Opinions on BFR .450/45-70?

[jaycocreek]

I am considering selling my .454 to get one of these.The cylinders are interchangable to shoot either round.The .450 Marlin shoots a factory 350 Hornady at 1800 + fps out of the 10 inch pistol.The 45-70 shoots #2 loads which is 40,000 CUP.It surpasses all .454 loads with less recoil and also as fast or faster than the .500 S&W.Imagine a 550 grain at 1300+fps or the 400's at 1700 fps+ out of a handgun with less recoil than the .454.

Anyone have experience with the BFR?

Jayco.

[osceola]

I have sent 400+ grain projectiles down ranges at 1,300 to 1,700 fps, 1,900 in the .450 and a muzzle brake is in order.  I refer to this area of shooting as "the 1 ton club", ie. 2,000 ft lbs of muzzle energy.  I have shot a RB .454 for several years and the BFR's listed are more comfortable to shoot, highly accurate with good tolerances in at least their 2003 production year.  All that being said, at the upper end, either one will rock the world.  In a careless hand the 1 ton level will certainly plant a front sight on ones forehead and all shooters will know that they just shot one mean junkyard-dog type load.  The 45-70 is more economical in components and has a very wide variety of loads available right on down to 900 fps.  They are a hog leg in the field but definitely are a good time.

[Redhawk1]

I have the BFR in 500MAG, but I am going to get the BFR in 45-70.  I have shot the BFR in 45-70 and it was a lot of fun and shot very accurate.

[Rmouleart]

Wow a 450 pistol, want to talk about recoil, I would think it would be murder, unless you shot reduced loads,even at that it would be more than a 454 Casull. The 450 or 45/70 holds almost twice the amount of powder and can slug much bigger bullets with good accuracy, I did reload a Hornady 300gr jhp's for my guidegun, I was surprised how the start load was very moderate 1600fps, till it got up near the max load 1900, then the recoil was in there;) I guess you better take a good hold, or you will be eating that pistol;) To me anything that can hold more than 40gr of powder belongs in a rifle, Just my thoughts. Aim small hit small. RAMbo.

[jaycocreek]

Rambo -Actually that's what I thought but not so according to there chart infact the factory 45-70 has less than the 44 Mag.Go figure but the factory .450 Marlin is right up there but not quite as much as the .454 and with a lot more power!One would think a 43,500 PSI rifle load would kick harder.This is the chart but it turns out vertical.
BFR .450 Marlin, 10-Inch
 4.5 lbs.
 350-gr. Bullet
 1814 FPS
 109.04 Recoil Factor
 
BFR .45/70, 7.5-Inch
 4.4 lbs.
 300-gr. Bullet
 1472 FPS
 74.1 Recoil Factor
 
BFR .480, 7.5-Inch
 3.75 lbs.
 325-gr. Bullet
 1409 FPS
 81.44 Recoil Factor
 
Redhawk .480, 7.5-Inch
 3.3 lbs.
 325-gr. Bullet
 1409 FPS
 92.55 Recoil Factor
 
Redhawk .454, 7.5-Inch
 3.3 lbs.
 300-gr. Bullet
 1600 FPS
 115.15 Recoil Factor
 
Freedom Arms .454, 7.5-Inch
 3.25 lbs.
 300-gr. Bullet
 1600 FPS
 116.92 Recoil Factor
 
Super Blackhawk .44, 8-Inch
 2.9 lbs.
 240-gr. Bullet
 1400 FPS
 98.96 Recoil Factor
Best of luck..........Jayco.

[Rmouleart]

Interesting, My SRH 454 casull, is about as much as I can endure, after about thirty rounds, I can feel my wrists getting sore;) flinch sets in as well;) Glad its usually one shot one kill right Thanks for that enlightening info. Aim small hit small. RAMbo.

[reallybigfoot]

I have the SRH 7.5 inch .454 and the BFR 45/70 10 inch.  They are two different guns and I like both.  I wouldn’t want to give up either one.  Either one will kill any animal you hit properly.  My BFR is more accurate and has less felt recoil for the same energy load.  The BFR is also much larger and harder to carry around.  I don’t think I’ll ever spend the money for the .450.  I can load the 45/70 past any point I want to shoot more than once.  

If you want something you can shoot a lot and easily reload, the .454 is the best choice.

[Redhawk1]

The 45-70 can be reloaded to 450 velocity. The only reason to get the 450 is if you do not reload and want higher velocity than factory 45-70.

[jaycocreek]

All a guy has to do is get the .450 Marlin Cylinder as they are interchangeable in the BFR with the 45-70.All else is the same.

Jayco.

[osceola]

The recoil figure on the initial post for a 405 gr pill at 1,700 fps is 2,599 ft lbs of energy.  

