Suggestions on reloading 45-70

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Rafter-S

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I am looking for suggestions on reloading 45-70 caliber. I have a Ruger #1 rifle and am primarily interested in loading 300 or 350 grain cast lead bullets. Such as who to order quality bullets from, powder recommendations, etc. I am experienced in reloading jacketed bullets in 30-06, .243, 30-30, and 8x57. I have 4895 and 3031 powders, but am not opposed to getting another powder for the 45-70.

Thanks in advance.

Rafter-S
 
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Rafter-S,

If I may be so bold as to ask the question: "Why be so limited?"

The 45/70 has been my friend for going on 20 years now and I find it to be a most versatile and fun cartridge to reload and shoot. My question is in regards to bullet choices.

Buy some Remington 405 grain jacketed bullets, cheap and the animals just fall over dead every time and plenty accurate.

Hornady's 350 grain round nose jacketed bullet can be driven as fast as you want to and will hold together on deer and elk size game and have proven very accurate in my guns, as well.

And for cast bullets, there are plenty on the web but if you can find yourself a local BPCA shooter they might be persuaded to part with some big bullets. You start shooting the 500 grain (and up) cast bullets at moderate velocity and you will find the true accuracy potential of the 45/70 and they hit like a freight train.

Just throwing in my .02.

Get yourself an older Lyman reloading manual, they have a great treatment of this cartridge and list a lot of cast bullet loads.

I honestly can't give any recommendations on cast bullets from experience as I cast all my own. If you would like to try some of mine drop me an email, I don't have anything as light as 300 grains.
 
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I have owned a couple .45/70's, including a Ruger #1, and the Marlin 1985. I am looking to buy another Marlin. I liked the Remington 405's as well. I used to be able to buy them quite cheaply at the gun shows, but not anymore. I have taken hogs with the Rem 405, and it is incredible what it does to one.:eek: I never bothered with lead simply because I could get the Rem's so cheap.
I have had great success with RL-7, RL-12 and H-322 in this round, especially under the 400-405 grain bullets.

Also, I have had awesome results using 2400 under 300 grain jacketed HP's at 2200 FPS.

I worked up to a max load in my Marlin with 64 grains of H-322 under the 405 Rem, for 2060 fps at 15' from the muzzle. Cases ejected easily, no flattened primers etc. I know those aren't the best way to check pressure, but they were the only means available to me at that time.

41.5 grains of H-2400 under the 300 Rem HP gave 2200 fps at 15'.

Both of the above loads used Remington 9 1/2 primers, and W-W cases.

In my Ruger #1 I got the following-

63 grains of RL-7 Rem 300 HP Fed 210 R-P cases 2331 fps @ 15'

62 grains of RL-7 Rem 405 SP Fed 210 R-P cases 2280 fps @ 15'

Using a Williams peep sight, all of the above loads gave groups that were right at 1.1" - 1.5" at 50 yards for 5 shots.

I know these were all jacketed loads, but by starting about 10% below these loads, and working up it will give you some idea of what to expect anyway.:)

Edited to add:
All of the loads I posted above have been printed in either published loading manuals, John Taffin articles in his books or monthly columns in the magazines he writes for, or in Handloader magazine. They were all pressure tested and listed as to which firearm they are safe for use in. It is the responsibility of the user of ANY load to verify its safety and that it is correct for their firearm.
 
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if you want low recoil type rounds,then get some accurate 5744 and follow their loading instructions as to weights. i shoot these from a 45-70 highwall and an 86 lever gun and they are quite adequate for targets and playing with. this powder also works well with most rifle calibers for reduced loads. i even used it for reduced power ammo in 416 rigby and was accurate at around 1500-1600 fps.
 
Rafter-S said:
I am looking for suggestions on reloading 45-70 caliber. I have a Ruger #1 rifle and am primarily interested in loading 300 or 350 grain cast lead bullets. Such as who to order quality bullets from, powder recommendations, etc. I am experienced in reloading jacketed bullets in 30-06, .243, 30-30, and 8x57. I have 4895 and 3031 powders, but am not opposed to getting another powder for the 45-70.

Thanks in advance.

Rafter-S
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Rafter-S
A good place to look for loads for that rifle would be over on this site.

Cartridge Loads - Hodgdon Reloading Data Center - data.hodgdon.com
They have three seperate sections for 45-70 loads.
Trapdoor Rifles
Lever Actions
Modern Rifles
The Trapdoor Rifle section has loads for the cast bullets. I have used Varget, H4198, and A5744 and all three perform well with cast. I have not used 3031 myself but I know there are those that do use in the 45-70 and are pleased with it. As Hodgdon now handles IMR powders it is listed in their 45-70 data as well.
Another forum with a lot of 45-70 shooters is this one.
Marlin Owners - Index
The have a section dedicated just to the 45-70
The only bullets I have loaded for my Marlin 45-70 are cast. I started with the Oregon Trail 405 grain bullet and it performed just fine for me. I then ventured into casting and have been using my own cast bullets since.
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The 45-70 is a very flexible and versatile round, perhaps even more so than my .458 Win. As you probably know, in a strong action like the No. 1, the 45-70 can handle anything that walks.

I have successfully used 300gr Meister cast slugs and I think Cabela's or Midway has some good prices on Laser Cast 350gr slugs.

