How does the 444, 45-70, 450 Marlins compare to the 30-06?

[TGT]

I'm not a hunter, but own all of these rifles except the 450 Marlin. I reload for all of them. As you know, reloading helps especially to bring the factory 45-70 up to the respectable power of a 450 Marlin.

I particularilly have always liked the look of the long tall 444 cartridge. I reload my 444 with the hornady 265 grain flat tip bullet, and my 45-70 with the Hornady 350 grain lead tipped round nose. The 30-06 is versatile and can be loaded with anything from a 150 to a 220 grain bullet.

As a paper puncher, I don't know the real world performance of that slow but heavy lumbering 444, 450 or reloaded hot 45-70 case on game compared to the narrower but faster 30-06 cartridge. I purposely threw the 30-06 comparison in there to compare the kinetic energy of a falling brick to the lightening fast sting of a Cobra!

Can any of you hunters tell me if any of these rifles at say 50 to 100 yards will punch down a Moose or a big black bear pretty fast.....and if in your opinion one cartridge listed will kill faster and more efficiently then the other??? I'd like to hear your actual field experience and comparisons between these calibers if you have any.

 

[Preacherman]

The .30-'06 is effectively a smokeless-powder cartridge, while the others harken back to the blackpowder cartridge days - a smaller, efficient load of smokeless powder propelling a smaller bullet really fast, compared to a load of blackpowder (or an equivalent loading in smokeless powder) propelling a honking great brute of a bullet, rather more slowly.

Any of them will take a moose or black bear if loaded correctly. However, the .30-'06 will have a much, much flatter trajectory, so that it's more useful for longer-range shots. At 150 yards or less, the others will be just as usable, IMHO.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

Can any of you hunters tell me if any of these rifles at say 50 to 100 yards will punch down a Moose or a big black bear pretty fast.....and if in your opinion one cartridge listed will kill faster and more efficiently then the other??? I'd like to hear your actual field experience and comparisons between these calibers if you have any.

All three will do the job nicely at the range you mention. The .444 Marlin is essentially a "stretched" .44 magnum and at its inception was hampered by being loaded with .44 Magnum hollowpoint bullets -- which didn't perform well at the .444's higher velocity.

The .45-70 is one of those 19th Century multiple-personality cartridges. Loaded to original pressures and velocities, it is a fine woods cartridge. Loaded to full potential in a modern firearm, it begins to step on the heels of the .458 Magnum. The .450 Marlin is simply a belted .45-70, loaded to the max. The idea behind the belt is to keep people from accidentally firing one in an old trapdoor Springfield or similar rifle.

The .30-06 will do anything the other three will do, and do it at greater range.

 

[Dr.Rob]

If I was going to hunt moose with a 30-06 I'd load it up with 220 gr round nose bullets though 180 is probably 'enough'.

Witha 45-70 I'd take a factory 400 gr round nose soft point.

The '06 shines at longer range... close up any of those cartridges will do the job.

 

[rockstar.esq]

I'd say if you own all the calibers mentioned, choose the one you shoot the best and can still comfortably carry afield.