45 70 – The ExhaustNotes Blog

Premiere Pro, Pinnacle, and Proficiency

By Joe Berk

I’m learning a new video program (new to me, at least) called Premiere Pro. It’s part of the Adobe Creative Studio suite, and it is way more complicated than anything I’ve ever used before. Well, maybe that’s not fair: The only video program I ever used in the past was something called Pinnacle. It was a low-bucks affair at Best Buy 16 or 17 years ago. I bought it because I was doing a lot of videos for CSC Motorcycles and the kid at Best Buy said even an old guy could use it. You can see many of those videos (along with the excellent ones Joe Gresh created) on our YouTubby page.

About that YouTubby thing: The Chinese marketing guys at Zongshen were following the CSC blog closely back in those days, and they knew me from the videos before I went there and met them for the first time. When they saw me, they pointed and exclaimed, “Youtubby, Youtubby!” They didn’t realize the “e” in YouTube was silent. I didn’t realize what they didn’t realize, and my first thought was “yeah, I guess I am carrying a few extra pounds.” My second thought was that the Chinese don’t hold back (I later learned that they do; in fact, as a group the Chinese are the most polite people I’ve ever known).

To get back on topic, when good buddy Greg shot a video of me doing my thing with the Mini 14, I decided it was time to learn Premiere Pro. I’ve been paying for that program for years because it is in the Adobe package, which you have to buy as a subscription. Sometimes, you just have to set your mind to doing something, and that’s what I did. Between my firm commitment to learning Premiere Pro, Google’s help (I asked it a ton of questions, because the program is anything but intuitive and the Adobe tutorials are close to useless), and a lot of trial and error, I was able to create the Mini 14 video.

Then I did the one on the Monster Guns a few days ago.

I like both the above videos. In creating them, I used maybe 1% of what Premiere Pro can do. It is an intricate software package and I have a lot to learn. It keeps my mind going, as does writing this blog. I guess that’s the good news.

I never made any money off YouTube. I’ve heard of folks having insanely high view counts and making maybe 37 cents. Nope, I’m not in it for the money. But the two gun videos above got me thinking: Maybe I should do more gun videos. Then came another surprise: I already have. In reviewing my videos on YouTube’s summary page, I found several gun videos I had forgotten. These were all uploaded either directly from the camera, or I assembled them using the old, cheap, easy-to-use Pinnacle program. I thought I’d post them here in case any of you had nothing else to do or you have insomnia. Enjoy.

Here’s one that’s a little unusual. I have a 50-year-old Weatherby Mark V chambered in .30 06 and sometimes I can sometimes coax a 1-inch group from it. I bought a borescope and, surprisingly, you can make a video with the borescope as you run the fiber optic cable through the rifle. The marks you see in the bore are pretty typical machining marks made during the rifle barrel fabrication process. Most folks are alarmed when they first use a bore scope and see this sort of thing. I was. But hey, the thing groups pretty well for a glamour gun.

Here’s one that’s pretty cool. My buddy Mike, a retired chief of police, goes to the International Association of Chiefs of Police convention and when it’s on the west coast, I go along as his assistant (I got a badge out of the deal, but no gun). One of the exhibitors had a video/handgun-based training system. Mike and I both tried it. It was awesome.

Here’s one from long ago that could use Premiere Pro’s lighting adjustment tool. It’s my buddy Duane shooting reduced loads in his World War II bring-home Mauser 98.

I recently mentioned my Model 52 Smith and Wesson here on ExNotes. It’s an amazing pistol. What’s part of the wow factor is how well it feeds wadcutter ammo; in fact, it’s so good it will feed an empty case.

I have a Weatherby that has a custom Douglas .300 H&H barrel on it. The .300 H&H is an amazing cartridge with plenty of energy. Here’s a video of a couple of shots on the gongs at 100 yards. That .300 H&H energy really makes them jump around.

My buddy Paul is a serious black powder shooter and collector, and his enthusiasm (along with watching Lonesome Dove about a hundred times) convinced me my life wouldn’t be complete unless I owned a Colt Walker. I ordered one and created a video unboxing it. It’s a thing people do. So I did it, too.

When I resurrected the Star progressive reloader, I shot a series of short videos on its operation.

Back in the day, a watch company (Gear’d; I don’t know if they’re still around) sent a couple of watches to Gresh and me so we could review them on the blog. I thought it would be a good idea to see how mine would stand up to the recoil after firing a hundred shots of .45 ACP hardball.

I always wanted an 1886 with fancy walnut, but I didn’t want to mortgage the house to get one. So I bought a Chiappa (an Italian copy). This is another video that could have been helped by Premiere Pro’s advanced features.

Some of my friends think I’m fast. The rest know that I’m just half fast.

Here’s one I did years ago on loading cast bullet ammo for the Mosin-Nagant rifle, with accompanying music from the movie, Enemy at the Gates. I used Pinnacle on this one, and I think I exercised all its capabilities.

I guess I had more gun videos than I realized. Maybe I’ll become an influencer (whatever that is). I’ll keep plugging away polishing my very meager Premiere Pro skills, and you’ll see the results in future blogs.

Iron Sights and a .45 70 No. 1

By Joe Berk

There are more than a few .45 70 stories here on the ExNotes blog. This is another one. I like the .45 70, and I make no excuses for that. I’ll share a few links on our other .45 70 stories at the end of this blog.

A few years ago Ruger offered a special No. 1 Single Shot rifle in .45 70 with a 26-inch barrel and a Circassian walnut stock. Most had very plain wood. Then I found an almost new one in Duarte for cheap. Ruger rifles usually have long throats, but this run of No. 1 rifles had short ones, and conventional 405 grain bullets wouldn’t chamber if the bullet was crimped in the crimping groove (or so the whining on the Internet went). I’m guessing the original owner either bought or reloaded ammo for my rifle (the one you see above) and it wouldn’t chamber, so he put the rifle up for sale.

