.45-70 Government Cartridge for Hunting and Bear Defense

My son-in-law Brad Jannenga has a battered, still shootable, 1873 Springfield cavalry carbine. We don’t know who it was issued to or what stories it could tell. By serial number, it was assigned to the 7th US Cavalry in the spring of 1876. I get goosebumps thinking this rifle might have been present at the Little Big Horn.

I get almost the same feeling when I handle a modern .45-70, bemused that this relic of the Old West is still one of our most popular rifle cartridges. The .45-70 was introduced in 1873, using recently perfected centerfire priming. In the day’s nomenclature, it was the .45-70-405 Government: Nominally .45 caliber (.458-inch bullet); 70 grains of blackpowder; 405-grain bullet at 1350 feet per second (fps). Although trajectory is steep, this is a powerful load with substantial recoil, brutal in the light, handy cavalry carbine. Custer’s troops probably used a reduced .45-55-405 cavalry load.

The 1873 trapdoor action is not strong. It was beefed up in the 1884 model and the Army went to a heavier 500-grain bullet, improving long range performance. The .45-70-500 load was standard issue until end of service. Although replaced by the smokeless-powder .30-40 Krag in 1892, many of our troops in Cuba and the Philippines were still armed with trapdoor Springfields.

As our military cartridge, and powerful enough for the largest North American game, the .45-70 became a popular sporting cartridge, initially widely chambered to single-shots. John Marlin’s Model 1881 lever-action was the first repeater able to handle the big .45-70 cartridge. There were others, including a much-improved (original) Marlin 1895. Most famous was Winchester’s John Browning-designed Model 1886.

Mild Pressures

Dropped in 1935, the Winchester ‘86 was also the last original production rifle chambered to .45-70. There were plenty of .45-70 rifles in use, so ammo production never ceased. Smokeless powder .45-70 loads date to the 1890s, kept mild for safe use in weak-actioned Springfields. To this day, major manufacturers hold .45-70 factory loads to a mild 28,000 psi, safe to use in (sound) older rifles.

Handloaders figured out long ago that Marlins, Winchesters, and falling-block single shots were capable of greater performance. However, into the 1970s the few remaining .45-70 factory loads propelled a 405-grain bullet at 1330 fps. When I was young, the .45-70 was almost dead, a throwback to another era. With no new rifles, interest was minimal.

Bill Ruger introduced his No. 1 falling block single-shot in 1966, soon chambering it to .45-70, the first new .45-70 rifle in decades. In 1972, Marlin hogged out the inside of their 336 action to create the “new” M1895. Since then, many .45-70 platforms: Lever-actions from Marlin and Henry, numerous ’86 reissues and copies. Lots of single-shots, many brands and various actions. Enough that, today, the .45-70 is among the top 20 in centerfire cartridge popularity.

With new platforms, ammunition manufacturers introduced new loads, increasing velocity with lighter bullets. Common is a 300-grain bullet at 1880 fps. Flatter trajectory, less recoil. However, standard factory loads are still held to low pressure. Using different propellants and the FTX bullet with compressible sharp polymer tip, Hornady’s LeveRevolution changed the game. With 325-grain FTX bullet at 2000 fps, it is the flattest-shooting .45-70 factory load.

What's Your Intended Use?

It depends on what you want to do with your .45-70. I think of it as a short-range hammer for decisively dropping deer and hogs, maybe the occasional black bear. Whenever I describe the .45-70 as a “short-range cartridge” I get letters. In the blackpowder era it was used for long-range competition and sniping, and many fans still enjoy stretching it out on paper and steel. Never mind that, with a 100-yard zero, the original 405-grain load drops 20 feet at 500 yards. So long as you know the range and trajectory, the solution is there.

However, for medium big game the lighter, faster bullets make life easier. Two deer seasons back Kansas friend Bobby Dierks got a Henry .45-70, mounted a Leupold red-dot, and zeroed it with Hornady’s 325-grain LeveRevolution load. That fall he had a ladder stand looking down on a brushy creek, major deer trail and scrape line. We zeroed a bit high at 50 yards. The rifle shot well, but I don’t think we fired a 100-yard group. From that stand, everything was close.

