Pedretti & Sons 1874 Hartford

TXGunNut · March 20, 2010, 04:45 PM

Anybody have any experience, good or bad, with this rifle? Seems well made, nice wood and good fit & finish overall. Caliber is .45-70 and the very tall rear sight seems suitable for 1000 yard shooting. Am considering exploring BPCR competition and am not opposed to upgrading to a replica made in the good old US of A at a future date but would like to start out with this one. Seems to shoot OK with the crappy mail order bullets, will try my own shiny new boolits as soon as I get them loaded and weather improves.

arcticap · March 21, 2010, 03:19 AM

From what I gather the Pedretti guns are imported by Tristar and are often simply referred to as IAB's.
They seem to make a lot of different guns and models.
When the reviews are all across the board that could very well illustrate that every gun has it's own individual issues that are hard to generalize about and apply to all of them, even if the models are same.

I found these threads to be relevant:

http://www.bpcr.net/forum/viewtopic....1c189ef0738dd4

http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...ght=iab+sharps

TXGunNut · March 21, 2010, 12:01 PM

Thanks for the great links, Articap! I agree that rifles are individuals. This one may be as much as 10 yrs old. I've already spent more on basic bullet casting equipment than I did on the rifle. I've tried it with mail-order cast lead bullets with encouraging results, considering the poor bullet quality. My first attempt @ casting yielded much better results, will load some today and wait for better weather to start tuning a load for it. If the rifle doesn't work out and I decide I don't like this type of shooting I've lost little, I can cast bullets for other firearms. If I decide I like the sport and the rifle doesn't work out I'll be OK with that, I can buy a Shiloh. If the rifle works out and I decide I want to get into BPCR I'll have a good starter rifle that may be relegated to backup or hunting duty once I step up to a Shiloh. I will look the lock over closely but the bore and chamber look good to me.

TXGunNut · March 21, 2010, 11:12 PM

Found a problem with my Pedretti, not sure how serious it will be. Was measuring the chamber and wonder if it could be a .45-90. Dropped the bullet in the chamber and measured from the base to the end of the chamber. 2.1"! So much for seating the bullet out to engage the rifling.
May have made a mistake in loading tonight, maybe a few. All brass (Starline) was FL resized so I used a Lee .459 expander and had to bell the brass a bit to seat the cast bullet. Not enough friction to hold the bullet in place so I had to roll-crimp it a bit, a big no-no in some circles. I understand that comp loads don't need to be held in place but this rifle (and bullet) was designed for hunting and I'm going to hunt with it, at least once. I probably should have dug out my .45ACP taper crimp die but damage is done, will see how they shoot.
Suggestions?

Jim Watson · March 22, 2010, 08:12 AM

A Pedretti would not be my first choice, but since you already have one, wring it out.

There is a lot of good information in Mike Venturino's book 'Shooting the Buffalo Rifles.' A drop-tubed and compressed load of maybe 68 grains of Goex FFg or Swiss 1 1/2 Fg under a 500 grain bullet (Lyman Postell, maybe) a thousandth over groove diameter, cast 20:1 and lubed with SPG, with a vegetable fibre (actually pipe gasket material) wad will likely do pretty well. I full length size and don't crimp, but some people neck size, some apply a light crimp, just stuff to tinker with.

TomADC · March 22, 2010, 10:50 AM

I have the Pedersoli Sharps Silhouette Standard rifle in 45-70 32" barrel, I've added a Creedmoor tang sight, this rifle IMHO is a quality firearm, mine was sold thru Cimarron, fit and function are perfect, wood is beautiful and has great finish.
I guess to each his own, but I for one would buy another in a hearbeat.

There are 4 rounds in the 10 ring & 1 in the 9 ring. This using the barrel sight that came with the rifle.

TXGunNut · March 22, 2010, 08:24 PM

I only loaded 10, may load a few more using a different approach. I have the SPG book and have read it several times among other materials. I seated a 405gr Lyman 457193 on a .060 veggie wad down to the first driving band to cover the lube grooves. That only left room for 61gr of Swiss 2F in the Starline cases. I hope I can go from here to a hunting load that I can carry all day in the field. Long range comp loads are next, will look into Mike's book and possibly another sizing die or cases with thinner walls, Jim. I have a 457125(?) mold to cast 500gr bullets. Haven't used it yet but hope to soon.
Nice group, Tom, wish you'd put a pic of your rifle in there as well. I like the Pedersoli rifles but have noticed their prices are approaching the US made replicas. I happened onto this rifle for less than the price of a decent tang sight but the more I learned about these rifles the more I liked them. I know the Pedretti isn't a good choice but as Jim suggested I'm going to wring it out and use it to learn what I want in my next rifle. Next one will be a pistol grip 1874 in 45-70 but still working out the rest of the details and saving up my allowance.