Then another stroke of good luck: A guy at the range had some Winchester 300-grain .45 70 ammo, and it chambered in the No. 1.

A Winchester .45 70 cartridge with a .22 Long Rifle cartridge.

That Winchester ammo was noteworthy for two reasons: It chambered, and it was relatively accurate at 100 yards. I wrote about that before (you’ll see the link below).

The story gets more interesting. Hornady makes a jacketed 300-grain hollow point bullet, and I picked up a bunch of those years ago. When I loaded them, they wouldn’t chamber in the Circassian .45 70. Then I noticed a Hornady illustration of their current 300-grain bullet design, and the bullet profile had changed. It looked like it might work based on the illustration, so I bought a box of the Hornady bullets and they worked. I could crimp in the cannelure and they chambered in my Circassian Ruger.

XBR 8208 Propellant. This is good stuff.

Like I said above, I knew from an earlier range session that the Winchester ammo was relatively accurate in my Circassian No. 1, so my objective was to duplicate that load. I found online that Winchester listed their ammo’s velocity at 1880 feet per second. I didn’t know what propellant Winchester used, but I had a bottle of XBR 8208 and it was proving to be very accurate in other cartridges (more on that later). Interpolating from the Hodgdon’s XBR 8208 load data, it looked like what I needed was 54.0 grains, and that’s how I loaded.

It was an overcast Wednesday morning out at the West End Gun Club when I tried the load at 100 yards. I fired three rounds and took a peek through my spotting scope. I couldn’t spot the hits in the scope, so either they all went in the black (which would be good), or I missed the target completely (which would be bad). Good buddies Duane and Walt were on the range that day, and when we walked out to check our targets, it was time for a collective “Whoa!” I was more than pleased with the results. Hell, a 0.906-inch group would be good with a scoped rifle. For a guy like me and open sights at 100 yards, it was spectacular. I’m really pleased with the load, the rifle, and myself. I’m even more pleased I had a couple of witnesses out there to see it!

Phenomenal results (at least for me) at 100 yards with open sights.

Those other cartridges I mentioned that work well with XBR 8208? In my .22 250 rifles, this propellant works very, very well with Hornady’s 52-grain match bullet. In the .243 No. 1, it pairs very well with Nosler’s 55-grain bullet, Hornady’s 58-grain V-Max bullet, and Speer’s 75-grain jacketed hollow point bullet. In 6.5 Creedmoor Browning X-Bolt rifle, XBR 8208 is the cat’s meow with the 123-grain Nosler jacketed hollow point boattail bullet and the 140-grain Hornady jacketed hollow point boattail bullet. With that last load, you could shoot flies at 100 yards if you could find them in the scope.

More .45 70 stories? We’ve got a bunch of them!

Ruger No. 3 45 70 Loads
Ruger .45 70 Circassian No. 1
Buffalo Guns
A Wind River Marlin .45 70 Rifle
A .45 70 Remlin 1895
The 1886 Winchester
Turnbull Guns
Marlin Cowboy Front Sight Installation
Marlin 1895 Cowboy Revisited
Henry Rifles
The Henry Is In California
Developing a Henry .45 70 Load: Part 1
Developing a Henry .45 70 Load: Part 2
Henry’s Home and an Interview with Dan
Henry Accuracy Loads

More shooting fun? You bet! Check out Tales of the Gun

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A Day At The Range

By Joe Berk

Yesterday was about a perfect day at the West End Gun Club. I didn’t even have to unlock and open the gate (it was already open because the weed abatement guys were doing some work there). The skies were overcast, the temperature was comfortable, there was no wind, and there were no bugs. I shot four rifles (which is more than usual and I probably overdid it, especially with the big bores). My neuropathy was kicking my ass last night and it still is a little bit today. Ah, to be 72 again…

Lots of data to record. The Garmin chronograph captures everything, but I also write it in my logbook to keep a record. If I don’t do this, I can get confused about what I shot on each target.

Ruger No. 3 .45 70

First up was the .45 70 No. 3, a rifle I posted about recently here on ExNotes.. I had 11 rounds left with a hot XBR 8208 load in Hornady short brass originally loaded for a 26-inch barreled Ruger No. 1. For some reason Hornady’s .45 70 brass is about a tenth of an inch shorter than industry standard. I suppose it facilitates loading longer bullets in some lever guns. For me, the shorter brass is not as accurate as the standard-length cases. But one of my buddies has a custom Martini chambered in .45 70, and he needs the shorter brass to be able to load the cartridges in his rifle. I wanted to use up my shorter case ammo so I could give the brass to my friend.

A .45 70 Ruger No. 3 on the line at the West End Gun Club. I’m usually out there early, which explains the vacant shooting benches. I like being retired.

The hot XBR 8208 load (in regular brass) is incredibly accurate in my 26-inch No. 1, but it proved to be just awful at 100 yards in the No. 3. It’s a hot load and it kicked like hell, pounding my shoulder and my cheek. To compound the felony, the bullets were tumbling by the time they reached the target. In my No. 3, the vertical stringing was terrible. The average velocity with this load’s 300-grain Hornady jacketed hollowpoint bullets was a smoking 1839 feet per second, but it had a huge velocity spread (which explains the vertical stringing). Although the load worked well in the longer-barreled No. 1, it is definitely not a No. 3 load. But I learned a little more, and I had the brass ready to give to my friend.

6.5 Creedmoor Browning X-Bolt

I recently wrote about developing a hunting load for my 6.5 Creedmoor Browning X-Bolt. I fell in love with the 160-grain Hornady jacketed roundnose bullet and when working up the IMR 4350 load for it, I found that my resizing die’s expander ball was too large (I wrote about that here). I had a box of ammo I had already loaded before I discovered the expander ball issue and I wanted to use it up.

