How Brutal Is The 45-70?
BY Herschel Smith
2 years ago
Pat does a good job showing the results of the hog kill with his 45-70. My recent hog harvest involved a very clean shot through the neck right behind the ear and he went down instantly. The head (and especially bulging eyes) showed the effects of the high velocity and hydrostatic shock, but I’m not aware that much meat is taken from the neck anyway.
I got four huge shoulders (maybe I’ll use those for pulled pork like Pat), a bunch of ribs, and a lot of backstrap (what you’d find as pork tenderloin at the grocery store). Feral hogs are too lean for bacon.
Now, Pat has opened this door, so he needs to pull this thread for us. He was using the Hornady LeverEvolution. What if he had been using Federal Fusion 300 grain, or a RNFP cartridge? What would the damage have looked like? I’m very interested in an ammunition comparison on this question. Maybe the culprit is the ammunition selection, not the power of the 45-70? Or in other words, perhaps 45-70 is in fact a great hog and deer cartridge, just not this particular brand?
I do agree with Pat that we “owe” the animal an ethical kill. I like his perspective. One could never charge the 45-70 with causing an unethical kill.
Does anyone have good pulled pork recipes – both grill and smoke time and seasoning? Be detailed with your response.
On November 13, 2022 at 11:19 pm, X said:
The .45-70 was designed in the 19th century around a solid lead bullet. That’s what he needs to be shooting in that cartridge if he wants to save meat.
All the buffalo killed by the .45-70 in the 19th century were killed with solid lead bullets. There’s simply no need for an expanding bullet when you are making nearly a half-inch hole with a projectile doing almost 2000 fps. Shoot it in the heart or lungs and it will die.
Expanding bullets are for .30 cal rifles, not .45 cal rifles.
On November 14, 2022 at 12:05 am, Dan said:
The 45-70 has been solving ballistic problems for almost a century and a half. It’s still around because it still gets the job done. It can be downloaded to take smaller game like deer and uploaded to take the largest elk, moose and bear. It’s a very versatile round.
On November 14, 2022 at 2:06 am, Qualitarian said:
The “secret” to pulled pork is low heat for a long time and periodic attention to make sure nothing goes sideways.
You could use more or less salt, or maybe some sort of sugaring, or some mystery spice blend, or use hardwood or fruitwood coals, or pellets or whatever, BUT: if you smoke a pork shoulder at a consistent 225-250F heat for 12-16 hours it’ll break down the collagen and let the fat melt through the meat, it’ll get that smoky flavor, and should be succulent and tender if you pay enough attention to pull it off when it’s done.
I like it if some of the melted fat burns on live coals but then I’m old-fashioned; pellet smokers can be very convenient.
The secret initially is effort and attention, and ultimately is experience. No shortcuts but hard work.
On November 14, 2022 at 2:48 am, Terry said:
I’m very busy at present so I’ve started using wife’s pressure cooker which turns tough cuts into very tender in about an hour. I just toss everything I want in the pot at the start and nice meal results. The veges survive intact and flavour is enhanced by tossing in soup mix or packet seasonings as I may have at hand. I’m pretty competent in the kitchen although I’m no haute cuisine chef.
On November 14, 2022 at 6:59 am, Chris said:
What Terry said. We’ve been canning meat for quite a while. It’s not just for vegetables. The chops on the hog we butchered for some reason cut like leather. Chunked all of them and pressure canned them and now the meat falls apart when opened and cooked.
Just found a jar of venison yesterday we canned 2013. Somehow got shuffled into the back end of the shelf when we rotated the jars. Tasted fantastic!
Pressure canning also saves LOTS of room. YMMV.
CIII
On November 14, 2022 at 7:16 am, Joe Blow said:
Wifey throws a can of coke and some quartered onions in the crock pot on the way out the door in the morning. By dinner its pulled and dressed with your favorite sauce (50/50 Franks Red Hot and Sweet Baby Rays).
