.50 Cal. Underhammer Build Completed!

[Razor62]

Thanks everyone for all of the kind words.
Gunmaker, I opened up that recess quite a bit. No problem getting my finger under the hammer to cock it. I will need to employ a capper to cap it however. No biggie I suppose but I wrestled with that for awhile. I'll post up some pics when I finally sit down with her and sight her in.
I guess you could say that I'm growing more primitive (traditional) as my next build will be my first flinter. A short barreled, smooth bored, left handed one at that. I've been wanting to build one for a few years now and I think I'm finally ready to begin. Keep yer eyes peeled for that in a new thread to come.

[gunmaker]

Welcome back from the dark side of the force Razor62, I was in Japan in 1962 !!  I might have an order for a shorty canoe gun too.---Maybe.  Keep up the good work, we need all the help we can get....Tom

[bowcrazy]

 beautiful rifle.

[Rich in WY]

Very nice rifle!

[Razor62]

Finally got around to firing this rifle. With hunting season fast approaching I thought that I'd get out there and see what she can do.
When viewing the following photos please keep in mind that I am by no means a marksman.
This was the last group of the day. I had her shooting even better at the beginning of my session but then my POI began to climb. At first she was shooting cloverleaf three shot groups at 50 yards but then something changed. Don't know what it was but she settled down and printed this group with 90 gr. of Pyrodex behind a 295 gr Powerbelt hollow point at 50 yards. Plenty of accuracy for New England whitetail hunting,
I'd imagine that she'd do allot better if I were to take the time to really work up a load and experiment with different bullets. All in all, I'm quite pleased with the results already.

The tear that you see about 5" high was caused by bullet fragments which blew back through my backboard after striking the steel I-beam that it was leaning against.

[gunmaker]

Thats a good start, beware deeries.......Tom

[Hanshi]

I'd call it "the real deal".  Very handsome and accurate.

[Red Badger]

Nice job on this project.  I must say it sparked some comments with some folks here when the pictures started appearing.  Have a great time with this rifle out in the field.

[Razor62]

1st day back on the forum after a long time. I thought that some of the folks would like to see my 1st kill with the underhammer. This was in November of 2015. He was at 70 yards and straight on. Aimed for the white patch on his neck and touched her off. He dropped in his tracks without so much as a kick. While not the biggest whitetail I've ever taken, It's definitely among the most prized due to having taken it with a rifle which I crafted with my two hands.
BTW... It's great to be back among some of the nicest folks on the net!

[Hanshi]

Wow!  A one of a kind underhammer.

[William]

Quite the rifle and a fine hunt; thank you for sharing with us.

Plea tell us a little about the load combo you used and how it performed on your deer, other than DRT.

[Razor62]

Thanks William.  The barrel has a twist rate of 1:28". I selected this twist because of my preference of the .295 gr copper clad hollow point, CVA Powerbelt bullets. I push those along with 90 grains of FFg.
The bullet entered the deer's neck straight on and exited out the right side. You can see the exit in the photo. I've found that a solid neck shot whether straight on like this or sideways always result in immediate death.  Here's a photo of the entry point:

[William]

Nice details on your hunt. Unfortunately, your choice of projectiles isn't a matter for discussion on this forum. However, having had a fast twist barrel like yours in 50 caliber I can share the results of what worked and what didn't as far as using lead conicals.
First off, 2f Goex just wouldn't give good accuracy so I switched to 3f fairly quickly. I tried the Hornady Great Plains bullets along with similar ready made conicals up to 425 grains. The GP bullets have me acceptable accuracy but nothing like what a round ball would do in my other rifles. Then someone suggested the Lee REAL bullets, starting with 350 grains or so. These gave me slightly better groups and better still when I added a lubed fiber wad (Wonder Wads) but still not exceptional when compared with RB. Then one of our forum members suggested that instead of going up in weight, to go down.  The magic number turned out to be 220.grains of pure lead from a Lee REAL mold, a Wonder wad and 95 grains of 3f Goex. Recoil was stout and it wasn't what you wanted to shoot all day but at 75 yards using open sights the center ring of the target was vaporized after the third shot. I'm quite sure that bullet would do end to end on anything up to elk. Now, Lee doesn't make a 220 grain REAL mold any more so if you want to try it then you'll have to find a used one but it might be worth trying.

[Razor62]

Awesome info William. Thank you indeed! That's what's great about these open forums. Knowledge grows and flows rapidly. BTW... I'm a firm believer in stout recoil. It ensures good form because it teaches correct fit of rifle to shoulder due primarily to the fact that improper fit results in excruciating pain after having fired a dozen rounds or so. In other words it enforces good form due to it's tendency to punish bad form. One quickly learns to make their 1st shot count in favor of experiencing the possibility of a second shot.. This is the perfect lesson for folks who're limited to only one shot. That means us front stuffers. :-)

[William]

You are welcome and I hope it helps you develop an accurate, lethal load combination for your rifle.