the most accurate platform for shooting cast bullets?

TheBear · May 1, 2013, 01:00 PM

Help me make a decision!
What i want:
a 45/70 or 450marlin rifle for shooting at the 50, 100, 150 yard ranges. I want to use cast cast bullets, i want the rifle to produce at least moa accuracy up to 200 yards.
there a three rifles available for me:
Uberti 1874 "down under" sharps rifle 45/70
Ruger No1 medium sporter 45/70
Steyr big bore (bolt action) 450marlin

Which one of those three will give me best accuracy with cast bullets? Which one would you get?

Boomer58cal · May 1, 2013, 02:52 PM

You should buy all three and let us know.

In my experience they are all capable rifles. Bullet fit to bore, bullet weight vs rifling twist and the correct charge are probably going to make a bigger difference in accuracy than there is between rifles. I'd buy the one that tugs on your heart the most.

Boomer

BumbleBug · May 1, 2013, 02:56 PM

I'm biased, but hands down, best of all, is the Ruger #1 in .45-70. Even my "wrinkled-up" cast bullets shoot good through mine!

IMHO...

..bug

GP100man · May 4, 2013, 07:57 AM

I throw my hat in with the 30 cal bunch , but the 45 cal especially 45/70 was made to shoot lead .

How far was it they shot Buffalo with em ???

sidewindr · May 4, 2013, 11:04 AM

I'd definitely go with the 'ol #1 , but rightfully you won't go wrong with any of them, it just too much fun playin with cast bullets. Are you casting them yourself? Which molds? It's the best way to tweek every last MOA, but time consuming.

Sure Shot Mc Gee · May 4, 2013, 12:20 PM

Whew!! I get the shivers when looking at that list. All are indeed pretty spendy. I don't know about the Steyr or Uberti. But I do know about the Ruger #1 choice. "It will shoot anything you can squeeze into it." and has one of the best Falling Block designs. Machined with unbelievable strength built in. Of course it is made here in America. Where else would it be. On Euro land perhaps. " Please!! I don't think so!!"

S/S

TheBear · May 4, 2013, 02:30 PM

The #1 was my first choice...but ive read some reviews and they said lots of things about accuracy issues, POI shifting and the price being way too high...
for now, the uberti sharps is my favorite, the only downside i can see about this rifle is that there is no way to put a scope on it...i just dont know how a creedmore tang sight compares to a scope at the 100 yard range..

@sidewindr
of course im casting my own, i havent bought any molds yet but im planing on getting the lyman 330gr hp #457122 and the lyman 535gr #457132 to start with.

i love casting bullets so much... and for me its all like "the bigger the better" those big bullets, casting them holding em in my hand, feeling the weight.. i love throwing huge chunks of lead down the range especially with a falling block rifle, it feels like shooting a cannon or some kind of artillery. yeah im aware that a .223 or a 6mm ppc will give me hole in hole accuracy on the 100 yard range and it wont take much work to do this.... shooting moa groups with a 500gr cast bullet takes much more work ... but its worth it!

+ the damage a slow flying, big diameter super heavy, soft alloy bullet does...you just cant compare it to the damage a .223 or even a .308 does.
I took some shots at an old computer with a .450 marlin lever action rifle shooting cast bullets a few years ago...it looked like someone hit that pc with a sledgehammer..

Mike / Tx · May 5, 2013, 05:16 AM

They had a little informal factory BR tourny once at one of the ranges I used to hang at. On of the fellas hauled out a 45-70 and won it quickly setting the standard for calibers to be cut at 35.

It sure was a hoot to see that big raged hole which cut out most of the center of the target being measured for center to center, where the .223 only looked like a missed hole punch operation on a three leaf binder sheet. LOL IT's hard to loose a match when your knocking out half an inch of paper with each shot.

The only 45-70 I have ever shot was a original 1890'ish Sharps falling block using some of the original paper cartridges with the twisted ends from the original box they came in. What a treat that was. The fellas who brought it out did that sort of thing quite a bit, and they knew I wanted to shoot it as I had completely quite doing anything but watching and drooling. I tol the guy all I needed to do was to pull the trigger and he set everything up for me. IT had a nice double set on it and the second one broke as good as my Jewell did. Sure was neat when it went off, and you could hear that big ol bullet sailing own range then "WHOP" into the paper and burm.

dahermit · May 5, 2013, 07:35 AM

Quote:

I want to use cast cast bullets, i want the rifle to produce at least moa accuracy up to 200 yards.

Having read the "Fouling Shot" (Cast Lead Bullet Asso.'s official publication), each bi-monthly publication of the association's sponsored Cast Lead Rifle competition results, I think that your expectations are a little too high. Even those guys are not getting, "...at least moa accuracy up to 200 yards...", even with techniques like, fitting the nose to the groves, bumping the noses, indexing the bullets, the cases, and using just a single case for the whole string.
If you are searching for top accuracy in cast lead rifle bullets, I suggest joining the CBA, read their forum, peruse their journal and its data on what is used by each competitor as it pertains to bullet alloy, powders, primers, cases, lube, etc. In short they are the foremost organization that encourages and supports the interest in accuracy using cast lead bullets.

