*sigh* A lot of disinformation in this thread.
the 450 Marlin is not a "stronger case," it is a lawyered up 45-70 that is reloaded to the same pressure as a lever 45-70. It actually has less water capacity and will provide less velocity in the same gun.
Marlin changed the receiver thread design when they introduced the 450Marlin. These threads are triangular rather than square in profile. All marlin 1895s of this newer vintage use the stronger receiver.
Availability of components is good if you know where to look. For plinking I cast my own (lee 405 gr) Lyman makes a nice gas check mold. Or you can buy cactus plain cast 405s (no gas check) at wholesalesports for 250/$65~
457122 HP is a great mold for subsonic plinking
7-12 grains of blue dot under a 340gr cast bullet is fantastic for subsonic plinking. Up to 1015fps or so at your altitude. 7gr of bullseye works well too. You can paper patch pistol bullets cast in soft lead if you want cheaper lighter bullets. There are templates online for paper patching a .460 diameter bullet. They can be speedily applied by wetting the paper with 20:1 white glue and using a cigarette rolling machine.
Plinking brass lasts forever if you only barely size it (20+ rounds). I've never had feeding problems with only part way sizing. Starline and Winchester last the longest. Even full house loads you can get 8 trips to the range out of a brass.
My costs for plinking loads works out to about 20c/round. If you purchase bullets and prefer 1700fps, it still works out to 50c/round. If you want to shoot leverevolution at 2250fps all day, it'll cost about $1.20/round.
