Programming for Savage 10ML-II Success
Henry
Ball made his first Savage 10ML about seven years ago; work was
completed Memorial Day weekend of 1999, to be exact. Since that
time, tens of thousands of Savage muzzleloaders have been sold,
millions of shots have been fired, and countless game animals have
been taken quickly, and cleanly. Over these several years, and the
decade that has preceded them as you might imagine Henry has helped
many folks get up to speed with smokeless muzzleloading in short
order. It was never designed to be difficult: in fact it couldn't
be much easier. However, to get the most out of your new Savage
10ML-II it is often necessary to "de-program" yourself
from the urban mythology of how muzzleloaders were once thought
to be operated, and are currently rumored to be. Henry calls it
de-programming first, so you can quickly get with the program of
having fun with your 10ML-II without co-mingling operating procedures
from other muzzleloaders (and centerfires) that can only hinder
your quick progress.
1) Don't Waste Time
Swabbing or Cleaning Your Barrel
2) Tighten that Breechplug Firmly
3) Use only current formulation MMP sabots
4) Don't Wildly Snap Back Your Bolt
5) Allow your Barrel to Cool
6) Do Use Only Savage Recommended Loads
7) Do Use Proper Smokeless Sabot Loading Techniques
NO NEED TO SWAB
Certainly, a spit patch
between shots is standard operating procedure when using blackpowder,
Pyrodex, or Triple Se7en. These are filthy, inefficient propellants
that leave behind up to fifty percent of themselves in addition
to being corrosive. Spit patching is mandatory to achieve consistent
bore conditions with these propellants with sabots; in many cases
to so much as load the next shot. This is not the case with Savage
10ML-II recommended loads at all; no more than you would want to
swab a modern shotgun bore between shots whether a smooth or rifled
barrel. The sabot in a rifled slug shotshell load acts as a wiper,
as does the wad in a regular shotgun shell.
The sabot in the Savage
serves the same function. After the first few shots, the barrel
condition does not change dramatically from shot to shot as the
residue from smokeless is remarkably light and clean compared to
blackpowder and subs, consisting primarily of a small amount of
ash. Smokeless generates comparatively extremely clean gas and its
residue does not grab and hold moisture or try to rot your barrel
like blackpowder and subs. Cleaning is required only after every
box of primers (100 shots) when you service your breechplug. Henry
Ball cleans his 10ML-II's once a year, whether they need it or not.
It is designed to be sighted in and confirmed before the hunt, then
cleaned after the seasons are over at your leisure.
TIGHTEN BREECHPLUG
FIRMLY
Inline muzzleloaders
have gained a phobia of properly tightening a breechplug; rightfully
so. Triple Se7en leaves a nasty, crusty slag behind that can seize
a breechplug in short order. You do need to apply Never-Seez to
both the vent-liner (especially) and the breechplug before you fire
your Savage 10ML-II. However, you do not want to back out your breechplug
or fail to snug it down firm-poor accuracy may result. There is
no need to worry about a frozen breechplug at all with Savage recommended
smokeless powders. Smokeless will not corrode it, or leave behind
a mass of crud that can set up like concrete like blackpowder and
subs. Henry Ball has long observed that tight breechplugs give the
bughole accuracy the Savage is known for; erratically loosened breechplugs
do not.
USE ONLY CURRENT
FORMULATION MMP SABOTS
Current formulation
MMP sabots give 100% reliable, year round performance. They are
vastly improved from the sabots made just a few years ago. If you
are not convinced that your sabots are current production, please
follow the Reloader's Credo: when in doubt, throw it out. You are
potentially saving yourself needless frustration that can be had
with sabots of unknown origin. You'll always be glad you are using
current MMP product.
PLEASE DON'T SLAP
YOUR BOLT TO PIECES
The bolt of a Savage
10ML-II does not eject anything. For some reason, folks like to
energetically whack it back like they need to eject a big piece
of spent brass. No matter how hard you jack it back, you are doing
nothing. What can happen with bolt abuse is inadvertently slamming
the bolt into the bolt stop for no reason. Over time, you can raise
a bur on the bolt that can make it hard to close. Henry Ball has
touched up quite a few bolts all from folks using bolts like ball
peen hammers. There is no reason for the excessive yanking back
on the bolt at all as you are just pulling out a spent 209 primer,
not a cartridge.
Operating your bolt
without excessive slapping ensures a lifetime of trouble-free operation.
As is, you never have to take it apart for cleaning as in other
muzzleloaders-there is no need to jerk on it like a piece of rope
at all as it feeds only small, light 209 primers, not brass cartridges.
PLEASE ALLOW YOUR
BARREL TO COOL
You need to allow your
barrel to cool between shots for best accuracy. If you don't bother
to, just load and shoot load and shoot-your barrel will quickly
get hot to the point of softening and weakening sabots. The Savage
could not care less how hot you get it, but sabots clearly do. Barrel
cooling time varies with ambient temperature. For the absolute best
accuracy, you should not feel heat coming off your barrel, allowing
it to cool BEFORE you load your next powder charge and sabot. If
you load the sabot and wait, you are just cooking it for no reason.
