Sharps Rifles that can take Smokeless Factory Ammunition

drache

drache

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Is there at 45-70 Sharps remakes that can accept smokeless Factory loaded ammunition? Most have to be reloaded for Blackpowder and Cast lead ammunition and until I move, I can't reload.

So far the closest I can come is the "H&R Buffalo Classic" (and that is far from a Sharps remake) and was hoping for something more pretty :p
 
drache said:
Is there at 45-70 Sharps remakes that can accept smokeless Factory loaded ammunition? Most have to be reloaded for Blackpowder and Cast lead ammunition and until I move, I can't reload.

So far the closest I can come is the "H&R Buffalo Classic" (and that is far from a Sharps remake) and was hoping for something more pretty :p
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Pedersoli is another.
 
The 1874 Sharps action is not considered to be as strong as other single shot actions, but if the loads were not too hot it might be ok.
I think the rifling in most replicas is meant for Black Powder and cast bullets moreso than jacketed bullets also, but a few rounds should not hurt..
 
I seem to remember years ago looking at the Shiloh Sharps website and them saying you could use standard smokeless factory round in SOME of their rifles. Might be worth looking into.
 
Kevan
Good point. A check of many reloading manuals and you usually see three load listings. The first and lowest power loads are shown for the likes of the 1873 Springfield etc. The next step up power wise are designated for use in the 1886 Winchester and 1895 Marlins. The loads at the top of the 45-70 'food chain' are for strong modern day production single shots such as the No. 1 and No. 3 Ruger.

Dorian
I think you'll find a lot, but not all, of the 45-70 factory loads available are pretty low powered, just because of what's out there that they may be used in. Liability issues and concerns of the manufacturers.
 
gunlaker said:
Kirk of Shiloh Sharps has stated that his 1874's in .45-70 will take Ruger #1 loads. With a metal buttplate that's going to be painful.

Chris.
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If anyone should know it would be Kirk, however I personally would be a bit skeptical.
I have had my '74 Shiloh and my Ruger #1 stripped to the frame and there is no doubt in my mind that the #1 is a much beefier action.
Regarding the butt, you are absolutely right !
 
Johnn Peterson said:
Dorian
I think you'll find a lot, but not all, of the 45-70 factory loads available are pretty low powered, just because of what's out there that they may be used in. Liability issues and concerns of the manufacturers.
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You're right of course. No ammo manufacturing company wants to be the one to get sued when some dumbass loads hot factory loads in his great grandfather's Trapdoor Springfield.

With that in mind, a few years back I had a hankerin' for a lever rifle in 45-70. After reading about the Marlin's of the time and not being incredibly impressed with the reports of poor production quality (Around the same time I had also bought a new Marlin XLR in .35 Remington and it was a total lemon) I decided to go with an Rossi M92 in .454 Casull. Hot Casull loads, like Speer Gold-dots, came out to around the same muzzle velocity as factory 45-70's. They tended to be (slightly) cheaper too. Another plus was that the Rossi weighs around 6.5 pounds loaded with 10 in the magazine and 1 in the chamber. I'll probably still end up with a 45-70 or 2 one day, especially when I start reloading. From what I'm told you can actually get the cartridge up to it's full potential that way. For now though the .454 has been a good choice for short-medium work. :)
 
Dorian Gray said:
You're right of course. No ammo manufacturing company wants to be the one to get sued when some dumbass loads hot factory loads in his great grandfather's Trapdoor Springfield.

With that in mind, a few years back I had a hankerin' for a lever rifle in 45-70. After reading about the Marlin's of the time and not being incredibly impressed with the reports of poor production quality (Around the same time I had also bought a new Marlin XLR in .35 Remington and it was a total lemon) I decided to go with an Rossi M92 in .454 Casull. Hot Casull loads, like Speer Gold-dots, came out to around the same muzzle velocity as factory 45-70's. They tended to be (slightly) cheaper too. Another plus was that the Rossi weighs around 6.5 pounds loaded with 10 in the magazine and 1 in the chamber. I'll probably still end up with a 45-70 or 2 one day, especially when I start reloading. From what I'm told you can actually get the cartridge up to it's full potential that way. For now though the .454 has been a good choice for short-medium work. :)
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I've posted this in previous threads but,;) here goes again. A while back, I decided I 'needed' something fairly short, and even though I'm not a fan of stainless and plastic, something somewhat weather resist. Also, wanting something relatively potent, I settled on a Marlin 1895GS in 45-70.



