This forum was mainly started to help these Powerbelt Users out and set them up with a load and bullet combo that will help them to drop their game within easy sight range and have an easy to follow blood trail.
A lot of the complaints i have read typically start out as: I was using a 295 grain powerbelt, over 3 pellets "150 grains" and i shot a deer at 50 yards. I found some blood and hair but the blood trail didn't last long and i ended up having to track the deer 200 yards.
Or...
Powerbelt bullets dont shoot worth a crap in my TC,KNIGHT, Ect. This can easily be due to the following:
Thompson Centers QLA "false muzzle to make loading sabots/conicals easier to load" Often are misaligned and offer nothing but headaches to the shooter that has to use a full bore conical. Powerbelts are usually the best option to use in these rifles when needing to use a conical as the plastic gas seal helps seal off the bore and keep the gases from escaping around the projectile. Cutting the QLA off completely is the best option to the conical shooter who owns a TC muzzle loader.
One of the biggest problems today are the "150 grain magnum" letters that are Stamped into todays inline and even Traditional style muzzle loaders.
Powerbelts often choke on these powerful loads with close range shots and this is when you hear all of the horror stories. You can ask the person why he uses 150 grains and the common story, Because thats what my rifle says it can shoot.
Rather than take the time to properly start off at lower powder charges and work their way up to find which is most accurate, Some often just cram 3 Pellets down the bore and settle for poor accuracy. Common response from a lazy muzzle loader shooter: "If i can hit a pie pan @ 100 yards i'm good to go!!"
This In my opinion is not good accuracy. If you are hitting all over that pan while your rifle is on a solid rest, You've got problems!
When using these bullets in your traditional muzzle loader, You are forced to use Loose powder. Pyrodex, T7, Pioneer. Ext.
In an email from Powerbelt bullets, i was in need of some information with what kind of FPS/Engery i was getting with the hunting load i was set up for.
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Powerbelt bullets Recommends using a charge of 60 to 90 grains MAXIMUM with loose powder. Their response was usually any powder charge over 90 grains often partially tore the plastic skirt off the bullet and if it stuck to the bullet, could cause a the bullet to change POI greatly.
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I did some testing with a 225 grain powerbelt "45cal" with 100 grains of goex, I was able to recover some bullets and found that this stiff charge did in fact partially blow the skirt off and the other half stuck to the base of the bullet. My accuracy was also on the poor side.
A couple stories from the past years while hunting with powerbelts and an inline i had
Sept. '04, Loaded up with a 295 grain powerbelt Aerotip 150 grains pyrodex RS, a great sized mule deer doe jumps out of some brush and i level off and squeeze the trigger right behind the shoulder. Deer jumps up straight in the air as what is common with a lung hit. Deer runs Aprox. 15-20 yards and falls over. I get down from the rock cluster i was sitting on and walk down to the area she was standing. Good blood. Shot was perfect, went right through both lungs and turns them to mush.
After gutting, the entrance and exit holes were the same diameter of the bullet, No expansion at all. No biggie, i got my deer and a freezer full.
Shot distance: 146 yards.
Now the bullet not expanding "Not that i could tell anyway" isnt a huge deal. Not a living creature on this plantet can survive with a 1/2" diameter hole through both lungs, and not to mention, the lungs and insides being turned to mush. In my opinion, the bullet did an excellent job and i couldnt ask for much more.
Another trip with the inliner, 245 grain hollow point, 120 grains pyrodex RS, mule deer is walking in a creek bottom lined with aspens and pines. She comes up in the range finder at 168 yards, To far!
Sneak up to within 148 yards, Bullet hits her in the neck and exits out the front of the shoulder. Deer drops of the spot. No blood again but she was hit in the neck and dropped.
Gut her out, No bullet expansion again! The bullet not expanding again was no problem as it broke the neck and entered into the body cavity and exited.
New gun: Deer creek Northwest Rifle .45cal
Load: 80 grains FFFg Triple 7 Under a 225 grain powerbelt. Amazing accuracy! Under 1" 3 shot groups @ 100 yards.
Driving along a trail and out come running 6 mule deer doe's. Hop out with the rifle and find where they went up the side of a mountain into some thick Pinion,sage brush. All of them have their backs to me and i wont do that shot. I find one good sized doe standing with her side to me and shoulder the .45 and squeeze the trigger. At the sound of the rifle i see her scrunch up and stagger off down the side of the mountain.