May 1, 2013, 02:52 PM	#2
Boomer58cal Senior Member Join Date: February 18, 2013 Location: closer than you think Posts: 967	You should buy all three and let us know. In my experience they are all capable rifles. Bullet fit to bore, bullet weight vs rifling twist and the correct charge are probably going to make a bigger difference in accuracy than there is between rifles. I'd buy the one that tugs on your heart the most. Boomer __________________ The number one cause of death in the 20th century. 290,000,000 citizens were first disarmed and then murdered by their own governments. This number does not include those killed in war. We're from the government, we're here to help

May 1, 2013, 02:56 PM	#3
BumbleBug Senior Member Join Date: March 11, 2013 Location: Near Heart of Texas Posts: 870	Awesome rifle... I'm biased, but hands down, best of all, is the Ruger #1 in .45-70. Even my "wrinkled-up" cast bullets shoot good through mine! IMHO... ..bug

May 5, 2013, 05:16 AM	#8
Mike / Tx Senior Member Join Date: April 8, 2000 Posts: 2,101	They had a little informal factory BR tourny once at one of the ranges I used to hang at. On of the fellas hauled out a 45-70 and won it quickly setting the standard for calibers to be cut at 35. It sure was a hoot to see that big raged hole which cut out most of the center of the target being measured for center to center, where the .223 only looked like a missed hole punch operation on a three leaf binder sheet. LOL IT's hard to loose a match when your knocking out half an inch of paper with each shot. The only 45-70 I have ever shot was a original 1890'ish Sharps falling block using some of the original paper cartridges with the twisted ends from the original box they came in. What a treat that was. The fellas who brought it out did that sort of thing quite a bit, and they knew I wanted to shoot it as I had completely quite doing anything but watching and drooling. I tol the guy all I needed to do was to pull the trigger and he set everything up for me. IT had a nice double set on it and the second one broke as good as my Jewell did. Sure was neat when it went off, and you could hear that big ol bullet sailing own range then "WHOP" into the paper and burm. __________________ LAter, Mike / TX

May 1, 2013, 01:00 PM	#1
TheBear Senior Member Join Date: April 11, 2011 Posts: 303	the most accurate platform for shooting cast bullets? Help me make a decision! What i want: a 45/70 or 450marlin rifle for shooting at the 50, 100, 150 yard ranges. I want to use cast cast bullets, i want the rifle to produce at least moa accuracy up to 200 yards. there a three rifles available for me: Uberti 1874 "down under" sharps rifle 45/70 Ruger No1 medium sporter 45/70 Steyr big bore (bolt action) 450marlin Which one of those three will give me best accuracy with cast bullets? Which one would you get?

May 4, 2013, 07:57 AM	#4
GP100man Senior Member Join Date: August 1, 2007 Location: Tabor City , NC. Posts: 1,969	I throw my hat in with the 30 cal bunch , but the 45 cal especially 45/70 was made to shoot lead . How far was it they shot Buffalo with em ??? __________________ GP100man

May 4, 2013, 11:04 AM	#5
sidewindr Senior Member Join Date: June 4, 2011 Location: somewhere out there Posts: 101	I'd definitely go with the 'ol #1 , but rightfully you won't go wrong with any of them, it just too much fun playin with cast bullets. Are you casting them yourself? Which molds? It's the best way to tweek every last MOA, but time consuming.

May 4, 2013, 12:20 PM	#6
Sure Shot Mc Gee Senior Member Join Date: January 2, 2012 Location: Minnesota Posts: 3,876	Whew!! I get the shivers when looking at that list. All are indeed pretty spendy. I don't know about the Steyr or Uberti. But I do know about the Ruger #1 choice. "It will shoot anything you can squeeze into it." and has one of the best Falling Block designs. Machined with unbelievable strength built in. Of course it is made here in America. Where else would it be. On Euro land perhaps. " Please!! I don't think so!!" S/S

May 4, 2013, 02:30 PM	#7
TheBear Senior Member Join Date: April 11, 2011 Posts: 303	The #1 was my first choice...but ive read some reviews and they said lots of things about accuracy issues, POI shifting and the price being way too high... for now, the uberti sharps is my favorite, the only downside i can see about this rifle is that there is no way to put a scope on it...i just dont know how a creedmore tang sight compares to a scope at the 100 yard range.. @sidewindr of course im casting my own, i havent bought any molds yet but im planing on getting the lyman 330gr hp #457122 and the lyman 535gr #457132 to start with. i love casting bullets so much... and for me its all like "the bigger the better" those big bullets, casting them holding em in my hand, feeling the weight.. i love throwing huge chunks of lead down the range especially with a falling block rifle, it feels like shooting a cannon or some kind of artillery. yeah im aware that a .223 or a 6mm ppc will give me hole in hole accuracy on the 100 yard range and it wont take much work to do this.... shooting moa groups with a 500gr cast bullet takes much more work ... but its worth it! + the damage a slow flying, big diameter super heavy, soft alloy bullet does...you just cant compare it to the damage a .223 or even a .308 does. I took some shots at an old computer with a .450 marlin lever action rifle shooting cast bullets a few years ago...it looked like someone hit that pc with a sledgehammer..