45-70 Reloading Options

[tony72cutlass's']

I had an amazon coupon so I just ordered the classic loader for 36 bucks, even if I use it once I won't cry too much over it.

I've seen some stores on here somewhere along Black Friday have really good rock chucker prices, I think I might keep my eye out for that, hopefully the lee will keep my occupied in the meantime

I'm really new to double rifles so this has been quite an experience so far.

Tony 77, that Lee classic will do just fine, and in .303 Brit at least, it loads some reasonably accurate ammo. The classic by itself only allows for one charge volume, as it comes with just one scoop. That limits your ability to sample lighter or heavier charges of whatever powders you have, which is probably the biggest shortcoming of the Lee Classic. If you want to try a slightly lighter load, or get a little closer to book max, you have to buy either the Lee powder scoop set, or a scale and some way to dispense the powder. Get that far, and might as well buy a Rock Chucker and some conventional dies. Oh, and a lube system, (Lee case lube on your fingers works just fine) case trimmer, powder measure, yadda yadda yadda! Skip the bottom shelf presses. Buy once, cry once.

Yup, I've had a primer go off when seating it with the punch. Blackened my finger tips, but, sanely following the manufacturers instructions, my thumb and forefinger holding the priming punch were the only part of my anatomy in line with the mouth of the case, and since I use my strong hand to swing a hammer, I only scorched my support hand anyway! No biggy, no harm, no foul.

 

[tony72cutlass's']

Budget shooting supply
X reload
TradeEx
Those are my top choices for supplies
I use lee 2nd ed and Lyman 49 th manuals
Lyman cast manual is great source of info for cast loads

Thanks! I couldn't find which email you told me about all those good vendors. I went to Canadian tire last night and asked for a box of 45-70 in 405 grain and the kid came back with a box of 45 auto.

Needless to say I'll be reloading soon!

 

[jethunter]

Man, I tried to find some stuff on Kijiji out here but Halifax seems to be pretty dry for used reloading equipment. I'm sure whatever you spent will pay itself back in no time. Only problem is i think with cheaper ammo, i'd just shoot more lol

I really do like the idea of getting a reloading press (which would allow me to load .380 and 45-70). But even if i bought a classic loader in the meantime, i could probably recoup the cost of a couple boxes of ammo pretty quickly.

Not many deals left in Canada for reloading gear. The classic is a good press, you couldn't really go wrong with one. Shop around and don't be afraid to look at US sites, just make sure you understand the shipping charges. Natchez Shooter Supply has been good to me.

I've been spending money on reloading gear for 40 years and it's paid for itself over and over. If you want to shoot regularly then reloading is a must.

 

[burnt_servo]

Dear All,

I have just acquired my first double rifle (Baikal MP-221 in 45-70) and would like to get into reloading. I've had alot of great feedback from members on here and would like to condense all the good information into one thread

Is a Lee Classic Loader in 45-70 a bad first start to reloading? It's the kit where all that is needed is a hammer and the reloading components. It's only 42 bucks on amazon canada!

So far i'm hearing that i should stay away from hornady brass (since it's shorter for some reason) and to go with a heavier bullet.

Please share any experiences and tips.

Thanks,

-Tony

I use that exact setup to load for my 45-120 .... it is slow , but it will work .
the only thing I don't do is use the scopes , I weigh all my powder charges

 

[tony72cutlass's']

Not many deals left in Canada for reloading gear. The classic is a good press, you couldn't really go wrong with one. Shop around and don't be afraid to look at US sites, just make sure you understand the shipping charges. Natchez Shooter Supply has been good to me.

I've been spending money on reloading gear for 40 years and it's paid for itself over and over. If you want to shoot regularly then reloading is a must.

My jaw hit the ground at the checkout counter when i bought two boxes of twenty 45-70 rounds.. it came out to 116$, and (because i didnt do the research) they were hornady brass so i'm not sure if i can use them or not..

 

[tony72cutlass's']

Budget shooting supply
X reload
TradeEx
Those are my top choices for supplies
I use lee 2nd ed and Lyman 49 th manuals
Lyman cast manual is great source of info for cast loads

So i found that page in my manual, it has the bullet weight filled out but nothing about the sideways regulation. The factory used a 26.2 gram bullet (405) grain. So maybe i'll try finding a box of that next time i head to the range.

 

[terry_g]

I reload Hornady brass without a problem.
I bought a Lee factory crimp die and carefully shortened it .060"
if I remember correctly. I use 350 grain Berry bullets for plinking.
They are inexpensive.

Terry

 

[Rickster66]

x-reload is where I used to get my 45-70 brass and projectiles. The bullet barn is another good place with some good cast lead options. Sent you a pm on some 45-70 stuff I have left over when I used to have one (just sold it this weekend. gonna miss that gun).

 

[brybenn]

So i found that page in my manual, it has the bullet weight filled out but nothing about the sideways regulation. The factory used a 26.2 gram bullet (405) grain. So maybe i'll try finding a box of that next time i head to the range.

All of the ones I've seen had the height difference marked. The side to side is adjustable but each click is a cm. Mine is extremely accurate with each barrel. I had mine out the other day and put 3 shots from each side into a nice 2" cluster at 75 paces. My strides are a bit short as I'm still in an air boot but that was off hand shooting with a 2.5/20 scope. The tree my target was on isn't going to make it. These 6 were seated deeper than my normal load. I had forgot I loaded some 300 gr hollow points and didn't reset the die when I returned from my pre hunt sight in.

 

[brybenn]

The Hornady factory 325 gr gave me 8" height difference at 50 yards and I bet it's a great bullet for deer I couldn't keep one in its jacket whether shooting into water jugs or paper or mud and sand. The 405 gr Remington bulk bullets provide perfect mushrooms every time at 15-1600 fps mv. Even faster too as I often use them in my 458wm.

 

[Gnome75]

I bought a lee loader classic for the 303 british and loved it so much I bought one in 30-06. They are a great system for reloading because reloading is suppose to be cheap. Like other people have already said it won't work well if you want to do a huge volume. Since you are doing 45-70 I am going to assume you are not going to blast off a whole bunch willy nilly. I will sit down for an hour and make 50-100 rounds which sounds slow but it really is not much slower than a press. I only say its a low volume option because it does take more effort to do but who does a hobby because its quick and easy? I enjoy the process of making rounds. Someone also said you have a limited option of powders but you can buy the dipper set which I also did and it is great idea but buy the Lee precision reloading book. Its cheaper and the load data works with dipper set. If you do not already know the dippers a labeled in CCs and the lee book lists the weight and CCs while others will only do the weight. If you want to save the 20-30 bucks let me know and I will share the load data for the 45-70 out of the lee book.

Storage is also very simple as seen here with my set up

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[tony72cutlass's']

Hey Everyone,

I just found some really nice cast 423gr .458 bullets from a seller here on CGN and decided to try them out with new winchester brass and CCI #200 primers.

What is a good resource to determine a good starting powder charges for this bullet weight? It seems the book i have jumps from 405 grain to 500. I'm trying to interpolate numbers and i wonder if 44.6 grains of IMR 3031 is too much..

Thanks,

-Tony