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Tigerpaw · Post by **Tigerpaw** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 1:06 pm

The .45-70 For the One Gun Big Game Hunter
By Matthew J. Hewett

In searching for the one gun with which to hunt big game all over the world I have come to the conclusion that the .45-70 in a lever or falling block action is the perfect rifle. With these rifles a hunter has the ability to fire factory ammunition that will take any game animal on this planet, and reloaders can create loads ranging from mild to magnum. Sure, there are other cartridges that are better suited to specific tasks, but the 45-70 can do all of them and has done so well and efficiently.
With standard 300 grain JHP factory loads from the Big Three companies you have ammo for CXP2 class game: deer, sheep, goats, feral pigs and the smaller species of antelope. The Winchester 300 grain Partition gold and Remington 405 grain soft point load will serve for CXP2 and CXP3 class game such as deer, caribou, and elk. The 405 grain load can also take all of the bear species as well as moose.
Then there are the full power and +P loads from Garret, Cor-Bon and Buffalo Bore. With these you can successfully hunt all CXP3 class game, and even Cape buffalo, water buffalo, bison, and elephant. The 405 grain flat point Penetrator load from Cor-Bon has taken Cape Buffalo, zebra, and eland. The 500 grain FMJ flat point from Buffalo Bore and the 540 grain Hammerhead bullets from Garret have taken game up to and including hippo, rhino, and elephant.
With the modern falling block single shot rifles such as the Dakota 10, Ruger No.1 and Browning 1885, you can hand load spitzer bullets without worry. This includes the deadly Barnes 350 grain X-bullet spitzer. The strong action of these single shots lets you use the hottest .45-70 reloads.
A good lever action or falling block rifle with a low powered scope can make 250 yard shots possible. The key here is to practice and know the trajectory your load.
A man looking for one gun with which to hunt medium to large game animals cannot go wrong with a modern 45-70 rifle and ammunition. If I were armed with a modern 45-70 with a good peep sight or a low powered scope, I would not hesitate to hunt any game in any environment on earth.

Red Label · Post by **Red Label** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 1:12 pm

well since he favours the RUGER #1, he can't be all wrong....

Rugers, Chevys and Excaliburs.....all you really need.

striper · Post by **striper** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 2:16 pm

Tigerpaw: There are a number of rifles that can qualify as capable of taking any animal on earth; maybe even including the Exomax which Bill and Kathy are using in Africa as we speak. Jack O'Connor, the famed writer, took his wife to Africa a number of times, and I believe she took the big 5 using an anemic 7 millimeter Mauser. I know how anemic that caliber is- I own one! The big, lumbering 45-70 is a great rifle to impress the uninformed with its heavy weight, large round, and substantial recoil, but there may be 10 or 20 calibers that can cross the eyes of a 45-70 and it's user. Striper

Red Label · Post by **Red Label** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 2:21 pm

Striper - the 7x57 Mauser is anemic as factory loaded due to all the old military rifles out there chambered for it. The factories load to reduced pressures because of this.

I handloaded hot for a 7x57 in a strong Ruger bolt action (my first deer rifle) and it was on par or slightly surpassing a 7mm-08. A nice versatile round IMHO.

Mike

striper · Post by **striper** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 2:57 pm

Mike: I have a Model 77 that I hunted with for a number of years. I had 19 one shot kills using a ballistic tip, 139 grain bullet that had a muzzle velocity of 2600 FPS. Using this round, The rifle gave sub minute groups at 100 yards. My longest one shot kill was 435 yards (witnessed by my wife). Using a good rest, I aimed 3 feet over the buck's back and the bullet dropped in dead center. I tested loads up to 3000 feet per second, and found that accuracy dropped off more and more as I upped the velocity. Striper

Red Label · Post by **Red Label** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 3:20 pm

Mine was the original M77 as well with the tang safety (just like yours no doubt)

Mine had an apparent excessive headspace problem and would misfire unpredictably every 100 shots or so. It cost me a 6 pointer one year.
At first I thought it might be deficient loading practices, but all my other rifles always fire 100% of the time & I am meticulous at the reloading bench. I never quite figured out this rifle as even the misfires had a good dent in the primer.