On November 14, 2022 at 8:43 am, PGF said:
@ Joe, are you kidding me, sweet baby Ray’s!?! That’s a shameful thing to do to a good cut of meat. You need to step up your game.
On November 14, 2022 at 10:20 am, Frank Clarke said:
Qualitarian made me remember a restaurant we had here in Oldsmar FL, Andy’s. Cuban cuisine — heavy on pork. They opened for breakfast and lunch only.
Around 9pm or 10pm, Papa Andy would come by the store, put a half dozen pork butts in to cook overnight, then lock up and go home. The kids opened the store in the morning and handled the breakfast crowd. Around 10am, Mama Rosa brings out the pork butts and gets ready for lunch.
I ate lunch there off and on for near 10 years, and I can’t recall ever finding a glob of fat among my small pulled pork, arroz amarillo, and frijoles negros. Slow cooking is the necessary ingredient.
On November 14, 2022 at 4:52 pm, Brian T said:
I have killed several feral hogs with my Guide Gun and Ruger #1. The Remington 405 grain SP does a good job without excessive expansion. A 400+ grain LFN also does an excellent job. The Hornady bullet is known for being very soft.
On November 14, 2022 at 7:49 pm, Frank Nobody said:
This is why you use a 405-420 gr. jacketed soft point, or a nice wide-meplat flat nose solid. You can eat up to the hole with the solid, and it puts everything down just fine. 2000 fps is the well known velocity where tissue destruction starts. The 300s shoot like 2100 or so. Stick with heavy and slow.
On November 14, 2022 at 10:51 pm, Furminator said:
Only ever shot hogs with a 30-06. Did go on a bison hunt where my friend spined a cow with a 405 gn 45-70 about like you took your hog and with identical results.
My wife loves pumpkin everything so she makes pulled pork in the instant pot with a recipe similar to this:
https://www.mirrorimagefarms.com/apple-cider-pulled-pork/
On November 14, 2022 at 10:53 pm, Elmo said:
I really don’t equate .45-70 Gov’t recoil with being anything close to ‘brutal’. One of my .45-70s is an un-scoped Ruger No. 1S, which is a fairly light rifle. I’ve never thought of the recoil on that rifle as being anything other than ‘stiff’. In my heavy Uberti 1885 High Wall .45-70 with a heavy 30″ barrel, recoil is downright tame.
However, I’ve got a Ruger No. 1B in .338 Winchester Magnum. If you want to claim that caliber’s recoil is ‘brutal’ I won’t argue with you.
On November 15, 2022 at 1:39 pm, jrg said:
My one and only 45-70 is a T/C Contender single shot carbine, the Super 16 barrel with factory muzzle brake. Scoped with a Simmons Pro-Diamond 2.5X shotgun scope (box reticle is very easy to see in dark understory), the carbine weighs about 4 1/2 pounds. Yes, now that you mention it, recoil is noticeable, and is why I refuse to shoot ‘souped up’ loads in it. Why do I carry it – omigawd, it is extremely easy to carry in the woods. You had better make that shot count.
On November 15, 2022 at 2:55 pm, xtphreak said:
@X +1
12.5 gr TrailBoss 405gr Lasercast = 1050 fps +/- in my Pedersoli Sharps 1874 Long Range (34″ 1/2 round 1/2 octagon barrel)
30.5 gr IMR 4198 405gr Lasercast = 1400 fps +/- in my Marlin 1895 22″ barrel
either one will shoot through a hog or deer
if you hit a shoulder, it will break bones and keep on going, dropping the critter right there
On November 15, 2022 at 3:10 pm, =TW= said:
I had a chance to try my buddy’s Marlin in .45-70. He said it was a “pussycat,” so I expected significant recoil.
I was surprised- the recoil was more like a push than a kick, authoritative but by no means brutal.
He reports excellent results with 300 gr soft points on hogs.