For a plinking load, Trail Boss does a very nice job. For higher power rounds, Hodgdon has a wide variety of loads to choose from. Don
 
Rafter-S said:
I am looking for suggestions on reloading 45-70 caliber. I have a Ruger #1 rifle and am primarily interested in loading 300 or 350 grain cast lead bullets. Such as who to order quality bullets from, powder recommendations, etc. I am experienced in reloading jacketed bullets in 30-06, .243, 30-30, and 8x57. I have 4895 and 3031 powders, but am not opposed to getting another powder for the 45-70.

Thanks in advance.

Rafter-S
Click to expand...
I load 3031 under 300gr-340gr LFP in my Marlin 1895G. Pretty easy to get 1800fps in the stubby barrel & w/ a 2x scout scope, 2" groups @ 100yds is amazingly easy, heavy trigger & all.
 
38 gr. of H4895 behind a 500 gr. lead slug pretty much replicates the government load of the late 19th century and works well with the Buffington sight on the last version of the trapdoor. Reference the article in the Gun Digest of 1973 by Frank Barnes.

Regards,

Tam 3
 
reloading 45-70

I agree with others, you have a wide range with the 45-70. I have a Turk. mauser that I have reloaded everything from 350 gr. hp to 500 gr. cast gas check. You can load light for plinking to heavy (within reason) for even more fun.
 
AA 5744 is the best powder I have found for cast bullets in 45-70. I usually put 27 gr with 350-405 gr bullets. Works great in everything I've tried it in.
 
I have two B78 Brownings in 45-70 and load 300 grain Sierra JHP's over a max load (and then some) of IMR 3031. With the scoped B78 I can shoot 3 shot groups well under an inch at 100 yards. Oh, and deer can't stand it!

J.B.
 
Bought my first .45-70 in 1977, through the Balboa (Panama) Gun Club when I was an airman there. Still have that Marlin 1895, and a Harrington & Richardson copy of the 1873 Springfield. Both fine rifles.
Advice?
I have plenty:
1. Don't use any loads recommended on the internet until you've checked them against the manufacturer of that particular bullet, powder or rifle. Be very wary of those who claim to "safely" load it to velocities well beyond what the books publish. Ask them what kind of pressures their load generated, and what ballistics lab they used. The condition of the case or primer are unreliable indicators of pressure.
2. Avoid the temptation to "hot rod" the .45-70. I know your Ruger is particularly strong, and you'll have more leeway for safety, but I address this to Marlin owners too. It's a big, .45-caliber bullet for heck's sake, no animal's going to notice 100 to 200 fps difference.
3. Dismiss wild claims about super-duper bullets. Buffalo hunters killed those huge animals with .45-70s loaded with 400 to 500-grain lead bullets loafing along at 1,100 to 1,300 fps.
4. Have fun with it. It's a magnificent cartridge, versatile and tinker-worthy. I've loaded three Speer .457 balls in one case, made my own shotshells, and used Remington, hollow-based 250 gr. lead bullets for short-range plinking. Not every load you fire has to be buckin' and bellowin'.
5. Be prepared to be addicted. Been shooting and reloading mine since 1977. I'm hooked!
 
All this talk of cast bullets makes me think I need work up a cast bullet load for this!

IMG_0720-1.jpg
 
Since I started reloading for my Marlin 1895S .45-70gov, I have worked with IMR3031, H4198, Reloader 7, and IMR4198 using a variety of bullets ranging from .300 TSX, .350 JSP (Hornady & Swift) through .400 JSP and .405 hard cast bullets. After sending scores of these various loads downrange over the chronograph, I have settled on 2 favorite powders - IMR3031 and IMR4198. These two powders have given me the most consistent results. I get great accuracy from both, whether I drive them slower or faster.

My two favorite loads use the following components:

.405gr WLNGC
IMR3031
R-P cases
CCI BR-2 primer
@2.545 COL

.350gr Swift A-Frame (or Hornady .350gr JFP)
IMR4198
W-W cases
CCI BR-2 primer
@2.545 COL

I did not provide the measure of powder that I am using with these loads because your Ruger #1 and my Marlin 1895S are quite different firearms. It is always best to work up loads that best suit your own rifle and purposes. My "sweet spot" will most likely be different than yours. I mention these component selections because I got consistent accuracy over a wider range of velocities. I frequently carry the .350gr loads hunting here in Alaska, but would not hesitate to carry the .405gr WLNGC in some of the brushier, less open areas that I might hunt in.

Two additional notes:

The .405gr WLNGC bullets were kept under 1600 fps due to the fact that my gun sports a Micro Groove barrel instead of the standard Ballard style rifling. With the Micro Groove barrel, the hard cast bullets really do begin to wander in their accuracy as you cross that 1600 fps threshold.

For the .350gr Swift A-Frames, I did not have any load data to work with. These bullets have a longer bearing surface than the Hornady .350gr JSPs so the pressures should be greater for any given powder increment. For this reason, I studied other published .350gr JSP loads and began with an appropriate start load and made sure I stopped well below the published maximums for the other .350gr JSPs.
 
I load for a bolt action Siamese Mauser converted to .45-70 and for a Browning repro of the 1886 Winchester. I used to have a 1970's Marlin.

My favorite bullet is a cast, gas-checked RCBS mould that throws bullets of about 400-410 grains depending on alloy I use.

IMR-3031 is excellent, both for accuracy and velocity/pressure.

Lots of good, safe, tested data in the major reloading manuals, broken down into pressure levels appropriate for several classes of rifles, usually Trapdoors and old lever actions, modern lever actions like the Marlin and Browning/Winchester, and Ruger single shots and Mauser 98-type bolt actions.

It's a fun round.
 
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