Marlin 1895SS .45/70 Loads

UncleNorby · 04-15-2004, 11:19 AM

I'm new to this forum, so don't know if there has been much talk of this subject, but I'm always interested to hear what others are loading in their big bore lever guns. Any .45/70 shooters out there?

Vapodog · 04-15-2004, 08:00 PM

Uncle, the last several Hornady manuals have loads published just for the 1895 Marlin in .45-70

It includes their 300 grain soft point to 2100'/sec and their 350 grain soft point to 1900'/sec from a 22" barrel.

I'm not sure what your .45-70 wants to do but those loads are serious medicine for a lot of big game.....some even think it's worthy of Cape Buffalo......I'm not among them but they're clearly an awesome gun!!

UncleNorby · 04-16-2004, 08:11 AM

Since I'm living in Indiana right now, seems the only thing my Marlin does is stand in my gun cabinet. A shame really, but opportunities to use rifles here are limited to groundhogs, coyotes and the like. Not that it wouldn't be fun, but I have other rifles that are better suited to those uses.

My load of preference has been 49 grains of IMR 4895 (I think) under a 300 gr Hornady Interlock JHP. I don't have a chrono, but I'd guess it is close to the load you mention, based on what I've seen in the charts.

It is all the gun I needed to chase deer and black bear in NH, where I'm from. Not too bad for recoil either. Set up with a peep sight it is very handy and fast to get on target in the thick stuff.