45-70 elk/moose gun

Open sights 200 yards max.
Scoped 300 yards max. Know your drop and your good to go. I have hit targets 1035 yards away from me. Steel targets.
 
I'll tell you a story from Down Under, Many older Folk would use the 45-70 on the Sambar in the close range, thicker scrub areas, I think the 6 up the tube also helped sway many a bloke to the marlins , Roumer always had it the 30-30 was not enough Gun, the 444 Was a bit rarer an apparently the 44 projectiles didn't penetrate as much and same story with some of the 45-70 projectiles.

still to this day people use them with good effect, especially avoiding Bone but in close quarters!

not sure if I want one or not..... my 375 is a mini 45 :D
WL
 
A hard cast 405 gr GC flat nose from an RCBS mould running at Lev 2 speeds at or just above 1600fps will hammer anything with hooves or paws in North America. I have personally seen adult bull moose hit the ground like they were struck by lightning when shot with this load. Depending on the shooter and if they are competent, anything up to 200yds would be in a pile of trouble.
 
Have taken a moose @ 60 yards with a marlin 1895gs and the factory Winchester ammo that pushes a 300 grain hp @ 1880 fps for a me of 2355 ft-lbs.
Seems like pretty modest ballistics but the spike only went about 10 yards from the poi before expiring on the ground.
The lungs were mush like cranberry sauce when I opened it up.
That 300 grain hp did its job.
 
S1nnerman said:
Between me and my hunting partners we killed moose with FTX 325, Barnes 400, Speer 400 and Rem 405. Never had a problem with any of them. All lungs shot and one neck shot. All within 100 yards.

Furthermore, I'm a shooting instructor and early this summer a bullet proof vest company used my services to test their vest with different calibers at a distance of 25 yards.
The calibers were... 9mm, 45acp, 357mag, 44mag, 7.62x39, 223rem. The vest was placed on a 5 gallon jug. None of the bullet went through. The 44mag made a golf ball size impact, the 7.62x39 made a orange size impact.

After we were done testing I asked the owner if I could try a 200grs FTX 460 S&W bullet, he agreed. That bullet (same as the 325 FTX but lighter) went through the front of the vest, through the 5 gallons jug and through the back of the vest. No fragments were found. The vest was placed 4 feet from the dirt back stop. Didn't searched for long but didn't find the bullet in the dirt.

I don't care what some of you are saying, the Hornady 325 grs FTX will kill anything you shoot at. As for dangerous game, I would prefer a hardcast for more penetration but in a hunting scenario the FTX will do whats needed thats for sure.
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Did you happen to test the vest with 7.62x25 ? A through and through I bet.It will defeat threat level #3..............PS I'll pass on the lipstick bullets.
 
win94luver said:
Have taken a moose @ 60 yards with a marlin 1895gs and the factory Winchester ammo that pushes a 300 grain hp @ 1880 fps for a me of 2355 ft-lbs.
Seems like pretty modest ballistics but the spike only went about 10 yards from the poi before expiring on the ground.
The lungs were mush like cranberry sauce when I opened it up.
That 300 grain hp did its job.
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Modest? Factory loads will kill any moose at appropriate distances. No need to magnumize. You are hunting moose, not lions.
 
remington jim said:
https://www.hornady.com/bullets/rifle/45-cal-458-250-gr-monoflex#!/

This BULLET way outperforms the 325 gr FTX in penetration and much flatter ( LOL ) shooting too ! RJ
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I don't like the 'shortened' (less than standard length) cases you get after you shoot the factory Hornady Leverevolution 325 grain FTX ammo.
They had to shorten the cases to accommodate the pointed FTX bullet so the finished factory ammo would cycle in lever actions.
With the Hornady Custom 350 grain FP load (discontinued by Hornady) and the Winchester 300 grain HP factory loads I usually start with to build up a cache of cases I get standard length cases.
If you want your shoulder ball joint dislocated you can start with the HSM or Buffalo Bore factory loads.
The cases used in the 430 grain hc lead Buffalo Bore factory load use small rifle primers.
 
