Shooting a new to me Pedersoli Rolling Block 45/70

[koger]

I got this off a local auction sight, pretty nice rifle. Has a 30" Heavy octagonal barrel, brass band and trigger plate ala Navy Arms, beautiful case colors and french walnut with the black streaks thru ther forearm, brass butt plate. The guys collection had some of the awfulest bubbaized guns I have ever seen, also had a bunch of Brownelles gunsmith stuff that I got at a good price, Bubba fancied himself a gunsmith I suppose. It was a high humidity day of the preview, and there were a mass of rust fingerprints on the blue barrel, which helped me get it for cheap, oil and steel wool and they all disappeared like they were never there. He had filed the front blade sight till it was down to the base, and filed on the rear sight till it was ruined. I removed both of them, put a Lyman 17 globe on the front about .400 high, and and a tall Lyman flip up buckhorn on the rear barrel slot. I zeroed the cheap tang sight first at 100 yds, shooting some 405 grs I had cast with 13.5 grs of unique. Took 3 shots to get it on, then moved over to a 4x6 clanger I have at 100 yds, and put 5 shots dead center in a 1 3/4" splatter on the red paint. A buddy who was spotting for me then shot 3 more in my group. I went ahead and zeroed the buck horn, then moved the peep up so it was shooting a little hight at 150 yds, limit of my range on the same 4x6 clanger. Should be close to dead on at 200 yds.I have about 2" of travel left, on the peep stem, should get me to 500 yds which is the farthest range I have avialable locally. This rifle impressed me, shooting as good as any of my Hi Walls, Sharps or original Remington rollers. It may just have found a home.

[Texas by God]

I got this off a local auction sight, pretty nice rifle. Has a 30" Heavy octagonal barrel, brass band and trigger plate ala Navy Arms, beautiful case colors and french walnut with the black streaks thru ther forearm, brass butt plate. The guys collection had some of the awfulest bubbaized guns I have ever seen, also had a bunch of Brownelles gunsmith stuff that I got at a good price, Bubba fancied himself a gunsmith I suppose. It was a high humidity day of the preview, and there were a mass of rust fingerprints on the blue barrel, which helped me get it for cheap, oil and steel wool and they all disappeared like they were never there. He had filed the front blade sight till it was down to the base, and filed on the rear sight till it was ruined. I removed both of them, put a Lyman 17 globe on the front about .400 high, and and a tall Lyman flip up buckhorn on the rear barrel slot. I zeroed the cheap tang sight first at 100 yds, shooting some 405 grs I had cast with 13.5 grs of unique. Took 3 shots to get it on, then moved over to a 4x6 clanger I have at 100 yds, and put 5 shots dead center in a 1 3/4" splatter on the red paint. A buddy who was spotting for me then shot 3 more in my group. I went ahead and zeroed the buck horn, then moved the peep up so it was shooting a little hight at 150 yds, limit of my range on the same 4x6 clanger. Should be close to dead on at 200 yds.I have about 2" of travel left, on the peep stem, should get me to 500 yds which is the farthest range I have avialable locally. This rifle impressed me, shooting as good as any of my Hi Walls, Sharps or original Remington rollers. It may just have found a home.

Here's some pics.

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[Txcowboy52]

Very nice rifle Tex ! I have a similar one in the vault I have been thinking about loading for .

[Texas by God]

Very nice rifle Tex ! I have a similar one in the vault I have been thinking about loading for .

It's too nice to belong to me
It's belongs to Koger.

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[Kraschenbirn]

I've got the Navy Arms/Pedersoli 'standard' version: half-octagon barrel, all steel furniture, straight-grain wood, etc. The 515 gr Accurate 46-500 over 31.5 gr. AA2015 shoots as accurate as I can hold and every bit as well as my Cimarron Highwall. Hang some decent sights on it and you've got a real keeper.

Bill

[Tazman1602]

I got this off a local auction sight, pretty nice rifle.

Hey Koger — I have pretty much the same rifle, brass trigger guard, barrel band, 30” heavy barrel. According to Pedersoli mine was an earlier manufacture, 1992 and it appears unfired. Been tied up with a couple of 1886’s this summer so I haven’t had time to tune/test.

I have a question for you on yours —— when you open the breech will the extractor follow the breech block ALL the way back? Mine does and according to several very reliable sources that’s the way they were made back then. Pedersoli has fixed this by adding a “bump” in their ejectors which I have yet to install but it’s very obvious. I’m just curious. Every_single_report of these old heavy Pedersolis has been that it’s a tack driver and I can’t wait to cast some Steve Brooks bullets and let fly.

I’m certain you will get many years of touching holes out of that, what a great find!

Art

[725]

What a beauty!

[koger]

Tazman mine does not follow the block all the way back, about 3/4 of the travel, but works very well. I can see a set of long range Lee Shavers in the near future for this rifle, but it shoots so dang well with the ones provided, if I can get to 500 yds may just leave as is.

[Tazman1602]

Tazman mine does not follow the block all the way back, about 3/4 of the travel, but works very well. I can see a set of long range Lee Shavers in the near future for this rifle, but it shoots so dang well with the ones provided, if I can get to 500 yds may just leave as is.

I just received one of Lee’s vernier and globe fronts and if you spend the money you will NOT be sorry!

Art

[Rick459]

purchased in 1975. Malcolm scope added a few years ago.
Rick

[Bad Ass Wallace]

I have owned a couple of Pedersoli rolling blocks, a "Buffalo" model and a standard 'target' model both in 45/70. Both rifles shot well but only if the boolit was engraved into the rifling at loading. Unlike the Sharps or Highwall models from Pedersoli, the design does not have any camming power to do this and relies on a heavy hand on the block when closing.

[Tazman1602]

BAW those are some NICE rifles! I hear the Rolling Block needs bullets pushed up to the rifling, I ran into a guys YouTube video that makes it extremely easy to figure out COL using a wood dowel and a set of calipers with_a_particular_bullet.

Art