Just joined the club

[Zulu]

Family got me my first muzzleloader for Daddy's Day! Trouble is I don't know a dang thing about them. Gun is a Traditions Pursuit XLT -- feels fine on the shoulder, but does anyone have any opinions about this gun?
Think I'm going to take it out to the range tomorrow and start sighting it in -- question is what bullets I should start with. I've looked around and I see 50 cal in anything from 200 to 350 grains. I tend to like light/fast loads in traditional rifles, so I'm inclined to start with a 200 grain bullet and work from there. Question: is 200 grain heavy enough for deer? I'm only asking because it looks like the majority of ML bullets are in the 250-300 grain size.
Opinions/suggestions/advice really appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Z

 

[easy45]

My wife shoots one, she shoots 100 grains of pyrodex pellets with 250gr. T/C sabots, and it shoots great

 

[iowavf]

Should be a good gun, but I think maybe start with a 250 gr. and going up from there. Probably will depend on what type of cover and what range you will be shooting as to what gr. of bullet you decide on. Let the fun begin, but find a combination that you like and shoots well for you in your gun, not just because someone else is shooting it and says it's the best bullet/powder they've ever used.

 

[Boone 58]

Awesome!

 

[W.Seay]

Any barnes in 50cal would be my choice! I personally like the 240-250 grain rounds.Every barnes that I have ever used did a GREAT job.The barnes shoot very accurate at 220 yards which is important to me because I do alot of field hunting.You can't go wrong with a barnes!