45-90 with 45-70 dies

[jj500]

Once again I come to you knowledgeable folks with a newbie question. Can you load 45-90 cases with a 45-70 die set.I know adjustments will have to be made for the different lengths but can it be done or should I break down and get 45-90 dies? Thanks

[upnorthwis]

I load for both of them with .45-70 dies. Thought is was standard operating procedure. Also made a spacer ring to go between them to eliminate having to readjust lock rings.

[country gent]

It can be done but you may over size the neck if full length resizing. I have a mecham tool bushing die that will size 45-70, 45-90, and 45-100 by7 adjusting the height with different bushings it will also do 40-65 and a couple others.

Similar to loading 357 with 38 spl dies a spacer can be made .300 thick 1 1/2" Od X .890 ID and .300 thick (45-70 case is 2.1" 45-90 is 2.4) and use this when loading 45-90. The 45-90 is a great cartridge and does very good.

Are you planning on smokeless duplication style loads, Black powder substitutes, or true Black powder loads? The .300 that goes unsized may not ever be an issue with it at BP velocities.

[jj500]

BP only,never had the urge to go smokeless.I am thinking 85-90 grains of Ol Ezra in 2F with a 535 Postell and a wad in between.

[country gent]

I use mostly 1 1/2F olde Eynsforde inmine it works very well I currentlyhave loadsfor the 510 grn Lyman round nose, 535 grn Lymann Postell, and an Old West 550 grn shilouette bullet that are all good performers.

[BRUCE MOULDS]

if you are not hunting, do you need dies at all?
an expander used on new brass will allow finger seating, and from then on just reprime, charge, finger seat and shoot.
the best bullet is one who's diameter just slides into a fired case.
best accuracy is usually achieved this way.
keep safe,
bruce.

[EDG]

45-70 dies vary quite a bit internally even within the same brand.

I have dies that have a 3/4" long straight sizing section for the case mouth. I have others where the parallel section is only about .400 long.

Take a look at the inside of your dies and see what you think. Any set of dies may look (and be) OK but when you compare 4 or 5 different sets you will see some resemble FL dies and others resemble neck dies. Some also size the body a little and the neck a lot.

[rfd]

+1 to what bruce moulds just posted. a straight expander (for new brass only), a compression die, and *maybe* a straight taper die (for the slightest of neck tension to keep the lubed or patched bullet from falling out) are all that needed to load bp cartridges. once fire formed, no neck expander is needed and loading is even simpler/easier.

[Don McDowell]

Yes you can use the 45-70 dies, but you have to set them pretty high on the press. Depending on what brand of dies you have there may not be many threads in the press. Biggest problem will be the expander die, and getting the seating die adjusted.
In the end it's better just to get a set of 45-90 dies.

[jrmartin1964]

Just as .38 Special dies can be used to load .357 Magnum, and .44 Special dies for .44 Magnum, the short answer to your question is yes, .45-70 dies can (and have been) used to load .45-90.

[Lumpy grits]

Back the size die off from the shell holder 3/8-7/16 inch, and the others will work fine with minor adjustment.
LG

[sharps4590]

Been loading 45-70, 45-90 and 45-100 with 45-70 dies for....at least 25 years. Nary a problem if you set them up right, just as others have said.

[charlie b]

if you are not hunting, do you need dies at all?
an expander used on new brass will allow finger seating, and from then on just reprime, charge, finger seat and shoot.
the best bullet is one who's diameter just slides into a fired case.
best accuracy is usually achieved this way.
keep safe,
bruce.

Does this work with PP too or is a die for a bit of neck tension needed? Not for hunting, just shooting paper.

[rfd]

Does this work with PP too or is a die for a bit of neck tension needed? Not for hunting, just shooting paper.

sure. for my .45-70's and .40-65's, they all get ppb's, no greasers. for new brass, i use use a straight expander to simulate fire forming.

whether new and expanded, or fire formed (trimmed to length, if need be) - prime, compact drop in the bp, add wad(s), compress, push in the greaser or ppb with thumb and forefinger. IF the bullet is too loose in the case mouth, particularly with a ppb that's in only 1/8", i use a taper crimp die to *slightly* taper down the case - the bullet won't wobble or fall out, but it will spin in the case and can be pulled out with fingers. my ppb's are all bore riders, cartridge OAL doesn't matter, making cartridge building SO easy ... and SO accurate.

[Don McDowell]

Does this work with PP too or is a die for a bit of neck tension needed? Not for hunting, just shooting paper.

Well maybe, it will depend largely on your chamber dimensions. But even with a large chamber it would be possible to go with bullets patched to groove diameter. Most factory chambers will be to large to use bore diameter bullets without resizing and expanding the case.
I resize all my fired cases and expand the mouth with an expander that will give a bit of neck tension to the bullets patched to bore diameter.

[Ballistics in Scotland]

It is very unlikely that you will have any trouble doing this. I suppose, depending on the load, you might after many shots find your cases a bit tight immediately forward of the solid web. But most users won't. If it happened to me, I would balanced up the time to make a simple ring die to use separately once in a while, against the cost of a .45-90 die set.

[Lumpy grits]

Let the target tell you what is best.
Always listen to your target......
LG