Bluetrain,
I'm going to tackle your question from the stand point "Why Do People Reload"?
I can only speak for myself :
1.) I enjoy the process of reloading, learning the details of why bullets fly, testing different loads for power and accuracy and just the whole working with your hands thing.
2.) To obtain the best accuracy from any firearm rifle or handgun, a round/cartridge for that firearm must be developed. Two identical guns using the same load will not shoot the same, this is mainly ( but not 100%) due to the allowable tolerances during manufacturing of the firearm. Now that's not to say that over the counter ammo is bad but it is manufactured to work in all firearms of a given calibrate and it too have manufacturing tolerances. If you use over the counter ammo you still must try different brands and bullets weights to find the one that works to best in your gun.
3.) There is a sense of pride when you can shoot a sub inch group with a round that you developed or take a deer with "Your" load. This year my 12 yr daughter will be hunting with a load she helped work on and assemble.
As far as the question concerning the 45-70, it like all cartridges used in lever action gun ( and I own and use more lever guns than anything else) suffer from the flat nose bullet it must use. The over all ballistic can not be improved without using a non-conventional 45-70 bullet. If you compare a 30-30 to a 45-70, no matter what the muzzle velocity they start with, at around 175 yards their velocities are almost equal, granted the 45-70 is still carrying more energy. The point is the flat nose looses velocity quickly.... Huh I wonder want would happen if we used a pointy nose bullet in a single shot 45-70.....Huh maybe that's why we reload???