A Browning X-Bolt in 6.5 Creedmoor. The rifle’s performance matches its looks; both are superb.

6.5mm bullets originally developed for the 6.5 Swedish Mauser. The look both weird and cool in the 6.5 Creedmoor. I didn’t think they would chamber in my rifle, but they do.

Even with the oversized expander ball, the 6.5 Creedmoor still shot well. The 160-grain Hornady jacketed roundnose bullet with 39.0 grains of IMR 4350 is accurate. I shot a 0.890-inch 5-shot group and a 0.651-inch 3-shot group. With my Browning, the average velocity was 2404 feet per second and the velocity standard deviation was a low 6.5 feet per second (coincidentally matching the caliber designation…I guess there’s something magic about “6.5”). This is a great rifle and a great load.

A lot old timers (guys my age) badmouth the 6.5 Creedmoor as an unnecessary cartridge. When we get old we get funny, and I suspect a lot of these geezers would complain if you hung them with a new rope. Not me. I am a 6.5 Creedmoor believer. It is a superb cartridge.

You might have noticed that the Browning has a muzzle brake. It’s cool. A split second after each shot, you feel a breezy puff on your face, almost like the rifle is blowing you a kiss. One of my friends asked if the muzzle brake affected accuracy or if there were any other disadvantages. Truth be told, I don’t know about the accuracy issue (I’ve never shot the rifle without the muzzle brake). The only downside I can think of is that the muzzle blast and report from the rifle feels like it’s a little louder with a muzzle brake. Another downside is that with big bore, high-powered rifles, guys on the benches to the left and right feel the increased blast. I remember a guy shooting a .50-caliber Barrett rifle a couple of stations down several years ago and the blast was so severe I moved away to escape it. One more potential disadvantage is the muzzle brake makes the rifle longer. That might be an inconvenience in the field. It hasn’t bothered me.

.308 Browning A-Bolt Gold Medallion

I’ve been working on developing loads for this rifle. Baja John got me turned on to these rifles about ten years ago. I loaded several different 150-grain bullets, all with 47.0 grains of BallC2. Groups ranged from mediocre to decent. The best load so far has been the same one I’ve used for the M1A, which is 44.0 grains of BallC2 and a 168-grain Speer match boat tail bullet. That’s not a hunting bullet, though, and for that, the Speer jacketed flatnose bullet grouped best (with 47.0 grains of BallC2).

The .308 Browning A-Bolt rifle. It is a good looking firearm.

Highly-figured walnut stands out. This rifle was a Browning show gun at one of the SHOT shows.

The silver Mueller scope I put on the rifle is okay, but the optics are not in the same league as a Leupold (and they shouldn’t be, as the Mueller is a $145 scope). Compared to the 6.5 Creedmoor, the Browning .308 kicks big time. It’s tolerable and certainly not anywhere near the .375 Ruger (see below), but the 6.5 Creedmoor is much more pleasant to shoot. Like I said, I’m a believer in the Creedmoor. That said, I plan to hunt with the .308 Browning on my next pig hunt, and I’ve been working up different loads for it. You’ll read about that in an upcoming blog.

.375 Ruger/Howa 1500

I shot 90 rounds in the mighty .375 Ruger yesterday, and I’m feeling it today. I wanted to evaluate 5744 and IMR 3031 in this cartridge using lighter 200-grain and 235-grain jacketed bullets.

.375 Ruger ammo loaded with the Sierra 200-grain jacketed flatpoint bullet.

The bottom line is this rifle likes everything, and several loads would put 5 shots into a 1.5-inch cluster (which is pretty cool with a 4X scope and an elephant gun). The best load is 38.5 grains of 5744 and the Sierra 200-grain jacketed flatnose bullets one of my friends gave to me (those shot a 1.330-inch 5-shot group at 100 yards). The rifle fed both bullets well from the magazine. The action on this rifle is super slick. Howa makes a good rifle. The IMR 3031 loads (at 55.0 and 58.0 grains) shot well, too, but the recoil is more than I care to subject myself to (the loads were below the recommended minimum with the Speer 235-grain bullets; the max loads must be brutal).

The .375 Ruger Howa 1500 in an English walnut stock.

While we were there, an old timer named Marcus stopped by with a custom Mauser .25 06, also stocked in English walnut like my .375 Ruger. I enjoyed meeting and chatting with him, and I enjoyed seeing that Mauser.

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Undoing Bubba

By Joe Berk

Back in the mid 1970s, I was in the Army at Fort Bliss, Texas, and I was both a pistolero and a rifle shooter. It was a great time and a great place to be a shooter and a gun collector. One of the reasons for that was that Ruger had all their guns manufactured in 1976 stamped with “Made in the 200^th Year of American Liberty.” I especially loved Ruger’s single-shot rifles. Ruger had the uber-slick and elegant No. 1, and they also offered an econo-version of it called the No. 3. I guess they skipped No. 2 because they didn’t want anybody calling their guns turds. Trust me on this: They were anything but.

In those days, the No. 3 carried an MSRP of $165, but you could buy them all day long for $139. The No. 3 was offered in three chamberings: .22 Hornet, .30-40 Krag, and 45-70 Government. I bought all three, and then I sold them when I left the service. That decision to sell my No. 3 Rugers bothered me for years. About 15 years ago I acted to correct my No. 3-less status.

The .45 70 cartridge. It’s one of my favorites to shoot, and it’s one of my favorites to reload. My usual load is 35 grains of IMR 4198 propellant with the Missouri Bullets 405-grain cast bullet.

Like all things, Ruger No. 3 rifles had gone up in value substantially. Used ones were going for around $650 (today, they are going for anywhere between $1000 and $1500). I picked up a .22 Hornet, a .30 40 Krag (I paid a lot for it; they were relatively hard to find), and a .45 70. All were 200th Year Rugers.

