Best all around 45 70 load

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Having just recently purchased a Marlin 1895GBL I've found myself spending way to much time researching different loads for this rifle, everything mild to wild in the recoil department. So my question to my fellow gunutz is this...what would you consider to be the best all around bullet weight/type for a 45 70?

I'm looking for something powerful enough to defend against grizzly yet not be over kill to take an elk , black bear or even possibly deer.

Your input is appreciated!

Cheers
 
Hornady Leverevolution is pretty potent, Barnes TTSX 300gr looks awesome too.
Beyond that HSM makes a couple of interesting loads, especially the 430gr lead solid Bear Load. Buffalo Bore Ammo has the widest selection of hot 45-70 loads in my opinion.
 
If you Reload the Speer 400 gr Soft Point Flat Point over a Generous amount of H322 will get you to 1995 fps and will KILL any animal to HIT properly with it ! RJ

The Hornady 250 MONO FLEX factory ammo is a VERY good Load - The 250 MONO bullet penetrates VERY well and expands Nicely ! Not near as much Recoil as the bigger bullets have ! This load is way better then the Hornady Factory FTX325 - the jacket is way to thin and soft for good penetration ! It does make a Good LUNG shot deer load. RJ
 
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I love the factory hornady levergun ammo,I have shot several black bears and a couple deer using this ammo and nothing has made it more than a couple jumps from where it was shot.

For plinking I like the 350 grain Hornady soft point with h322 powder ,can shoot this all day no real recoil.


For absolutely devastating stopping power the hsm loads a 430 flat nose lead bullet that hits hard,I haven't tried any Buffalo bore ammo yet,but I her a lot of good things about that too.

For deer in thick brush Id try the old 405 grain jacketed bullet remington rounds.they are easy on the shoulder and very accurate out of every lever gun 45/70 I have tried them in.
 
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My load of choice for the last 15+ years has been a hard cast gas check 405gr from an RCBS mould run at Lev 2 velocities. Moose and deer usually die like they were hit with a cement truck.
Do you hand load or plan to ?
 
One advantage of the .45/70, and perhaps to a slightly lesser degree the .458 Winchester, is that velocity does not preclude the use of cast bullets. I like WFN hard cast bullets, and the 480 gr version has a short nose section which enables it to be seated deep in the case so it will cycle properly in a lever action rifle, or it can be seated out bit to take up the length of the magazine in a .458 bolt gun. Jacketed or monometal expanding bullets demand a premium price, but when loaded in rifle cartridges that typically have muzzle velocities around 2000 fps, no advantage in performance is observed, whereas cast bullets can be made at home from scrap lead. If I did choose a jacketed bullet, it would probably be the classic 405 gr Remington bulk bullet.

As for powder, 3031, seems to work, as does H335 or W748 if you prefer to use ball powder in a powder measure.
 
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brybenn said:
I like the remington fnsp bulk bullet at about 1600fps. Soft shooting and expands massively and goes striaght on thru. I even load it in my 458wm as well
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I shot lots of the FACTORY rem 405 bullets out of my 45-70 but when it comes to penetration they are too soft a jacket and really mushroom and come apart compared to the Speer 400 gr - The Speer mushrooms nicely and out penetrates the Rem bullet - I have some 525 gr Bear tooth pile drivers at 1695 fps and they are the CHAMPION's of Penetration but do not hardly mushroom at ALL ! jmo RJ

all JUST my EXPERIENCE !
 
remington jim said:
I shot lots of the FACTORY rem 405 bullets out of my 45-70 but when it comes to penetration they are too soft a jacket and really mushroom and come apart compared to the Speer 400 gr - The Speer mushrooms nicely and out penetrates the Rem bullet - I have some 525 gr Bear tooth pile drivers at 1695 fps and they are the CHAMPION's of Penetration but do not hardly mushroom at ALL ! jmo RJ

all JUST my EXPERIENCE !
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The factory load my gun was regulated for was only 1300fps.
Ive only recovered one bullet in an animal and it was a decent bear hit on the back hip smashing 9" of spine then traveling up thru the top of the ribcage breaking off all but one and breaking the front shoulder and stopped againdt the hide of the upper chest. Bullet is still intact and about the diameter of a twoonie. Fired at 2400fps from a 458 wm. Impact was between 160 and 170 yards. Went thru nearly 5' of bear and broke the biggest bones in its body i cant really ask for more since i pushed that bullet well beyond its reccommended speed

I do load the left barrel of my 4570 with a 405gr flatnose oregon trail silver alloy hard cast bullet but havent sent one thru an animal yet
 
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