45-70, what's it good for?

The irony is that I bought my 45-70 because it was so small, a little guide gun that makes neat wound channels that you can "eat up to the hole" but still breaks the biggest bones.

It is the biggest small rifle you can get.
 
for the modern hunter, it is for laying a short range smack down on big north american animals, think elk and moose in the timber. it is also the classic bison cartridge.
 
Here is a cartridge that has been used for over a hundred years and is still used in long range black powder shoots. As for long range accuracy look up Billy Dixon and Abode Wells to see if its any good for long range. I figure my first buffalo will either be shot with an 1881 marlin in 45-70 or a '76 in 50-95.
 
Too Big? load it up with a 175 grain (or there abouts) .458 round ball, a bit of fast powder, a dab of lube on top, and go rabbit hunting. It's a more versatile cartridge than most know.

Yes, recoil can be a #####, ....... if you want it to be.
But, if you don't, the cartridge is quite accommodating, and still delivers tremendous killing power, way out of proportion to what the paper ballistics tell you.
It's only real downfall is it's trajectory. Not an issue, if you never shoot over 200 yards or so.
It will kill at any range you can hit vitals at. Learn it's trajectory, and it can kill at long range.
 
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340 gr. Hollow pt. at 2200fps or 480gr. WFN gas check at 1900fps, what's not to like, my rifle holds 9 of 'em. Taylor knockdown values that equal the .416 Rigby, in a levergun!
 
A large diameter heavy bullet moving at moderate velocity will out-penetrate most "magnums" on the market today when used on big beasties inside of 100 yards. As noted blood-shot is minimal and the more meat can be salvaged.

They are also a lot of fun to shoot.................. ;)
 
carew said:
Here is a cartridge that has been used for over a hundred years and is still used in long range black powder shoots. As for long range accuracy look up Billy Dixon and Abode Wells to see if its any good for long range. I figure my first buffalo will either be shot with an 1881 marlin in 45-70 or a '76 in 50-95.
Click to expand...

Not to nit-pick, however I believe that you are referring to the Battle of Adobe Walls, and the rifle used was a Sharps "Big Fifty" (either a .50-70 Gov't or a .50-90)...

From http://www.oldwestlibrary.com/OWL/adobewalls.htm...

...There were two 'battles' at Adobe Walls, the first occurring on November 25th, 1864 with none other than Kit Carson in attendance, but it was the second which contained 'the stuff of legends'...

...The second day after the initial attack, fifteen warriors rode out on a bluff nearly a mile away to survey the situation. Some reports indicate they were taunting the Adobe Walls defenders but, at the distance involved, it seems unlikely. At the behest of one of the hunters, Billy Dixon, already renowned as a crack shot, took aim with a 'Big Fifty' Sharps {it was either a .50-70 or -90, probably the latter} he'd borrowed from Hanrahan, and cleanly dropped a warrior from atop his horse. This apparently so discouraged the Indians they decamped and gave up the fight.

Two weeks later a team of US Army surveyors, under the command of Nelson A. Miles, measured the distance of the shot: 1,538 yards, or nine-tenths of a mile. For the rest of his life, Billy Dixon never claimed the shot was anything other than a lucky one; his memoirs do not devote even a full paragraph to 'the shot'.

Forensic archaeologists have discovered several Richards' Colt conversions, some Smith & Wesson Americans, and at least one Colt .45 {then new on the frontier} pistol, along with numerous rifles {in calibers .50-70, .50-90, .44-77, .44 Henry Flat, and at least one .45-70, also very new} were in use at Adobe Walls...


Just FYI...

blake
 
carew said:
Here is a cartridge that has been used for over a hundred years and is still used in long range black powder shoots. As for long range accuracy look up Billy Dixon and Abode Wells to see if its any good for long range. I figure my first buffalo will either be shot with an 1881 marlin in 45-70 or a '76 in 50-95.
Click to expand...

I thought Billy Dixon used a 50 2 1/2"?
 
Guys, for a real eye opener to the potential of the 45-70 you should check out Bob Mitchell's manual. Bob probably knows more about the 45-70 than anyone because of his years of personal testing and documentation, particularly for the Ruger #1, the Marlin 1895 and the NEF, all in 45-70.

His manual is called Supreme Handloads for the advanced handloader of the 45-70 Govt.

Contact Bob at;
13 Orchard Drive
RR #1
Lindsay, ON
K9V 4R1

You can do a Canada 411 search and get his phone number.

Since reading his manual I have changed my thinking about the "limitations" of my Guide Gun and have been looking at safe loads I never thought possible. Even if you're happy with the loads you currently have, the manual provides an interesting insight into the capabilities of this round. It's well worth the $20.00 he asks for the manual.
 
I would use mine for a paddle if I had to, or a crutch if i broke my leg.

I will always own one in my collection. As a matter of fact just screwed the deis in the loader and going to load some 500gr casts up tonight.
 
I agree with Dorm.....Mitchells book on the 45/70 is a must read for any doubters out there, I worked with him on some occasions re: Heavy Cast bullets(M.T. Chambers) and some of the loads with the 465gr. hard cast Gc bullet he got going to over 2000fps and was shooting 1" groups with them. Anyone with any doubts about the 45/70 should be made to read his work, he knows his stuff.
 
I love the caliber, Have a Marlin GG and a H&R buffalo gun, had a Sharpes, etc.

Quote rhs: what isn't it good for?.....
 
"What's a .45-70 good for?"

Maybe you're starting to get the drift now. Answer is a) everything and b) everybody ought to have a big bore lever gun. They are a time tested and proven do-all gun as well as a modern powerhouse that you really have to try to get an appreciation for. One of the all-time classics and I'm proud as hell to be part of the overwhelming recent interest in this greatest of all calibers. As stated above, gophers to elephants (or whatever)!
 
well, for starters, it's more versatile than a .17HMR...

No, seriously, if you want a cartridge that can be loaded to anchor any game animal in North America, the .45-70 is it. Big, slow, brush-busting bullets that you can almost see going... coupled with a Marlin 1895 or Guide Gun, compact and quick-shouldering, a fast action, perfect for pushing bush with.
Recoil? well, the hotter the load... but tolerable. It's not like you're putting 20 down the pipe at a time.
The more modern actions like the Ruger #1 can even handle loads suitable for large African game.
 
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