Marlin in .45/70 or 30-30

canuck2a said:
Well bit the bull it today. Had full intentions of going 30/30 but got to store and couldn't get away with my gut instinct and went .45/70. Which is what I was originally looking at to begin with before 30/30 even entered my thoughts. So thanks for everything but guess you just growing what feels right. Oh it didn't help that they had a 1895sbl in stock as I can never find them in town only on net but it's all mine, cost a few pennies more but be a lifelong gun I am sure
Click to expand...

Congrats! I just recently handled an SBL and I'm sure you'll love it! A .45/70 is on my "will own one day" list.
 
I've owned a few .45/70s and I've had a .30-30 for many years. For me the .30-30 is the one to have and the .45/70s are gone. From my point of view it just isn't worth the cost in dollars and recoil. Both make deer and black bears fold up quite nicely and the .30-30 does it with far cheaper ammo and a fraction of the recoil. While neither is a long range round for most use, the .30-30 does have a nicer trajectory. When I had both a .45/70 and a .375 H&H at the same time the similar cost in recoil and ammunition price made me see the .375 H&H as a much better cartridge for my liking. If I want a nice lever action for hunting in the woods I would take a .30-30. If I feel the need to bring some significant power I'd take the .375 H&H over a .45/70.
 
Chuck said:
I've owned a few .45/70s and I've had a .30-30 for many years. For me the .30-30 is the one to have and the .45/70s are gone. From my point of view it just isn't worth the cost in dollars and recoil. Both make deer and black bears fold up quite nicely and the .30-30 does it with far cheaper ammo and a fraction of the recoil. While neither is a long range round for most use, the .30-30 does have a nicer trajectory. When I had both a .45/70 and a .375 H&H at the same time the similar cost in recoil and ammunition price made me see the .375 H&H as a much better cartridge for my liking. If I want a nice lever action for hunting in the woods I would take a .30-30. If I feel the need to bring some significant power I'd take the .375 H&H over a .45/70.
Click to expand...

I'm with ya. I had a 444 for a while and a 30-30, and the 30-30 was much easier to shoot on the wallet and the shoulder.
I now hunt with a .303, and recently picked up a .308 bolt action though. Mainly because I prefer to hunt with a scope and find scopes ruin the ergonomics and look of lever actions. And caliber wise I don't let the fear of Bear attacks guide my rifle choices, honestly many Alaskans use pistols for bear defence.
 
The .30-30 is cheaper to shoot if you don't reload, and it's a low-recoiling round perfect for beginners and smaller folk. Frankly, those are the only reasons I can think of for choosing it.

If you reload, the .45-70 does everything the .30-30 does, and does it better. Load it down for low-recoil training and plinking, load it up for deer, load it way up for possible future work on big bears and such. It's just too much fun to shoot.:)

It even saves you money. Those big gaping holes are so much easier to see in the target that you can get by with a smaller, cheaper spotting scope! :)
 
If you handload the 45-70 can be loaded down for deer and loaded up to kill anything. but in a lever it's still not a long range gun. I love my Marlin SBL
 
Congratulations on choosing the .45/70. The cartridge is more versatile than many give it credit for. A 350 gr .458 compares favorably with a 170 gr .308, so if matching the trajectory of a .30/30 matters, it can be accomplished with the lighter bullet. But where the .45/70 shines when its loaded with heavy bullets. A heavy flat nosed .458 bullet kills heavy game with authority, and kills light game without blowing 20 pounds of meat to mush, the way a high velocity cartridge, loaded with light jacketed bullets does. Shooting cast bullets poses no disadvantage in a low velocity cartridge like the .45/70, and while shooting cast isn't free, it does mitigate the ammunition cost, compared to jacketed bullets, even though each bullet weighs about an ounce. Your cost is further reduced if you cast your own bullets.

Trajectory is a constant. Because its predictable, you can easily adjust for trajectory across reasonable ranges, even with a .45/70. Stick with one good load; zero the rifle for 150 yards, learn the trajectory, and you'll find that shooting beyond 200 yards isn't that tough, provided the sights on your rifle are suitable. I'd quickly replace the factory sights with a ghost ring and post; the wide flat top of the post provides an index for elevation, similar to the horizontal wire of a cross hair. That index of elevation is absent with a bead front sight. You might prefer to mount a low power scope on the rifle, and if you chose a reticle with holdoff points, hitting at longer ranges becomes more viable. A mildot reticle for instance, equates to 7" between dots, or hash marks, at 200 yards, and 10.5" at 300. A good quality, low power scope, is arguably as quick to use as irons hen the range is short and the action is fast. The scope's disadvantage occurs in rain, fog, or heavy snow where lenses become coated with moisture, rendering the optic unusable. QD rings provide you with the option of choosing the sight that is most appropriate to the conditions you face.
 
Boomer said:
Congratulations on choosing the .45/70. The cartridge is more versatile than many give it credit for. A 350 gr .458 compares favorably with a 170 gr .308, so if matching the trajectory of a .30/30 matters, it can be accomplished with the lighter bullet. But where the .45/70 shines when its loaded with heavy bullets. A heavy flat nosed .458 bullet kills heavy game with authority, and kills light game without blowing 20 pounds of meat to mush, the way a high velocity cartridge, loaded with light jacketed bullets does. Shooting cast bullets poses no disadvantage in a low velocity cartridge like the .45/70, and while shooting cast isn't free, it does mitigate the ammunition cost, compared to jacketed bullets, even though each bullet weighs about an ounce. Your cost is further reduced if you cast your own bullets.

Trajectory is a constant. Because its predictable, you can easily adjust for trajectory across reasonable ranges, even with a .45/70. Stick with one good load; zero the rifle for 150 yards, learn the trajectory, and you'll find that shooting beyond 200 yards isn't that tough, provided the sights on your rifle are suitable. I'd quickly replace the factory sights with a ghost ring and post; the wide flat top of the post provides an index for elevation, similar to the horizontal wire of a cross hair. That index of elevation is absent with a bead front sight. You might prefer to mount a low power scope on the rifle, and if you chose a reticle with holdoff points, hitting at longer ranges becomes more viable. A mildot reticle for instance, equates to 7" between dots, or hash marks, at 200 yards, and 10.5" at 300. A good quality, low power scope, is arguably as quick to use as irons hen the range is short and the action is fast. The scope's disadvantage occurs in rain, fog, or heavy snow where lenses become coated with moisture, rendering the optic unusable. QD rings provide you with the option of choosing the sight that is most appropriate to the conditions you face.
Click to expand...

:)Excellant post Boomer. We come to realise what the true potential of the calibre is when used in modern firearms. One of my first was a Marlin 1895GS.



Again, with what can be achieved, load wise, in modern firearms, I found the straight stock design 'could' be a little hard on the fingers and have since replaced it with A Marlin GBL



;)And a shorter friend to help clear the cobwebs on fun days at the range.
For cast, which I obtain from a friend locally



And, for jacketed....., and not shown, the 405gr by Remington which is rapidly becoming one of my favorite of the jacketed.

 
Marlin triggers are much too heavy for accurate shooting. I fixed my 336 with a happy trigger $100. Stupid price but it made a big difference.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom