First Buffalo with a Shiloh

[SFogler]

I became interested in BPCR and specifically Shiloh Sharps about 6 months ago. I ordered a Shiloh 50-90 specifically for buffalo hunting but the wait is a year and a half. I had already booked a meat bull buffalo hunt for November intending to use my big bore S&W 500 to take the buffalo. The more I learned about buffalo rifles the more I wanted to use a Sharps on this hunt instead of the revolver. It just somehow seemed more appropriate. In August I saw a beautiful 34" barrel Shiloh Sharps 50-90 on an online auction. It had the old dark chocolate extra fancy walnut, tang sight and front globe - absolutely gorgeous rifle. I thought - there's my buffalo rifle! I won the auction and got the rifle for a thousand dollars less than a new one and got it immediately. I scrambled to order brass, cast bullets and black powder and went to the range twice a week working up the load and figuring out how to use a Vernier sight. To make a long story longer, November came and my wife and I went to Comstock Lodge in Nebraska to shoot the meat bull and do some pheasant hunting. The Shiloh 50-90 is now a killer. I used a 540 gr FN bullet (the heaviest FN I could find at the time - I'm not set up to mold yet) on top of 100 grains of Swiss 1.5 BP. I will only use BP in a Sharps. The people at Comstock were great and I had a bull down, cut and wrapped to take back with me plus shot 8 pheasants in our 4 day stay. This meat bull is the tenderest meat I have ever eaten. My wife loved the lodge, being out in the buffalo herd, and even helped with the butchering. What can I say - I'm blessed! The only problem is I can't eat the meat fast enough! I'm hooked and want to shoot another one. This is my first post on the Forum but I have read many postings by you all and they have helped me get started in BPCR shooting. So Thanks.
I tried to post a picture, but is says the quota is filled???????
Fogman

[BFD]

Congratulations!

I can't solve your photo problem, not sure what is causing that issue, but are you going to shoot that .50-90 at silhouette?

Where are you planning to shoot silhouette?

I hope you can get your pictures up. I'd like to see them.

[Denali]

Super job there! Thanks for sharing and welcome to the Shiloh forum!

[SFogler]

I haven't shot enough to think about silhouette shooting yet - I do have a leather recoil pad filled with Dr Scholl's foot pads cut to fit. The recoil pad is dark leather and looks like it came with the rifle - brand is a Galazen medium and is a wrap around leather boot with velco to keep it on instead of laces. Quick on - quick off and makes shooting the 50-90 completely comfortable. Don't know if it's legal for silhouette though.

[BFD]

If it makes weight the rifle will be legal. The pad is totally legal as long as the rifle makes weight with the pad on.

The only other part of the rules that might apply is that the comb (including any pad on it) has to be 3/4" below the centerline of the bore. I can't imagine that being a problem for your rifle.

There used to be a small movement of sorts for the 50-90 in silhouette but it sort of fizzled. Might be time to bring it back.

Good luck.

[bobw]

Congrats on the buffalo and welcome to the forum. Nothing wrong with 500 gr 50's , the 473 gr ppb out of the originals killed the lion share taken with the 50-2.5". I shot a dry 4 year old cow back in January with my 50-3.25" using a 500 gr ppb 1 in 30 alloy pushed by 140 grs Fg Goex, it did a fine job. bobw

[SFogler]

bobw - A friend of mine has a Shiloh 50-140 he has never fired - bought it back in the 80's. He gave me his loading dies and I found some brass that fits it. I will load him up a few and let him borrow my recoil pad. I just sent him some pics of my buffalo - trying to get him interested in shooting one.

I plan to work up to silhouette shooting - the recoil pad makes it feel like a .223. I feel the push back but it doesn't bruise me or leave me flinchy after a couple of rounds, so I think I could shoot the silhouette course of fire with out undo pain. I really like the "big 50"

[SFogler]

Here is the picture of my first buffalo - a 3.5 yr old meat buffalo that is very tender. The 50-90 543 gr bullets were recovered when we butchered it. One bullet was fired through his left side and hit the off side hard part of elbow bone and deflected downward into his forearm. The bull turned around and I shot him in the right side through the lung and that bullet hit the offside leg bone and deflected upward near his front shoulder blade. Neither went all the way through but both penetrated through the body cavity/lungs.

[Clarence]

Nice buffalo, and great performance from your bullets! They look good for having hit that heavy bone.

Clarence

[rdnck]

Congratulations on a nice buffalo and a good looking rifle. Thanks also for the load data/bullet performance pictures. Shoot straight, rdnck.

[Free_Stater]

Great looking rifle and it looks like you have enough meat to last for a little while, at least.

I know this is an old thread, but I'm jumping in to recommend KAL Tool & Die of Winnipeg for paper patch bullet moulds. I have a .492" adjustable which I use to cast an exact duplicate of the original 473-grain bullet of the 1870s. Rick's here on the forums and does incredible work, followed by great customer service.

[Free_Stater]

[TexasRider]

I know its an older thread, but thanks for posting on your hunt. It keeps me hungry to go get a buffalo with the Sharps.

[SFogler]

We are still eating on him too. Somehow it just seemed like the right thing to do - use the Sharps. I was glad I did; bit of respect for the old boy I guess.