45-70 Shot Loads?

[jparedes]

Is it possible to load .45 Speer or CCI shot capsules in 45-70 brass? and if it is, will it work on a 22" barrel?

Thanks.

[stimpylu32]

Three things here .
 
1st , Is that I don't think that you could get enough crimp to hold the shot capsule , with the 45/70 being a .458" and the caps being around .450" 
 
2nd , The 45/70 having a slight taper , the cap most likely would just drop all the way into the case .
 
3rd , The amount of shot that you could get in that tiny cap would not even come close to that of a 2 1/2" 410 shell , so there is no real advantage .
 
Just my thinking on this .
 
stimpy 

[flashhole]

NOt a good idea.  There is a reason shotgun barrels are smooth bore.  A rifled bore will have a similar affect on a shot string as it does on a bullet.  It will try and rotate the outter pellets in the string and create a large pattern.

[rangerwillie]

flashole is correct, I tried a few different ways to shoot fine shot, the rifling rotates the shot and it comes out like a donut. dan

[LONGTOM]

I have loaded hundreds of shot loads in 38 spl, 357, 44-40, 44 spl, 44 mag, 45 colt.
I even loaded the 45 before they came out with the shot capsules by useing gas checks. (for outside use only!)
They all worked quite well as long as you keep the loads light and learn where your gun throws the most shot in the pattern.
Just like a shotgun, you have to learn where to hold to get the best results.
I mostly use #8 or #9 shot for rats and snakes at a friends chicken house.
The 45-70 just doesn't lend itself to shot loads due to the tapered case.
While it is true the 410 will do a much better job they are way over kill and dangerious to use in a building.
Just to much power!
Even the 2.5" shells.
 
 
 
LONGTOM

[Dezynco]

I have loaded some using 45-70 wads like you use when loading black powder. Put one wad over the powder, one on top of the shot column. Use a little water resistant wood glue to seal the top wad. A little crimp is good too.

I've also done the same thing with 410g paper wads.

Use a small charge of shotgun powder like red dot  Pattern wasn't great, but I loaded them to shoot snakes!

[Larry Gibson]

I've loaded and used "foraging" shot loads in the 45-70 for years.  I use them in my trapdoors mostly and the slower 22" twist doesn't "donut" the shot pattern that much.  Biggest problem is no choke so the usefull range is short but they work fine for 'foraging".
Larry Gibson
 
Foraging shot 45-70 load
 I use a fired R-P case but others work just as well. 
 Deprime and reprime with standard LR (make doesn’t seem to matter) primer. 
 Drop 10 gr of Unique over primer and then gently push a ˝ gr of Dacron down on top as a “wad”. 
 A Federal 410SC shotcup is pushed in and seated down on top of the Dacron.  I use a pencil (erasure end) for both of the above steps. 
 The cup is then filled with shot until it is “heaping” over the case mouth.
 An inverted GC or a thick cardboard wad is pressed down until inside the case mouth. 
 The case mouth is then crimped to hold the GC/wad in.  A standard roll crimp seating die works fine. I set a 230 gr .451 .45 ACP bullet (a 300 – 400 gr GC base bullet without the GC works well too) on top of the GC/wad.  By adjusting the seating stem so the bullet holds the GC/wad just inside the case mouth at the right depth when crimped works well. 
 [font=]Velocity is 1160 fps out of my 22” barreled Trapdoor carbine.  [/font]I’ve shot 20 shots with no leading as the bore is protected by the Federal wad.  Pattern with 22” twist rifling is useable to 25 yards with 7 shot on grouse and rabbits and to perhaps 20 yards on quail. Ground sluicing is acceptable when “foraging”. Smaller shot should be used (8-9 size shot) if close range areal gunnery is done on smaller birds. For snakes at close range the number of shot with even #7 shot is dense enough given the amount of shot.  This load is pretty much the same as a 2 ˝” .410 shot shell
 

[Sourdough]

As a kid we shot .410 shotgun shells through an old Trapdoor Springfield my Grandpa had.  Don't advise it, just we kids did it.  We wounded a lot of rabbits, at very close range.

I do have a .45/.410 barrel for my TC Contender.  It has a special choke to stop the shotcup from spinning.  My .44 Mag barrel also has the same type choke for shooting .44 shot shells.  Without them I need to hold shots to under 20ft.