5744 in the 45-70 BFR

[44man]

Junk, junk, junk! :-? I loaded a pile of boolits, 378 gr PB with this powder. I went to over max but it shot the best at around 30 gr's. Any increase opened groups a LOT. Every case dumped a pile of unburned powder on the bench. My gun was filthy with carbon so thick in the bore and chambers it took 2 hours to clean the gun. Cases were black. Every increase dropped the point of impact lower and lower until I was at the bottom of the paper but groups did nothing but get worse.
I then tried RX7 and had unburned powder and the same type groups. half a grain would open wide and another half would tighten a little, back and forth. Nothing I would rely on.
I then went to the best powder I found for the gun after cleaning it again, 4759. I shot 75 rounds and every case is clean, the gun is clean and all groups were close from 25 to 29.5 gr's. No jumps, no pressure signs with all brass falling out of the gun. The best was a tad over 1" with the rest never going over 1-1/4" at 50 yd's. The point of impact was near the same for all loads. I still want to work up some more.
After trying about every powder made in this revolver, 4759 is still the best.
I then went to a 448 gr boolit Dubber sent me and at 26 gr's of 4759 I got a nice 23/32" group. I still need to go up to see what it will do. I had a gradual tightening of groups as I worked up.

[Dr. A]

I must say, 44man, that your posts have kept me from getting the 45-70 BFR. My 454 has shot every load I've given it. ( some that shouldn't have worked). Granted, I'm not as picky as you, but I am able to hit 200 yard swingers with most of these loads. My 45-70's are easy to feed and please as long as I pay close attention to velocity and need for gas checks. The short barrel issue has me bothered. Perhaps I'll do like my brother and just get the 475.

[44man]

DR A, I only have trouble when trying the slower powders. Because of the cylinder gap, stuff that works in rifles or TC's will not work in the revolver. 4759 works for everything I have shot. I have had groups that I can't believe but I just have to try other stuff. I post to save others the trials of powders that have not worked for me. Now that I am expanding the boolit weights I still find 4759 is the best. If there is one powder for this revolver, that is it. (It is true that some of the powders gave decent hunting accuracy.) Same as 296 is the only one for the .475 although for a reduced load, HS-6 is also great.
The .475 BFR will shoot anything over 400 gr's as long as you stick to those two powders.
I find this is true for every revolver from .44, .45 and up. There are only 1 or 2 powders that give me what I want.
However, being a rifle cartridge, the 45-70 should have a wider range to work with. But I find it is no different then any other revolver cartridge.
With the load I always use, I have no problems hitting beer cans at 100 yd's. I love the gun and will never part with it. I just can't stop experimenting. And it is death on deer!
5744 messes up my mind because it supposed to be as easy to ignite as black powder. I find that it is not unless you have a rifle to shoot it in. I have gone to as slow as Varget and it shot great, clean and fast with only a few pieces of unburned powder. 3031 shot great and clean but very slow with more unburned powder. 5744 left as much fouling as black powder. It is REALLY dirty unless you hold the boolit back more.
The gun is extremely accurate as long as you stick to basics. I have too many 9/16" groups at 50 yd's, 1" at 100 and I put 3 out of 5 in 2" at 500 yd's to say the gun is bad and hard to shoot. I am learning that even very heavy boolits shoot great as long as I stick to 4759. The bad part is that nobody has worked with the gun and loads are the devil to find. Every magazine has shied away from BFR's even though they are the best and most accurate I have ever shot. They are over sized Rugers with much tighter specs. If I was rich, I would have one of each of every gun they make.
And you will not go wrong with the .475 either, much easier to work loads.
If you are like me, you will have to have both.

[44man]

I have a stack of Handloader magazines as high as I am. Ruger, S&W and Freedom are the only revolvers in the whole pile. Any other guns are shot with factory loads and there is not a single BFR ever tested or loads worked for. I called and asked and the guy got ****ty with me. I almost dropped the magazine. Magnum Research does not advertize in most magazines so they are ignored.

[wiljen]

Just for the record 5744 in my contender was just as bad as you describe. May not be a matter of cylinder gap. Mine dumped unburnt crap into the action every time I removed a case and left enough crap in the barrel to build a bird nest. I went back to Unique,3031, and Varget.

[Maven]

Although I'd use 5744 exclusively as a CB powder in my rifles if I could purchase it locally, I tried it only once in my .357mag. following Accurate Arms' data. Lots of unburned powder, soot, and substandard velocity (not even close to what AA suggested): Never again!

[44man]

It is good to hear I am not alone. To tell the truth, I have a drawer full of accurate powders and never had luck in any gun with them. They will be in there when I die of old age.