45-70 for plains game?

[Tubby’s Canteen]

Good evening gentleman I have had such a positive response to the last question I asked I decided to trouble you all with another, or in this case two.

My first question is , Is a single shot 45-70 an acceptable rifle for plains game?

My secound question is , how large of plans game would you feel 45-70 is effectively capable of taking ?

For clarity sake I am using a single shot Henry suitable for marlin level loads ( quote from Henry, I called) and a Nikon 1-4-20 monarch African.

Thank you all for in advance taking the time to answer.

 

[tarbe]

With correct bullets, placed correctly...and mindful of certain range limitations, there is no PG on the continent you cannot take.

I took 350gr North Fork in my 450 Dakota for PG (Eland) this past August. So I believe what I am saying.

MV was 2,400 (a light load in that case). You can get a solid 2,200 out of the Henry. Adequate for Eland out to at least 100 yards.

The 300gr Barnes HPFN would be great for all the stuff from Zebra or Waterbuck on down.

Main thing is the range limitations. Those bullets shed velocity pretty quickly.

There should be some lively discussion on this thread!

Did I mention you need to be mindful of range limitations?

 

[crs]

No trouble at all:
Yes and it has been done many times. A friend of mine wrote an article about just this subject years ago and I will try to find it and post it.
The .45-70 has taken the largest of plains game, Cape buffalo, and elephant.
Here is a link to Garret cartridge with the reports on Vince Lupos DG safaris:
https://www.garrettcartridges.com/luposafaris.html

It is not a long range cartridge, but with the right bullets it can be very effective.

Its cousin, the 45-90 has taken elephant, cape buffalo, leopard ,etc.

Get close and whack 'em!

Do some internet searches and see for your self.

 

[Art Lambart II]

I have only been to Africa twice but those experiences have taught me that a more flexible jack of all trades caliber is better than a specialized one and I would consider the 45-70 a short range specialist. So if your hunting the bushveld of the Limpopo or the NWP its a great choice providing you are using a quality bullet and you can keep your shots at 100 yards or less but if you hunting the open spaces of the Eastern Cape it sucks. That being said even in the Limpopo and the NWP you may need to shoot 200 yards and that's just not what the 45-70 was made for. As for the size of the game you can take with your 45-70, well that's a personal opinion and everyone's will be different, as for me I would limit myself to Zebra and below.

In the end the 45-70 will work but a 30-06 with a 180 grain bullet is a much better choice.

 

[crs]

Skinnersblade,
When you get serious, contact this outfitter in northern Limpopo Province and he can arrange hunts appropriate for your .45-70 rifle. He had done so for several hunters from Leverguns.com and IIRC, they were all successful. He also arranged my Cape buff hunt with my 1895 .405 lever gun and the results are in the picture to the left. I shot the beastie from 20 yards; close enough to feel the ground shake and hear the WHUMP when it hit the ground. That's what I like!

Chris Troskie Safaris:
https://www.facebook.com/ctsafaris/

http://www.ct-safaris.com/

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

Thank you I will look into that.

Is your 1895 an original or a reproduction ? I know of only two survivors in my area one in 303 British and on soviet 7.62x54r possibly? Don't quote me on that although I know it is Russian.
The .303 was unfortunately sawn half way through the action so that it could be unregistered and displayed at a legion.
I believe Rosevelt was quoted saying .405 was his preferred medicine for lions.

 

[crs]

My two Miroku made Winchester 1895 rifles are both .405 caliber. Also my Simson Suhl double rifle- I like the caliber for big game. The 1895 .405 is a light and handy hunting rifle that can accurately shoot bullets from 210 to 400 grains. The Hornady factory 300 grain bullets have a MV of 2225 fps, but can be hand loaded up above 2400 fps. The 400 grain Woodleigh bullet shoots well at a MV of 2100 fps and provides some added punch for very large game; ballistics similar to the 450/400 DR.
You are correct about TR and the .405. Also interesting is the role the rifle played in India to remove man eating Tiger and leopard. Not so widely known was that back in the 1920s, Osa Johnson used her 1895 .405 to keep DG off her husband while he was filming nature movies in Africa. She was the first woman PH licensed in Africa and shot meat for the crew of their photo/film safaris..

Oh yes, I emailed to Chris a link to the thread.

 

[CBH Australia]

I’m sure it will work, as previously stated it’s not a long range cartridge but it will kill stuff.
If you are considering Africa don the delay. It’s not as expensive as you might think. Just ask any of your new friends here. I leave in 10 days will report back.
You can always get a camp rifle that’s what I’m doing.

 

[leslie hetrick]

in a ruger #1-#3 or a new browning-Winchester high wall loaded at the upper ends of the 45-70 with kill any thing that walks on this earth. get as close as you can and then get closer yet, then pick the right spot on your game and put your bullet there.

