For the most part,  Texans have formed small groups and leased hunting rights for the year or the season. That is probably the main way Whitetail deer are hunted and year-long leases typically allow hunting wild turkey, hogs and doves, too.

It is not unusual for quail hunting rights to be leased separately and expensively. 

Package hunts - usually guided - are increasingly common and unfortunately very costly. Particularly in areas like South Texas known for trophy animals. 

I was priced out of the last all-year lease in the Rolling Plains region West of Ft Worth. The ranch owner originally wanted $1600 per hunter and I think there were eight of us. Then it stepped up each year to $2000, $2250, $2500, and then he asked for $3500. At which point I declined. Guests were allowed but it was a one-buck county, yours or his. Quail were excluded. It was excellent for doves, Rio Grande turkeys, hogs, and there were some big bodied Whitetails on the 2500 acres. 

Hogs being the problem they are, some enterprising souls are offering weekend guided  hog hunts for several hundred bucks. I may try one of those. 

Bottom line is,  I'm not sure what I'm going to do from now on, and at my age. I miss the camaraderie of my last lease partners and we still keep in touch. But Texas is fast becoming a place where middle-class hunting is disappearing. 

I would love to go on a boar hunt and see how my bullets perform. My brother recently moved down to Alabama. Since I'm restoring his 1967 Barracuda coupe, I think that he should arrange a hunt for me.

Mike

kevindpm61 said

Bill, I tried various sizings during load development. .460 was what my rifle liked best. In general, you should size your lead bullets .001 - .002 over the bore size. Have you slugged your barrel?
  

With Mike's over-the-phone help, I upset a Speer .490 lead ball to get a flat, lubricated the bore with R.I.G., used a Brownell rawhide mallet to drive the ball flush with the crown, then tapped it through the bore with a 3/8" oak dowel.

Across the grooves, I got .457 to .458 with a General Tool dial indicator.  I can't read the dial any closer than that and it's a 7 groove rifling. I had earlier spoken with Winchester Guns customer service and they advise their specification for groove diameter is .458. Interestingly they recommend .458 cast lead  projectile diameters and .456 for jacketed. 

I miked Mike's 330 grain hollow points he cast for me and the one I checked came out .458 and a blonde hair. He ran them through a .459 sizer die but doesn't think the mold throws them that wide. 

The rifle is a current production 45-90 Winchester Sporting Rifle, 24" heavy octagon barrel with 1-in-20 twist. About 9.5 pounds unloaded. Rifle buttplate. 

I'm going to load a ladder of these in new Starline brass with RL-7, starting with 38 grains and increasing a half-grain at a time, up to 44 or 45 grains. Once I get an accurate load of 1300-1400 fs, it will be Miller time. 

My goal is something that will convince a large and ugly boar hog to "join his ancestors with commendable rapidity" as the late, great Jack O'Connor once wrote.

TXGunNut said
Zeb-
I used Powder Valley IIRC last time I purchased Holy Black. They generally sold in case quantities for shipping safety so a few orders has kept me well supplied for several years. BP doesn't last long when loading 45-90 and the like. 
 
 
Mike
  

OOPS! Powder Valley is out of BP!

Mike

I used Powder Valley IIRC last time I purchased Holy Black. They generally sold in case quantities for shipping safety so a few orders has kept me well supplied for several years. BP doesn't last long when loading 45-90 and the like. 

Mike

Bert H. said

Zebulon said
Steve,  I'm struggling with this editor for some reason. Thanks very much for your advice. I just got in Lyman's cast bullet handbook and am going to order the black powder book you suggest.
I do have one question - where do you get black powder right now? Nobody local seems to have any? 
I just inherited a boatload of various canisters of smokeless and bought 3 pounds of RL-7, so I'm probably going to use up some of all that before trying the black stuff. But, in time, I've got to experience it.  
  

I have been purchasing my powder from this company, as they seem to have the best selection in stock - Shop – All Powder Shop
I just ordered another 4-lb jug of IMR 4198 from them.
Bert
  

Wow, some good prices on All Powder!  If they weren't personally recommended by a trusted source, I might have worried they were not legit!

As soon as I find something and use it without parting my hair with the Winchester's hammer, I'll post it. 

40-82-260

45-90-300

50-110-300

Using lead--what would be a safe starting load?  Bill

Zebulon said
Steve,  I'm struggling with this editor for some reason. Thanks very much for your advice. I just got in Lyman's cast bullet handbook and am going to order the black powder book you suggest.
I do have one question - where do you get black powder right now? Nobody local seems to have any? 
I just inherited a boatload of various canisters of smokeless and bought 3 pounds of RL-7, so I'm probably going to use up some of all that before trying the black stuff. But, in time, I've got to experience it.  
  

I have been purchasing my powder from this company, as they seem to have the best selection in stock - Shop – All Powder Shop

I just ordered another 4-lb jug of IMR 4198 from them.

Bert

I do have one question - where do you get black powder right now? Nobody local seems to have any? 

I just inherited a boatload of various canisters of smokeless and bought 3 pounds of RL-7, so I'm probably going to use up some of all that before trying the black stuff. But, in time, I've got to experience it.  

I've been a handloader since about 1966, thanks to Lee Loaders, graduating to a Rockchucker and then some other stuff.

But I've never taken up bullet casting. A  good friend now suffering from Alzheimer's disease has recently gifted me his Star progressive loader with all sorts of accessories and enhancements.-- Jim was a talented mechanical engineer --and some bullet casting gear I'm going to explore. There is a small electric pot, some dies and handles, and a lubricator/sizer in pieces - a brand I'm not familiar with.  He was a Bullseye competitor, so his gear is oriented toward producing pistol ammo in quantity. 

A long way of saying I'm going to give casting a try as time permits.

However, my office/hobby room/library is overflowing with unorganized equipment, books and supplies -- and I need to finish fabricating and installing a Craftsman-style wainscot and some cabinets for storage there.  The five glass-fronted bookcases I ordered are still in boxes, unassembled. The teepee is full. 

At the moment, I'm working daily to finally re-organize my garage shop to the point I can see the top of my workbench and stop using my old Delta tablesaw for a work surface. 

Why all the disarray?  A couple of years ago I broke a kneecap and couldn't climb stairs for sixteen months. Followed by a serious illness in the family (not me) that stopped everything for 18 months. 

Life and age can get in the way of a serious handloader. But, as they say down in the swamps near my birthplace, "We's still grabblin' "