My new .44-75 Ballard

[Kurt]

TNX. guys.

Don Jim shot the .44-90 the whole match. This morning he used the bullets you gave him. They looked like a money bullet maybe and he said that he double patched the bore and fouled out doing this.
He shot great through the sighting shots but in the eight or ninth shot for score his hits dropped bigtime.

Kurt

[Don McDowell]

You wouldn't think he'ld of fouled out double patching, but it just goes to show how things can happen so fast like that.

That box of bullets I gave him was in fact the other box of the two I had at Baker that shot so well.

[Nuclearcricket]

Kurt, it seems that at this point the oversize grove diameter on your barrel doesn't seem to be a deterrent. Ever since you posted the dimensions, I have been thinking, and unfortunately I can't remember the exact conversation, but several years ago I met and talked with John Getz of Getz barrels. He had told me that someone had approached him to make a .40 cal barrel and this person wanted the rifling cut, I think, .005 deep instead of the usual .004". This person felt that it would help with fowling and such. From what John told it actually shot very well.
From the accounts you have posted so far, your new rifle seems to be shooting very well also. As you do your load development and long string shooting with it, it will be interesting to see if your exra deep groove prove to be a help or not.
Sam

[Kurt]

Sam.
With the muzzleloaders the grooves where cut deep for better shooting the fouled barrel.
I have laid all of my concerns aside with the barrel. When I was fire forming the newly formed cases to fit the chamber with just dumping in the powder and using several trays of left over bullets it shot a lot better then I expected.
I feel it is the chamber design that really effects on how well the rifle will shoot as well as the barrel. Then the best of those two can be turned to junk by the guy putting them together.
For now I will put the load development aside till I get a scope to put on it. My eyes just don't work well enough to use the tang sights for fine tuning the rifle anymore.

Kurt

[Don McDowell]

Kurt I'ld suggest the MVA 23 inch with their unertyl type mounts, or find one of the MVA's used and put on the DZ mounts.
Have talked to a couple of folks that have been around the DZ scope and they say the crosshairs are awfully heavy.
Also know a handful of folks that have had the cataract surgery done, and say they can see the sights as good as when they were a kid...

[Kurt]

Don.
I have a MVA 28" scope but I don't really like it. The optics are good but the cross hair is to fine for me to see on a black target. And the most annoying thing is the cross hairs twist under recoil. after 10 shots I have an X instead of a +. I had Jim put a new barrel in and new screws several times and it will not hold. The only thing I have not done yet and that is glue that barrel in.
If the 23" scope uses the same way of mounting the scope reticle barrel I don't think I want any part of it.

[Don McDowell]

My 23 in. scope has the 6 mil dot recticle. Haven't had any problem with that, and it's awfully handy in switching winds. Most critical part seems to be getting focused and setting the parallax.

[Kurt]

I talked to Bob and Jim yesterday about scopes. Bob said he has problems with his MVA with the recital twisting and he said he glued his in to stop this.

[Don McDowell]

I wonder if that's something peculiar to the long scopes?

[Kurt]

Don.

I have no idea. Maybe it's the higher torque some of my rifles have, I don't know.