It fits the bill and is just the right length for the handle bar gun rack on my quad:p.
 
This is what Remington has to say about their 300gr and 405gr loadings

Note that they are saying that they are for use in all rifles. I don't think that Remington would be saying that if they didn't mean it
 
gunlaker said:
Kirk of Shiloh Sharps has stated that his 1874's in .45-70 will take Ruger #1 loads. With a metal buttplate that's going to be painful.

Chris.
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Oh believe me it is very disconcerting. I have loaded my 45-110 up to better than 458 WM and the steel curved butt does nothing to alleviate recoil..........the rifle handled it much better than I did, took 3 rams in a row at 500 mtrs though.

I have the 1874 Long Range Express with the 32" barrel and target sights, it is a beautifully made rifle.
 
I know for certain the 1874's made by pedersoli are good for 29,000psi which is good with almost all factory ammo. Just don't shoot Garret or Buffalo bore through it and you'll be fine.
That being said, you won't find the best accuracy with these rifles with smokeless and jacketed bullets. Soft lead alloy and black powder is where they really shine.
 
drache said:
Is there at 45-70 Sharps remakes that can accept smokeless Factory loaded ammunition? Most have to be reloaded for Blackpowder and Cast lead ammunition and until I move, I can't reload.

So far the closest I can come is the "H&R Buffalo Classic" (and that is far from a Sharps remake) and was hoping for something more pretty :p
Click to expand...

All modern repros in 45-70 will accept normal factory smokeless loads, and the mild winchester, remington and federal factory loads are kept light incase someone decided to shoot them in the originals. I dont know where a guy would find Buffalo bore or Corbon loads in Canada, I've never come across them.

Do yourself a favour and save the money to get a Shiloh. If you're not hell bent on a sharps, pedersoli makes a very good rolling block. And if you still want a falling block, the miroku winchester 1885s can be loaded to ruger #1 pressures.
 
If 74 action is your only consideration, some caution would be prudent but I wouldn't be concerned about any factory ammo built by Winchester or Remington. Some of the more "custom manufacturing" companies might load some hotter loads but the packaging should make you aware of the hotter status.

I have a Pedersoli and will relate the following just as an info thing. I was testing a "published" smokeless powder load for a 535 gr lead bullet. The load should have been close to a B/P 1880's load. I was at the range without my chrono. The first shot I touched off just plain hurt (Someone mentioned how that square cut steel butt plate will wake you up... they are very right). I shrugged it of as just me being a big wuss. Second shot hurt just as bad and I had had enough of that sit. I took the remaining round I had loaded home and instead of being smart and pulling the bullet to reverse engineer the round, I set up the chrono and fired said round. I was firing those 535 gr bullets out of a 1874 Pedersoli Sharps action at 1875 fps... almost .458 win mag ballistics and it hung together. I only had three rounds so I don't know if I screwed up while loading or the load was misprinted when published.

An alternative to the 1874 action is a 1875 action that C Sharps (From big Timber as well) manufactures. they are more along the line of an 1885 Winchester action, or there is the Browning 1885 clone as well. A friend of mine shoots 400 gr bullets out of his at 2000 fps regularly...a healthy load for any north American game....and some African as well as his game room attests to.
 
Don't know about any of the offshore stuff but the Shilo will take pretty much anything you want to throw at it, like I said I loaded 500 gn jacketed to 2200 fps and the brass popped right out and nothing but my shoulder was worse for wear after 50 rds. This is a 45-110 though.
 
Haven't we been trading for years that 45-70 factory ammo was anaemic and loaded to Trapdoor levels? Unless we've been BS-ing for years any of the cheap factory ammo (not Buffalo Bore or Garrett, obviously) should be just fine in a Shiloh 1874.
 
BigUglyMan said:
The bullet makes it out of the barrel and is barely visible heading downrange. But "dead slow" isn't particularly technical is it?
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That's kinda' what I thought. Some of the initial brass in my 'stash' came from some factory stuff I had picked up at gun shows. I noticed considerable 'difference' when using handloads at levels my Marlin 1895GS is able to digest.
 
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