Muzzleloader starter loads

My son drew an Arizona muzzy deer tag for this fall. He's 11 years old, 5'5" and about 120#. What would be a good starting load for him to shoot? He'll be using an older traditions pursuit LT .50 cal. I'll be cutting about 1" from the butt to make it fit better. Any advice to get us started off on the right foot will be a huge help. Thanks.

Jim

My 11 year old son drew a NM muzzleloader elk tag, he is shooting my tc encore prohunter with 110 grains of bh209 and a 250 grain Parker ballistic extreme. He is shooting great to 300 yards.

I am not sure what powders you can use in that gun but I would start with around 70-80 gr of powder and let him get comfortable with shooting the gun. Anything over 80 gr of powder in plenty for a deer. My elk load is 95 gr of powder. Keep it simple for now.

Remember the revered 45-70 caliber was a 45 caliber with 70 gr of powder. And that gun killed it's share of Buffalo.

There are very few 11 year olds that should attempt a shot at an animal much farther than 100 yards to start with. Hitting the bullseye at the range and shooting at an animal in the field are very different things and most youngsters can't handle the adrenaline for long shots when first starting out.

txhunter58

venor, ergo sum (I hunt, therefore I am)

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I've only shot pyrodex pellets out of it with saboted bullets. It's been a long time and I can't remember exactly what loads I shot. Realistically, i'll be keeping his shots under 150 yards, preferably around 100. Do certain powders shoot cleaner than others? Any sabots that are preferred over others?

Jim

Get some Barnes TEZ bullets in 250 grain and start out with light loads of powder and work your way up to what he's comfortable with. If you can use Blackthorn powder that would be great.
This is the best muzzleloader load I have found. The bullets perform great on game. Mushroom perfectly and kills them dead