marlin preferance of bullet 45-70

[acsteve]

I'm new to casting, do appreciat quaility though. I need advice on a bullet mold for an xlr marlin. I like the look of beartooth/lbt type bullets, have a ranch dog and read good things about RCBS 405s. I want to stay in the trap door range of performance, 1200-1700fps. Mostly plinking a deer on occation. Anyone have preference between LBT, Rcbs, Hoch 405 fp gc? or would 300 rcbs gc be a better choice? I'm looking to do a lot of off hand shooting and not classic benchrest type shooting. Been though that with 30-06s and my hunting is in the thick anyway.

[1894CL]

I've got the Ranch Dog 350gr mould and can't imagine a better 45-70 bullet! That said I've shot a lot of the Lee 340grPB and if you keep them under 1400fps or so they've shot great, no leading and a bit cheaper without the gas check. Lee liquid alox is the only lube I use, give them a couple coats.

[Winger Ed.]

I loaded up a bunch of 405 grainers that clock in at 1,600 from my long barreled Marlin CB.
They are punishing to shoot without a big jacket on or a kitchen hot pad on your shoulder.
However, they are great for hunting. I've shot a couple of deer with them. When hit low on the shoulder bone, they get flipped right off thier feet, and the lungs look like red oatmeal.

If I had it to do again, I'd have gotten a 300-ish grain mold for my 45-70 instead of the 405.

Ohhh--
Something that's a hoot is load the 405 with 70gr. of real 'black powder' for rifles.
They come out of mine at 1275fps, no pressure signs at all, and are pleasant to shoot.
Yeah, its a unholy mess and a hassel with the extra cleaning & all, but sure is fun too.

.

[jtaylor1960]

I shoot a NEI #337 350gr. that drops at 420gr. with WW alloy.Shoots very well with 45.0grs. of RL-7.The bullet feeds well.The only drawback being there is no crimp groove.I use a Lee crimp die. It allows you to adjust your O.A.L.

[Maven]

acsteve, Here's what my .45-70 Marlin (microgroove + 4X scope) will do with plain based cast bullets. The white "diamond" target shows a 345gr. Lee CB; the red one a 460gr. LBT CB. The loads were 13gr. of Unique and 17gr. of WC 820, respectively.

[Jon K]

1895CB-
I'm using the Saeco #015 300 grain PB w/28 gr 5744,Fed GM215M, sized .459, 1409 fps, 9 sd.

Attached photo 200m - shots 1-4 and 1 click down for correction shot #5(Marbles Tang sight). This was first time out to the range.

[Winger Ed.]

That's some good shoot'n Jon. (you too Maven)

But I figure the first shot would have killed it.
How are ya going to cook that thing anyway?

.

[charger 1]

I run both the 350 LBT WFN and the RCBS 405 through mine, and its a real toss up as to which I like best. As to which the marlins like best, there both one holers. Theres a saying around here....If you want to have a good day at the range, take a marlin...
I honestly think those things will shoot jelly beans accurately

[Dale53]

I have had excellent results with the Lee 340 gr PB (1.5" at 100 yards off the bench with a 4 power scope in my Marlin 1895 with Ballard Rifling) using an appropriate charge of 4198. RL-7 is now my powder of choice for relatively "stout" loads as iit measures so well and just flat works well in most of these older black powder rounds.

One thing I have not done with the Marlin, but have shot a great deal with various strong single shot rifles, is to shoot duplex, with a 10% charge of smokeless behind a case full of 2F black powder. This will give you somewhat above straight black powder velocity with excellent accuracy for genuine "all day" results. No blow tube or wiping, Just load and shoot.

I first determine what a "case full" of black powder weighs. Then I reduce it by 10% and replace that 10% with RL-7. I use a compression die, and shoot two five shot groups, then increase the black powder by 2.0 grs and try again. I use a 30/1 lead/tin PB bullet lubed with Emmert's Home Mix. Typically, the group will be a bit wide, then as powder is added (this increases compression) the group will tighten. As more black powder is added the groups will start to widen. That is when you stop and "fine tune". This can be done in one range session by pre-loading the cases. I even made up a duplex powder measure, using components from a discarded Mec shotgun press. When using a case full of black powder or a similar duplex load, I use a .060" LDPE wad under the bullet. This prevents bullet base damage on plain base bullets and reduces flyers.

Black Powder clean up is greatly exaggerated. After shooting all day, the drill is to run two or three patches wet with your choice of "Black Powder" solvent, then a couple of dry patches, then a preservative (Break Free or equivalent). That takes all of five minutes. When I shot NRA Silhouette using straight black powder, clean up was the same (except that I had to use a blow tube and I found it best to wipe after each bank of targets - that is, after fifteen shots or so).

I MUCH prefer the lighter bullets for general use. The heavier bullets will beat you to death if you do a lot of shooting at one session. I would take on deer, black bear, and Elk with a 350 gr bullet without any doubt of good results if I did my part.

My latest adventure will be with the Ranch Dog 350 gr bullet. I will start with his load recommendations and go on from there. Mostly, I am happy with relatively mild loads and rather light bullets (300-350grs) for general use simply because they are much more comfortable to shoot. The Marlin lever action or the Ruger #1 and #3 can be loaded with heavier bullets to the point that you feel like your retinas are about to detach! I have a good deal of experience with heavy recoiling rifles up to and including the .458 Winchester and that no longer interests me much (been there and done that).

In the end, with the flexibility that we have as cast bullet reloaders, the 45/70 can give us just about anything we wish, from mild to wild. It is a grand cartridge. When coupled with a Marlin lever action or a good, strong single shot it is almost without peer.

Dale53

[beemer]

I have a Lyman 457643, it is a plain base boolit that was designed for the Marlin 45-70. The crimp groove is in the proper place to give the correct oal. My loads are in the trapdoor range so I didn't need a gas check. The mould pours 410 grs. so it does give you a good thump when fired and is a little tuff on the lead supply,but it does shoot very well. My other mould is the Lee 340.I haven't shot it much but I think that will be on the to do list. The older I get the more recoil sensitive I have become so the lighter boolit will help. I borrowed a RCBS 405 gas check bullet , it was very accurate but again I felt I didn't need the GC. My rifle is fitted with a Marbles tang sight and a Lyman 17A , you can do good work with it off a bench.

beemer

[Castinoff]

Great info here for my Marlin 1895. I use the Lee 340 gr. myself.
Thanks guys.

[Nardoo]

I had good luck with a number of cast bullets in my Marlin. Best were the RCBS 405 GC and the Lyman 457-122 HP. I also used the the 457-124 and the same bullet hollow pointed but the gun did not love them. The 300 gn Lee was only OK at low velocity. But all bullets shot well for practical purposes.

I only wish my Ruger #1 in 45/70 was as accomadating - she surely is a fussy bitch. But so much fun. Do not forget Jim's CBE moulds. I have a number of his and the 458-405 GC FN would have to be the best game bullet I have ever seen.
Check them out on:
http://www.castbulletengineering.big...om/default.htm

He is a great bloke and they are the best moulds you have ever used.

Here is a target I shot with some pretty heavy loads. I know they are only 3 shot groups but it was all I could stand:

Nardoo

[lovedogs]

Alas, I don't own a Marlin .45-70 but have real good results using a Saeco 350 gr. RNFPGC in a Buffalo Classic and I bet it'd feed great in a lever gun.