Author Topic: 45-70 (Read 1923 times)

dannyfro · « **on:** December 28, 2010, 10:31:14 AM »

Hey all I was just wondering if any of you wanted to share you experiences with this historic cartridge in your Handi Rifles. This is definitely on my list of future toys. And as always if you have pictures bring em on. I'm thinking that this would be an awesome Bang-flop setup. I've always wanted one as i love history so its a def goal of mine in the coming year to acquire one. Your stories and experiences are greatly appreciated as everyone loves a good hunting story! Thanks again guys.

Dan

Spanky · « **Reply #1 on:** December 28, 2010, 12:12:52 PM »

I've had several 45-70's and they've all been great shooters. I keep my loads at trapdoor levels to keep recoil down. Heavy loads can and will knock the hell out of you at the bench. I shoot hardcast bullets in mine and I think they'd probably shoot right through a deer lengthways... those big bullets will put down anything that walks plain and simple.

Spanky

XD40SC · « **Reply #2 on:** December 28, 2010, 12:25:02 PM »

I hunt in very thick cover. I have shot several wild boar and deer with my 45/70. This year I shot a nice 7pt buck. The 405gr bullet passed through 2 saplings before hitting the buck and passing clean through.Several years ago I killed a boar at 50 yds. The bullet passes through a 4 inch diameter tree before hitting the boar in it's neck killing it. Both animals and trees were killed while the animals were on the run- so I didn't notice the saplings until after the shot. Fun caliber with plenty of punch. I reload them at 1620fps. Not as fast as possible, but good enough for me.

Datil · « **Reply #3 on:** December 28, 2010, 01:40:08 PM »

I think every body needs and should have a 45-70. I like mine just don't get to
shoot it enough it needs to get out of the safe and get fresh air.
Datil

gstewart44 · « **Reply #4 on:** December 28, 2010, 04:48:54 PM »

Quote from: XD40SC on December 28, 2010, 12:25:02 PM

I hunt in very thick cover. I have shot several wild boar and deer with my 45/70. This year I shot a nice 7pt buck. The 405gr bullet passed through 2 saplings before hitting the buck and passing clean through.Several years ago I killed a boar at 50 yds. The bullet passes through a 4 inch diameter tree before hitting the boar in it's neck killing it. Both animals and trees were killed while the animals were on the run- so I didn't notice the saplings until after the shot. Fun caliber with plenty of punch. I reload them at 1620fps. Not as fast as possible, but good enough for me.

Durn - I have had fun with my 45/70 handi but never thought about it causing deforestation while I'm hunting......

bikerbeans · « **Reply #5 on:** December 28, 2010, 04:59:53 PM »

can't go wrong with the 45/70 Handi, if you don't like it you can sell it quick enough in the classifieds. Me, I am still on the fence regarding the 45 cal Handi Rifles. The 45s are okay, but since I only own 3 I don't think I am smitten with them just yet.

BB

ohiobenito · « **Reply #6 on:** December 29, 2010, 11:57:04 AM »

a lot of the handi fans say any rimmed case is real accurate in the handis. My 7.62*39 is a scary tack driver but thats off subject. When I turned 18 my brother still had his FFL to sell firearms. I asked him," hey what's the biggest freakin gun I can buy for 100$?" He told me that NEF also made a 45/70, then explained to me what the cartrige is and what it's done to our buffalo population. I was hooked. I handed him the cash and filled out the paper work. I still have that rifle and have named it the boston whaler. cuz I like the boats and cuz it wails on your shoulder. My only regret is living In the miserable state of Ohio and I am unable to use my whaler on deer.

Stan in SC · « **Reply #7 on:** December 29, 2010, 12:34:13 PM »

My 45/70 stable includes a Handi with a 3X9X40 scope and an iron sighted Trapper.They are about as much fun as you can have fully clothed.

Stan in SC

BluDino · « **Reply #8 on:** December 31, 2010, 01:52:35 AM »

I can't keep ammo for mine. There's just something strange about a 45 caliber rifle that puts up smaller groups than heavy barrel varmint guns with bullet holes almost as big as a dime. My last four range trips shot .571, .697, .735, and .859" three round groups at 100 yds. The last one had two rounds that measured .490" across and then I pulled the third. It's the best shooter I have and I'm loading 50 more rounds (1650fps). I still haven't gotten into the 405 cast or 500 grainers yet, but that is the great thing about this caliber. The possibilities of bullet weight and charges are almost endless.

petemi · « **Reply #9 on:** December 31, 2010, 03:19:44 AM »

I'm shooting 405s at 1950 fps. You can ask thejanitor about that load......about 1/2 MOA. The Hornady LEs shot well in my Handi before I started reloading. I killed my first .45-70 deer with an LE bang flopped at 220 yards. The box says the 325 gr. is running at 2050 fps. I never chronyed them. You do have to learn the "rainbow" cause they're not point and shoot like something like a .25-06 or a .22-250. That's part of the intrigue with the big, fat, slow bullets. My favorite Handis are my .45-70, .445 Super magnum, .357 maximum, .38-55 and the .45LC. The bottle necks seldom get aired out except for the .30-30 and the 7.62x39, and both of them are shooters too.