Why try and turn this into a round that it's not? There are a plethora (big word for me) of better rounds out there if you want the stretch the shot distance. From 0-200 or so yards, the 45-70 won't take a back seat to many other cartridges
and whatever info that you read on paper is just that. Most stuff shot with the 45-70 is done at 100yds or less. To many people get on the Hornady hype and read way to far into it.
 
rifleman338 said:
Why try and turn this into a round that it's not? There are a plethora (big word for me) of better rounds out there if you want the stretch the shot distance. From 0-200 or so yards, the 45-70 won't take a back seat to many other cartridges
and whatever info that you read on paper is just that. Most stuff shot with the 45-70 is done at 100yds or less. To many people get on the Hornady hype and read way to far into it.
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That's what the gimmick marketers count on.
By using FTX ammo you don't get an Accurate Arms 338 Lapua.
You get a 45-70 with about 25 yards more effective range.
But having said that I can attest to the uncanny accuracy of the Hornady 45-70 325 grain FTX factory loads in my Marlin 1895gs .
Wouldn't hesitate to use them on deer to 200 yards.
Unfortunately you wind up with 'shortened' cases after the Hornady 45-70 325 grain FTX factory ammo is fired.
 
Nothing will penetrate like a big chunk of lead. I'd put a good hard cast gas check up against any Hornady or Barnes. On North American game, bullet recovery with a good hard cast pushed at the right speeds won't usually happen.
 
My grandad shot plenty of northern ontario moose with a real mccoy winchester model 92 in 44 wcf (44-40) and now you need hand held howitzers.
I shot a good sized spike bull moose several years ago with a winchester factory load 45-70 300 grain hp with a book muzzle velocity of 1880 fps (probably less through the 18.5" bbl of my Marlin 1895gs).
These are modest ballistics compared to HSM & BB but the moose was dead before it hit the ground spitting distance from the poi.
The bullet was just a plain jane 300 grain hp but it did its job and the moose's lungs were mush when I dressed it out.
 
I trust most of the posters here on this thread have experience with a wide variety of calibers, grain of bullet and various velocities over many cartridges... If so - from my own experiences it never ceases to amaze me what most cartridges are capable of. Some have suggested that the mild 30-30 with it's (mostly) flat based bullet does an adequate job for what it was designed to do... Some have suggested that the mild recoiling 30-30 is so effective because the bullet mushrooms quickly and makes a decent size hole within reasonable ranges and few will flinch while shooting it.

Having said that the 45-70 is more then a 30-30 and does the same thing as a 30-30 with a bigger hole and more energy. It takes deer and moose quite readily... Some guys like heavy loads, some like medium loads and some like lighter loads... The 45-70 does not have to be loaded to maximum loads or weight of bullet to be effective for what it is. I'm glad to see that some posters have stated this and I'm good with those statements.

I have more experience with the 9.3 x 62 (and it is a stellar round for hunting) then the 45-70 - but I have only recently discovered the 45-70 and I'm still testing it. My first hunt will be for deer and factory loads. And, while it was not mentioned I think it would be absolutely great if Marlin re-introduced the 45-70 XLR. I'll take the extra weight, length and velocity that a 24 inch barrel can offer, and keep the muzzle blast a few more inches away from my ears then I would experience from a short guide gun. That's just me though.
 
win94luver said:
That's what the gimmick marketers count on.
By using FTX ammo you don't get an Accurate Arms 338 Lapua.
You get a 45-70 with about 25 yards more effective range.
But having said that I can attest to the uncanny accuracy of the Hornady 45-70 325 grain FTX factory loads in my Marlin 1895gs .
Wouldn't hesitate to use them on deer to 200 yards.
Unfortunately you wind up with 'shortened' cases after the Hornady 45-70 325 grain FTX factory ammo is fired.
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I know what you mean . I've used a 45/70 in one form or another for about 40 years and settled on hard cast or jacketed 405's at about 1600 fps many years ago . A totally reliable round . I got curious and bought a box of 325 FTX's and tried them out . One ragged hole for three shots at 100 yards . I'm not about to change from the 405's , but I will definitely use the 325's for White-Tails this month .
 
We tried the winchester 300 grain hp and the hornady 325 grain factory ammo with good accuracy results.
My nephew borrowed the guide gun and brought down a nice bull moose near red lake ontario last fall with a factory 325 grain ftx at 90 yards.
One shot and it dropped in its tracks.
 
contaucreek said:
While we are talking 47-70 loads and guns to what level catagory can a Handi Rifle be loaded to?
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rifleman338 said:
My Handi will digest Level 2 loads without any issues, but that's as far as I would be pushing it.
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No issues with some of the Speer reloading data for the .45-70 Marlin in my .45-70 Handi-Rifle. I subsequently got the throat lengthened a bit for extra powder capacity and have used the Swift A-Frame 400gr bullet at 2000 fps muzzle speed with good results on Elk.

Be careful not to exceed pressure levels that will overwhelm the extraction power of the spring ejector. Makes for a rather slow follow-up shot as you look around for something to drive the stuck case out of the breech from the muzzle end. :eek:

Interesting to see the .45-70 Handi-Rifle adapted for use as a line throwing gun. :cool:

 
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