lead will penetrate to where the boiler room is and wreck the machinery for good.  It will break the levers and pulleys so the beast can't run and with a good brain box hit it will cause all the balls to roll back and the eyes to say "tilt".

Trick is to get it to the scene of the shootin' without wheels under it.

DD-DLoS

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Pards,

A big slow moving chunk of rotating lead has the potential to do in anything with two or more legs on this planet.  Cast rite, the chunk of lead will penetrate to where the boiler room is and wreck the machinery for good.  It will break the levers and pulleys so the beast can't run and with a good brain box hit it will cause all the balls to roll back and the eyes to say "tilt".

Trick is to get it to the scene of the shootin' without wheels under it.

DD-DLoS

(My bold & italics added)

Kinda paints a picture, don't it?!