I set myself to reloading and as i am pushing down the Powerbelt i hear all kinds of hell breaking loose, Rocks are tumbling, dust cloud in the air. What the hell??
After reloading and capping i start up the mountain slowly and find a huge blood trail. After following it for a short 5 yards i found where she went down dead, and rolled 20-30 feet. That was all the racket i was hearing!
After dragging her down closer to the truck and gutting her, I found that the bullet went right though the center of the shoulder, taking out the heart and sucking one lung deep into her chest cavity and shredding it. Bullet also went through the Opposite side of the shoulder, Clipping the Actual shoulder bone and breaking it before coming to rest under the hide.
The Powerbelt was in a perfect mushroom, expanded to the size of a quarter and lost no weight. I weighed the bullet when i got home a few days later.
Shot Range: 80 Yards
The same day, Around noon, my father is using the same rifle as i am now tagged out and done for the season. We jump some doe's and he takes a smaller doe and send the 225 grain Powerbelt through her lungs. The entrance shot hit perfectly behind the shoulder and took out both lungs and then EXITED through the opposite shoulder! That leg had to be cut off due to the massive damage to it.
Damage, internals including the stomach was sucked into her chest cavity and part of the stomach came out of the entrance hole.
Shot Range: 50 Yards.
Deer traveled 15 yards before sliding down a slick grass covered hill.
Massive blood trail on ground and all over a couple white Aspen trees.
See where this is going yet?
Previous year, My Brother's CVA Hawken, 90 grains Pyrodex rs, 295 Powerbelt. 90 yard shot, Bullet hit the deer in the spine, She dropped, but the bullet just nicked the spine and she stood back up. Another shot from his rifle hit the deer through the lungs and exited and the deer dropped in its tracks with an exit hole you could stick 2 fingers into and lots of blood on the ground.
Three years previous,Dads Cabelas Hawken, 295 grain Powerbelt, 90 grains RS, Frontal shot through the chest that broke the collar bone and shoulder and came to rest under the hide,behind the shoulder. Deer went Apox. 30 yards. Fair blood trail.
So far all of my success with Powerbelts has been with Lower powder charges. I may not get pass through all of the time, but when you place your shot carefully and it goes right where you'd like it, You don't need that pass through shot to get an easy to follow blood trail.
I prefer the lower powder charges as i am recoil sensitive and i like a load that performs well in the field and is comfortable for me to shoot. Ever see someone had a new hunter/shooter a 300win Mag and see how bad they flinch after the first shot they took? I try to avoid this by all means and make shooting a muzzle loader fun and as pain free as possible!
Now to borrow some words off Powerbelts website under the FAQ'S button
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"Q. Is muzzle velocity the only thing to consider when choosing a bullet?
A. Whereas velocity can help make shot placement
easier at unknown ranges, terminal bullet performance is the most
important aspect of choosing a bullet. PowerBelt Bullets are made of
pure lead and will expand uniformly on impact. This is very important
to the efficiency of energy dispersion to the target. If a projectile
exits the far side of the target animal and continues downrange it is
carrying energy with it that could have been displaced in the target
animal."
I also believe in this and prefer that the bullets push in deep and if it doesnt exit, it does not make a difference for me. I also feel that if the bullet is under the hide, thats great for me because I now can see exactly how that Load works and the bullet will tell me all that I need to know.
After testing these bullets in freshly cut logs such as Cedar, pinion, soft wood such as Ponderosa, These bullets when driven with lower powder charges 70-80-90 grains perform flawlessly and have out performed other bullets i've put them up against, Including conicals that were 50 to 75 grains heavier than the Powerbelts i was using.
Others have also had excellent results with Powerbelts when using these lower charges.
I prefer 80 grains powder maximum for the lighter weight 223-225,245,295 Aerotip and Hollow Point. I think 90 grains is a little to close to the safe range to push them. If 90 grains is to be used, i would recommend doing so with Only the heavier powerbelts such as the (.45cal) 275g Aerotip and 300 grain (.45cal) Platinum Powerbelt. In .50cal 90+ Grains can be used with the 338 Platinum, 348 Aerotip Copper Series,405 Aerotip Copper series. The biggest Copper series Powerbelt Offered is the 444 grain Flatnose which is a huge beast and that bullet i have not tested but am Confident that big boy can handle the magnum charges easily. The only question is, Can you? I know I would be on the floor crying like a 3 year old if i touched that load off!
The deal with me using the lighter weight 225 Powerbelt was due to the wide open area i was hunting. I knew with that bullet and 80 grain t7 load, i would only be 3" low @ 150 yards. Having the .45 really helps keep my shots to a distance that i am comfortable and confident in shooting.