TomADC · March 23, 2010, 10:36 AM

I bought mine from a guy that didn't like the recoil along with the remaining 18 rounds of 325 gr JHP Winchester ammo.
This picture is before I put the tang sight on, but those sights you see are what I shot that group with.

longranger · March 23, 2010, 11:21 AM

Here is the difference between most of the Italian rifles vs the American rifles.
I am by no means an expert with these rifles,I know enough to get them to shoot well.I never got my Uberti 1885 High Wall to shoot nearly as well.

TXGunNut · March 23, 2010, 08:57 PM

Nice rifle, Tom. Thanks.
Care to tell us more about the 540gr bullet, Kimosabe? Advantages of the .45-90 over the .45-70? Preferred cakes or cookies of the production guys @ Shiloh?

RUDIM6 · March 26, 2010, 10:28 PM

I have owned and shot my IAB 1874 for years- shoots great no problems-so they made some good ones!

TXGunNut · March 27, 2010, 10:27 AM

I think this is a good one, initial groups @ 100 and 200 in Raton awhile back were actually pretty good as I recall. Bullet quality (mail order) sucked so I knew there was room for improvement. One more cup of coffee and I'll pack up and see how it likes decent bullets. Think I need a bigger place. Shooting bench 30 feet from the loading bench seems about right, 30 miles kinda sucks. Even further for a range over 100 yds.

March 20, 2010, 04:45 PM	#1
TXGunNut Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: If you have to ask... Posts: 2,860	Pedretti & Sons 1874 Hartford Anybody have any experience, good or bad, with this rifle? Seems well made, nice wood and good fit & finish overall. Caliber is .45-70 and the very tall rear sight seems suitable for 1000 yard shooting. Am considering exploring BPCR competition and am not opposed to upgrading to a replica made in the good old US of A at a future date but would like to start out with this one. Seems to shoot OK with the crappy mail order bullets, will try my own shiny new boolits as soon as I get them loaded and weather improves. __________________ Life Member NRA, TSRA Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call Lonesome Dove My favorite recipes start out with a handful of used wheelweights.

March 21, 2010, 03:19 AM	#2
arcticap Senior Member Join Date: March 15, 2005 Location: Central Connecticut Posts: 3,166	From what I gather the Pedretti guns are imported by Tristar and are often simply referred to as IAB's. They seem to make a lot of different guns and models. When the reviews are all across the board that could very well illustrate that every gun has it's own individual issues that are hard to generalize about and apply to all of them, even if the models are same. I found these threads to be relevant: http://www.bpcr.net/forum/viewtopic....1c189ef0738dd4 http://thefiringline.com/forums/show...ght=iab+sharps Last edited by arcticap; March 21, 2010 at 12:47 PM.

March 21, 2010, 12:01 PM	#3
TXGunNut Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: If you have to ask... Posts: 2,860	Thanks for the great links, Articap! I agree that rifles are individuals. This one may be as much as 10 yrs old. I've already spent more on basic bullet casting equipment than I did on the rifle. I've tried it with mail-order cast lead bullets with encouraging results, considering the poor bullet quality. My first attempt @ casting yielded much better results, will load some today and wait for better weather to start tuning a load for it. If the rifle doesn't work out and I decide I don't like this type of shooting I've lost little, I can cast bullets for other firearms. If I decide I like the sport and the rifle doesn't work out I'll be OK with that, I can buy a Shiloh. If the rifle works out and I decide I want to get into BPCR I'll have a good starter rifle that may be relegated to backup or hunting duty once I step up to a Shiloh. I will look the lock over closely but the bore and chamber look good to me. __________________ Life Member NRA, TSRA Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call Lonesome Dove My favorite recipes start out with a handful of used wheelweights.

March 21, 2010, 11:12 PM	#4
TXGunNut Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: If you have to ask... Posts: 2,860	Found a problem with my Pedretti, not sure how serious it will be. Was measuring the chamber and wonder if it could be a .45-90. Dropped the bullet in the chamber and measured from the base to the end of the chamber. 2.1"! So much for seating the bullet out to engage the rifling. May have made a mistake in loading tonight, maybe a few. All brass (Starline) was FL resized so I used a Lee .459 expander and had to bell the brass a bit to seat the cast bullet. Not enough friction to hold the bullet in place so I had to roll-crimp it a bit, a big no-no in some circles. I understand that comp loads don't need to be held in place but this rifle (and bullet) was designed for hunting and I'm going to hunt with it, at least once. I probably should have dug out my .45ACP taper crimp die but damage is done, will see how they shoot. Suggestions? __________________ Life Member NRA, TSRA Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call Lonesome Dove My favorite recipes start out with a handful of used wheelweights.