Pete

cbourbeau32 · « **Reply #10 on:** December 31, 2010, 04:49:53 AM »

You've just come to "skid row" to ask those folks how much they like Mad Dog 20/20

Shu · « **Reply #11 on:** December 31, 2010, 05:08:28 AM »

There is but one Handi cartridge and that is the 45-70. You can shoot round balls, collar buttons, at around 170 grains to some huge bullets of about 550 grains. You can light load, or heavy load. Rabbits to big bears. The 45-70 is great. No it isn't flat shooting but seriously how often is a game animal taken at 150 yards or less.

My nephew killed a nice spike elk at what he guessed was 125 yards. GPS said it was 63 yards. Even with error factors built in it was still less than 100 yards. My point being most have trouble judging distance anyway. So always be sure you can hit what you are shooting at.

Also it is fun to pull out that huge cartridge and see grown men shrink back. Then have your little girl pick up the rifle and start shooting targets.

Landric · « **Reply #12 on:** December 31, 2010, 07:29:40 AM »

I really enjoy my .45-70 Handi. I hunt primarily in the woods, and in those woods 50 yards is a long shot, so I mounted a Bushnell Banner 1.75-4x shotgun scope and took it off to the range to sight it in using my handloads with a 425 grain cast FN at about 1350 fps. It was putting rounds into almost the same hole at 50 yards. The 425 grain bullet at 1350 fps does everything I need to do. Sure, it could be loaded much hotter, but I don't see the point. When I hunt where I might have a 150 or 200 yard shot, I use a .30-06.

For just plain fun shooting the .45-70 can't be beat, and if one handloads (and especially if one casts), its actually quite cheap to shoot. The brass lasts a long time at trapdoor pressures, and when loaded with a slow pistol powder like 2400 only 20 something grains are necessary.

Catshooter45 · « **Reply #13 on:** December 31, 2010, 07:49:27 AM »

One of my favorite loads is a 365 grain cast over 15 grains of Universal Clays with either a large rifle or pistol primer. Inch and an eighth groups at 100 are easy (even I can do them!). The bullets leave the muzzle at about 1320 fps, it's quite a mild load.

45-70 . . . it's almost a religion.

Cat

Dead doc · « **Reply #14 on:** January 04, 2011, 05:17:07 AM »

MY handi is one of 5 45/70s I own. I do so much 45/70 shooting I own three sets of dies.
MY handi does not do well with bullets over 385 grains. It shoots Speer and Hornady 350s extremely well . SHoots cast bullets of 360 and 385 well too .
Right now IM shootng the Ranch Dog Mould 360 Gas check and getting under 1 inch groups off the bench at 100 yds at approx 1750 FPS.
I have tried Remington 405s, Speer 400s, Ranch Dog 425s and two different moulds in 400 grains and 450 grain and no where near the accuracy of the lower weights regardless of the velocity.

quickdtoo · « **Reply #15 on:** January 04, 2011, 05:38:59 AM »

Properly sized heavy cast bullets work fine in the 45-70, Bernie (dodd3) shoots the 500gr Lee at 600-800yds in his BC, John Boy shoots at 1000yds!! I've shot the 525gr Beartooth Piledrivers to 200yd from my 45-120 BC, made a sight adjustment after the first sighter shot at 11 O'clock.

Tim

http://www.gboreloaded.com/forums/index.php/topic,62996.msg386293.html#msg386293

http://www.gboreloaded.com/forums/index.php/topic,119506.msg1098396326.html#msg1098396326

s_hawk · « **Reply #16 on:** January 04, 2011, 08:46:45 AM »

I got a Buffalo Classic recently and killed a couple good bucks with it. I was shooting a Remington 405gr bullet, which is a very mild load coming out of the Buffalo Classic. I was very pleased with ammo & rifle, also the fact these were the first deer I'd got with open sights since '93. The distance was 50 yards. I really like the sight setup on the BC.
Hawk

Freightman · « **Reply #17 on:** January 04, 2011, 12:43:21 PM »

I have three 45/70's A Shiloh a Remington Rolling Block,M1867 And a Handi, all are fun all are accurate and you give up nothing in accuracy with a Handi. You will get bruised a lot more than with the Shiloh but I can't carry a 15# rifle in the woods. I love the 500gr cast bullets as you can hear them hit even with ear protection. If I were limited to one caliber it would be a 45/70 and one rifle and had to hunt with it it would be a Handi as it is well handi. SINGLE SHOTS RULE.

