during 1964 Marlin came up with a powerful lever action rifle, the 444 Marlin. in those years, the 45-70 was about extinct. i can't remember the year, but the Marlin m1895 in 45-70 came out later than the 444.
i've used both, a 45-70 Handi rifle (i had 3 of them) and a TC Encore with a 23" MGM barrel in 444.
the 45-70, i got them all cheap (1991 to 2018) and they were a good killing deer gun. i'd use jacketed and cast bullets, BUT, it wasn't for me.
in 2013 or '14, i got the 444 Marlin (TC Encore) and i fell in luv with it. i'd use 265gr Hornady FN and H4198 that goes 2300fps+ and it would smack the heck out of the deer. i used a 200gr WC and 200gr Hornady XTP for targets. then i would take out 250gr penta HP, 255gr Keith SWC, 275gr Ranch Dog, 280gr LFN GC, 280gr WFN GC and a 300gr Saeco FN GC to use on deer. at first, i was going full speed(2300+fps) on the cast bullets, but i found out that i didn't need full velocity bullets to kill deer. 1726fps in 300gr FN GC with 2400/tuft of Dacron will kill a deer if you put it behind the shoulder. cast bullets going around 1800-1900fps will kill deer. expect the 250gr penta HP, 1500fps is plenty. i've settled on a 280gr WFN GC with Reloder 7 going 1937fps. 5 shots from a bench will go into 1/2 - 3/4" at 100 yards. since i hunt in close quarters brush, a long shot is around 50 - 60 yards, it is usually 30+/- yards from me.
1973 was the return of the 45-70
