Dave sounds like you have a hummer, they are truly a joy to shoot.

JLouis

Yup I also shoot off my fingertips.

I started using 50 grains of Swiss FFFg.

Next step up in powder will be to 53 grains and then we will see if I need more. 
My bullets are almost stabilized out to the Rams and I do not think I need too much more powder. 
I am concerned about crushing my Swiss BP if I compress it too much. 
At 53 grains I will have .230 compression.

Yes I resize.
My rifle has a Match chamber so my cases do not gain hardly any capacity after they are fired.
My cases are considerably smaller diameter after firing than other fired .40-65 cases that I have compared them to.

Everything I've read suggests that's a lot of compression (too much) for Swiss. Goex likes more compression, But I wouldn't be afraid to try it. Maybe a pp bullet will do better?

John

I'm a big fan of paper patching, but personally I think PP bullets are best for when you have lots of time to manage bore condition between shots.   

I know there are a few people who've managed to make it work for them with silhouettes but I'd rather have the extra time so that I can read wind conditions, or even wait out a condition change. 

Chris.

Beautiful rifle. A work of art. 
Am shooting 64gr of 2F Swiss with ~0.10" of compression pushing a 420gr (casts at 413gr for me w/20-1) BACo M4 Money bullet  in my 40-65 Hepburn for the rams & 600yd target. My spotter shoots a 420gr Brooks bullet with 62gr of 2F Swiss in his 40-65 Shiloh at the same distances, though I do not know how much compression he is using, and shoots AAA scores. I'm using Win cases for the ram/600yd loads and believe my spotter is too. The same Money bullet with 58gr and 60gr of 2F Swiss and same 0.10" of compression knocked over 14/15 pigs & turkeys at the June match and won a 15-pig pin at Raton 2-weeks ago, so is a very accurate load. Am using Starline for the shorter distances and believe my spotter is using R-P. Once we get the chickens "under control", perhaps we will move up a class. My chicken load is 54gr of 2F Swiss pushing the Saeco 640 bullet. At this point it is not the load or rifle holding us back.

For me, life is too short to PP, as I find all the steps in reloading to be a 'chore' so I can shoot. However, Brent Danielson was 2nd HOA in the BPCR scope matches at Raton 2-weeks ago shooting PP bullets. First time a PP shooter has placed, IIRC. It has taken him several years of effort to get there. Congrats to Brent for all his work and great results. 

I'll add that using the loads above my spotter shot a 30 with 4-chickens and I shot a 28 with 4-chickens in yesterday's match. He was HOA and I won the scope class. Maybe we are learning to shoot.

Had not thought about the cool & damp weather (was ~50F each morning with a high ~70F with clouds and rain every day of the BPCR matches) helping with the PP, but could well have been. A young (25?) woman from Australia tied Brian Chilson for chickens with 17 and then won the shoot-off for high chicken. That she beat Brian was notable, but not as notable as the fact that she neither wiped nor blow-tubed when shooting her 15 animal strings. The cool, damp weather likely helped her with that.