45-70 BPCR barrel length and rear sight recommendation

[smoked turkey]

If you were having a new 45-70 single shot rifle made just for you, would you opt for a 30" or 34" barrel. Also would you have it include both a tang mounted vernier sight and a rear barrel mounted sight. Assume your new rifle would be used mostly for short to medium range targets (say 100-400 yards), and a possibility of a limited amount of big game hunting. I realize that there are no "correct" or "incorrect" answers. I am just looking for opinions from a group experienced in shooting the single shot rifle. For the sake of this question, let us assume the new rifle would be an 1874 Sharps from either Shiloh or C. Sharps. I'd appreciate your comments on this mythical rifle as some day it might become a reality. Thanks for your input.

[Paul_R]

I have an 1885 with a 34" barrel which I love but I can't hardly walk through the house without clipping something. It's definitely not a woods gun, at least not for me. Same with my 33" roller.

[StrawHat]

...If you were having a new 45-70 single shot rifle made just for you,...

If it were being built " ...just for me... ", it would have a 28" round barrel on it. Built for you, harder to answer as you have not given us much to work with.

Kevin

[country gent]

Keep in mind there are severl considerations on barrel length to consider when making this deccision. The longer barrel will have a longer sight radious making it easier to shoot well. Wieght is an issue also, What do you want the rifle to wiegh in at when finished.My pedersoli sharps with 34" half round barrel ( Cabellas long range model) is about 1/2 lb over weight limits for NRA shillouette. My hepburn with tapered octogan barrel 34" long is a few ounces under. Balance can be another thing affected by barrel length, the wieght of 4" of barrel way out there makes a big diffrence in how a rifle hangs when shooting offhand. Carry ability is also affected as an extra 4" will snag alot more. I would have the barrel sight installed also, Along with a good midrange soule type vernieer rear and globe front. For a hunting gun Consider the 28 or 30 barrel (This also depend on type of hunting being done, stand blind stalking) From a blind the 34" would offer advantages, Stal;king and carrying a little shorter lighter wieght may be a plus. Alot of times when these old rifles were used it was from a stand or ground blind no carrying or walking. Rifle set on the sticks and ran till skinners had a days work. Then cleaned and back on the horse or in the wagon. A single shot with 34" heavy barrel can end up around 13lbs to 14Lbs pretty quick a 30" may be around 11lbs-12lbs. All things to consider when deciding this.

[Don McDowell]

If you were having a new 45-70 single shot rifle made just for you, would you opt for a 30" or 34" barrel. Also would you have it include both a tang mounted vernier sight and a rear barrel mounted sight. Assume your new rifle would be used mostly for short to medium range targets (say 100-400 yards), and a possibility of a limited amount of big game hunting. I realize that there are no "correct" or "incorrect" answers. I am just looking for opinions from a group experienced in shooting the single shot rifle. For the sake of this question, let us assume the new rifle would be an 1874 Sharps from either Shiloh or C. Sharps. I'd appreciate your comments on this mythical rifle as some day it might become a reality. Thanks for your input.

30 inch standard weight barrel. Shotgun buttstock if you think you might shoot from prone. Yes have it fitted with the tang sight at the factory. You can always take that sight off for informal target shooting and hunting purposes, and use the barrel mounted sights for the majority of the time. Also have the globe front sight sent with the rifle , just incase you want to get real serious on the target shooting thing.

[smoked turkey]

Much thanks those who responded to my mythical 1874 Sharps questions. I do have one on my want list and am trying to hone down just how I would want to configure it. Seems to me the answers hit it on the head and verifies my thinking. Only difference you have already done it and I am dreaming about doing it. I figured a 30" barrel would be about the limit for hunting and yet give good long range accuracy but not as good as a 34" heavy. If used for hunting I thought the barrel mounted buckhorn sight would be good to have. The front barrel sight was not mentioned by me but I am considering a globe with .025" post. The sight that has the built in level is considerably more expensive and I thought the .025" post would be adequate. Does that sound right to those in the know? Thanks for chiming in on this additional bit of information.

