Posted: 25 March 2010 at 18:29 | IP Logged

...guess which one of these I'll be using in my .45-70? 

(l-r) 300 gr. cast w/gas check; 300 gr. Hornady HP; 300 gr. Barnes "X"; and a 400? gr. (antique) black powder load

The correct answer would be the 300 gr. Barnes "X".

I developed this load with a friend of mine that was the gunsmith for many years at Champlin Firearms, Bill Rinie.  It is a compressed load of 4198 powder on top of a Winchester primer, encased in Winchester brass.  We developed the load at least 25 years ago.  I let Bill keep my #1 and ten loads to shoot across his chronograph when a "perfect day" came along.

The day finally arrived and Bill shot the rifle.  He shot a five shot group that produced one ragged (vertical) hole.  The astonishing part was that there was only 12 fps in the five shot group.  My round duplicates the 450 Marlin introduce at least a decade later.  He left the rest of the rounds for me to shoot.  It was a blast!

The cast bullet was used for target practice.  The Hornady hollowpoint was used for deer hunting before Oklahoma legalized .223 for deer.  I quit using the .45/70 because it was too big for my deer hunting ranges.  All it would do was poke a hole (ala .50 round ball) through the deer.

One day I'll get the chance to slap a hog with the Barnes.

Posted: 25 March 2010 at 19:01 | IP Logged

Hey, be careful that you don't shoot thru two at one time!!!

Nice  assortment of loads, and a great group.

Now all you have to do is get out there hog hunting.  Where are you thinking of going?

Posted: 25 March 2010 at 19:24 | IP Logged

They are getting to be plentiful nuisance in many parts of the state.  However, most of the places around here are charging and I've (so far) refused to purchase hunting privileges or leases.  I have a cousin near  Brownwood, TX that has invited me down.  They are messing up some of the fence around his ranch.  I've yet to make the 7 hour trip to do so.

>>I do the 300 too but use a different powder ,they run at 2430 fps. I do a 250 also that runs

>>at 2600 fps.The barns are very accurate but very $$$$.

I need to get out my journal to review the velocities.  It seems like they were around 2300 fps. from my 22" Magna-Ported (waste of money) barrel.  I bought twenty boxes of the Barnes' when they were on sale and I was still single.  I think I have five or six boxes left.