It's not a factor at
all under hunting conditions, but you do need a cool barrel for
the best accuracy at the range while sighting your rifle in. As
good as current sabots are, they still are plastic and relatively
soft-as they must be to allow easy loading from the muzzle. A softened
sabot is nothing you can see or feel happen, but more often than
not is the primary reason groups open up.
USE ONLY SAVAGE RECOMMENDED
LOADS
The reason is simple-all
the work has been done for you. Some 16 years of testing has honed
in on readily available powders from three different vendors that
give 100% reliable performance. Accurate Arms 5744, Vihtavuori N110,
and SR4759 are all time-tested, audience-proven. It makes no more
sense to wildcat with the Savage than it does with shotshell reloading
data- as the function of a shotshell, 209 primer, and the wad or
sabot combination is identical to the Savage 10ML-II application.
It really is identical-as a matter of fact, several popular muzzleloading
projectiles are loaded in to shotshell sabot slug loads. Would you
just throw away shotshell reloading data and try to burn whatever
is lying around in the basement? No intelligent reloader does, and
all muzzleloading by definition is reloading.
Here's an example. There
are over FIFTY Savage 10ML-II's that have been in service for years
in the area surrounding Henry Ball's personal hunting camp, all
used by different individual hunters. To a man, every single deer
hunter is using Accurate Arms 5744, the short black MMP sabot, and
a .452 'non-magnum' Hornady XTP. All these guns, all these shooters,
all using the same powder, primer (Winchester 209), bullet type,
and sabot is no coincidence at all. Lightning only strikes in the
same place so many times, and you can believe that no one is shooting
this combination because it is lacking in accuracy or game getting
ability. It has accounted for well over 1000 head of deer by now.
This is not the only load the Savage 10ML-II shoots well, nor may
it be your preferred load (Savage Arms has function fired and
accuracy tested with Vihtavuori N110 for years with great success).
However, if you want to get up to speed with a minimum of hassle
and fuss--- Henry Ball's favorite combination is as good as any.
It was developed by hunters for hunters, and as Henry likes to say,
"Not much can live on the difference." That has
proven to be quite true.
USE PROPER "SMOKELESS"
SABOT LOADING METHODS
This may raise a few
eyebrows, so let me explain a bit what I mean by "proper."
Blackpowder and so-called substitutes has been proven to be impact
sensitive, friction sensitive, and of course is extremely easy to
ignite. "Hatcher's Notebook" documents the details.
Smokeless powder is easier and safer to handle, lacks all the problematic
impact and friction high-sensitivity, and is not as easy to ignite.
Muzzleloaders for years have been told to use caution when handling
and using blackpowder, with good reason. Excess ramrod seating pressure
has been warned against for a variety of reasons. Muzzleloaders
have been reticent to seat sabots properly over a charge, as excess
pressure causes problems. Not the least of these problems is the
crushing of Pyrodex or Triple Se7en pellets. It is not all that
hard to do, and crushed pellets do not burn properly or predictably.
These considerations
are gone with smokeless powder. An example is when I'm reloading
shotshells-- as, mentioned, an identical function compared to Savage
10ML-II use. I use 40 - 50 pounds of wad pressure; that results
in more consistent loads. When loading a Savage 10ML-II, you want
the bolt open. The powder is poured down the muzzle, and the sabot
should load smoothly down the bore with some noticeable resistance.
After the sabot is seated, give it a finishing seating "shove"
of about 30 lbs. of pressure. That will eliminate voids in your
powder charge, forcing excess air out the breechplug. This results
in a better, cleaner, more accurate burn with most powders. You
need not worry about crushing pellets, and there is no mass of fouling
crud to force your sabot through.
Whether you use 20,
30 or 50 pounds of ramrod pressure as you finish the seating process
makes little difference. What really counts is that you use the
same amount of pressure shot to shot; consistency in loading equates
to consistent performance. It takes very little practice with your
rifle on a bathroom scale to acquire a feel for a certain ramrod
pressure, as you need only be reasonably close. Conversely, extremely
wide variances in seating pressure can not possibly help accuracy.
Accurate Arms 5744 has long been called a "position insensitive"
propellant, and needs the least care in this area. Vihtavuori N110
and SR4759 (single based powders) can benefit a bit more
from attention to detail in this area. Absolutely please DO use
a "witness mark" on your ramrod-and remove your ramrod
after loading. A ramrod should never, ever, be left in a Savage
10ML-II. Use of a witness mark eliminates any loading errors.
MISC.
There are a few optional
items that can help you find the most consistency in loading. The
"Spinjag" rotates with the bullet (http://www.spinjag.com),
and inhibits canting of the bullet during the loading process as
well as protecting the nose of the projectile. A good, tough aftermarket
ramrod is the "Power Rod" by XS Sights (http://xssights.com/store/blackpowder.html)
that has both a "T" handle and witness marks built in.
The current 10ML-II owners manual is free for the download from
Savage Arms (http://www.savagearms.com/downloads.htm)
and gives you more information on best muzzleloader ever made.
©
May, 2006 by Randy Wakeman