The .45 70 No. 3 I bought had been Bubba’d, and the Bubba-ing was done by a clumsy and nearsighted Bubba. The stock and fore end had scratches all over, the black anodizing on the butt plate and the fore end clamp was worn and scratched, the bluing was well worn, and good buddy Bubba ham-fistedly added sling swivel mounts that weren’t quite centered. But, it was a 200^th year rifle and it shot well. I know that some folks get off on honestly-acquired patina, and sometimes I’m one of them. But this wasn’t one of those times. I wanted the rifle to make up for me selling my .45-70 No. 3 back in the ’70s. When I was young. And stupid. I liked the used .45 70 No. 3 I bought, but its cosmetic condition kept me up at night.

A view of the No. 3 from the starboard side.

The Ruger No. 3 had been out of production for nearly 30 years when I called Ruger 15 years ago to see if they would reblue it. The guy I spoke to had to check, so I waited on the phone. He was back in minute, the answer was yes, and the price was right: $130. While I had the guy on the phone I described the other cosmetic defects, and asked if they had any higher quality wood laying around. That answer was no. I figured that would be okay; I could refinish the stock and fore end myself.

So I sent the rifle to Ruger and it was back in about 10 days. That was fast. When I took the rifle out of the box, I was blown away at how nice the bluing turned out. All the lines and letters were crisp, nothing was blurred, and the bluing was way nicer than the No. 3 rifles had originally been finished. My No. 3 Ruger’s bluing is like the high-polish bluing that Ruger used to provide on the Super Blackhawk. It’s really nice.

The No. 3 actipn. These are great rifles.

A .45 70 cartridge in the trough. You load these one at a time. When the lever below is pulled up, as block behind the cartridge rises and the rifle is ready to fire.

The re-anodized metal buttplate. In later production, Ruger started using plastic buttplates. The metal ones are cooler.

As I stared at the rifle, there was something else about it that was different. It took me a few seconds before I realized that contrary to what they said on the phone, they had indeed replaced all the lumber (as well as the black anodized buttplate and fore end clamp). My 1976 No. 3 had become a new rifle. I looked at the invoice, and Ruger hadn’t charged anything for the new wood and metal bits. Somebody back there is an enthusiast, I realized. They did have a stock set laying around, and he (or she; I have no idea) didn’t think it was right for a freshly (and nicely) reblued No. 3 to leave the factory with lumber by Bubba.

The “Made in the 200th Anniversary of American Liberty” inscription. Note the new fore end and the re-anodized fore end clamp.

Back in ’76, there were no warnings on the barrel. I like the simpler labeling you see here much better. It’s classier.

The pictures you see here are what came back from Ruger, all for $130 plus shipping. It was a hell of a deal.

A big hole. The .22 Hornet, .30-40 Krag, and .45 70 No. 3 rifles all have the same external dimensions. The bigger bore of the .45 70 makes it the lightest of the three chamberings.

The Ruger No. 3. It is a classy logo. I almost never see another one of these rifles on the range these days.

Okay, that’s enough for now. You’re probably wondering how the rifle shoots. So am I. I’m going to get out to the range soon, and you’ll read about it right here. Stay tuned.

Do you like No. 1 and No. 3 Rugers? Me, too. Read our other No. 3 stories here.

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A Ruger .45 70 Circassian No. 1

By Joe Berk

The .45-70 Government cartridge was destined for obsolescence in the middle of the last century and then a curious thing happened: Ruger chambered their No. 1 single shot rifle for it and Marlin did the same with an adaptation of their lever action rifle a short while later.

300-grain .45 70 Winchester and .22 LR Federal cartridges.

When Marlin and Ruger came on board with their .45 70 rifles, there was suddenly significant interest in the cartridge. I fell in love with the .45 70 when I bought a Ruger No. 1 in 1976 (a rifle I still have), and I’ve been reloading the cartridge ever since. I’ve owned several No. 1 Rugers, a few Ruger No. 3 rifles, a bunch of Marlin .45 70s, and a replica 1886 Winchester (by Chiappa, with wood that is way nicer than anything from Winchester).

Starboard side of the Ruger Circassian .45 70 No. 1 rifle with 26-inch barrel.

Yep. The .45 70 was adopted as the official US Army cartridge in 1873, hence the “Gov’t” designation sometimes seen with the cartridge name.

In addition to its Circassian walnut and 26-inch barrel, these rifles included wrap-around checkering on the forearm. The standard checkering pattern for a Ruger No. 1 is shown on the rifle to the left.

All these manufacturers have offered special editions of their .45 70 rifles. One of the more recent offerings from Ruger was a 26-inch barreled No. 1 with a Circassian walnut stock. When it was first offered about 7 years ago by Lipsey’s (a Ruger distributor), it was a limited run of only 250 rifles. They sold out immediately and folks still wanted these, so Lipsey’s and Ruger offered a second run of 250 rifles. I wanted one with fancy wood, but none of the Circassian Rugers I saw online had wood nice enough to be interesting. Even though the rifles had Circassian walnut, all the ones I saw were plain and straight grained. Then one day I wandered into a local gun shop and I saw the rifle you see here. It caught my eye immediately and at first I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. These rifles were next to impossible to find and here was one right in front of me. It was pricey, but I Presbyterianed the guy down to $1050 (you fellow Members of the Tribe will get it) and I pulled the trigger (figuratively speaking).

