Target Sports

BLACK POWDER: WHERE THE BUFFALO ROAM

Created on 14th May 2009

Derek Landers on the .45/70 Government: a truly classic calibre all the way from Little Big Horn to a range near you

Mention the .45/70 calibre and it is likely that the conversation will eventually turn to one, or both, of two subjects: buffalo hunting and the Little Big Horn. This old-time cartridge went some way towards the success of the former and failure at the latter.

History

Throughout history one of the more positive results of wars has been development and improvement in weaponry, and the American Civil War was no exception. For the most part during this conflict the principal infantry weapons on both sides were single-shot muzzle-loading rifles. Although a number of cartridge long arms, mainly carbines, had made their appearance in both armies, the resistance to change among the military top brass ensured that the Springfields, Enfields and such remained the mainstay of the foot soldiers' armament. After the war it became clear that cartridge arms were the way forward and the Army had to admit that its muzzle-loaders were fast becoming obsolete. While the self-contained metallic cartridge had seen a modicum of success between 1861 and 1865, it was usually in a comparatively low-powered weapon, due to the weakness of the copper cartridge cases. Even though repeaters such as the Spencer and the Henry rifle had shown their potential with a high rate of fire, when the decision was made to introduce a cartridge rifle for the Army, a large-calibre single-shot model was the preferred choice. It would be 1892 before the Army adopted a repeating rifle in the form of the .30/40 Krag.

As early as 1861 the US Ordnance Department was experimenting with breechloading single-shot rifles, based on conversions of existing percussion arms. It was not until 1865 that the final decision was made to adopt the ‘Trapdoor' system designed by Erskine Allen and the first conversions, in .58 rimfire calibre, were produced, built on the 1863 Springfield Rifle Musket. The following year the calibre was reduced by over-boring existing barrels and inserting a rifled liner to take a .50 centrefire cartridge. Many thousands of this model were produced, in both rifle and carbine configuration, until 1873 when the Army adopted the Colt Single Action Army revolver in .45 Colt calibre and decided to standardise on .45 calibre for both handguns and long guns. That year saw the birth of the .45/70 Government cartridge and the introduction of scratch-built rifles and carbines in the new calibre, based on Allen's trapdoor design. Over half a million examples were completed before the above-mentioned Krag rifle became the standard issue.

The .45/70, like the rest of the Winchester centrefire black powder-era cartridges, takes its name from the calibre of the bullet (in this case .45") and the powder charge (70gn). While 70gn of black powder was reasonably comfortable to shoot in the 32½" barrelled rifle, it was found to be a little heavy for the carbine, which had a barrel 10" shorter. Thus the ammunition delivered to the carbine-equipped cavalry units had a decreased powder charge of only 55gn. As a coincidence, this is very close to the maximum amount of FFg black powder that you can get into a modern .45/70 cartridge case.

Very shortly after, the Army began to equip the troops with this new Springfield. Then other major firearms manufacturers saw the new cartridge's potential in the civilian market and began to offer it in their products. First to take advantage was Sharps, whose 1874 model was to become a leading player in this market, albeit for only a short period. Around 1875 Remington added the .45/70 to its line of Rolling Block rifles and the following year the Ballard Pacific rifle joined the throng. Winchester's first foray into using this cartridge was in the Winchester-Hotchkiss bolt action rifle in 1879, and its single-shot High Wall model took it on board in 1885. Whitney was the first to offer this chambering in a lever-action rifle in its 1878 model, followed by Marlin in 1881 and Winchester in 1886. At one time the Winchester catalogue offered a large variety of bullet shapes and weights, from 330gn to 500gn, along with a number of powder charges for this cartridge.

By lengthening the case, and therefore increasing the available capacity for larger powder charges, ‘new' calibres such as the .45/90 and .45/120 were born. Both these are still offered today in reproduction rifles. Although the .45/70 was deleted from American rifle manufacturers' catalogues in the 1930s, the renewed interest in the American West has meant that this is another old favourite that has seen its popularity escalate over the last few decades. This in turn has led to the major Italian gunmakers producing a good variety of reproduction rifles for this calibre, both as single-shot models and lever actions. These latter variants, and Uberti's 1885 Model, will usually be copies of early Winchester products and fitted with that company's crescent-shaped butt-plate. While these features are pleasing to look at they can be rather brutal on your shoulder with heavy loads, and the shotgun-style butt is more comfortable for extended shooting of this calibre.

Back to Black

Today the .45/70 is one of the most popular cartridges for target events such as silhouette, Creedmoor or steel gong and buffalo matches. While in its black powder configuration it is relatively weak by modern rifle standards, and its range is limited when thus loaded, current production rifles can handle much hotter smokeless loads, which can ring the steel plates out at the longer distances. It is so popular that there are probably more reloading components available for it than any other black powder cartridge, and it is certainly one of the easiest to load. The original ‘balloon head' cases, in which the head was formed from thin, folded copper or brass, could accommodate a load of 70gn of black powder but their inherent weakness, head separation, led to the introduction of the solid head design that we all know today. This stronger construction led to a reduced capacity and today's cases in this calibre will only take around 60gn of FFg powder, depending on the bullet design. Loading Winchester cases with 55gn of Henry Krank's black powder and adding a lubricated wad between powder and a 405gn lead bullet gives just about the right amount of powder compression necessary in black powder cartridges. I have used this load in an original Springfield trapdoor rifle and a modern Pedersoli trapdoor carbine, and it is a pleasure to shoot in both instances. The choice of off-the-shelf bullets here in the UK is somewhat limited but for those wishing to cast their own there is a good variety of moulds from all the leading players in the reloading equipment field.

If you choose to take the smokeless route, an abundance of loading data is available from all the powder manufacturers. Brand loyalty, and to a lesser extent powder availability, will play a part in your choice of load, and below are samples of loading data from Barnes' Cartridges of the World. If you are shooting an older, 19th century rifle, you should check that it is up to the loads that you intend to use and if necessary send it for proof-testing before use. Matching the serial number of the rifle against manufacturers' data will usually enable you to determine if the rifle is suitable for smokeless or black powder-only loads. As a rough guide, anything made post-1900 should be able to take low-powered smokeless loads, but please check first. If in doubt keep to black powder loads only, and even then only after a competent gunsmith has examined the gun.

Once again I can recommend no better source of information than www.ammoguide.com, which lists no less than 138 loads for the .45/70 Government cartridge, although you do need to be a subscriber if you want to view them.

Many of the old Sharps, Remington, Springfield and Winchester rifles that were originally chambered for this cartridge have been reproduced by the various Italian firearms manufacturers, along with a modern interpretation from Ruger, so you should have no difficulty finding a gun that suits you should you decide to add one of this calibre to your cabinet.

BLACK POWDER: WHERE THE BUFFALO ROAM

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BLACK POWDER: WHERE THE BUFFALO ROAM

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