45 70 inquires* 1895 cowboy

Here's a short excerpt from Chuck Hawks 'Rifle Recoil Page'. Quite a range as you can see. Obviously it would be more fun to shoot a box of hand loads at the lower end for plinking and practicing with your rifle, rather than using the heavy loads. I don't mind recoil all that much, but I always avoid it whenever I have the option. :)

Rifle weight - Recoil E - Recoil V

.45-70 (300 at 1800) 7.0 23.9 14.8
.45-70 (350 at 1900) 7.0 37.9 18.7
.45-70 (405 at 1330) 7.5 18.7 12.7
 
i have fired both smokeless and black powder loads in guns such as the springfield trapdoor cavalry carbine and the NEF Handi rifle and i would say recoil is as others have said likened to a shotgun.
a hell of allot of fun i must say!
 
The first time I fired 405gr factory remington shells in my 6 3/4lb double I thought something went wrong. I was expecting a terrible blast and heavy recoil. Afterall it was said it was to much recoil for the Calvary. It was a very pleasant plop with very lil recoil just a slight push. The 325gr leverevolution ammo has a slight kick but not bad at all. I have yet to try any handloads yet but its not bad at all in the lower velocity ranges
 
well i have a feeling a marlin will end up on my rack one of these days. something about hammering a moose with it and all the AHHH's and OHHHH's at camp just might be kinda fun
 
I've used 4570's hunting now for about 12 years. I bought one box of factory ammo. The factory loads have very light recoil but seem more like a 20 ga. slug gun. For hunting, I use 350gr. speer bullets, with 50 grains of RL7. Works great on moose but I wouldn't want to sit at a bench all afternoon with it! Oh, I sure wouldn't use those loads in any gun but a new Marlin or Ruger.
 
tylerjwitty said:
what is the longest factory barrel offered ?
Click to expand...

Length wise, ;)I was looking for something at the other end of the length scale. Fits better on the handlebar rack of my quad:p.

Marlin1895GS45-70.jpg
 
tylerjwitty said:
to those who "have" shot a 45 70 what would they liken the recoill to?

anyone who has tried either the marlin guide or 1895 22" barrel pls submit your review of what you thought of it?

tips for reloading, iron sight up grades, ect ect
Click to expand...

The .45/70 is at its best when handloaded. Not only can one climb dramatically up the power scale compared to factory loads, but the ole girl can be amazingly versatile. Recoil can range from a maiden's kiss to a good punch thrown by someone who knows how. My go to .458" bullet is one of Ben's 480 gr hard cast WFNs, which in the .45/70 can make about 1750 from a short barreled rifle.

I owned a early 22" 95 Marlin and thought fairly highly of it. It was a hunter friendly rifle, meaning that it was easy to carry all day, and hit with authority. In those days I loaded 400 gr Speers and 405 gr Remington jacketed bullets and long nosed 525 gr cast bullets which had to be single loaded as they were too long for the length of the receiver. I was of the opinion at the time that the micro-groove barrel was a poor choice for cast, but Veral Smith's book suggests otherwise pointing out the outstanding accuracy typical of micro-groove .22 rimfire barrels, so I wish I still had that rifle so I could give cast another try with the micro-groove. I pretty much used 3031 exclusively, but today I think I would try 748 or H-335 for the higher loading density possible with ball powder.

When it comes to sights, I favor a ghost ring and post on a lever gun. The front post seems to have fallen from favor amongst some riflemen, in favor or a fiber optic front sight, which does have its advantages. However the disadvantage is that a round front sight provides no index of elevation, so unless the rifle is specifically used at very close range in poor light, the front post is a better general purpose sight. It should be considered like a cross hair in that the wide flat top is used like the horizontal wire, and the human eye can determine the center of the post quickly and easily for reference of the vertical wire. Used thus, the aperture rear and the rectangular front sighting arrangement doesn't cover up the target as a round sight does, and allows fairly precise sighting even at longer ranges.
 
tylerjwitty said:
^ mister ;

i don't believe i have ever seen a thread go past that your were not able to post a picture of a rifle about the subject thread.

must be nice
Click to expand...

Rather than go through a lengthy written description about an item, I find it easier to just post a picture. It eliminates a lot guess work on a topic or item at hand by the reader. The same holds true the other way as well. I'd rather look at a picture of an item with a minimal amount of accompanying dialogue. There is one exception to my preference and that's when say history or good backup stories of a firearm come to light.
 
Johnn Peterson said:
Rather than go through a lengthy written description about an item, I find it easier to just post a picture. It eliminates a lot guess work on a topic or item at hand by the reader. The same holds true the other way as well. I'd rather look at a picture of an item with a minimal amount of accompanying dialogue. There is one exception to my preference and that's when say history or good backup stories of a firearm come to light.
Click to expand...

well im always glad to see some of the gems you own
 
The 1895 Cowboy makes the anemic factory offerings feel like squibs. 45-70 is generally pretty decent to shoot unless you really start to amp up the handloads.
 
I had never shot a .45-70 until two years ago. Having heard all the stories about it kicking like a mule, I was worried about trying one.

Tried a friend's 1895CB and pffft! No problem. A Tikka .308 in a composite stock is more ignorant when it comes to recoil and the loads I was shooting that day.

As mentioned by previous posters you can load .45-70 from mild to wild.

I liked that 1895CB so much, I bought a 1895GS that same year exactly like Johnn's and really like that rifle. Very handy.
 
tylerjwitty said:
Anyone know who sells the cowboy?
Click to expand...

I saw the Marlin 2012 catolog at Cabela Canada yesterday. I did not see the 1895 Cowboy 45/70 octagon long barrel being offered in the catalog. Is it temporarily discontinued until they sort out quality control issues with the Remlins?
 
95 Cowboy 45-70

I tried some loads with 400 gn Rems at midrange about 1600 fps and found them to be quite unpleasant in the Cowboy. I'm no stranger to recoil, but I believe the light weight, poor stock design and hard plastic buttplate, combine to make this a most unpleasant rifle and I wouldn't load heavier in this rifle just for that reason. Not the kinda gun you want to buy and load 400s to 2000 fps.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom