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.45-70 Black Powder Carbine Loads

glabray
When the US military loaded what we call the .45-70 with 55 grains of black powder for the Springfield carbines, did they use the same (ie full length) cartridge case as for the 70 grain load for the rifles? If so, since black powder does not perform well in a less than full case, how did they makeup for the extra case volume with the 55 grain load? Did they use a filler? If so, what?
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Comments

4 comments

Date Votes
  • shooter93
    Yes...it was the same case If I remember correctly it would fill the case with very little compression. the 70 gr. load was highly compressed, around 100 psi was used. If you take an old case apart the powder seems as one lump and needs dug out. That was because of the compression used not age. The rifle round was developed and then the rifle built around it. When loaded exactly as the armories loaded them a vintage Trapdoor with a good barrel will shoot quite well. Two inch or slightly over at 200 yds. was not all that rare for a Trapdoor rifle when they were made.
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  • v35
    As I recall there were loads using 405, 450 and 500 grain bullets.
    The difference may have made up the space for the lesser powder charge.
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  • Blckhrn
    If you want to load BP in a 45/70 case down to 45/55 you can fill in the spaces with corn meal or grits and a cardboard wad or two. I do think there were carbines chambered for 45/55 or 45/50 (Remington rolling block). These would not take a 45/70 case.

    The principles are the same for smokeless rifles where the case length is important in starting the bullet into the rifling.

    Empty spaces in BP cartridges can be very dangerous, BP is an explosive, not a propellant.

    york.bmp"No taxation without representation, Join the NRA"
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  • Iconoclast
    Shooter93's reply is correct - the cases were the same, just different loadings with fillers as necessary. I have a sectioned "arsenal practice" round in my collection which is a very light bullet & charge with wadding to occupy the space that would be otherwise empty. The standard bullet weights were 350 (unusual), 405 and 500. There was a longer cased "sharpshooter" .45 round, but no shorter ones.

    "There is nothing lower than the human race - except the french." (Mark Twain)
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