 

[Shootist43]

Skinnersblade, I recall a similar thread a while back asking the same question. The only difference being that the rifle in question was a Lever Action. Remember that single shot rifles can be reloaded quickly with "a little practice."

 

[CAustin]

Good evening gentleman I have had such a positive response to the last question I asked I decided to trouble you all with another, or in this case two.

My first question is , Is a single shot 45-70 an acceptable rifle for plains game?

My secound question is , how large of plans game would you feel 45-70 is effectively capable of taking ?

For clarity sake I am using a single shot Henry suitable for marlin level loads ( quote from Henry, I called) and a Nikon 1-4-20 monarch African.

Thank you all for in advance taking the time to answer.

Yes take it and you will be fine. @tarbe and others comments are correct.
Took my 45-70 lever gun on first safari.

 

[Ridgewalker]

A modern high pressure load with a quality expanding bullet through an accurate (I prefer a scope) rifle placed in the kill zone should do the job as stated above. Range is not your forte in the 45-70 in spite of all the old buffalo stories.
If you’re spending big bucks on your Africa hunt, why not get a more appropriate cartridge? Get maybe a 375 or 416 that then on trip number two, three, four, etc. you would be ready for anything. JMO&E
Remember if you draw blood, you pay the price whether found or not.
Best of luck in your decision!

 

[Deleted member 43267]

The answer is, of course, that you could use it for any plains game you want, and it is your safari. Your PH will have a good feel for the ballistics of your cartridge and do his or her best to put you in situations where it will do what it does best- knock things down at close range. But, that is also a limitation. It would be fine choice for sitting in a blind, but what if it is cold and windy, animals are spooky, and you are watching them fly off at distances of 250 yards? To me, safari hunting presents great opportunities, but there are also a million things that can go wrong. I believe in giving myself every advantage I can and would choose a rifle/cartridge combination that is more versatile. There are many choices, and this forum is filled with discussions about which ones are "better." But hey, it is your experience and if you want to go that route you can. The worst case scenario is that you finally see an amazing kudu on the last day of the hunt, and he is standing at 275 yards on the other side of a pan, with no chance to get closer. You have to pass, or have exquisite knowledge of your trajectory such that you can make a good shot that does not require miles of tracking, or a lost animal for which you pay a trophy fee. You would most likely have to pass and then go back again next year.

Jeff

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

Thank you all you've all helped to answer my question.

I'm perfectly comfortable working within the range limitations of my rifle. For me a rifle I'm comfortable with and have the upmost confidence in is more important than gaining yardage.

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

@crs how do you balance your dance card with three beautiful rifles all wanting attention?

 

[leslie hetrick]

95 precent of the animals I took in Africa were under 125 yards and a lot of them were under 50 yards. the longest shot was a red hartabeast, just short of 200 yards with a .375 H&H mag and the closest was a water buck at under 25 yards with a .300 Winchester.

 

[perttime]

A modern high pressure load with a quality expanding bullet through an accurate (I prefer a scope) rifle placed in the kill zone should do the job as stated above. Range is not your forte in the 45-70 in spite of all the old buffalo stories....

I have the impression that the rifle originally mentioned is not suitable for high pressure loads.

Still, it is a big bullet. Trajectory is a rainbow.

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

The rifle in question is a newly manufactured Henry single shot which according to the manufacturer is suited to anything a guide gun will handle, they did however specifically some of the ruger no.1 only loads would be dangerously stout.

 

[crs]

Skinnesblade asked " how do you balance your dance card with three beautiful rifles all wanting attention?"

It is a challenge because there are more than three, but I work at it! Sometimes it is just boars and sometimes exotics on Texas ranches like this red deer I took this spring with my .405 double; still eating on this one.

We love antelope meat, so it was this Texas Panhandle Pronghorn in October.

Been there before, so I used a scoped .308 rifle for a 238 yard shot. However, my hunting buddy, Joe, took his with a flintlock with a bit of sneaking and crawling.

Going for hogs again with .45-90 in January as well as pheasant at Hidden Lakes nearby my place.

A hunters work is never done!

 

[Tubby’s Canteen]

Im of a split opinion on hogs as a hunter and the son of a farmer/butcher a wild source of pork excites me. Especially with them being regulated as a nuisance wildlife species. However as a land owner their destructive power terrifies me.
If your hogs are like the Russian boars I've killed 45-90 sounds like just the ticket. A few years ago we hunted so Russian boars of an island an eccentric buisness man had stocked. I personally found found .410 caliber round balls from a cylinder bore sxs to be just the ticket. Though to be fair we employed dogs and the undergrowth was such that shots beyond 7-10 yards we impossible.