Refinished a 70's vintage 1895 and took her for a trial run with factory ammo...shot high and the recoil was very reasonable. Reloaded with 350 grain Beartooth loads & 46.5 grains of RL-7. Folks I have owned and shot a 700 Classic in 338 that did not kick that much! Also shot a 458 a few times that did not kick as much as this lightweight levergun!

I posted in this forum about how it was shooting high with the 45/70 factory "reduced" load and it seems she still is. Started out with 45.0, 46.0 and 46.5 grains of RL-7 and the groups kept shrinking as I increased the load. I am sad to say that the 46.5 grain load is her preferred load, by far.

I do love this rifle though...she's the half moon buttplate, square lever variety. Oh yeah...that lever does a number on my right middle finger too. Dang she's a handful! But, like some women, the pretty ones usually are!

HAHA Try it in a guide gun

Stp those up to a 500gr and torch it off.That will get your attention.

Digger, I have a Guide gun, and it will kick.

Saddlesore, I loaded up some 540 grain Hardcasts with enough H322 to go about 1550 fps.

It gets your attention. But, that .45-70 would be one of the last rifles I would get rid of, there's something about it that has me hooked. I just don't shoot extended sessions with it.

To recover, I hunt with my .243...(grin)

You might google up "Sir Isaac Newton" and familiarize yourself with some of his pithy laws like "For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction".

He was pretty smart for his time..........

Ohh, I was quite aware of Sir Isaac Newton's laws.......I just had to see for myself....

I've been married for 32 years to the same wife...I am fully aware of Isaac's law...

You do realize you can take that long case and fill it plumb

full of fff and a greased bullet ,compress it down and you will

get about the same results as you will with smokeless.

With less kick in some rifles.

Bob

Non recoilpad 4570s are mean bustards!
I found out the hard way too....a whole new critter over those modern pussycats!

I shot the 350gr Buffalo Bore factory rd out of mine and yea it kicks lots more than my 338 Win Mag/250gr does!

Because you wouldn't have listened.

My 450m XLR kicks a bit with 400g Speers

My son will not shoot more than 5 rounds at a time

Snake

ouch... I put a limbsaver on my 1895 and it helped, but that may ruin the looks of your gun. Once again... ouch.

A Win/Rem factory loaded 405 grain slug in 45-70 will likely run around 1,230 fps and be pleasant to shoot. Hot rod it up another 500+ feet per second and yes, it will get your attention. The more powder or lead one runs out the front, the more umph there is delivered to the rear.

Those factory rounds though should handle anything in North America with ease that gets within 150 yds up through buffalo and and the biggest of bear. No sense in beating up on ones self. If one really wants a hot rod, go to a 257 Weatherby or something similar.

I've hopped up my Guide gun a bit (405's doing 1,750 fps), and I do warn those that want to give it a try. It's not something I would hand to a virgin shooter either. All I've been around have been amazingly accurate too. I could probably push that slug up to around 2,400 fps, but I have no desire to be on the receiving end with the Marlin. I've got a 15 lb Sharps I'll use for that.

What was your velocity? That's a light load....Out of memory,I load 53-56 grains of RL-7 with the 350 North Fork and Woodleigh for 2095 fps with the Woodleigh and 2100+ with the North Fork, both pressure checked.

I use 46-47 with the 425 grain cast for 1850 fps'ish.Do you no the velocity?

I use Winchester brass with the North Fork and Starline with the Woodleigh, there is a big difference in capacities for 45-70 brass.

Jayco

I shot a Guide Gun in 450 Marlin just one time. The recoil was vicious and painful. No thank you.

Sherwood

.

The real problem is that you're shooting at target(s) / sighting-in.

Point that puppy at a running animal and touch it off, though - you won't feel a thing.




.

That's the beauty of a 45/70, no need to run it at warp speed. I could cast bullet and 28grs of 5477 will do anything I need one to do.

Never understood the hell bent for leather loads.

Selective hearing lost, Past Recoil Shield, Past shooting gloves and more foreplay will get you by.

'Cause you don't seek your manhood in the amount of pain you can lie about enjoying?

I meant a GOOD cast bullet

Some people shoot quality jacketed bullets out of the 45-70's that need speed like any jacketed bulllet to expand to an inch or more.......The 45-70 is a 300 yard machine if you shoot a higher velocity cartridge than a pistol bullet.

If recoil hurts,get something smaller.

Jayco

Compelling, never had any problem hitting [bleep] at 400 yards with a cast bullet doing 1200fps

I'm shooting 405gr cast from Oregon Trail, over 15.0gr Unique. This chrono's at 1250 fps, and Quickload predicts 25K psi.

This load is very pleasant to shoot in my Marlin 1895 GBL.

Proper sights and a knowledge of distance to target makes things that seem impossible into doable.

Well Scott, then compelling it is.... The only problem here is not everyone is super- human like you.A quick run over the ballistics shows your load dropping 173 inches or in human terms, over 14 feet at 400 yards.

Now with a modern jacketed load it is only 43 inches at 400 yards or in human terms, just over 3 feet or at 300 yards, you don't even have to aim over an elk with only 19 inches of drop.....

I always like aiming at hair instead of the moon!

Jayco

If I am looking through the sights at something that can bite back, the last thing I need to worry about is recoil, muzzle blast or a sore shoulder.

