525 grain 45-70

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Hello all, I've recently bought a H&R handi rifle in 45-70. Im a bit new to reloading and need some help. I bought some 525 grain cast bullets to work up a load. The bullets are from hunters supply. What would be a good load to start with? Im concerned that they will be very long, as ive heard the the handi rifle has "short throating"? could someone explain this to me? Thanks in advance!
 
On a single shot, it is easy, the loaded round won't chamber until you've seated it deep enough. If you have to seat that bullet very deeply, be careful using heavy loads of smokeless powder as pressure will be higher then what is published. Are these soft or hard cast?
 
I would start with 36 grs. of RL-7 or 36grs. of 3031 but would not exceed 41 grains of either especially if you have to seat those bullets deep. Note that these are hard cast and prolly will not expand on game at those speeds, they are not gas checks design and have a bevel base, so I wouldn't load them too heavy. For best performance on game, with that bullet weight, and at those (1300 ish) speeds a much softer alloy is needed for expansion.You will note also from the pic that they do not have a crimp groove, but you should be okay with the single shot, these prolly be too long for a Marlin as well.
 
You might be able to close the action and have the bullet push into the case but it may jam the bullet in the rifling and pull out when you open it. You could try closing the action on an obviously "too far seated out" bullet, and open the action slightly to gently tap or push out the cartridge with a rod before the extractor starts pulling on the rim.

Edit to add: I just checked this out with my 45-70 Handi, you'll be able to do as mentioned above. The cartridge won't have room to come out much more than 5mm, and the action is barely open. But by then the bullet won't be jammed in the rifling. Check the c.o.l. and try seating a bullet a bit short of this, should get you close. Seems to me I did the same thing with a 500 grain Lee design to figure out how much room I had.
 
okay, thats interesting because the reloading guide stays a max overall length of 2.55. I think with these bullets that would be pretty compressed though. I think i might try 36 grs. of IMR 3031 with an overall length of 2.70 thats should be pretty safe I think. thanks so much for the help
 
The reloading guides (which are unlikely to have the style of bullet you are using) will provide a recommended overall length based on the rifle that they used, with the specific bullet that they used. It is a recommendation only! If you read the manual, it is likely that the loading data is for a lever action rifle, which has a specific loading length to function properly. For a single shot rifle you have more latitude, but will depend on the throat and the bullet configuration. You will not have to worry about crimping, other than to remove the bell you have put on the case for reloading.
As for your bullet and rifle, you want to take the suggestions from the other posters, and seat your bullet as long as possible that will still chamber easily without sticking the bullet into the lands. As suggested, make a dummy cartridge (case fully resized, belled and then with a bullets seated). Start really long, and try it. Once you can drop the cartridge into your rifle barrel with no effort (or a very slight push with your thumb) you should be good to go. The hazard with a straight wall case is that the interior volume will reduce rapidly the deeper you seat your bullets, with the potential for rapidly increasing pressure.
As for recoil, I am not sure what you want to do with your handi-rifle, but the bullet is on the heavy side. It is something I might use for long range blackpowder target shooting, but never for hunting. There are lots of 350-405 grain bullet that would be more suitable and kick much less.
It is your rifle and your shoulder, but I tried some 525 grain loads in a very light .45-70 and quite after 5 rounds.
 
okay. But I still have 525 gr. bullets. Is there a lighter load that you might recommend to me? again, any advice is greatly appreciated. im just starting out in reloading.
 
What is the end result you're looking for from this bullet/cartridge combo?? You can crank up the velocity but I don't think the 45-70 needs much to drive through a lot of stuff. I tried the RL-7 recipe Ben mentioned with a 500 gr bullet, and it was already getting brisk IIRC through a Handi Rifle off the bench.

You can use certain fast burning powders that will never get you top end speed, but you can shoot them all day as they lack recoil. You just have to be careful as to not double charge the powder or you can wreck your rifle and your day.
 
I guess im just looking for a usable load for 525 gr. bullet. It doesn't need to have super high velocity or recoil. Just something semi powerful, but not on the edge of being dangerous to the rifle or myself.
 
Here are some loads I've used in my H&R Buffalo Classic in 45-70, with the Lyman 457132 520 gr "postell" bullet:

Trail Boss: 10-12 grs
SR4759: 24-28 grs
H4198: 30-38 grs

The loads go from mild to medium-high.
 
I wouldn't worry about the expansion factor of the lead you're using. While soft lead will expand better, and for hunting with cast bullets in a .30-30 I'd definitely recommend it, if you're shooting a 525gr fourty-five caliber slug it's going to hit like a freight train anyway. Unless you're shooting polar bears wearing body armor, you're going to have devastating terminal ballistics on game.
 
Fun times with these recipes
http://www.gmdr.com/lever/lowveldata.htm
I use 13 gr of IMR700X behind a 500 grain 459-500-3R Lee cast bullet. It flies at 1200 fps. I could shoot it all day. If I didn't run out of ammo. It rings a 4'X4' target at 500 yards.
The rifles are H&R Buffalo Classic and the other is a Marlin 1895 Cowboy Action.
Its will be lobbed at a 1 mile target here in Feb. Pointing at the moon.
 
For the OP...it is entirely possible that the trajectory of that round may not allow your sight to adjust to it at a certain distance, just one of the things to test when you get out there....enjoy.
 
I have alot of hornady brass, which I understand is slightly shorter. This weekend im gonna try my load of 10 gr of trail boss, as it should leave plenty of room, with an overall cartridge length of 2.7 in. We'll see how it plays out...
 
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