Ruger’s more recent .45 70 No. 1 rifles have a short leade (the distance between the forward edge of the cartridge case and where the rifling starts). Mine won’t chamber cartridges with 400-grain and above bullets. In fact, I had some ammo I had loaded with an old batch of Hornady’s 300-grain jacketed hollow points, and this ammo wouldn’t chamber, either. I examined the profile of my old 300-grain Hornady bullets and compared it to pictures of the current Hornady 300-grain bullets, and it was obvious the older bullets had a more gradual ogive (the curved portion of the bullet’s profile). I ordered a box of the current Hornady 300-grain slugs, I loaded them, and the ammo chambered in this rifle easily. In researching this issue on the Internet, the issue of recent Ruger .45 70 rifles’ shorter leades is a complaint that’s popped up more than once. One guy even sent his rifle to Ruger, but he said Ruger measured the chamber and returned it to him with no work done (according to him, Ruger said the rifle met SAAMI chamber spec requirements). It’s not really an issue to me; if I want to shooter the heavier bullets I’ll use a different .45 70 rifle.

I had some Winchester factory .45 70 cartridges in my ammo locker, including the Winchester load with 300-grain hollow point bullets. I thought I would shoot those to see how they did in the Circassian No. 1.

A big ol’ .45 70 hollow point cartridge.

Spent cases destined for reloading. This is one of my favorite cartridges to reload.

My first shots were at 50 yards, and the Ruger grouped nicely. The shots were biased very slightly to the right. That’s okay, because the Ruger rear sight is adjustable for both windage and elevation. I didn’t bother making the adjustments on the range, as it was a fairly windy day. I’ll make the adjustments, if necessary, on the next trip.

50-yard groups with the Circassian No. 1. The groups are biased to the right, some more than others (a function of how I held the rifle for each group). Ignore the upper right target and the circled holes to the right of the bullseye; those were from a .243 I had out on the same day.

I then set up a standard 100-yard target (at 100 yards). There were 20 rounds in the box of Winchester .45 70 ammo and I had already shot four 3-shot groups at 50 yards. That left eight rounds to play with at 100 yards, and play around I did.

Eight shots at 100 yards. I need to move the rear sight a bit to the left. The vertical stringing is most likely a function of not allowing the barrel to cool between shots.

The results surprised me. I was holding on the bullseye at 6:00, and those big 300-grain hollowpoints hit at about the right elevation. As was the case with the 50-yard targets, the point of impact was biased to the right. The first three made a tight group and then the shots climbed as I progressed through the eight. The vertically strung group was only about an inch in width. The stringing is almost certainly due to barrel heating and the barrel being deflected up by the forearm (it’s not free floated). I was pleased with the results. It told me that I could leave the elevation adjusted for 50 yards and it would still be spot on at 100. On my next range outing with this ammo, I’ll adjust the rear sight to the left a scosh and take my time between shots to preclude the stringing. Even with the stringing you see in the above target, it’s not too shabby for a 100-yard group with open sights.

More blogs on this and other .45 70 rifles? You bet!

Buffalo Guns
A Wind River Marlin .45 70 Rifle
A .45 70 Remlin 1895
The 1886 Winchester
Turnbull Guns
Marlin Cowboy Front Sight Installation
Marlin 1895 Cowboy Revisited
Henry Rifles
The Henry Is In California
Developing a Henry .45 70 Load: Part 1
Developing a Henry .45 70 Load: Part 2
Henry’s Home and an Interview with Dan
Henry Accuracy Loads

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Bringing a 405 Ruger No. 1 Back To Life

Good buddy and fellow Inland Empire shooter Jose recently posted on Facebook about what has to be one of the best deals ever for a highly collectible Ruger No. 1 in .405 Winchester. Ruger produced only a small number of these rifles (I’ve only seen one in person at a gun show a few years ago). This one has exceptional walnut, which makes it even more desirable.

Here’s Jose’s story. Enjoy, my friends.

I’ve never had any desire to hunt African game and I probably never will. But I’ve enjoyed reading about the African plains rifles since I was a kid in junior high school. Bringing a copy of Guns & Ammo magazine to school would probably get you a quick trip to the principal’s office these days…but I digress.

Exquisite walnut is often found on the older Ruger No. 1 rifles.

Quite a few years ago I saw an old Ruger No.1 Tropical in the consignment rack of a small gun shop that is now long gone. The owner said, “just pick it up and feel the heft.” And of course, I did and the next thing you know we were talking price, knowing I would never pay $2,000 for a collectible Ruger No. 1. Shaun confided in me that the rifle’s owner couldn’t find the obsolete 405 ammo for it anywhere and he wasn’t a handloader, so he wanted to sell the rifle. Another problem with the rifle was that a previous owner had cut down the front sight, probably because he had been shooting handloads with .41 caliber pistol bullets. So we settled on $500 and I became the owner of my first “unobtainable” Ruger No. 1!

In the gun shop years ago eyeing the Ruger No. 1. Salesman Shaun said, “hand me your phone and let me take a photo of you so you can see how good you look with that rifle!” Shaun passed away a couple of years ago, but I know he smiled down from Heaven yesterday as I fired the Ruger No. 1H Tropical for the first time. And he was right, this gun was meant for me!

It took me a lot of searching over the past few years, but I finally located a set of 405 Win reloading dies, the shell holder, and all the components to bring this rifle back to life.

Hornady had made a run of new 405 Winchester brass and I was lucky enough to find a New Old Stock box of 50 shells. I also located some new Barnes .412, 300 grain TSX bullets.

The first step in restoring the old 1H Tropical was to contact Ruger and purchase a new gold bead front sight. That was a simple install as the blade is held in place by a small detent spring.

New Ruger NOS gold bead front sight blade installed.

Not wanting to use the expensive Barnes TSX bullets quite yet, lead bullets were cast from lead wheel weights with a bit of tin added using a Lyman 412263 plain base mold to cast 288 grain bullets. These were sized to 0.413 inch and lubed with Alox. Lyman has since discontinued this fine old bullet mold.