I'd say the steel crescent shaped butt-plate is the culprit.

I have shot massive amounts of 45-70, 444, 348, etc. etc. and the recoil really does not bother me that bad. I take recoil well compared to most, and I can fully understand how some may find it unpleasant. Everyone has their limits. Practicing the right way can help overcome some of these limits.

That said, I absolutely HATE the ported guns and consider myself a wimp when it comes to the noise/muzzle blast they produce. I simply don't like it, and would much rather deal with the recoil.

Given the amount of shooting I did when I was younger with either no hearing protection, or inadequate protection, and the loud industrial work environments I have been subjected to for many years, my hearing is probably not what it once was. I try now to take better care of what is left of it.........

I'm with you on the ported guns. The recoil doesn't get to me, but the noise does. A Decelerator or Kickeez pad goes a long way toward making recoil manageable. You can even put a cheek protector on the comb. I got one for my turkey gun. But the noise - I've owned (past tense) several ported rifles, including a 444P. I fired it and my 444S one time without hearing protection for comparison, with the same loads and the ported 444 stunned me. This was in my open pasture. Significantly sharper and louder. My BOSS equipped BAR got traded for a non ported BAR, for the same reason. You guys who say you can't tell a difference...well, it's probably too late for your hearing.

Get a shoulder recoil pad - think I paid $15 for mine. It makes target practice tolerable. Mine straps on like a one cup bra.

I also put a decelerator recoil pad on my GG.

I had an 1895 and a T/C Contender in 45/70 back when I was young and dumb. I still attribute some of my shoulder and hand problems to them! I loaded Hornaday 350 grain round nose soft points if I remember right. Killed one deer with the Contender. Got rid of both quite some time ago but wish I still had the rifle now that I have taken up bear hunting.

strange.I have one of those,and thought it kicked way less than a shotgun with slugs.

Try standing up and shooting it, its much less painful than from the bench.






45-70, Girth matters

My first 45-70 was a Siamese Mauser, that was impressive when shooting from the bench or prone.
The next rifle is a 1886 Winchester, this rifle goes a long way to absorbing recoil.
Should you ever want to think of your Marlin 45-70 as pleasant try shooting a Winchester 95, 405 Winchester, with a 350 grain cast bullet at max velocity. It's the only rifle I've shot that requires a leather glove on the right hand. Without the glove, my middle finger gets bashed against the lever and the darned safety gets moved to safe.

Jim

Bingo! There's your problem. Looks pretty and "classic" but even moderately stiff loads are going to hurt. If you can stand flattening out the curve and putting a Decelerator on you'll suffer less. Alternately wearing a PAST Recoil Shield may take some of the bite out of 'er.

I did the .45-70 /.338 WM comparison test a few years ago, too. I was sighting in my 1895 pistol-grip Marlin with warm-ish loads (46 gr. RL7 under 405 gr. hard cast for about 1750 fps). The fellow on the next bench had a brand-new Sako .338 which he couldn't hit squat with and asked me to take a shot. Recoil felt about the same. (Turned out his problem was his gunsmith had botched mounting the scope. When we zeroed the adjustments we found it was about 14" high and left @ 100 yds.!)

The guy I turkey hunt with some will sit down a shoot a box of 3.5" 2oz HV shells through his 835 but refuses to shoot my 1895G. I usually shoot 405 cast @ 1500fps, his reasoning is the recoil is too violent, lol.

I have a 450M and is can be bad with 400g bullets

or mild with 300g

Snake

My 1895G can be damn hateful with 350s @ 2000 or 405s @ 1900 but they don't compare to the 3.5" HV loads from my 835. I usually pack thed Hornady 350 FP + 59grs H4895 for 1922fps when hog hunting but to say it hits harder on the shoulder than the 3.5's is false.

You need those powerful loads when hunting automobile engines and large Griz type bears...<BG>

For hunting black bear and deer, The 45/70 can be quite pleasant to shoot with modest loads.

have used one for elk for years with a limbsaver pad and its like a 30-30 off the bench

In my Marlin 1895 45-70 early 70's vintage I have been using a Beartooth 405 gr GC over 48 grs of 3031. It is a pretty stout load by my standards. I wanted to work up to Elmer Keith's load of 53 gr of 3031 and then read that as strong as the Marlin is that load is better left to the Winchster 1886. Mr.Keith sure could take some punishment. I recall he favored 1886 Lightweights.

Woods walker: I have used Elmer's load and exceeded it a bit with a 425 grain cast bullet in an 1886ELR repro. The load was only used for grizzly protection and I've since quit being in those places too much and dropped to a much lighter load as the heavy load just plain beat me up. In a long heavy barrel model it might be tolerable to some extent. Sighting in with that load was a serious chore.

Would you like some cheese with that whine? I like rifles with traditional length barrels. They point well and take advantage of the energy the cartridge is capable of.

i have one of these in a guide gun, and i put a decelerator pad on it pretty quick. I also played with a few of the firewall loads and tamed them back pretty quick, actually not needed. Brian pierce had a good article on loading for the 45.70 a few years ago, and i try to keep the 405grain bullet at about 1600fps, more than factory but not knock your teeth loose. I am going to buy one of the john wayne type levers, the one on the gun twists my hand when you fire it.

Chop the stock and put a good limbsaver or decelerator on it and find yourself an aftermarket lever. The gun will become your new favorite after that.