[Area Man]

I inheirited a rolling block with a 30" half round barrel and a vernier sight for longer range target shooting. Never thought I'd hunt with it but they changed the laws here in OH and we can now hunt with rifles chambered for a straight walled cartridge. I added a buckhorn sight and can use that for hunting but still use the target sight when applicable. I'd ballpark it close to 12lbs so it's a bit on the heavy side but when I bow hunt I've got a good 60lbs worth of gear so I'm used to lugging weight through the woods. If I was having one custom built I think the only change I'd make is a double set trigger.

[country gent]

That roller is a fine rifle and should be a great shooter. Lee SHaver does a great trigger job on them, If I remeber corectly you only need to send him the trigger group. Ive been told a double set trigger on rollers requires some machining of the reciever also. Ive thought about a ground blind on the farm and deer hunting this year with the Hepburn in 45-90. ( northwest Ohio here) but the problem will be if I get one my mobility issues make it almost imposible for me to field dress and load. Last deer I took in the middle of a stubble field went up to farm got tractor and loader. Scooped it up and hung in barn to field dress, LOL. Made "dragging" deer out real easy. Contact Lee Shaver and see about his trigger work I dont think hes all that expensive and from the ones Ive felt he did a great job on them.

[rfd]

strictly personal preference, they're almost all better shooters than the person behind the trigger.

for a non-offhand target bp rifle off x-sticks, i prefer long and heavy and that's what my 34" 12-1/2lb pedi roller allows.

for offhand, it's my 30" 11-1/2lb pedi roller.

all must have double set triggers, too.

whatever feels best, will probably be "best".

[EDG]

If you are going to shoot mostly targets a heavy barrel (12 lbs) helps reduce the recoil from the most accurate bullets - the 500+ grain bullets

A barrel longer than 30 inches does not fit many hard gun cases. You are more likely to damage the rifle if transported without a hard gun case.

Twenty eight inch standard weight barrels - about 9 to 9.5 lbs are nice to carry and hunt with but will beat you up off a bench rest with 500 grain bullets - even at 1100 to 1300 fps.

[rfd]

34" pedi bodine roller just fits inside a plano pillar molded plastic/foam shell case ... i stitched a simple leather muzzle guard for added protection. room for other stuff, too - like an arizona sharp shooters delrin wiping rod.

Plano Molding Single Pillared Gun Case - #151101 - 53.63" x 13" x 3.75" - typically goes for $26.


http://i.imgur.com/FZngMQt.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/hr8JfjU.jpg

[Chill Wills]

A shorter, thicker 30 inch barrel should be a little stiffer at the same weight as a longer, thinner 34 inch. Though that should make the shorter barrel the more accurate, I'm not sure I could shoot well enough or shoot in conditions good enough to see the difference.

As my eyes get older the slightly longer distance to the front sight, found on a longer barrel helps me see the front aperture ring more clearly.

Rfd - that is a nice touch putting a leather cap on the muzzle.

Many hard cases available in longer versions will close on a 55" rifle. All my rifles will fit these cases. The longest cartridge rifle barrel I shoot is a 33" and it cases OK. My Gibbs long range muzzle loader is 35" and transports in an aluminum hard case I got from Buffalo Arms and it just fits.

Michael Rix

[rr2241tx]

28-32" barrels in a #1 Heavy profile full octagon hold really nicely and fit better in standard gun cases. I'd ditch the standard foam and get high density upholstery foam for the inside of any case. Ideally, get a sheet thickness that will allow the case to close on 3 layers, cut the outline out of the middle layer and glue it to the bottom layer. If you are going to shoot silhouette, get the MVA 101 midrange Soule tang sight, MVA 113 spirit level non-windage globe and MVA Hadley eye cup. Make sure you get the correct dovetail size if you are buying the front sight directly from MVA. The rear barrel sight interferes with the sight picture at short range, so I'd delete that. If you are just setting up a hunting rifle, a standard weight barrel with barrel mounted rear sight and blade front sight would be a better choice. If you can see the front sight clearly, different barrel lengths really don't help or hurt in that regard. If you can't see the front sight clearly, delete all the sights and get an MVA Malcolm scope to start with.

