Finals are over... Finally!

OK, I made it through finals with only a minimum of sleep deprivation, and hey! Christmas came early for me. I'm a fairly likable guy (really!), so how could I deny myself the opportunity to purchase a Shiloh Sharps business rifle when it came up for sale through a friend at a really good price? I couldn't, so it came home with me... a plain but exceptionally well made gun in the light plinking caliber of .50-140. NOT what I was looking for... our deer in this neck of the woods aren't typically armored, and I usually hunt with a .45 caplock and a nice pleasant load of 65 grains of 3F; it has proven quite sufficient. But, oh my... the .50-140 is fun to shoot. Yes, it does have a stiff recoil, but not unmanageable with 425 grain bullets. I really wanted a .45-70, since I already have reloading equipment for that caliber, but this gun came with dies, brass, a mold... kinda shot the "I'm not set up to reload that caliber excuse" ( A known, valid excuse for passing up a firearm at a good deal, though employing it often leads to regret later). I've not shot it enough to really see what sort of groups I can get with it, and the first few shots were of the 'hang-on-for-dear-life' variety, until I realized it wasn't going to incapacitate me. Even so, I was getting a fair offhand group at 50 yards using the 10-year-old ammo that came with the gun, more than adequate for whitetail hunting. (Normally I am leery of handloaded ammo that comes with a gun, but: I trust this individual, all shells were full-volume Pyrodex, eliminating the possibility of a double charge, and all measurements were within spec for the round.) Now I'm looking for a 600 grain mold, preferably for paper-patched bullets, and getting ready to load some more rounds with the 425 grain bullets using honest-to-goodness, real blackpowder. I guess I should mention what I consider a 'fair' group to be, just to avoid the sidelong glances... in this case, a little less than 3 inches. Not that hot, but considering a new (to me) gun, basic iron sights, old ammo that needed a good cleaning, rain, and concern over being able to clap with my shoulder blades after the first shot, I'll give it a fair rating. I expect improvement with fresh ammo and a decent day, and some more time behind the trigger. Then I can move back a bit (my home range is 300 yards... across the boxwood nursery, over the hayfield and past the garden) and really start playing with it.
Alas, classes start again all too soon, so shooting will be limited over the Christmas break... soon I'll be back to stream hydraulics instead of ballistics, relegated to merely plotting the summer's lead-and-powder based activities.

Merry Christmas!