The
Royal Road to Savage 10ML-II Success
It
really does not take a great deal of work to find an effective hunting
load for your new 10ML-II. In fact, it is the easiest possible muzzleloader
to work up a load for. There are endless options for those who enjoy
fiddling and tinkering-some which make sense, others that are void
of it. It remains a puzzlement as to how many folks remain unable
to decide on a reasonable hunting load after allegedly years of
playing around. The short answer to this is that they are not hunters
at all, but simply those who have no particular goal in mind except
to continue to play. If that what you seek, then there are far more
esoteric treatises to endure. Every single load here, sighted in
a 3" high at 100 yards, will cause a sudden demise to any trophy
deer you plant the crosshairs on to 190 yards (or more) terminating
your animal with over one half of a ton of striking force at that
190 yards with no holdover or vertical trajectory compensation of
any kind.
I. Breechplug.
When you get your new
gun, clean the bore with Hoppe's #9, and lube the breechplug and
ventliner with Mil-Spec 907E Anti-Seize (Never-Seez, Permatex, etc.)
available from any auto parts store. A pound of the stuff will last
you for years; either the gray "standard" type than can
make you look like the Tinman from the Wizard of Oz, or the copper
type is fine. There is often an urge to shoot your new gun right
away, but please don't overlook this simple but vital step.
II. 209 Primers.
Standard Winchester
209 shotshell primers work generally the best- there is no compelling
reason to waste your time on anything else unless you wish to.
III. Powder
There are three Savage
preferred powders at present. The worst thing you can do
is try to use what your buddy has in his garage. Unless you want
to waste time or ignore Savage Arms' clear warnings-- use IMR SR4759,
Vihtavouri N110, or Accurate Arms 5744. SR4759 works well with 250
grain saboted bullets, N110 works better, both get fussy with 300
grain bullets, both must be weighed by inexpensive balance beam
scale or digital scale for the best accuracy. Accurate Arms 5744
works great with anything from 250 to 300 grain saboted bullets;
making it the most flexible powder of the three. Additionally, it
can give superb accuracy when measured by volume with the cheap
yellow Lee Dippers--use either the 3.1cc or the 3.4cc Lee Dipper
is good, just use what your gun likes the best.
42 grains by weight
of N110 or SR 4759, or 44 grains by weight of Accurate Arms 5744
are all superb choices.
IV. Bullets
The standard (not
magnum) .452 Hornady 250 gr. or 300 gr. XTP pistol bullets have
been terrific performers out of the Savage for some seven years
now. Alternately, use 250 or 300 gr. Barnes MZ-Expanders with the
sabots they are supplied with. MZ-Expanders offer better penetration
and weight retention than the XTP's, but both are fine choices.
V. Sabots
Get fresh, current formulation
MMP short black sabots direct from MMP (http://www.mmpsabots.com)
for use with the XTPs. The sabots that automatically come with Barnes
MZ-Expanders are MMP HPH-12's, and are the correct sabot for the
Savage. If you have old sabots, save yourself a headache and please
dispose of properly.
VI. Maintenance
The Savage 10ML-II requires
no immediate maintenance or cleaning; it is the easiest and cheapest
muzzleloader ever made in terms of cost per shot and overall cost
of ownership. However, you DO need to maintain your breechplug for
best performance. That means, after a box of primers (100 shots)
removing the ventliner face (powder side) of the breech plug, and
drilling out the carbon with a 5/32 in. drill bit from the primer
side. The drill bit is self-guiding; make sure you drill all the
way through. The carbon you are drilling out is primer energetic;
it never gets into the bolt you need never disassemble or clean.
Lube a new ventliner and screw it in as shown in the manual with
Never-Seez, then lube your breechplug with Never-Seez as well and
screw it in tightly. That's all the maintenance you will ever need,
save for scrubbing your bore with Hoppe's No. 9 every 100 shots
as well. For long term storage, Break-Free CLP is an optional but
recommended bore protectant.
VII. Shooting
There isn't much to
remember, except like in all muzzleloading-- you are a reloader
in the field, and the individual assumes all responsibility for
proper loading practices. No muzzleloader can do anything
by itself. Pour down your powder then seat your saboted bullet via
ramrod with about 40 pounds of force over the charge.
Use of a witness mark
on your ramrod is requisite; a scratch with your knife or a dab
of nail polish marks your proper loading level. Dedicated use
of a witness mark on your ramrod precludes the possibility of double
loading any muzzleloader-- it is the single most important thing
you can do to insure safe loading practices. Please remove
your ramrod before attempting to fire any muzzleloader. It may sound
goofy to you, but some folks manage to shoot their ramrods out of
their muzzleloader every year.
Barrel heat is the enemy
of any sabot, regardless of type of powder used-- it softens
and weakens it. Your barrel must be allowed to cool between shots
so it is not hot to the touch if you want the accuracy the 10ML-II
is famous for, prior to loading it for the next shot.
Have
fun,
Randy
©
September, 2005 by Randy Wakeman