Finally, yesterday morning I decided it was time to resurrect this old rifle! Besides, the project would give me the opportunity to test some old “salvage” Hodgdon 4198 powder I’ve had sitting on the shelf for nearly two decades. The powder is probably from the 1950s or early 1960s. I also had some ancient CCI 200 large rifle primers on hand.

Hodgdon “salvage” 4198 smokeless powder. The powder is probably WW II US Military surplus powder that Hogdon bought in bulk and repackaged in the late 1950s or early 1960s.

Vintage components for a vintage cartridge.

I loaded 20 rounds of 405 Winchester ammo using the cast lead bullets and a starting load of 38.5 grains of 4198 and headed down the hill with good friend Yvon to an informal shooting range on BLM land.

The obsolete 405 Winchester cartridge (left) and the popular 45-70 Government cartridge (right) used by 1880s plains buffalo hunters of the American west. I don’t shoot buffalo and never will. But I enjoy reviving and firing old guns!

Let me say that this Ruger No. 1H Tropical in 405 Winchester lives again. It shoots incredibly tight groups with the cast bullets and gold bead open sights.

My next project will be to develop a non-lead hunting load using the 300 grain Barnes TSX bullets.

Bringing life back into old obsolete rifles can be tons of fun.

That’s an awesome story, Jose, and thanks for allowing us to share it here on the ExNotes blog. Your No. 1 has to be one of the best deals ever. The dealer’s original asking price is probably what that rifle is worth if you could find one for sale. Well done, my friend.

More Tales of the Gun!

Marlin 1895 Cowboy Revisited

This is a followup to an earlier blog about installing a new Williams front sight on my 1895 Marlin Cowboy lever gun. I dialed in the new front sight on the Marlin 1895 Cowboy and it was right on the money.

I shot on the 50-yard range at a smallbore rifle target. The top center S target caught my first three shots (with my 405-grain cast bullet load) and they were a touch high, so I dropped the rear sight one click and drifted it slightly to the right with my brass punch and a small hammer. Targets 1 and 2 caught the next six rounds (all with the same 35.0 grains of IMR 4198 and the 405-grain Missouri cast bullet). By Target 2, I was dialed in…dead center and hitting right at the point of aim. Then I switched to another favored but lighter accuracy load, and that’s 16.2 grains of Trail Boss with a 300-grain Hornady jacketed hollow point. I shot that load at the bottom two targets.

The Marlin Cowboy rifle kicks hard with the 405-grain bullet when shooting from the bench, but it sure is accurate. Both loads can shoot one-hole groups at 50 yards if I do my part. I didn’t do as well at 100 yards (the above are 50-yard groups), but I think that was because I was feeling the effects of too much recoil already. That front sight change worked for me, and the 1895 is a good shooting lever gun.

More Tales of the Gun are here.

Safe Queen, or Shooter?

Some folks won’t shoot a commemorative or high end custom gun, and instead relegate the firearm to a life of being on display or taking up residence as a safe queen. Other folks espouse a manly “I won’t have a gun I don’t shoot” attitude. I’m a few days away from having to make that decision with the Lyman Ruger No. 1 you see in the photo above. What’s your feeling, and why?

Let us know here in the comments section and don’t waste any energy posting on Facebook. This is where the cool kids hang out and we want to know what you think.

More Tales of the Gun are right here!

Marlin Cowboy Front Sight Replacement

About a dozen years ago I bought an impressive Marlin 336 Octagonal in 30 30, but that’s not the rifle you see in the photo up top. I didn’t realize it at the time, but that 30 30 Marlin was a collectible rifle and I got a hell of a deal on it. I’ll give you a link to that story at the end of this one.

When I started the Peoples Republik of Kalifornia paperwork on the 336 Octagonal, I saw a brand new 1895 Cowboy Marlin at the same gunstore with the John Marlin proof and exceptional walnut. And that, my friends, is the rifle you see in the photos here. I’m not in the habit of buying two rifles at the same time (in fact, you can’t even do that here in Nuttyland any more), but wow, that 1895 was pretty and I bought both the 336 and the 1895. That Marlin rang all the bells for me…an octagonal 26-inch barrel, the .45 70 chambering, and killer wood. The time to buy a lever gun with superior wood is when you see it, and that’s what I did.

Wowee! A Marlin Cowboy in .45 70 with super walnut and a John Marlin proof mark!

Over the last dozen years, I only had the Cowboy on the range a couple of times, and that was enough for me to know the sights were way off. A couple of weeks ago, I decided to find out exactly where it was printing with my favorite .45 70 load (more on that in a bit). The Cowboy grouped superbly well (it coverleafed rounds at 50 yards), but I had to go to the very top of the adjustment range on the rear sight to finally get the bullets to hit at the point of aim at 50 yards. In the rear sight’s middle elevation setting, the point of impact was 10 inches low at 50 yards. I couldn’t adjust the rear sight any higher, so I knew I needed a lower front sight.

I tried to call Marlin to ask for a shorter front sight, but all I got was a message telling me to go to their website. I struck out there, too. The website said that Ruger (Marlin’s latest and current owner) isn’t in a position to service Marlins or provide parts yet and they don’t know when they will be. Hey, at least they were honest, and that counts for something.

The lollipop front sight as the rifle was delivered from Marlin. It was way too high, which caused the bullets to hit way too low.

I gently tapped the front sight out with a brass drift and a hammer.

The front sight that came with the rifle was 0.505 inches tall. That’s too tall for my loads.

Okay, I reasoned, this should be no problem. I called Williams, the experts on iron sights, and I hit paydirt. The Williams guy told me that in recent years Marlin put whatever front sights they had in stock on their rifles with no thought given to where the guns would print. That’s what happened on my rifle.