[Don McDowell]

Guess I never gave much consideration to picking a rifle around the cases available at Walmart. I measure the gun or, get a measurement and then usually end up ordering a shotgun case from Cabela's, Midway etc.

[rfd]

well don, some of us po' folk have champagne tastes and beer pocket books. :cool:

[Don McDowell]

Well that could be I suppose, but when a person orders a Shiloh the case those rifles are shipped in are fantastic. Not sure if C Sharps has started shipping in hardcases or not, will find out in the next day or so, my wife's new 22 lowall, and my 40-70 Hepburn shipped day before yesterday.. If they don't come in a good hard case, I know the model number of the case Shiloh uses and they're only about 60$ from Cabela's and hold rifles up to 34 inch barrels really well. Even those rifles that are wearing a 1000$ MVA scope fit those cases..
Bottom line, no matter if you have an 800 dollar petrocholli or a 4500$ Hepburn, the cost of a properly fitting case is money well spent to protect your investment, and an especially small percentage of the original expense.

[rfd]

don, lots depends on usage, transportation, and personal care. THAT is the bottom line. i have no need right for any case better than than a $26 plano, it does all i need. if you see otherwise, great. while i can absolutely appreciate spending more on a what you might think is a better case, you may think otherwise if yer in my shoes. to each their own, bud.

[Don McDowell]

Well even when I was dirt poor, I came to realize at an early age that any firearm was a very valuable piece of equipment, tool, provider of food and fun, and as such an extremely important thing to take really good care of,, so the small fraction of the cost of the case is just one of those things that had to be spent to protect the investment.

[rfd]

hey don, that's really great for you, bud. yer dealing with your reality and not that of others like me who can only afford junker "petrocholli" guns. yer a real hoot, pal, wish i was back in texas and had 500 yard ranges in my back yard let alone 1000 yards. geez.

but back to reality and this thread - it sure sounds like the smoking gun is making the change to 3f. hope you get it all worked out, bob.

[Don McDowell]

Wrong thread Bob, the 3f stuff is in blackpowder cartridge. We're talking here about barrel length for a new rifle and then got sucked into the whirlpool of hardsided cases. Back when I was dirt poor, making payments on this ranch and fighting off bankruptcy, I did by one of those petrochelli sharps,, still have it. Bought a darn nice doskocill case that fit it at the same time. Had to scrimp and save a long time to get that cash put together.

[smoked turkey]

I very much appreciate the valuable input from those who have been there and done that with these grand single shot rifles with 28" round bbl or 34" heavy octagon, along with rear mounted tang sights. My reason for asking the questions was to see what those experienced in shooting these rifles were doing. I think we have had some valuable input. As stated in the OP I knew there was no pat answer to the question and ultimately it must be decided by the one doing the ordering. I have very little real world experience on this type of single shot rifle and desire to not make a mistake in ordering the various options available if given good input from those in the know. I have made several decisions on the purchase and have taken the input here as a guide. Just so you you know, the rifle will be configured in the following ways: C. Sharps, 1874 Bridgeport Sporting Rifle, 45-70, 30" Heavy octagon bbl, semi-fancy stock, pistol-grip stock with steel checkered butt-plate, cheek rest with accent line, Schnabel type forearm, double set trigger, deluxe mid-range tang sight, buck-horn rear barrel sight, globe with .025" post front sight. That is what I have decided would be a good 70th birthday present for me. It should be here along about the first part of January. This has been a bucket list item for a couple of years and if I don't do it soon I won't get to enjoy it. Many thanks to all for your input in this process.

[Don McDowell]

That sounds like a darn fine rifle.

[StrawHat]

Glad you decided on what you wanted. Let us know when it comes in and how it shoots!

Kevin