45-70 405 grain jsp. (Remington core lokt clone)

[Kris F]

I'm looking to develop an accurate hunting load for bulk remington core lokt 405 grain jsp. I read that the lyman 49th has some excellent information so I bougt one on ebay.

I have a batch of once fired lever evolution brass Which is short , 2.042 "
So I'll prolly get some new brass.

I'm looking for some powder and weight combinations that will prove both accurate and stout. Before remington stopped producing the max pressure core lokt rounds, that's what I've used for years. They shot well, and stopped both bear and deer very well.

Since this site is a treasure of generations of experience, I was hoping I could trap into the minds of experience.
Thanks in advance.
Kris F

 

[40-82]

The powders I've had the most consistent results with in 45-70 and similar cartridges are 3031, Reloader 7, and Varget. Generally, medium burning powders tend to do better for me. I'm also cheap. If I can get the velocity I need with less powder, why not?

I wouldn't load large lots at first, just enough for testing. Some combinations in some rifles produce decidedly mediocre results, and it's not always the same from one rifle to the next. My loads may be terrible for you.

 

[25-20 WCF]

When did Remington ever produce “max pressure core lokt rounds”? AFAIK they only ever produced SAAMI pressure rounds with 405-grain bullets, actually lower pressure than SAAMI according to old NRA tests.

Please define “stout”. What rifle, this matters a lot as different rifles have different safe pressure limits. I’ve loaded various .45-70 rifles and handguns for over 40 years...


.

 

[troy fairweather]

3031 is my go to. Any charge seems to work just make it how fast you want them.

 

[mrawesome22-250]

45-70 is one of those cartridges that just isn't very picky about what you feed it. I've had excellent results with IMR4198, Benchmark, H4895, and AA1680.

I'm currently using Benchmark because I have a 8lb jug of it.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

You can use the Hornady brass, just crimp the bullet into the supplied crimp groove.

With jacketed bullets I like IMR 3031 but like said above many powders work well. I also use AA5744 with cast bullets and less stout jacketed bullet loads.

 

[greenmtnguy]

I like imr4198 for the 400 gn loads, will have to check my notes, but I had a decent, 1350 fps load that pretty much duplicated the remington corelokt 405 load, using the remington 405 bullet.

 

[Kris F]

GreenMtn, Im interested to see your charge weights.

40-82 what charge wt and bullet combo did you use with reloade 7?

The general consensus is to use 4198. I've read a number of posts using reloader7 too. So I bought a # of it. Maybe ill get some 4198 too.

2520wcf. Please see the attached photo.

 

[Charlie98]

Kris... what that really means is they are not intended for use in Trapdoor-level guns, only 'modern' lever-actions and single-shots.

I'll echo what a lot of people are saying... IMR3031. Depending on what you are shooting, and how far away, I don't know that you need a super heavy load, anyway... not with that 405grn SP bullet. I don't know that I would go faster with jacketed bullets (i.e. IMR4198, AA5744, RL7) although that's what I use for cast bullets.