The 500 gr at 1,300 fps is 1,876 ft lbs and compares to the RSRH 300 gr noted in the vertical chart at 1,600 fps for 1,705 ft lbs.  All of these are very healthy.  

If I push the 45-70 or 450 Marlin to their upper capabilities, felt recoil is relevant to the number of rounds I can stand without deteriorating my shooting skills.

[darrell8937]

Remember cylinder swap 45/70-450 marlin or vise versa need to be fitted initialy by the factory/.

[Pie-bald]

I've got a SSK 14" 45/70 in a Contender and a 450 Marlin in a 15" Encore barrel. The 45/70 is a little more than a 460, 480 or a 500S&W. The 450 loaded  with 405gr bullets and on the high side will knock your fillings loose. At our local range all the boyz with the big stuff refuse to shoot my 45/70 after a couple max loads and stop after 1 shot from the 450 Marlin. I imagine though,  a 500S&W shot out of a Encore instead of a revolver will get your attention also.

[Redhawk1]

I've got a SSK 14" 45/70 in a Contender and a 450 Marlin in a 15" Encore barrel. The 45/70 is a little more than a 460, 480 or a 500S&W. The 450 loaded  with 405gr bullets and on the high side will knock your fillings loose. At our local range all the boyz with the big stuff refuse to shoot my 45/70 after a couple max loads and stop after 1 shot from the 450 Marlin. I imagine though,  a 500S&W shot out of a Encore instead of a revolver will get your attention also.

If you do the power factor, the 500 Mag beats the 45-70 or the 450 Marlin. I love the 45-70 but it is not on the same level as the 500 Mag. I also think the 460 Mag is untouched by the 45-70 for range.

[Questor]

There have been a number of people on this forum who have expressed great satisfaction with their BFR 45-70s.  It's a bit long for my tastes, but it seems to be well made.  It looks like they have a good niche because this gun supports all of the major new big bores. It's also a single-action, which means that people who prefer single actions don't need to spend the big bucks for a Freedom Arms gun, and they don't have to buy a single shot or a double action revolver.  I can't remember ever reading anything negative about the performance of these guns, except some owners that have reported that the accuracy wasn't as good as they'd hoped. However, the groups they were publishing seemed perfectly adequate for hunting with a revolver.

[Pie-bald]

Very seldom does one get the chance to compare the above with the other ones side by side. This is exactly what happened at our local range. We had laying side by side a 454 Raging bull, 460 S&W, 480 Ruger, 500S&W, 45/70 SSK loaded to the hot side of SSK info using 405gr, a 375JDJ using 300gr, a 450 Marlin loaded max by the book using 405gr also.  The 460 and 500 were using factory ammo the rest re-loads. Now also all were scoped with big scopes xcept the 480 which had none. The 460 was more pleasant to shoot than the 45/70 and also was the 480. But as I mentioned earlier the worst was the 450 Marlin. Brutal is the word! I've also shot the 4" barrel with the 500 and it wasn't as bad either. I don't care what the published recoil factor is for each, untill one can shoot them all at one sitting, can one make a fair decision. Everybody's pistols are set-up different and I'm sure with-out added weight of scopes (his all had 3x12 Burris on top 454, 460, 500) recoil would've probally more with the 500 than the 450Marlin. Buy as I mentioned earlier after one shot on the 450 Marlin he said no more of that thing and fired up the 500 again.

[Redhawk1]

Very seldom does one get the chance to compare the above with the other ones side by side. This is exactly what happened at our local range. We had laying side by side a 454 Raging bull, 460 S&W, 480 Ruger, 500S&W, 45/70 SSK loaded to the hot side of SSK info using 405gr, a 375JDJ using 300gr, a 450 Marlin loaded max by the book using 405gr also.  The 460 and 500 were using factory ammo the rest re-loads. Now also all were scoped with big scopes xcept the 480 which had none. The 460 was more pleasant to shoot than the 45/70 and also was the 480. But as I mentioned earlier the worst was the 450 Marlin. Brutal is the word! I've also shot the 4" barrel with the 500 and it wasn't as bad either. I don't care what the published recoil factor is for each, untill one can shoot them all at one sitting, can one make a fair decision. Everybody's pistols are set-up different and I'm sure with-out added weight of scopes (his all had 3x12 Burris on top 454, 460, 500) recoil would've probally more with the 500 than the 450Marlin. Buy as I mentioned earlier after one shot on the 450 Marlin he said no more of that thing and fired up the 500 again.

I was talking more about power factor not recoil factor. I have shot all the guns you have mentioned myself, not all in one sitting but within a few days. No matter how you slice it, they are all big bangers.  :-D