Getting the correct front sight once you know where the rifle is printing is simple. The height of the front sight that came with the rifle was about 0.500 inches, and it was printing 10 inches too low with the rear sight as high as it would go. It’s an a/b=c/d calculation. If you know the sight radius, the front sight height, the distance to the target, and how low or high the point of impact is, you can calculate the required change in front sight height to move the point of impact the amount you want. I’d like to say it’s advanced engineering, but the truth is it’s a 7th grade algebra problem (and I made it through the 7th grade successfully, aside from a ton of time in detention). The calculation goes like this:

Required change in front sight height =
(desired shift on target/(50*36))(sight radius)

where

- - - 50*36 is the distance to the target in inches (50 yards * 36 inches/yard)
    - The sight radius is 23 inches
    - The desired point of impact on the target is 10 inches up (the rifle was grouping 10 inches below point of aim).

I did the math, and the required change in front sight height was a drop of (10/(50*36))(23) = 0.128 inches. That meant I needed a front sight about 0.372 inches tall.

What you see above is what Marlin should have done when they selected the correct front sight for this rifle, but they didn’t and I did. I bought two new front sights. One would raise the point of impact about 13 inches at 50 yards, and the other that would raise it about 5 inches at 50 yards. I knew that one of the two should work. The cost for both was only $35, and in the grand scheme of things, I always figured I can’t have too many gun parts to play with.

Williams had .341 and a .410 front sight. You can’t get the exact height you want but that’s okay…that’s why the rear sight is adjustable. So I bought both rear sights. The rear sight height adjustment would give me the room to dial either in. The .341 front sight would give me more than I needed; the .410 would give me a little less than I needed, but either one should get me into the adjustment range.

The two Williams replacement front sights on the left, and the original Marlin front sight on the right.

The front sight mounts in a dovetail on the barrel, and it has to be fitted. It’s an interference fit, but it has too much interference as delivered. You have to gently sand material off the bottom of the replacement sight so it goes into the dovetail with just a little interference. Easy does it is the mantra here (you can take material off, but you can’t put it back on). You want enough interference so the front sight has to be tapped in with a brass drift and it won’t move around due to recoil or normal hunting knocking about.

Sanding the front sight base down, a thousandth or two at a time.

The Williams 0.341 inch front sight ready for installation.

A white dot (which I greatly prefer over the brass dot) front sight, on station and ready for duty.

So how’s it all going to work? I’ll let you know after I get to the range. Oh, and my favorite .45 70 load? It’s the 405-grain Missouri Bullet Company cast bullet, crimped in the cannelure, with 35.0 grains of IMR 4198.

One more thing…that 336 Marlin Octagonal I told you about? It’s right here, along with a bunch of other cool lever gun stuff! You’ll want to go there…the 336 Octagonal is an interesting firearm.

The rest of the story with the new front sight installed!

Henry’s home, and an interview with Dan

California’s 10 days are up, and Henry is in the house!

Henry, of course, is my new brass-framed .45 70 Single Shot from the rifle manufacturer of the same name. I haven’t shot it yet, but I’m ready. Eager, too. This is going to be fun.

To continue the story and as promised, a few days ago I interviewed Daniel Clayton-Luce, Henry’s Director of Communications. As you know from reading our earlier blogs, I am impressed with Henry and I purchased one of their new Single Shot rifles. I picked up my Single Shot yesterday (practicing all the required social distancing rules, of course), and wow, it is one fine firearm. Take a look.

With me, it’s always been about the wood. I’ll get better photos when I’m basking in the grand and glorious sunshine at the West End Gun Club (and I’m not sure just yet when that will be), but here are a few teaser shots.

Like I said above, I haven’t shot the Henry yet. But my first impressions are very, very good. The wood is stellar (both the stock and the fore end), the wood-to-metal fit is way better than what I’m used to seeing on production guns, the action feels crisp and tight, and the brass frame and buttplate are classy. The trigger is a little heavy, but it is breaking-glass crisp, and the rifle shoulders well. The quality is off the charts. It’s that good.

So, about that interview with good buddy Dan from Henry USA…let’s get to it. My first questions were these: What prompted Henry to enter the single shot rifle market, and did Henry do so by purchasing the old Harrington and Richardson design and production equipment?

Dan explained to me that the new Henry Single Shot is a Henry through and through, it has no relation to the H&R design, and I would absolutely notice a difference in quality between it and the H&R guns. He sure was right. I am a collector and admirer of fine rifles (I’ve focused primarily on Ruger No. 1 and Ruger No. 3 rifles), and I think I know a bit about what goes into a good rifle. For me, the Ruger No. 1 has been the gold standard, especially the earlier ones made in the late 1960s and 1970s. I’m here to tell you that the new Henry is equal to those rifles, and perhaps even better. The fit, the finish, the wood, the bluing, and the overall feel of my Henry is absolutely top notch. Surprisingly, the new Henry brass-framed .45 70 (at an MSRP of a little over $600) is less than half the cost of a new Ruger No. 1. I am impressed. Dan told me that Henry decided to enter the single shot market with a premium offering, and after examining my new rifle, I can tell you that “premium” is the right adjective. My Henry Single Shot is stunning.

I told Dan that I thought entering the single shot rifle market had to be a risky venture (H&R went out of business, Ruger’s No. 1 sales have declined significantly, and the rage today seems to be black plastic Rambo wannabee guns). Dan told me that bringing the Henry Single Shot to market wasn’t as dicey a proposition as it might appear. Henry USA felt there was a strong desire in many shooters to get back to the basics, and shooting doesn’t get more basic than only having one shot. You need to make that one shot count, Dan said, and there’s an inherent challenge that makes a successful hunt with a single shot rifle more rewarding. It forces you to slow down, take your time with each shot, and think about the fundamentals. Dan didn’t have to convince me. I knew exactly what he was talking about. My first rifle was a single shot and I’ve been addicted to them ever since.