Again, 80 grains of powder and capable of killing up to 200 yards! Not 150 grain magnum loads but 80 grains! The 225 still packs a punch even at 200 yards with only 80 grains of powder.
If you are going to use these bullets, Please take this to heart and use a lower powder charge of 70 to 80 grains with the lighter weight Powerbelts. I want those who use Powerbelts to have a great first time experience and get their game down fast and with a good blood trail.
My Doe with the .45 Deer Creek Northwest Rifle, 80 yards, 225 grain Aerotip Powerbelt, 80 grains FFFg Triple 7.
Take note of shot placement. After using this placement for the first time ever, I will ONLY use this shot from now on! It is a excellent spot to aim and squeeze the trigger. And as you will see in the pictures, leaves a heavy blood trail that ends very shortly with a stone cold dead deer.
Entrance shot,
Exit,
Bullet stopped under hide and broke the actual shoulder bone before coming to rest under the hide.
Shot placement is whats important to drop the game quickly. I never used this shot before so i gave it a try and ended up liking it so well, thats its the only area i will take aim at.
Heavy blood trail that lasted 5 yards where she dropped and then rolled 20-30 feet,
Here is where the 5 yard blood trail stopped and where she dropped and rolled down the steep hill, You can actually see the smudge in the dirt where she hit.
Completed Hunt,
Can 150g Pellet loads be used? Of course! But you just have to remember that 150g pellet loads were designed to give you a little more grunt out to 150+ yards, Not for close 20 or 30 yard shots!
I remember watching the TV show "Can't say what it was" And they were doing a penetration test in water, Slower velocity VS High velocity and the rifles used were a slow velocity 9mm and a black powder .50cal rifle shooting Patched round ball VS High velocity Smokeless .50cal "Competition rifle with jacketed bullet"
In water the high velocity bullet blew right apart and barely penetrated while the slower moving bullets from the 9mm and the .50 black powder rifle held together and penetrated deep into the water they were shooting into.
[b]Read your manual that comes with the
Powerbelt Bullets and you will see that 80 to 90 grains of Loose powder
is recommended for darn near all the bullets.
I find that the 80g charge is the best over all charge to use for close shots of 20
yards all the way out to 150+ Yards. I know most of my real world
hunting shots can be from 30 to 125 yards. I sight dead on at 100
yards, take a mental note of where my bullet/powder combo impacts at 20 yards,50,75, 125 and 150.
No bullet out there can make up for a poorly misplaced shot on a game animal. It doesn't matter how big that bullet is. You hit a deer in the guts, rear leg, blow its front leg
off, pierce its ear, It's still going to require YOU to relax and wait it out rather than getting excited and trying to track it down before its dead.
The slower moving projectile such as a powerbelt with
80 to 90 grains will do everything, if not better, than the sub sonic muzzle loader shooting 150g magnum loads.
Ever hear the saying, "Its better to be over gunned than under"?? Thats not always true!
150 grain Pellet load with a 295 Powerbelt VS 80g Loose Powder/295g Powerbelt + 20-30 yard shot through the shoulder "Or even lung!" = Mr. MagnumLoad is probably sick
to his stomach because the deer he just shot got away because the
bullet he was using was driven by a load that was and has always been
intended for longer distance shots. Mr.80 grain Load will be heading back to camp with a happy smile on his or her face and a nice deer sized animal in the bed on the truck!
Now lets get to Pellets. I do not use these and there is one bullet so far that can NOT handle 100 grains of pellets. This bullet is the 245 grain Powerbelt Aerotip. Two
members on my forum have reported bullet failure and have only
recovered a couple small pieces of bullets. The deer they shot didnt go
far, 30 yards or under and left decent blood trails.
One of these members sent me what he had left of his 245 Aerotip Supply and i
tested them. I started off with 90 grains Pyrodex Select "loose powder
as Colorado does not allow pellets" And after testing one shot, i
dropped my charge down to 80 grains as the 90 grain charge completely
blew up.
Once I lowered my charge to 80 grains these bullets were doing amazing and stayed in perfect form and held all of their weight.
I also tested the 245 grain Hollow Point Powerbelt and can tell you right
now, DO NOT EXCEED 80 GRAINS OF PYRODEX! These do very well with 80
grains but they pancake right down to the nipple that the gas seal
attaches to. They still pancake the same at 100 AND 150 yards!
