45-70 vs. 375H&H for up close

hansol

hansol

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Hey guys,

Just thought I would get opinions on this debate:

Would you prefer a 45-70 or a 375 H&H (or Ruger/Ultra/whatever@H&H velocities) for "close encounters"?

I don't have any experience with a 45-70, but like the fact that it throws a heavy bullet, and you can get it in a handy lever rifle. That being said, I think with regards to kinetic energy, the 375 has the edge?

Anyway, just looking for opinions. Cheers.
 
If you mean hunting up to 100 yards, I don't think the animals will notice the difference, unless we are talking thick skinned animals, and then I'd want the H&H for sure, for deeper penetration.
 
Yeah, I was thinking for running into thick skinned/things with teeth at close ranges.

I guess the reason this came up is I'll be heading out guiding for bears soon, and while I have my 375, I don't know if maybe I should look into something bigger or not.

Cabin fever sucks.:D
 
.45-70 with as heavy a bullet and a load you can ( and your gun of course) handle with confidence.

Back to power: kinetic energy and stopping power are two ways to measure efficiency at stopping a critter.

The .45-70 would have the edge with heavy bullets and load in that case..

But again, in some countries, and against big 5 stuff,.375 would be minimum caliber and .45-70 would not cut the cheese.

BB
 
You should now build a 416 Taylor, now that your 375 Taylor is found lacking. ;)

....... or is Gatehouse has his say, he will tell you that you need a 416 Ruger, which of course will be the next King of the 416s!


.
 
hansol said:
Yeah, I was thinking for running into thick skinned/things with teeth at close ranges.

I guess the reason this came up is I'll be heading out guiding for bears soon, and while I have my 375, I don't know if maybe I should look into something bigger or not.

Cabin fever sucks.:D
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If you can' t kill a bear with a 375, you can't do it with a 45-70. I bet you see more Alaskan grizzly guides with H&H's than 45-70's..

SuperCub said:
You should now build a 416 Taylor, now that your 375 Taylor is found lacking. ;)

....... or is Gatehouse has his say, he will tell you that you need a 416 Ruger, which of course will be the next King of the 416s!

.
Click to expand...


Welll...DUH!!:evil:
 
Never had a 275, but I can tell you that the old venerable 45-70 will not be out of date for years to come when it comes to 100 yard killing. Heavy bullets at moderate speeds RULE!
 
This depends on your choice of 45-70, I have five of them and my Ruger #1 launches 500 grain Hornadys at 1900 fps or 350's at about 2100 I would rather have it in my hands than any .375. My latest is a Marlin 1895 cowboy, it hold nine 450 grain hard cast going around 1600, nice to have 4050 grains of hard cast available at the flick of your wrist:p
 
bunny said:
This depends on your choice of 45-70, I have five of them and my Ruger #1 launches 500 grain Hornadys at 1900 fps or 350's at about 2100 I would rather have it in my hands than any .375. My latest is a Marlin 1895 cowboy, it hold nine 450 grain hard cast going around 1600, nice to have 4050 grains of hard cast available at the flick of your wrist:p
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8 round magazine?

How long is the barrel on that???
 
A 260gr Accubond form a H&H class rifle will open to .63" in diameter and go end to end on a chest shot 6' black bear.;)

TSX bullets usually double in diameter, so you would probably get a 270gr TSX open about .70- .75" in diameter, and also penetrate deeper.

A .45 caliber hard cast will act as a solid, and remain .45" in diameter +/- and it will also penetrate well.

So the .375 with a premium bullet will penetrate well and open a wider wound channel, and is more useful at extended ranges (for most hunters)

Nothing wrong with a hard cast load in a 45-70, but it's not in the same class as a .375 H&H with premium bullets.

Although at point blank bear charging range, I don't know if it will matter, as I said before.;)
 
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I think it comes down to what type of rifle you are most comfortable with in a tight situation, a bolt gun or a lever. The 45/70 when loaded to it's potential has more power then any .375, the Taylor K.O. values puts the 45/70 up there with the .416s and just behind the .458 Mag. My '95 Cowboy holds 9 rounds of 480gr WFN gc bullets going 1800+fps, bring on the bears!!!
 
ben hunchak said:
I think it comes down to what type of rifle you are most comfortable with in a tight situation, a bolt gun or a lever. The 45/70 when loaded to it's potential has more power then any .375, the Taylor K.O. values puts the 45/70 up there with the .416s and just behind the .458 Mag. My '95 Cowboy holds 9 rounds of 480gr WFN gc bullets going 1800+fps, bring on the bears!!!
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TKO values are for solids, of course...And a .375 solid will penetrate well,but a .45 solid will leave a bigger wound channel.

A .375 TSX will penetrate just as well as a hard cast .45 caliber, from a 45/70, but leave a bigger wound channel.

A head shot would make the point moot
 
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H+H all the way. From gophers to elephants, aim for the face and it won't let you down.

Seriously though, I have some 300 grn Nozler Partitions that I'm saving for yogi's.
 
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