Which BPCR cartridge?

[GARD72977]

I'm thinking about ordering a gun. I'm not really into black powder cartridge. I shot 38-55 and 45-70 with mild smokless loads currently.

I'm interested in opinions for black powder. I'm leaning toward 45-90. I dont care about economy. I have other guns for that.

I will be able to shoot out to 600yds locally. Some day I could go somewhere on vacation for loong range shooting.

Intrested in hearing about 45-70,45-90,45-100 and 40-70.

[John Boy]

Keep leaning towards the 45-90. When you go to the long match, you’ll be glad you made the right choice. Why? The 90 keeps the velocity closer to sonic down range than does the 70.
I get more tighter groups with my 90:than I do with the 70 at 1000yds with the same favorite bullet, the 550gr Creedmoor

[GARD72977]

What barrel length? I have heard 34" foul more.

[country gent]

I have a C Sharps Hepburn in 45-90 with 34" barrel it dosnt seem to foul more or less with BP but seems to needs a little more lube. I believe more to the extra barrel length. I normally shoot the 550 grain Old West silhouette bullet lubed in SPG or emmerts Improved.

With the 45-90 keep the weight up close to limit for what matches you want to shoot. Helps some with recoil. The 34" barrel with globe and ladder gives a very respectable sight radius, I believe this is its biggest plus not added velocity.

[Bad Ass Wallace]

Another vote for 45/90 with the PGT 545gn boolit (or copy), I've shot this out to 1,000yds with good accuracy.

[rjmelehan]

What barrel length? I have heard 34" foul more.

Gard,
A little compression topped with a grease cookie will keep that fouling soft.
Unless you wipe between shots

[Don McDowell]

34 inch barrel will have harder fouling in the last 2 inches of the barrel. 32 inch heavy contour is about the best for target rifle, it may come in heavy for sillhoutte, but weight doesn't matter for gong matches.
45-90 is probably the best option to cover all the bases if one is stuck on the 45 caliber rifles.

[rfd]

Hands down, the ubiquitous .45-70 ~ and can be easily multi wad stack down loaded with black power or major uploaded as paper patched for virtual .45-90 loads, for the best of both worlds. :)

[GARD72977]

34 inch barrel will have harder fouling in the last 2 inches of the barrel. 32 inch heavy contour is about the best for target rifle, it may come in heavy for sillhoutte, but weight doesn't matter for gong matches.
45-90 is probably the best option to cover all the bases if one is stuck on the 45 caliber rifles.

If not a 45cal what do you reccomend?

[semtav]

If not a 45cal what do you reccomend?

Oh Cheeze !!!! Don't go there !!!!!:bigsmyl2:

[rfd]

If not a 45cal what do you reccomend?

I will contend that a .45-70 will be the most versatile and ubiquitous BPCR cartridge.

With black powder loads (and make no mistake that real black powder is highly recommended), there is no concern over shot-to-shot bbl fouling if you wipe 'tween shots ... even blow tubing works well. But AA5744 white devil dust loads will work just fine, with no concerns over fouling control.

Start at the beginning and work forward, what are you going to do with yer BPCR rifle? What type of cartridge loads will you build and for what task(s)?

[GARD72977]

I have a Hepburn 45-70 that would be great for sillhouette. I'm looking for something to shoot from the sticks. I'm really wanting a 34" bbl

[Don McDowell]

If not a 45cal what do you reccomend?

I prefer the 44 calibers. More specifically the 44 2.4 if you don't mind a bottle neck then the 44-77. But to many haven't shot any of them and the discussion ends up somewhat sour.
So in the interest of levity and appeasement, go with the 45-70 or 45-90.

[sharps4590]

I have both the 45-90 and the 40-70 SS and I'd hate to have to live on the difference. However, my 90 is my hunting rifle and the 40 was my match rifle. Of my two rifles, both Shiloh's, the 40 is the more accurate but that could be due to the difference in load development for the two rifles. The 40 has less recoil which would be nice over a long string.

[GARD72977]

I have read a lot about the 40-70 being very hard to develop a load for.

I have always wanted a 40-70. Not sure why.

[GARD72977]

I'm looking at the long range express model. I dont see much difference in the sporter model.

[Lead pot]

A .45-90 is a good all around caliber. It can be loaded to match a .45-70 and .45-100 if you want. I shoot black powder rifles with barrel length from 24", 30" 32" 34" and the 35". I don't see a fouling issue with the 34" or 35". If the weight is a none issue the 32" is a good choice.
If I was to only have one Blk powder rifle it would be a hard choice between the .44-77 and the .45-90 for me.

[GregLaROCHE]

I’ve never been able to get as much BP in my .45/70 cases after wads and grease cookie, as I wanted. That’s why I will vote for .45/90. I’ve even considered.45/110. I figure if I want a lighter load, I can fill up the leftover space with Cream of Wheat.

[Don McDowell]

40-70 is a good silhouette and midrange cartridge, they can be a little finicky, but it's not terrible like some might have you think.
LRE in 45-90 with a 32 inch heavy barrel would make a good long range rifle.

[GARD72977]

I'm sold on the 45-90. Will there be a option for twist though Shiloh? If so what do I want? Other than weight is there a down side to 34" bbl?


This gun will not be used offhand or for sillhouette.

[Don McDowell]

You can get it in 16 or 18 twist, either will work fine. The 16 twist does allow for longer bullets, but the 18 twist with 535 grain bullets works fine, and it probably does a little better job with 500 and 525 gr bullets .
34 inch barrels are ok, I have 2 rifles with that length, but have come to prefer the 32.
When you're shooting for the smallest groups you will want a good wiping routine between shots.

[GARD72977]

Any other advice I need?

[GOPHER SLAYER]

Any other advice I need?

Yeah, buy a thick shoulder recoil pad!

[Don McDowell]

A case of 1 1/2 either OE or Swiss. Get ahold of Mead Ops, for Jamison cases, you can find them on Guns International, if they're out start looking for Starline brass. Some .060 fiber wads, and 16-1 alloy if you're going to be running the money bullets. 20-1 works fine with the Postel or Creedmoor bullets.
Limbsaver slip on recoil pad works great for shooting from prone.

[Don McDowell]

One more thing on the cases, you might want to think about no less than 200 and 400 might save you some headache if you go to a big match Like the Desert International in Phoenix

[dave951]

Yeah, buy a thick shoulder recoil pad!

Just to elaborate a bit here, most BPCR matches are shot from a "rested" position like prone or sitting with X sticks. That doesn't leave a lot of room to give with the recoil so you're going to get hit. Now if you think you gots enuff starch in yer drawers, shoot a 50/110 with a 700gr boolit from the prone position. Just remember to pick up your fillings from the shooting mat so the dentist can put them back in.

[GOPHER SLAYER]

Just to elaborate a bit here, most BPCR matches are shot from a "rested" position like prone or sitting with X sticks. That doesn't leave a lot of room to give with the recoil so you're going to get hit. Now if you think you gots enuff starch in yer drawers, shoot a 50/110 with a 700gr boolit from the prone position. Just remember to pick up your fillings from the shooting mat so the dentist can put them back in.

I will pass on the offer. I had a Siamese Mouser that had been converted to 45-70. A friend gave me a factory box of 350 grain ammo. I shot the rifle one time with said ammo. My great grandfather felt the jolt. I wanted to shoot all the ammo to get the brass. I tried to get others to shoot it with little luck. The range master fired it once as did another friend. After that, no go. I pulled the bullets and later sold the rifle on this site. I hope he reloads.