Opening morning, the wind was wrong there, so he moved to another stand overlooking a wide canyon, big grassy ridge on the far side. Naturally, that’s where a big buck appeared and offered a 200-yard shot. Tough shot with a red-dot, tough shot with a .45-70, about a foot of bullet drop. Bobby held the dot on the backline and flattened a Boone and Crockett buck. I think of the .45-70 as a close-range cartridge, but with modern, faster loads it offers more versatility, so long as you know the trajectory. On medium game, lighter bullets from 300 to 350 grains hit hard.

On larger game the lighter, faster bullets don’t enhance performance. When bison still roamed the plains, the .45-70 made its bones with its original heavy bullets, slow-moving and deep-penetrating. On big stuff, I’m convinced you’re better off with heavy bullets. They’ll be slow, but in modern actions (not trapdoor Springfields), you can up the ante and gain speed.

Reloading New Life?

Hornady’s current Handbook of Cartridge Reloading (now 10th Edition) offers three levels of loads for the .45-70: Trap Door, Marlin 1895, and Ruger No. 1, with ascending velocities and pressures. Similarly, smaller ammo companies like Cor-Bon and Garrett offer ascending, action-specific grades of .45-70 ammo. A good example is Garrett’s super-hard-cast 440-gain flat-point at 1730 fps, intended for Marlin 1895s (or stronger).

Some years back I shot a monstrous bison with a Wesson & Harrington single-shot .45-70. I was using handloads, similar in velocity and bullet style to that Garrett load. The bull was alone and nervous, so I took the shot just past 100 yards. Too far for a certain brain shot with iron sights. After the first shot he wasn’t going anywhere, wouldn’t go down so I kept shooting. Amazingly, those heavy, hard-cast bullets all exited.

When Ruger resumed Marlin production, I assumed they would start with the 336 in .30-30. As we know, I was wrong; they started with .45-70. Because, in later Remington production, .45-70s were outselling .30-30s nearly three to one. Much of the reason for the .45-70’s current popularity is the “guide gun” concept: A short, fast, powerful lever-action, so-named for bear guides to carry for backup, and increasingly popular for personal defense among wilderness wanderers in big bear country.

I suppose I’ve taken more big bears (grizzlies, coastal brownies, just one polar bear) than most hunters. I’ve never had to defend myself against a bear, nor do I want to, so I concede this is theoretical. I avoid bears and carry bear spray as well as a firearm. If push came to shove, I’d be confident with a short-barreled .45-70. By definition, self-defense against a bear is a point-blank encounter. I’m not sure the load would matter too much, but I’d prefer a heavy bullet, pushed as fast as my rifle would stand.

Defense and Hunting

That’s also what I’d want for hunting a big bear. However, hunting a big bear is much different than worrying about one eating you. A .45-70 with modern loads is plenty of gun…if you get close enough. Finding the right big bear is a difficult pursuit, usually a costly undertaking…with no certainty of success. Over the course of 50 years, I’ve taken eight big bears in sixteen serious attempts. My 50 percent success is high. You want to get as close as you can, but often it comes down to just one chance. On big bears, long shots are foolish and unethical, but that one chance could come beyond 200 yards. I don’t think a .45-70 with limited range is the ideal tool. Bowhunters also hunt big bears, accepting that their choice of arm may preclude success. That’s the mindset one should have in choosing a .45-70 for a once-in-a-lifetime quest for a big bear.

There is yet another role for the .45-70. In a Henry, Marlin, or ’86 with heavy loads, the great old .45-70 is absolutely Cape buffalo capable, proven by many modern hunters. Strong modern single-shots like the Ruger No. 1 have no limits at all. The Ruger No. 1 can be handloaded with 500-grain bullets to closely approach the .458 Winchester Magnum.

This is not new. When the .45-70 revival was just beginning, gunwriting great John Wootters surprised our world by taking a Ruger No. 1 in .45-70—with hot handloads—on his first safari, to Mozambique. I’ve taken Cape buffalo with big lever-actions, but I’ve never taken a .45-70 to Africa. This might be the year I take my 1895 Marlin. Partly for fun…and because it will work.

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