I dearly loved the gun but dealt it as I could never trust it. I have seen this rifle at various gun shows and local dealers over the years...no doubt other owners discovered the same traits I found with it and were unable to rectify them.

Nice to share some old stories...sorry if I'm off topic a bit.

Mike

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 4:17 pm

Looking at the ballistic table for the .45-70, it appears that this cartridge has the trajectory of a cinder block.

Thanks, but I'll stick with my .270 win. cranking out a 150 gr SBT at a MV of 3104 fps. Zeroed for 200 yards it shoots pretty flat. -6" at 300 yards, and -17.4" at 400 yards still delivering 1874 ft/lbs of energy.

wabi-nli · Post by **wabi-nli** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 5:20 pm

The 45-70 makes a good 350+ yard coyote gun!
I had a friend who owned one and had a lot of time to play. He processes deer & had a spot about 365 yards behind his garage that he baited with deer carcasses. He took time to zero his 45-70 at that range and could bust a coyote with no proplems.
No, the 45-70 isn't an all around cartridge, but it will do a lot of jobs well, plus it's just a lot of fun to plink with. It isn't flat-shooting, but with a good vernier tang sight it has 1000 yard potential, and that has been proven by several good marksmen over the years. I'm not saying I could shoot well at those ranges, but it has been done!

wabi-nli · Post by **wabi-nli** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 5:23 pm

oops!
forgot to mention that I did own a 45-70 T/C Contender pistol & consistently hit empty pop cans at 100 yards with it! It is an accurat round with mild recoil (if you enjoy big-bores

). Now a .338 or .458 gets your attention in a handgun!

chris4570 · Post by **chris4570** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 5:53 pm

I have no doubt that the 45-70 could be used for pretty much any game animal on the planet.

With enough time and money, I've often thought that I would like to try and hunt all the North American big game animals with this round. And maybe, if I had enough money/time, I would do the same with my Exocet. Now I'm just being greedy!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 7:44 pm

Elmer Keith (the big bullet man) would nod his head in approval for this caliber.
Jack O'connor (the small but fast bullet man) would say "a little too much" use a .270

I say hit the vitals and enjoy your harvest whatever calibur you choose:D

Tigerpaw · Post by **Tigerpaw** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 8:42 pm

STRIPER SAID: "The big, lumbering 45-70 is a great rifle to impress the uninformed with its heavy weight, large round, and substantial recoil" I must say.,! STRIPER you have never shot a marlin 45-70 and you should,. before you mouth off. First the marlin 45-70 1985GS has a weight of 7lb. If you call this LUMBERING then then tell me of a lighter big game rifle! Second, As far as I know you do not Know me, so you do not have a clue as to if I am UNINFORMED or not!! And third if you think the 45-70 has a "substantial recoil". you need to shoot a couple more big game guns.

Shakky · Post by **Shakky** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 9:29 pm

The .45-70 is not the way I would go but to each his own. The one thing I will say is until you have seen what the larger calibur bullets can do on live game you can't judge. This comment is not directed at anyone. I'm just saying that ballistic charts are ok but they don't tell the entire story. As far as my vote goes, I like the .35 Whelen. I have a Remington 700 chambered for this round and I love it. There is nothing in North America you can't hunt with it and the recoil is mild. I guess I fall somewhere between Keith and O'Connor.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 10:10 pm

Sorry, Tigerpaw. I didn't mean to offend. I wasn't talking about the gun lumbering, I was referring to the bullet. I expect that shooting that round thru a 7# Marlin lever action would be quite a thrill! My Hornady handbook states that using the Marlin 1895 lever action with maximum safe powder charge, muzzle velocity will be no more than 2000FPS. At 300 yards,the velocity would be down to about 1000 FPS. The drop at 300 yards would be over 6 feet. This is using the lightest bullet (300 grain hollowpoint) listed for that caliber. Again, I had no intention of getting under your skin. If I did, I apologize. Striper the guest

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Jul 28, 2004 10:09 am

Dont worry striper. Tigerpaw needed a brief edu. on ballistics and the TRUTH.

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