Sourdough · « **Reply #18 on:** January 04, 2011, 08:02:46 PM »

In October my Partner shot a Moose with his Marlin 45-70. Moose fell like a load of bricks. He was so sure of the shot and the 45-70 would do the job he threw his gun into the front of the boat upon our jackets, and started paddling towards the bank. Problem was he had hit it too high to get the lungs, and too low to hit the spine. The Moose got up and ran. Moose made one fatal mistake, it stopped and looked back as it was ready to enter the woods. I put one right between it's eyes with my handi 30-06. If my partner had done his part the 45-70 would have been more than adiquate, just he blew it. His shot was a complete pass through, shooting low velocity trapdoor loads.

I have an H&R 45-70 Trapdoor Springfield coming, should arrive this week. really looking forward to using it to take Moose and Bears.

petemi · « **Reply #19 on:** January 05, 2011, 02:43:06 AM »

Shooting high with a .45-70 an easy thing to do. I dumped a whitetail buck two years ago and almost missed him at 220 yards shooting too high. My bullet took out his spine above the shoulders and dropped him, but I was lucky. Two or three inches higher would have been a clean miss. I know my rainbow pretty well, but I thought he was farther away than he was. It was an instinct shot with no time to think it out.

Pete

bikerbeans · « **Reply #20 on:** January 05, 2011, 03:13:22 AM »

sourdough,

do you think your '06 will end up playin' second fiddle to the trapdoor 45-70?

BB

petemi · « **Reply #21 on:** January 05, 2011, 03:32:44 AM »

Tom, ya gotta be kidding. Sourdough sleeps with that thing.

Pete

Sourdough · « **Reply #22 on:** January 05, 2011, 07:49:52 AM »

Guys, I just had to throw that in there. Norm is a 45-70 fan from the word go. Norm keeps talking about big bullets going slow do the best job. It burns him up that I had to finish off his Moose with my trusty 30-06. Norm made a 40 yard shot, and like I said he did not do his part, too high and too far back. I made an 80yd bang flop yard shot. Oh don't get me wrong I like my 45-70, it's a great cartridge. I'm just in love with another caliber.

No the Trap Door will never be my go to gun. It will be a lot of fun, and probably get a lot of use on Bears over bait, but it will never see the areas above tree line where I usually spend most of my time. Up there the 30-06 rules.

Suddenly thinking back over some of my experiences at bait stations, maybe I don't want to take a Trap Door to the bait stations after all.

petemi · « **Reply #23 on:** January 05, 2011, 08:02:20 AM »

I guess if I lived up there, I'd carry a .45-70 on one shoulder and an '06 on the other......just to make sure.

Pete

Quigley · « **Reply #24 on:** January 05, 2011, 01:42:55 PM »

My local Dicks Sporting Goods has a 45-70 Handi that is calling my name. Can you guys recommend some light factory loads for us guys that dont reload?

gstewart44 · « **Reply #25 on:** January 05, 2011, 02:31:21 PM »

Remington (trapdoor level) green box 405 JSP - very mild, affordable, makes a big hole and is good for everything that doesnt fight back with fangs and claws.

bikerbeans · « **Reply #26 on:** January 05, 2011, 03:00:42 PM »

Quigley,

Save the 45 70 brass because if the bug bites you on a 45 cal rifle you will be reloading before long. At almost $2 a shot for the cheapest factory 45-70 offerings, it will make a reloader out of you if you like to shoot a lot. I had never shot a 45 70 before last spring, now I have over 200 rounds loaded and waiting for the next halfway warm day.

BB

Shu · « **Reply #27 on:** January 06, 2011, 02:12:02 AM »

30 06 better than a 45 70. Can we burn some at the stake for heresy?

Bad hits regardless of caliber are still bad hits....

If you don't reload, you should seriously consider it. You can get set up as cheaply or as expensively as you want. A simple press, dies, scales, powder, primers, bullets, a small bowl, a spoon, a funnel and a reloading manual is about a cheap as you can go. It is a fun part of the shooitng experience for me. Putting down a nice game animal, ringing the gong etc is just much more satisfying when you rolled your own.

There are a lot of guys here who could reccomend a lot of great reloading gear. Reloading is not dangerous if you pay attention to what you are doing.

petemi · « **Reply #28 on:** January 06, 2011, 02:52:58 AM »

The .45-70 almost demands to be reloaded for. It is very versatile and you can't take full advantage of it with factory ammo. Besides, it's fun, and you can save over half the cost of over the counter ammo. I've found it doesn't take long to get back the cost of your reloadiing equipment and supplies.

Pete

Catshooter45 · « **Reply #29 on:** January 06, 2011, 10:11:30 AM »

Since I cast the savings is even greater. Lee still makes their Wack-a-Loader and it works well with the 45-70. My practice loads cost me less than a nickel each. My lead was free, the primers were $13.50 @ 1000 and powder was $12.25 and there's 450 to a pound.

Cat