Barnes website has reloading information on the 250 gr in the 45-70. Yes, you can get significantly more than 2,000 fps with that bullet.

 

Banes website has reloading information on the 250 gr in the 45-70. Yes, you can get significantly more than 2,000 fps with that bullet.

Do you think with them going over 2000 they’d still have fairly mild recoil? (I’m new to 45-70s and I’ve never shot one)

 

Welcome to the forum from the great state of Tennessee 👍

 

Thanks man!

 

For that rifle, you'll get about the same amount of recoil out of a 250 gr bullet at 2300 fps as you will a 405 gr bullet at 1600 fps - right at 25 ft lbs of free recoil for both loads.

Ballistic info for a 250 gr launched at 2300 fps, 100 yard zero

Ballistic info for a 405 gr launched at 1600 fps, 125 yard zero

Keep in mind that KE != penetration depth. Once the bullet hits the target, Sectional Density and momentum (bullet weight) are what we're interested in.

A 250 gr .458 bullet has an SD of .170, a 405 gr .458 bullet has an SD of .276

You're good to go for white tail deer out to 150 yards with both of those loads without having to adjust for holdover.

MV is important, but it isn't the end-all-be-all when we're looking at terminal performance. If high MV were THE critical component to penetration, we'd hunt cape buffalo with 204 Ruger or 22-250. But we don't, we hunt them with 286 gr to 570 gr, high SD (above .30) bullets somewhere in the neighborhood of 1900 - 2500 fps. Granted, white tail are nowhere nearly as tough as cape buffalo, but the same principals still apply.

The other thing about the 250 gr monoflex and the 325 gr FTX is that the brass has to be trimmed down to 2.040" from the SAAMI length of 2.105". Not a huge deal, certainly not a deal breaker, but it is a deal.

Lead alloys are also pretty inexpensive. You can buy 405 gr Missouri Bullet Company Buffalo #2 for around $60 for a box of 200, including shipping and taxes. And assuming you can't find a published load on a given lead/lead alloy bullet, the load for any jacketed bullet of the same weight is safe to load for any lead bullet.

 

Wow! The difference in energy and drop is crazy! I’ll mainly use it for Alabama whitetails, and hopefully an Alaskan moose someday. And I didn’t think about having to trim the cases but that’s definitely an important thing.

 

The trick is to shoot the real heat first, and then everything after feels pretty mild. My first ever reload was unintentionally at Ruger 1 levels (which the Ruger Marlins handle just fine) and everything since feels pretty easy. I’ve notice the hornady FTX 325gr has a bit of snap to it still

 

Maybe some of the buffalo bore dangerous game will break my shoulder in lol

 

I'm running 300 gr bullets at 2000 fps. That's where my shoulder said enough. Standing up ain't bad but off a bench it's stout.

 

Yeah shooting off the bench I’m sure isn’t very fun lol

 

Yeah I’m hunting a 140 yard open strip in the woods, so I have pretty close shots. I have thought about the buffalo bore low recoil 45-70 which uses a 430 gr going 1550 fps and 2,294 fpe.

 

Even if that load were goosed up to 1700 fps, it doesn't change the ballistic arc or ability to penetrate by enough to justify the extra recoil and the higher pressure load. I shoot Beartooth Bullets 425 and 525 gr out of mine at about 1625. That's just where I happened to land on MV. I'd have been happy with the same groups at 1500 fps.

Marlin 1895 GBL, 18.5" barrel
5 shots through apertures sites with the 425 gr

5 shots with the 525 gr, same aperture sites

 

The real advantage of shooting the 250s at 2,330fps is the significantly flatter trajectory. Most shooters that I know zero their 45-70 rifles @ 100yds. If you compare the drop at 200yds between a 400gr bullet (@1,600-1,700) to a 250gr bullet (@2,330) the drop is probably half. This certainly helps when the exact distance to the target isn't known, or the target is moving while you are taking aim.
I have taken several whitetails with the Hornady 250 MonoFlex bullet. All of the bullets have exited so they penetrate more than sufficiently for deer hunting and who knows what else. Monoflex bullets that have been recovered from the dirt berm have all expanded like a typical Barnes X bullet only they are MUCH bigger in diameter.
The 250 Monoflex also shoot surprisingly well at 300yds. While shots on game are possible at that distance, I really don't consider my 45-70 to be a 300yd rifle, but it's interesting to see how well they do on steel targets.
All-in-all, the 45-70 just seems to be a natural with 400gr bullets with flat noses, and lumbering along at 1,600fps or so. I've shot more bears with the 400gr Speer FN bullet @1,700fps than anything else. It's great to have so many choices!

 

It’s good to know they do decent at longer ranges. My shots are anywhere between 15-150 yards and I just need something for mainly whitetail.

 

If you dont want to trim your brass shorter, try Barnes TSX 250 gr. I tried them before I got heavier ones and found good accuracy, but didnt hunt with them.
Both TSX versions can be loaded to normal brass with OAL on "specs".

The heavier 300 gr TSX is great bullet and more than enough for moose.
I got a calf today from my young Karelians ~three hours work and yet again it dropped right there.

 

Nice moose! I’ll probably get the Barnes it’s good to know there accurate. Right now I’m just trying to get a lighter recoil load because I like my shoulder lol.

 

Welcome from the evergreen state, Washington. Have fun shooting that thing. I do mine.

 

Thanks! I’ll definitely have fun with it!