Home Forums Lever Action Central Big Bore Levers Shooting 45-70 +P in Henry H010

Anyone shoot the 430gr HSM bear loads in a Henry H010?

Neither Henry or HSM will come out and say it is safe. The chamber pressure (according to HSM) is 40,000 PSI which doesn't
seem that excessive for a brand new rifle.

I want to use the loads for black bear over bait.

Thanks,

BH63

If you look through this guy's video list, he puts some of the hotter ammo through his new Henry 45-70.


https://www.youtube.com/user/whatsupitsdabrick/videos?disable_polymer=1

Some of my friends have just used factory 300 or 405 grain factory 45-70 ammo for black bears.

Action is weaker than you'd think.

Black bears will die nicely with lower pressure fodder - they arent hard to kill.

That guy hasn't a clue.

Thanks for the information, I think. LOL

BH63

when you have a tack guy trying to show you how to use a lever gun you should no he is stupid

I find his vids entertaining. I don't think he takes himself too seriously. Breaking up bowling balls with big bores is kind of a giveaway.

Yeah Black bears aint hard to kill, I know a bunch of bear hunters and they kill bears with just about any deer cartridge you can think of, I know a few bear hunters that carry .35 Rem lever guns but most have a bolt action of one flavor or another, .308 Win seems pretty popular.....Good luck...Hb

I have all kinds of guns that would be good for killing black bears, but I want to use the 45-70 Levergun for bears over bait at close range (25-50 yards).

I want something that will break both shoulders of a really big bear and still leave a good blood trail.


Thanks for the responses though.

BH63

As previously stated don't underestimate the penetration of a good cast bullet at moderate velocity...A cast 405 gr bullet would easily do what you require with energy to spare.

Fingers in your ears?

I think you need to shoot your rifle a bit so you can understand what the 45-70 can do. Remington Yellow Box Express (405gr jsp @1200fps) will go through both shoulders of a black bear. Going in 1/2", going out .60".

But you wont be able to learn your rifle or the cartridge unless you reload.

I might give the 405gr Rems a try. They seem awfully slow though. If I hit a little low, I'm not sure they have enough "whump" to break both of the upper legs of a bear. They are really quite dense.

Another option (although pricey) is the Swift 45-70. It has a 350gr partition bullet that is supposed to open up at around 1200 fps. In a 24" barrel they give a MV of around 1700 fps.

I agree I need to shoot the gun some more to see which combinations give the best accuracy.

The KY Ballistics guy was using Underwood +P that ballistically were a little hotter than the HSM +P loads, so I reckon my H010 won't blow up at any rate. LOL

Thanks,

BH63

A 400 grain HC bullet at 1,600 fps is plenty for penetration with exit. Years back Brian Pierce shot through two Cape buffalo with a 405 grain CorBon jacketed solid at 1,700 fps. Large bullets at moderate speeds go deep. Read Linebaugh’s studies on momentum. Most 45-70 ammo is loaded at 35,000 psi with upper magnum loads approaching 40,000 psi range for modern lever action. This is typically the upper limits of safe operation for a Marlin 1895 action. Have to believe Henry can handle the same if entering into the 45-70 market.

I have some 405gr Woodleigh Weldcores that I plan to load to around 1,800fps for Eland and what-not in Zimbabwe next year (I am NOT going to use the 45-70 for the Cape Buffalo portion of the hunt!).

I think that Woodleigh would be a bang-up bullet for big bears.

Henry is not the same design or as strong as the marlin. Best read up on it a bit before pushing it. If I wanted to push the 45-70 it would be in a #1 or marlin.

I have shot thru a 400lb plus Black Bear, and a 1300 Bison with the 405 Remmys out of a 1886 win, light rifle built in 1901 dam wish I still have the one!

Never pushed anything. Exactly where have you read that the Henry H010 45-70 can not handle lever action 45-70 SAAMI loadings. Loading data for the 45-70 is in three distinct categories "trapdoor", "modern lever guns" and "Ruger No. 1". I can't believe that Henry design engineers were not diligent enough to produce a firearm that meets the modern lever SAAMI loading. Of which the H010 is the most recent modern to join the game. I find it hard to believe that any SAAMI loading suitable for a Marlin wouldn't be suitable for a Henry. The Winchester 86, 71 and 94 are all designed a bit stouter than either Henry or Marlin. Do you believe Garrett or Buffalo Bore lever loads exceed SAAMI specs, they don't.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ALL THIS^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

I saw a guy shoot a 1100 lb Bison/Buffalo in the chest with a 45-70 Sharps with a 500 gr cast lead bullet loafing along at 1240 fps, the bull turned a half circle and fell dead, the skinners found the bullet in the bulls pelvis, that's near six and a half feet of penetration.

Were I to hunt black bear with a 45-70, it'd be with either my original 1886 Winchester or Sharps rifle, both rifles would be firing the 500 grain Jerry Dean flat nosed cast bullet at 1235 fps, any black bear that ever lived wouldn't hold that bullet from any conceivable angle to the vitals.