Gunner Quinn
Match It Up
I shoot the .45-70 Government competitively in three different styles of matches. Each match is timed. The faster I run the gun while keeping the bullets on the steel target, the higher I am in the standings. The notorious, punishing .45-70 recoil is not my friend.
The first match is long distance using a single-shot rifle. My favorite rifle is a Shiloh Sharps with a diet of Lyman 535 bullets on top of a compressed case of Goex black powder. Luckily, the rifle weighs about 12 lbs. and is supported so recoil is not painful. The biggest issue is finding the steel target among the creosote and mesquite brush clutter!
The second match is the Quigley Bucket, which requires a single-shot rifle shot from the shoulder unsupported. As before, the target is steel. Scoring is not complicated. The spotters must see the bullet splash or the LED target indicator flash. Waiting to hear the ring of the steel only slows a shooter down. I chose a reproduction H&R Trapdoor carbine, much like Custer’s Troops used at the Little Big Horn.
The third match requires a lever-action rifle to hit a steel target, as before, the spotters watch for the bullet splatter or LED target indicator flash. A competitor runs the lever gun as fast as they can, often reloading on the clock. My choice for this match style is the Cimarron Firearms 1886, a faithful copy of the original Winchester rifle with the same designation. (See GUNS Sept 2023.)
When I first started in the Quigley Bucket and lever-action matches, I used full-power loads with 405-grain lead bullets. Shooting to practice and during the match was brutal on my neck and shoulder. The bruise would last for weeks. I decided to find a less painful way to make the steel ring.
I wanted a low-recoil load to use in the Trapdoor and the lever-action rifle. The Trapdoor has a comparatively weak action but I only needed to make the steel target ring. My first stop was to check the Lyman Cast Bullet manual, which had a specific Springfield listing. While a 405-grain bullet was the standard, Lyman also had data for a 330-grain bullet and a 292-grain bullet.
The pandemic was in full swing and mold options were limited. I finally found a 330-grain Lyman mold (457122) within my budget. After casting a few, I followed the powder charges in the Lyman manual. The recoil was still brutal and practice was not fun.
It took some time but I found a Lyman 292-grain mold (457191). Recoil was less, but I still didn’t enjoy a day of range practice!
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