Newbie!

[oldgeezershooter]

Found this site while surfing looking for lead loads fo my 45-70.
I own three 45-70's A pederssoli Quigley with DGW 30" brass scope, a Ruger#1 and a Magnum research wheel gun.
Hoping to glean a wealth of information, especially since there aren't that many sites for good lead loads.
(p.s.) I live about two miles from a cowboy action shooting range, but haven't signed up yet.

[ph4570]

geezer,

Welcome. You have come to the right place for good info.

[oldracer]

Boy oh boy, you have no idea how deep the water is you just jumped into is!!! So far it has been one of the most interesting things I have done over many years as for example I bought a Rolling Block last summer and it took me about 6 months to work out a really good load for it. On a rest it will shoot 1in groups at 200 yds with the tang sights that are on it. I had to have it worked on some but I learned a ton of stuff from the gunsmith that did the trigger job and aligned everything. I have said the black powder cartridge shooting is about 85% real stuff and 15% black magic and many agree with me and some do not.

Here's what I learned:

- Experiment with EVERYTHING, powder brand, bullet shape and weight, powder compression, type of wad, type of primer, type of case, fire-form or resize and the list goes on.
- Get a subscription to Black Powder Cartridge Magazine and if you can afford it, buy all the back issues as there is a ton of info in there.
- Beware of someone that says "that never works" or is very negative about something.
- You do not have to use what the match winners use as next year someone may come along and use something way different.
- Become a bullet caster as it makes this whole mess much more fun.
- And I have found black powder seems to be no more dangerous than smokeless and there are those who say it is but if you follow the safety rules it will be okay.

Finally, be ready to be the center of attention when you haul out those "buffalo guns" since the guys with the AR-15s and shotguns are always amazed that those "cannons" can shoot like that!

Welcome aboard for sure.

[thegreatdane]

welcome! I'm sure you'll be addicted in no time. you'll sure learn a lot!

[NickSS]

Welcome aboard. The 45-70 is a great cartridge to load with lead bullets which is what it was intended to use from its birth in 1873. Whether you are using smokeless or black powder you can get good loads that will surprise you with their accuracy. With black powder you really get the flavor of what the old timers did and getting a load that works in your rifle can be fun as well as frustrating at times. I have been shooting Black powder in that caliber for over 20 years and still am experimenting. The funny thing is that I have found good accurate loads with almost any type of black powder, wads, bullets and primers I have tried. Paper patching has come back big and is growing among shooters that shoot long ranges in windy areas due to the slightly better ballistic coefficients of those bullets. One thing is sure you will never know what will work in your gun unless you try it yourself. I have tried all sorts of loads that others have given me and some work well and others never live up to their press. With smokeless powder you can load a 45-70 like your ruger up to a point that you will get a nose bleed from recoil and and black and blue shoulder if not dilocated altogether. Personally I do not enjoy getting the stuffing beat out of me that much.

I will give you one load that I tried today in my C Sharps 1875 sporting rifle in 45-70. It was an RCBS 45-325-FN bullet sized ,459 and propelled with 15 gr of Hurco and a Winchester large rifle primer. At 200 yards I shot five of them into a 2 inch group and then knoked over 10 silhouette targets in a row with nice solid hits at the same distance. It was gangs of fun and a nice mild load in my 9.5 pound rifle

[sav300]

Welcome Geezer,have fun and enjoy.

[montana_charlie]

Geezer,
You planted your thread in the "Single Shot Guns" forum, and it's a natural selection ... especially for the two rifles.
However, if you intend to load with black powder, the next forum down is a better choice.

The "Black Powder Cartridge" forum is more specific to that type of load, and any Sharps should feel right home there.

If it's your plan to use smokeless, you are in the right spot.

CM

[littlejack]

Geezer:
Welcome to the CastBoolits.
I'm very partial to my 45-70 and the charcoal loads myself. Lots of fun.
Jack

[Gtek]

Hi, my name is Larry and I have a LEAD addiction. Welcome aboard, great group here!
It is the hunt, it stinks. You have to load up rounds and go to range and shoot a bunch, it is terrible.
Then you will want another caliber and it starts all over. Run, run now while you can. It just gets more fun the deeper you get! Gtek

[oldgeezershooter]

I tend to lean more towards smokeless for most loads.
I use the rifles for hunting and have worked up some good accurate loads with 405gr. Meister boolits and 250-300gr. Barnes spitzer and flat points.I just finished loading some 458 Socom 300gr.boolits with 58gr. rx7 for elk, I'm going to try them out this afternoon.
My load for the 405 lead boolits is 50gr. of Varget,accurate load. I shot some old propane tanks at 300yds. with the Quigley and once dialed in I rolled them every shot and the exit hole was about 3" in diameter.