I went to the pawn shop today and asked to look at the H&R Handi-Rifle in .45-70. It's new in the box and I quibbled with the counterman for a few minutes. It's on layaway. He says that he wants to be at the range when I touch it off the first time.
I reminded him that I'm going to be using black powder cartridge loads and that the recoil shouldn't be that bad. However, physics won't be denied, and starting a 500 grain slug at 1300 fps is going to have some recoil. There's some when I start that load from the 10 lb Sharps and this 7 lb Handi should be fairly interesting to shoot.
Now, I have to talk with Mr. Brownell and see if he'll send me a peep sight for it. I'm thinking the Williams WGRS ought to serve me just fine.
4 comments:
I'm thinking you'd really feel a 45-70 in that lightweight rig.
My first gun was purchased with my first paper route collections in 8th grade. It was an H&R Topper 12 ga. like this rifle. Shot my first deer with it and #4 Buckshot. Still leaves a bit of a welt if I shoot a round of trap with it in shirt sleeves.
Followed your link, saw the Buffalo Classic models.... wow.
I think I may just need to get one; beautiful and retail just over $400... we'll have to see what the stores actually sell them for.
I trust you'll have a LOT of fun with that .45-70 Handy rifle. It's a little light, even for my favored load: A 405 gr. Remington JSP with enough RL15 to yield a little under 1700 fps in my Marlin 1895GS lever gun. Matt gave it to me for my 60th b'day and I've had a LOT of fun shooting it and working up this load. I've carried it afield for deer and for hogs but have yet to draw blood with it. I'm sure it'll do the job, once I get within peep-sight range. (I used a Leupold Scout scope to work up the loads and then switched over to the AO [Now XS]aperture.)
Just remember - - the army issued the .45-70-500 load for the full infantry rifles, but found the horse soldiers did a lot better shooting the .45-55-405 load through their carbines,. Please - - Give us full details of shooting the 500 grainers in the Handy Rifle.
In any case, I hope you'll enjoy your modern .45-70 as much as I have mine.
JPG
So you want a comment about 45-70?
Back when men had shoulders....IT HURT THEM, TOO!
Seriously, though, isn't there a difference in the quality of the recoil when loading with black powder? I've never loaded cartridges with it, but I hear that black powder gives more of a PUSH than an impact to the shoulder. Any truth to that?
My experience firing black powder is limited to one rifle, some sort of CVA replica rifle, and the guy at the range loaded it up with 120 behind a .54 minie-ball and it felt like shooting the 20th round of 12ga 3 inch in a busy duck blind.
I had been sighting in my Savage 99 in .308WIN with 180-grain factory loads, but that 120-grains of black powder kicked like a mule by comparison.
Got to admit that I've thought about it, though...it gives a second deer season to hunt in here in OR (but OR bans closed ignition, so you have to use an old-style rifle).
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