the Hornady Factory ammo for the .450marlin is FAR more powerful then ANY canadian available factory .45-70 ammo. It pushes a 350gr FN Interloack ot 2150fps from the standard 1895MR, a tad slower from the Guide gun version. for the handloader the factory .450marlin ammo can be exactly duplicated in the .45-70.
So far I've shot 5 animals with the this bullet, at ranges from 10, to 150yrds, and it has preformed flawlessly every time. 3 bears, and 2 moose. this bullet preforms so well, that even though i hand load, it is the only round I'll shoot in my .450.
the Short guide guns are nice, but I prefered the longer version (the discontinued 1895MR) for the lack of muzzle jump, less muzzle blast, and the pistolgrip stock. recoil is comparable to a 12ga 3" slug, or about 35ft.lbs in a 7lb rifle. it more of a push then a punch, and with a little practice you can spot your hits and get a few well placed rounds downrange in very short order. a good recoil pad is a must, the Factory pad is a brick. A Limbsaver is what I have on mine, many people have great luck with the decelerator. Marlin did away with the porting. it was very effective with muzzle jump, but did very little for overall recoil. it also had a bad habit of "Shaving" lead from hardcasts and spitting it out at speed
@ 150yrd this round will go through both sides of a bull moose, making the animal ripple like a rock in a still pond, and dropping in it's tracks. @ 70yrds, it penitrated over FOUR FEET of moose (Quartering away) shattering the offside shoulder and was found in a golfball like bump under the offside hide (only bullet I have ever recovered, pictured below). @ 10yrds it will shatter both shoulders of a 7ft1" black bear. shot 2 other bears, both in the 25yrd range, through-and-through.
I won;t bother with hardcasts (UNLESS you want to shoot a lot at the range and cost is an issue), as the factory hornady ammo (or your handloaded equivilent) has more then enough penitration, mushrooms, and does more internal damage.
to that note I've never seen any real meat damage with this round, looks loke someone pushed a broom stick through the animal. you can also PM "Bullcoon" on this board. he has been using a hotloaded .45-70 with the 350gr hornadys much longer then I have, and swears by them as well.
in the end it;s a great gun. I hunt with mine, carried it for 2 seasons of guiding, and it is glued to my shoulder when ever I am out hiking/camping. stick a set of peeps on it, and giv'r!
