Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting 45-70 bullet for elk

I use the 405gr Remington hand loaded to 1800fps from my 18.5" guide gun. I've killed exactly one bull elk with it and it went into freezer without fuss. Bullet expanded to 0.9" and traveled 30".

I wish there was a reasonably priced replacement.

I don’t have as much experience with shooting large animals as many here. I usually use cast with a wide meplate. It has always worked.
Frankly I’d think just about any 458 bullet from the 45-70 would work well.

I load the Hornady 350 RN in my Siamese mauser custom @ 2110 fps. Bang, Flop. I love it.

I found Nirvana with a 436 grain bullet and 47 grains H322, 1679 fps in my Guide Gun. Bullet in question was a Beartooth Bullets Piledriver Jr, since gone out of production but Montana Bullet Works makes a 420 grain that looks just as good. That weight bullet at moderate speed is a tremendous recipe for penetration.


I'm going to get some and try them out, my PD Jrs are just about shot out.

I have used the 400 grain Speer flat-nose for at least 25 years in my Guide Gun. It gives great accuracy over a stiff load of Varget. I never shot anything but deer with it, quite a few deer. Years ago, they seemed pretty soft, but something Speer said about them at some point led me to believe they’ve been toughened up. My own experience would seem to confirm that. I have quite a few 405 Remington bullets also. I’ve had great accuracy with them, as well, but never killed anything with them that I can recall. I’m not a big fan of the shorter, lighter bullets in .45-70, although I realize many are.

No elk experience. The 350 Hornady Round Nose being pushed by a stiff charge of 3031, has been remarkably accurate for me in 3 different Marlin 45-70's. 3 shot groups at 100 were always under an inch and often crowded 1/2 inch. It killed deer, and there's no reason to believe that it won't kill elk.

I've had great results on target with those round nose 350 gr Hornady bullets & IMR 3031. Hoping to try one on spring bear soon... Elk? Why not?

Guy

45-70 is one of the few cartridges I've used and loaded for with any real frequency. I've used the 405 Remington and old speer bullets on elk and Bison. Also used cast plenty and honestly anything 350--400+gr cast will smash an elk pretty handily.

Any bullet 330--350gr cast or jacketed would be fine and recoil isn't brutal.

The minimum acceptable accuracy of the .45-70 from the 1873 Springfield was approximately 4 inches (100 mm) at 100 yards (91 m), however, the heavy, slow-moving bullet had a "rainbow" trajectory, the bullet dropping multiple yards (meters) at ranges greater than a few hundred yards (meters). A skilled shooter, firing at a known range, could consistently hit targets that were 6 × 6 feet (1.8 m) at 600 yards (550 m)—the Army standard target. It was a skill valuable mainly in mass or volley fire, since accurate aimed fire on a man-sized target was effective only to about 200–300 yards (180–270 m).

After the Sandy Hook tests of 1879, a new variation of the .45-70 cartridge was produced: the .45-70-500, which fired a heavier, 500 grain, (32.57 g) bullet. The heavier bullet produced significantly superior ballistics and could reach ranges of 3,350 yards (3,120 m), which were beyond the maximum range of the .45-70-405. While the effective range of the .45-70 on individual targets was limited to about 1,000 yards (915 m) with either load, the heavier bullet produced lethal injuries at 3,500 yards (3,200 m). At those ranges, the bullets struck point-first at a roughly 30-degree angle, penetrating three 1-inch (2.5 cm) thick oak boards, and then traveled to a depth of eight inches (20 cm) into the sand of the beach. It was hoped the longer range of the .45-70-500 would allow effective volley fire at ranges beyond those normally expected of infantry fire.[5]

Hornady 350gr JRN (#4502) and 350gr JFP (#4503) both shoot 1 MOA or just under in my Ruder-made 1895. Barnes 300gr TSX-FN (#30630) is in the same neighborhood accuracy wise as the Hornadys, but they seem to run a bit narrow at .457. My first time seating them was comical, no neck tension at all. Bought a Lyman M die and that problem went away. I would trust all 3 on elk. I imagine any of the 350gr or heavier hardcast loads would clearly work too.

It doesn't need to expand much. It's bigger unfired than most elk bullets after they've mushroomed.

Interesting post,as I had some questions also on using the 45-70 for close range elk/bear gun. Recently tested some Barnes 300 gr hollow points out of my Siamese Mauser. Wanted to dig one of these fired slugs out of some wood, so shot through 4" of solid oak, backed buy a 6" round of white fir, at a distance of 50 yds. Bullet travvelled through both pieces of wood, and then slammed against a rock behind. Recovered the slug a few feet in front of the targets, was kinda suprised. Bullet still weighs 295 gr, is about 1-1/4" . These were loaded to about ,( guessing) 2300 fps.
Probably not a good elk/bear combo, but would use them for deer.

You might want to also look at the Big Bore Levers forum further down the list of forums. It comes up pretty regularly.

No truer word. I know it slaps moose and deer well. Have to assume it will do the same with elk.

That Rem 405 round was used by Shiloh Sharps to test their rifles according to Kirk Bryant. It will certainly ruin any elk’s day. I once shot at a 6-7” dia Pitch Pine with 550 gr 20-1 lead bullets over 2f black powder. Shot about five to six shots. I was at a distance of about 40 yards or less but the damage to that pine was something. The bullets went on through but tore away lots of wood. For those who don’t know Southern Pitch pine it is a tough species. Went to bed tree still standing but once the wind picked up it a bit it toppled. Big lead bullets in those old BP cartridges don’t move fast but they are destructive

Rick

If it fits snugly in a .45 cal barrel, it should work well on elk with proper placement. I tend toward the 400+ grain size.

Yep. I have knocked over a few cows with that round when I had a Marlin in 45-70

No elk with my 45/70 yet but it kills the hell out of deer with the tried and true 405 grain Remington.

And the 250 TTSX at 2,550 fps is a killer. That’s a Marlin level load, not Ruger #1.

I’ve not checked out newer mono’s like Lehigh, Cutting Edge and Hammer. Some of those look interesting, more expansive than Barnes. But not cheap.

DF

I wished the same thing so I bought some 400g Speers to try. Then I got back into casting and haven't tried the Speers yet. I've been casting and powder coating a 410g cup point that I how works well at about 1600 fps from my guide gun. My old load of Hornady 350g flat noses at nearly 2100 fps over benchmark is just no fun to shoot. My barrel isn't ported.

Bb