45-70 confusion

[nova71]

I might be in the wrong place to ask this , if so just move it . BUT ! I was reading another post here about 45-70 ammo and it raises some questions for me. I just got my first 45-70 barrel and haven't got to shoot it yet but I have some ammo to shoot and then reload it. I got a box of Hornady from a member here, a box of Remingtom at the last gun show, I have two boxes ordered from Reeds  (since January) and gonna order a box or two of Starline brass to give me 100-120 cases to play with. I detect a lot of negative vibes with the Hornady brass , is that gonna be a problem when I reload it? should I reload it separate, discard it or trim all brass to the same length??

[tom548]

Once you get it check to see if there is that much difference.  Instead of adjusting all the time you could trim all the same or just build yourself a spacer to go from one length to the other. It would only bother for seating bullet and crimping. When I change from .38 to .357 I use the shim. It works so slick that I even reworked one of my Dillon tool heads so I can just shim it up or down depending which I am loading.

[twoshooter]

In cases and loads where you are not crimping, the difference should be moot, with the same bullet, and the same OAL, the case capacity is the same- If you need to crimp then of course the case length would then become important.

[nova71]

what about if using the Lee factory crimp die?

[Catshooter45]

Yep, case length is important with any crimp die.  Maybe trade the stupid Hornady brass for something useful?
 
 
Cat

[keith44]

My personal practice is to seperate cases by brand, no matter what the cartridge.  If you are concerned about them, load them seperate from the rest.

[Jimbo47]

I had a box of Hornady 45/70 ammo and when I went to the range and shot it out, I donated the brass.
 
The 45/70 brass is too easy to get than to have to mess with Hornady brass. jmo!

[Swampman]

It's possible to reload it using the same type bullets is has in it.  The Remington 405s may crimp in the crimping grove.  You will need to mod. your dies or buy Hornaday dies.  IMO it's not worth the effort.

[bikerbeans]

nova,
 
The Hornday 45-70 LE brass is so short that the Lee FC die will not work unless you shorten the base of the die.  If you shorten the base of the Lee FC die then you will move the crimp further down the from the case mouth on your standard length 45-70 brass. 
I would not just assume that all 45-70 brass is the same case capacity, because it isn't.  If you start working up hotter loads this difference in case capacity can be become quite apparent.  I would verify the case capacity of  each different type of brass and I think you can be surprised.   This difference in case capacity can result in velocity spreads that make building an accurate load difficult or potentially dangerous - more of a concern with small diameter bottleneck cartridges - but still an issue with hotter 45 cal loads.
I would suggest that you only use one type of brass for each rifle cartridge that you load.  Also, even with one headstamp brass you might want to check for weight variation (can equate to case capacity variation) among this brass.  Depends on how accurate a load you are after.  The 45-70 is a lot less affected by case cap. variation but it isn't immune to the problem.
 
BB
 
 

[knight0334]

what about if using the Lee factory crimp die?

Since the Handi is single shot, using an additional crimp is just wasted effort.  The crimp built into the seating die is sufficient for our purposes.  Heck, a crimp really isn't needed unless you excessively over-expanded your case.  The only real benefit is in helping to keep launch pressures consistent. 

With Hornady's typical .06" shorter brass(due to them using it for the LeveRevolution ammo and Flextip bullets), you'd screw the standard seating die down .06" further than you would for standard length brass by other makes.  Then raise the seating plunger .06".   That way you'd have the same OAL.    The brass wont crimp in the knurls due to the bullet being further out, but you will have the same pressures case capacity as you would standard brass loadings.

[Swampman]

Many .45-70 dies won't screw down far enough to crimp this short brass.  You need a crimp IMO.  They make nice wind chimes though.

[knight0334]

Many .45-70 dies won't screw down far enough to crimp this short brass.  You need a crimp IMO.  They make nice wind chimes though.

Wont screw down .06"?   My 45-70 dies are about (2) turns off the shell holder and they crimp standard 2.1" brass.  To get that .06" it should be less than a turn.

[handirandy]

my lee standard seating die ROLL crimps both just fine.  you just have to re-adjust them when changing between long and short.  I segregate my brass and load the 325 ftx's in the Hornady brass and whatever else in the longer brass.  That's the way the brass was designed so to avoid all the concerns listed above doing so takes all the stress out of the way.  But then again I try not to have to think too much.

[nova71]

All good info guys, I think I'll experiment a little and load the brass separate, that's what I do now with most all my brass and I know it makes a difference . I'll work up a load with the short brass then work up a load with the longer stuff. I don't hunt much anymore so it will just be light loads probably 300-350gr. thanks for all the advice and info...... Larry