Rapine .460" Dia. 405 Grn.

[rraffl]

Hi guys, anybody shoot this one? I have a Shiloh Business rifle in 45-90 and I'm looking for an easy bullet to shoot 100 yards. Buffalo Arms also has this bullet mold in .457 Dia. Never done any casting before. I kind of like this bullet cause from the photos it looks like most of it is in the case. I know Lyman also makes a 405 Grn. mold, but I like this one better because it looks like it might carry more lube. Any comments or suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Dick Raffl
Vernon Hills, Illinois

[rdnck]

rraffl--I have owned several Sharps in 45-90, and presently have three in my gun rack. I like the caliber. That said, I have never had one that would shoot a 400 or so grain bullet with really good accuracy. Mine have all shot a bullet in the 540 grain range best. I would suggest a Paul Jones Creedmoor or a Lyman Postell, or a Saeco 745. I have had good luck with all of these bullets in a 45-90.

Get a bullet that is .458 diameter for your Shiloh 45-90. A .460 diameter bullet will be hard to load in a Shiloh chamber. The loaded round must not exceed .480 in diameter at the case mouth. If it does, it will not chamber. Shoot straight, rdnck.

[JAGG]

RR ! I have shot a number of 405gr bullets cast from different mould makers . If you are talking about the hollow base mould it shot very well to clover leaf groups at 100yds ! Even the lee 405gr hollow base mould shot very good and holds even more lube ! Those big heavy bullets of 540gr can be brusing on a person over a period of time ! But some people here are just used to shooting VW BEATLES AT 1000yd and BBQing them ! JAGG

[TYRVR]

Now lets see....who can that mean old JAGGy be talking about.... ever body knows if the case will hold 140 grains......then a little compression will allow for an extra 20, and with a 680 grain .50 bullet out front, it's the same as a love tap, recoil wise..........from a locomotive..and speaking of locomotives, anybody else unhappy about the switch from steam to electric powered locomotives? them big old diesel burners ain't half the fun to knock holes in........and if you hit something solid inside them diesels.....they fall over! where as them old steam buggys just spew them satisfying clouds up in the air when you hit'em. I sure do miss the good old days when a man could lay up on a bluff and poke holes in a Nickel Plate and Wabash steam engine east bound to Norfolk with 80 cars of Mr.Peabodys pea coal behind, the happy engineers waving their hats and offering up them one fingerd salutes to your marksmanship.........ah yes.....them was the days,

[8iowa]

The 45-70, what a marvelous cartridge. In black powder loadings it is actually two cartridges occuping the same envelope.

First, is the cartridge version for the lever action rifle. I load for my 1886 Winchester, and use the 405 grain Lyman FP bullet. Cast with 30-1 alloy the bullets actually weigh about 415 grains. With about 63 grains of GOEX Cartridge, under a .030 Walters wad, I get about 1150 fps out of my 22 inch barrel. I have to keep the OAL to a maxium of 2.550 inches in order for the cartridges to work through the action. In a lever action rifle with a tubular magazine, flat point bullets are an absolute must.

Next we have the 45-70 for the single shot rifles. Here the bullet can be seated out as far as the throat and leade will allow. You can use much heavier bullets that have a better ballistic coefficient, and probably load them with more powder as well. Obviously, this is not a load for a lever action rifle.

The 405 grain load can be used in a single shot rifle. If you wish, you can also exceed the 2.550 OAL and use a slightly heavier powder charge. It's not the optimum load, but it will work.