March 22, 2010, 10:50 AM	#6
TomADC Senior Member Join Date: October 14, 2009 Location: San Diego County Posts: 795	I have the Pedersoli Sharps Silhouette Standard rifle in 45-70 32" barrel, I've added a Creedmoor tang sight, this rifle IMHO is a quality firearm, mine was sold thru Cimarron, fit and function are perfect, wood is beautiful and has great finish. I guess to each his own, but I for one would buy another in a hearbeat. There are 4 rounds in the 10 ring & 1 in the 9 ring. This using the barrel sight that came with the rifle. __________________ US Navy Retired,NRA Life Member,SASS member, Time magazine's Person of the Year 2006!

March 22, 2010, 08:12 AM	#5
Jim Watson Senior Member Join Date: October 25, 2001 Location: Alabama Posts: 18,543	A Pedretti would not be my first choice, but since you already have one, wring it out. There is a lot of good information in Mike Venturino's book 'Shooting the Buffalo Rifles.' A drop-tubed and compressed load of maybe 68 grains of Goex FFg or Swiss 1 1/2 Fg under a 500 grain bullet (Lyman Postell, maybe) a thousandth over groove diameter, cast 20:1 and lubed with SPG, with a vegetable fibre (actually pipe gasket material) wad will likely do pretty well. I full length size and don't crimp, but some people neck size, some apply a light crimp, just stuff to tinker with.

March 22, 2010, 08:24 PM	#7
TXGunNut Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: If you have to ask... Posts: 2,860	I only loaded 10, may load a few more using a different approach. I have the SPG book and have read it several times among other materials. I seated a 405gr Lyman 457193 on a .060 veggie wad down to the first driving band to cover the lube grooves. That only left room for 61gr of Swiss 2F in the Starline cases. I hope I can go from here to a hunting load that I can carry all day in the field. Long range comp loads are next, will look into Mike's book and possibly another sizing die or cases with thinner walls, Jim. I have a 457125(?) mold to cast 500gr bullets. Haven't used it yet but hope to soon. Nice group, Tom, wish you'd put a pic of your rifle in there as well. I like the Pedersoli rifles but have noticed their prices are approaching the US made replicas. I happened onto this rifle for less than the price of a decent tang sight but the more I learned about these rifles the more I liked them. I know the Pedretti isn't a good choice but as Jim suggested I'm going to wring it out and use it to learn what I want in my next rifle. Next one will be a pistol grip 1874 in 45-70 but still working out the rest of the details and saving up my allowance. __________________ Life Member NRA, TSRA Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call Lonesome Dove My favorite recipes start out with a handful of used wheelweights.

March 23, 2010, 10:36 AM	#8
TomADC Senior Member Join Date: October 14, 2009 Location: San Diego County Posts: 795	I bought mine from a guy that didn't like the recoil along with the remaining 18 rounds of 325 gr JHP Winchester ammo. This picture is before I put the tang sight on, but those sights you see are what I shot that group with. __________________ US Navy Retired,NRA Life Member,SASS member, Time magazine's Person of the Year 2006!

March 23, 2010, 11:21 AM	#9
longranger Senior Member Join Date: November 4, 2008 Location: Buffalo WY Posts: 1,056	Here is the difference between most of the Italian rifles vs the American rifles. I am by no means an expert with these rifles,I know enough to get them to shoot well.I never got my Uberti 1885 High Wall to shoot nearly as well.

March 23, 2010, 08:57 PM	#10
TXGunNut Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: If you have to ask... Posts: 2,860	Nice rifle, Tom. Thanks. Care to tell us more about the 540gr bullet, Kimosabe? Advantages of the .45-90 over the .45-70? Preferred cakes or cookies of the production guys @ Shiloh? __________________ Life Member NRA, TSRA Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call Lonesome Dove My favorite recipes start out with a handful of used wheelweights.

March 26, 2010, 10:28 PM	#11
RUDIM6 Junior Member Join Date: March 26, 2010 Posts: 1	I have owned and shot my IAB 1874 for years- shoots great no problems-so they made some good ones!

March 27, 2010, 10:27 AM	#12
TXGunNut Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2010 Location: If you have to ask... Posts: 2,860	I think this is a good one, initial groups @ 100 and 200 in Raton awhile back were actually pretty good as I recall. Bullet quality (mail order) sucked so I knew there was room for improvement. One more cup of coffee and I'll pack up and see how it likes decent bullets. Think I need a bigger place. Shooting bench 30 feet from the loading bench seems about right, 30 miles kinda sucks. Even further for a range over 100 yds. __________________ Life Member NRA, TSRA Smokeless powder is a passing fad! -Steve Garbe I hate rude behavior in a man. I won't tolerate it. -Woodrow F. Call Lonesome Dove My favorite recipes start out with a handful of used wheelweights.