Ruger #1,how is it with cast?

[madcaster]

Considering options again-sigh,sigh.....:mrgreen:
Anyways,any of you have any experience with the factory barrel in .45/70 shooting 405-550 grain bullets?
How did it go with black powder-not smokeless-loads?
Thank you all for any comments!:coffee:
Jeff,home of a wandering mind,empty,but wandering...

[Nardoo]

Jeff,
I have a Ruger #1 that I use smokeless in. Initially it shot badly with cast despite trying a variety of moulds. The best results were with .462" diameter bullets as at least they struck the target end on - most others were key-holing. Accuracy was still nothing to be proud of though.

Whilst slugging the bore I discovered tight/rough spots under the barrel band and front sight band. As I had determined to rebarrel anyway I had a go at fire lapping as a last resort. I now have a long throated 45/70 (is this bad?) with a very shiny, smooth bore that shoots .461" bullets at high velocity into very small groups. No need to rebarrel now.

This is my hunting rifle and have not tried black powder but am confident it would be OK. I have my 45/90 Sharpes shooting 1 1/4 MOA with cast bullets and Wano PP despite a very new barrel.

http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p317/nardoo/100_1236.jpg
These groups were at 50 metres and if you will notice the velocity you will understand how proud I was of them as I could barely hold that little 7 lb gun down. By the way 2206H is H4895 and 2206 is virtually 3031.

I know I will get some negative feedback regarding the firelapping business but I am reporting honestly what I found. Maybe your 45/70 will be fine out of the box.

Here is my Ruger with and old Roller that is just so much fun to shoot - how do you like the stockwork on this old baby?:-D

http://i131.photobucket.com/albums/p317/nardoo/100_0112.jpg

[9.3X62AL]

I have a Ruger #1 in 45-70 as well, IIRC it was purchased c. 1994. It has had a wide range of usage, from Hornady 350 grain bullets at 1950 FPS (about as much fun as tackling LaDanian Tomlinson) to black powder loads using 55.0 grains of Goex 2F and the Lee 405 plain base with 30:1 alloy. This last load has done the rifle's best work ever--1.25" at 100 yards with irons and confirmed with 4X glass sights. A few 5-shot groups went into 1" to 1.125"--and a few spanned 1.5"--but 1.25" was a more certain average. I don't think I can shoot iron sights that well now.

The Ruger #1 can safely contain stout loadings. But in the same way that mountain roads have self-maintaining speed limits due to curves and cliff edges, a #1 owner soon learns that heavy loads exact a price in recoil. My example weighs 7.25 pounds. 1873-level loads are all-day shooters in the #1, and these loads make up 95% of my shooting these days. My quest has been to find a smokeless load that equals the blackpowder load's accuracy and reaches the 1300 FPS level claimed for the 405 grain boolit. My accurate BP loads run about 1100 FPS using Goex.

Currently, my go-to load uses the same Lee 405 grain plain base in 92/6/2 alloy, which barely gets to .459" to match the rifle's throat and grooves. This "Taracorp" alloy isn't required for pressure control, but to get the castings fattened to match the Ruger's internal dimensions. I have likely run 2500 of these castings through the Ruger, and the Lee mould has held up so far. I duplex-load 6.0 grains of IMR-4198 under 44.0 grains of WC-860 (AKA, "Filler With Attitude") and this concoction shoots clean and gives the 1873 velocities I seek. The load's accuracy seems to match that of the BP loads.

My next stunt with the #1 x 45-70 will entail use of the Lyman #462560 I recently acquired, complete with hollow-point pin and filler pin to make "solids" with. A prior experiment with this design in a mould rented from Onceabull showed these boolits to shoot very well in my rifle, but at higher velocities they really beat you up. I think these Version 2.0 castings will stay sub-sonic.

Be advised that the Ruger #1's chamber has what is called the "government ballseat", which means a very short throat and abrupt rifling leade. Trapdoors, Marlin 95s, and the Ruger #1 do some very good cast boolit work with these ballseats, but trust me--paper patching is OUT. Also, most 45-70s have grooves wider than most moulds cast their boolits at. That's OK for lead-tin alloys that bump up under pressure, but lead/tin/antimony alloys don't bump up much--if at all. The standard .457" castings need fattening--are you listening, Lyman/RCBS?

[725]

No need to appologise for fire lapping. Had a brand new Remington .308 heavy barrel that patterened 165 gr "J" bullets. A few rounds rolled in #1200 abrasive snapped it into a sub-MOA performer.

[James C. Snodgrass]

Mines in a 458 Lott Tropical. I've shot the lee 405,500gc,500sp. I've got better groups than I ought to with all of them, it will put 5 into 1.25moa .Ive been using Trailboss 17grs gets 1100fps with the 500sp . I've ran the gc500 up to 2400fps and like they say its a handfull at that speed but not bad at 2000fps I size at .459

[Char-Gar]

Nardoo... Ruger has a chronic ongoing problem with heat scale in the barrels where front sights and bands are soldered on. I have had two NIB Ruger handguns with this problem. I sent them both back and Ruger replaced the barrel no charge and paid the shipping both ways.

I know this has been going on for at least 15 years and know of others who have had the same problem. As many barrels as they have to replace with heat scale, you would think they would have fixed the problem by now.

Ruger doesn't raise a fuss when you tell them you have a barrel with heat scale in it and want a new barrel. They are used to it by now.

[Char-Gar]

Madcaster... I have a #3 in 45-70 and it shoots cast bullets like a champ.

[waksupi]

There is no reason to develop heat scale in a barrel, when doing high temp soldering. Insert a piece of stick near bore diameter, that extends at least six inches either way of the heated area. There will be no scale.

[MT Gianni]

There is no reason to develop heat scale in a barrel, when doing high temp soldering. Insert a piece of stick near bore diameter, that extends at least six inches either way of the heated area. There will be no scale.

Please explain Ric. Are you referring to a piece of wood or a weld rod? Gianni

[waksupi]

A plain old piece of wood. The carbon burning off the wood, keeps the metal from scaling.

[Char-Gar]

Tis true there is no reason to develop heat scale and there are several ways of preventing it. But Ruger doesn't seem to pay as much attention to this as they should. There is no reason for scale to be there, but it is in a certain small percentage of Ruger barrels.

[brshooter]

Actually heat scale is one of the easiest things in the world to control in the interior of a barrel. I'm a refrigeration and HVAC person, and in high temp brazing of copper on A/C or refrigeration systems the last thing you want is heat scale in the tubing, leads to premature failure of entire system. We use nitrogen to plurge the air out of the system, and keep it running while brazing. Less than a 1/8 of an oz. pressure (less than 2 in. water column) is sufficent, excess pressure will blow the brazing material out of the joint.