Dan told me the Henry Single Shot is doing well. Sales are good, and the rifle is a flexible platform (it is easy to introduce new calibers). In viewing the Henry USA website, I saw that the Single Shot is offered in .223, .243, .30 30, .308 Winchester, .357 Magnum, .44 Magnum, and .45 70. They have shotgun versions, too, in .410, 20 gauge, and 12 gauge. I suggested that Henry consider adding .22 Hornet to the mix (the .22 Hornet is a classic cartridge and it is one of my favorites, as you know from our earlier blogs on the Ruger No. 3 and my vintage Winchester Model 43). Dan said they would take a look at that and I immediately put my oar in the water…I told Dan when they bring out a .22 Hornet I want the first one off the production line (with fancy walnut, of course).

I asked Dan if they were going to offer replacement barrels to allow changing from one caliber to another. There are no plans to do so, he told me, and I can see the logic in that. Henry offers two models of the Single Shot rifle, one with a brass frame and one with a steel frame. The brass frame models are offered in chamberings that operate at lower pressure (.45 70, .357 Magnum, and .44 Magnum). If the barrels were interchangeable, there’s a risk someone might mount the barrel for a higher-pressure cartridge (e.g., .308 Winchester) on a brass frame. I get it.

I asked about folks using Henry rifles in competition, and Dan told me they are popular in both SASS (Single Action Shooting Society) and cowboy silhouette. There are no kits on the market for slicking the actions on a Henry lever gun (as exist for Marlin rifles), but the Henry rifles still have a good presence in these events.

Henry’s website says that Henry is the leading lever action manufacturer. Dan said that’s true, both from the perspective of quantity of rifles and sales revenue. That’s impressive. Marlin and Winchester have been around for more than 150 years, and Henry has already surpassed them,

My next question was on takedown and cleaning. I’ve owned Marlin and Winchester lever guns, and the difference in disassembling the two for cleaning is significant. On the Marlin, you only have to remove one screw (the lever pivot screw), and then the lever, the bolt, and the ejector are easily removed to provide access to the breech. Disassembling a Winchester is much more complex. Dan told me the Henry lever guns are like Marlins in that regard. That’s a good thing. On that same topic, I spent some time looking at Henry’s web-based maintenance videos. As a guy who’s done a few of those for CSC Motorcycles (I know what it takes to make a good video), I was impressed. The Henry videos are excellent. They cover disassembly, reassembly, sight adjustment, cleaning, and more. This is good stuff.

Anthony Imperato is Henry’s President and CEO (that’s Mr. Imperato you see in the photo above). In the video on the Henry website he comes across as a cool guy, so I asked the question: What’s he really like? Dan told me that Anthony is a personable, good-natured, hands-on leader and a genuine nice guy. He’s a shooter, too. That was good to hear. When I work with the best motorcycle companies (like CSC or Janus), it’s always good to see that the top people are riders as well as business leaders. Dan told me that the overwhelming majority of the nearly 500 employees at Henry are shooters and hunters. It sounds like a team I would like to join. If I was younger and looking for a place to make a difference, I’d send a resume to Henry.

Henry USA started as a small manufacturing operation in Brooklyn, New York. Henry outgrew the Brooklyn facility and moved manufacturing to Bayonne, New Jersey. In 2016, Henry opened a second plant in Rice Lake, Wisconsin to manufacture the Single Shot. Henry has grown to nearly 500 employees and they now offer a wide range of rifles, shotguns, and accessories. Take it from me, folks: Henry is the real deal, a genuine Made-In-America success story.

I asked Dan about the make/buy mix on their guns, and he told me 100% of the parts in a Henry are made in the U.S. The walnut comes from Missouri and is finished in North Carolina. There must be something about the soil and the water in Missouri; all the best wood from custom riflesmiths comes from Missouri. And North Carolina has a long heritage of making high end furniture, so it’s a natural fit for those good Southerners to craft the Missouri walnut for Henry. Henry uses a spray varnish on all but their modern version of the original Henry rifle (those rifles have an oil finish). I examined my Henry carefully, and the finish is flawless. I’m pretty picky about that sort of thing, having finished a few rifles myself. These folks have it wired. Henry does its own machining, too, including the barrels.

Dan and I spoke about their different models for a bit, and I asked which one is the most popular. The best-selling of all the Henry rifles is their H001, the .22 lever action rifle. In the Single Shot series, it’s the .45 70 (I guess great minds work alike). Dan told me every Henry has a lifetime warranty that follows the gun. New, used, or inherited, Henry stands behind the rifle for life. That says a lot. Henry tests every rifle for safety and functionality. They don’t test for accuracy, but they don’t need to. I know from firing good buddy TK’s beautiful brass-framed .44 Mag Henry lever gun that they are very accurate. When TK let me shoot his .44, I put five slugs through a hole you could cover with a quarter. In fact, it was that morning on the range a few years ago with TK that first planted the Henry seed in my mind.

I was going to ask Dan why someone would buy a Henry instead of a Marlin, a Winchester, or a Ruger, but I already knew the answer. It’s for all the reasons you see above. Good walnut, classy looks, a good trigger, real craftsmanship, a great price, accuracy, a lifetime warranty, and it’s all made right here in the USA. It just doesn’t get any better than this. The Henry .45 70 Single Shot is a beautiful and handy carbine that looks and feels the way a gun should. It’s 7 pounds and .45 70 chambering will make for a bit of kick on the bench with the 405-grain Missouri bullets, but that’s okay. On a hunt, I’ve never felt the recoil or even heard the gun fire when the hammer drops. That’s what intense concentration does; you folks who have experienced it already know that. The look? Henry nailed it. There’s something about polished brass, blue steel, and fancy walnut that simply feels right on a fine firearm, and Henry has made this a fine firearm indeed.

Stay tuned to the ExhaustNotes blog for the .45 70 Henry range test. Sign up here and never miss an ExhaustNotes blog!