45-70

[Seeker]

Thanks to a couple of great and generous guys, I have accumulated enough brass to last me quite awhile. I ended up with 28 Hornady cases though, which everyone knows are shorter. By my measurement, approx..062 shorter on average. Has anyone ever used these shorter ones for cast boolits with no ill effects? I know start low and watch for signs of pressure but was wondering if I would be better off setting them aside and letting someone have them that uses J words. Thanks for reading and I appreciate any helpful information. Merry Christmas to All! G.

[dondiego]

I load them up as usual and just don't crimp and don't change the bullet seating die. I only use them in single shot firearms so it is not needed. I mostly just plink anyway.

[JSnover]

I've shot plenty of them without a problem, the only reason I stopped using them was I had two different rifles and only one set of dies.

[pworley1]

I load them up as usual and just don't crimp and don't change the bullet seating die. I only use them in single shot firearms so it is not needed. I mostly just plink anyway.

What he said.

[waksupi]

I just trim all cases to the shortest of the lot.

[stubshaft]

I just trim all cases to the shortest of the lot.

What he said! Set the crimp die and shoot away.

[Polymath]

I made up a custom M die for belling the mouth as it (Lee expander/die)was a wee bit too short. I shaved a shell holder down so I could still use my Lee Factory Crimp die.
Bear in mind with a shorter case you "could" have a risk of higher pressures. But I don't load to maximum any how.

[scattershot]

They are useful cases, but sometimes it’s a pain to keep them separate. I have a Number One in 45/70, if you just want to get rid of them.

[BLAHUT]

I just load, I do not crimp, so doesn't matter, they all go in a roller.

[eastbank]

i load for my 1876 in 45-60 and five 45-70,s, i ask my gunsmith to take enough off the seat-crimp die to use it on both.

[JSnover]

Just curious, has anyone notice a brand that is consistently longer than the others?

[steveu]

I have yet to find any that are equal or longer. The batch I received from Starline this summer was pretty good, about.005” short consistently.

[405grain]

If you're going to shoot those 45-70's in a lever action, then crimp the case. If they're getting fired in a single shot, no crimp necessary.

[mehavey]

Even in single-shot -- if you don't seat to out to actively engage rifling/deliberate start-initiation pressure build-up --
My counsel it to crimp all cast.

[Frosty Boolit]

They work fine. If you load density is 90% or more the decrease in case capacity might start to matter. I've never filled up one of those stovepipes with that much powder though.

[Milky Duck]

I use the shorter hornady cases for my smokeless loads and the long ones for BP... can tell at a glance which is which.... I will adjust die and do batch of shorter cases...its really no big deal at all.

[jednorris]

Winchester cases are longer than Starline. In my Browning .40/65 the Starline cases were too short, and I built up a carbon ring in the front of the chamber. I had to go to .45/70 Starline case then resize them to .40/65 which made them longer, then trim them down. I believe using a shorter case may over time cause a Carbon ring in the front of the chamber. Maybe using them for practice might be a better idea. Reloading brass at this time is too valuable to ruin by trimming the others back in my opinion.

[fredj338]

Put that on calipers, it is nothing, wont affect anything in your handloads but the crimp..