1868 Trapdoor Springfield .50-70

 

Excellent choice! 425gr Lyman w/XMP-5744 @1200fps = 1.2"@50yds. This weapon was a "lamp recovery job", i.e., 1" counter-bored (by me) to get rid of threads cut @ muzzle.

 

Snyder or the .50-70. Just because!

 

I tell ya, the first two picks were MY first picks, too!

The Snider is SWEET using 455gr Lee Target Minies and XMP-5744 for 1200fps = <4" @50yds and maybe, what? 6.5lbs or so to carry? Classic cool!

 

Some may not be on your list, but work great from personal experience:

1. For rapid fire semi-auto fans: 401WSL. Honestly, out to 75-100 yards, i've not had a better hog-gun in my hands.


2. 50-70 in anything, including BP loadings (even the old "toops" of the 1870's complained that the mew-fangled 45-70 didn't kill horses as well, and the way to break up a charge back then was to shoot the horse out form under the indians).

3.Martini Henry in 577/450. Most of them are a bit long, but considering you get one shot, fast handing is kind of over rated.

Basically, I've going to vote for anything with a diamter of over .40" and the ability to make a hole all the way though to the other side.

 

1) I agree - but am trying for rifles first offered pre-1898. I just love my Rem Model 8s, but they're "too modern" for this ONE particular hunt....
2) I'll count this as "+1" for the two 50-70s on my list.
3) I'll use this as a "tie-breaker" vote iff needed.

 

1895 Winchester in .405

 

1895 Winchester 405, 35 Winchester, 7.62 Russian, 30/06 take your choice. Just watch the **** steel crescent butt plate get it wrong and oh it hurts.

 

Woo-Hoo! Two votes in a row for the .405! It's the .35 that's way-scarey, no matter how you shoot it it's a snot-gun [fire, wipe shot from gun where recoil flung it, repeat if needed].

 

I really like the idea of that 1886 in 40-65. I was almost gonna say the one in .33Win, but the oldie sounds even better! I can already smell the BBQ.

 

OK - one vote for the .40-65!

 

Well, looks like the .50-70 Trap is in the lead. I'll pick the two favorites to verify loads on Monday or Tuesday. Get your votes in!

 

The Evans just because I ain't got a clue what it is and I am a 44 caliber fan.

 

Woo-Hoo! The Evans gets a vote!

Made in Maine in 1877, the Evans has a 26-shot rotary magazine and a lever action that radially feeds the rounds into the chamber (like a Spencer). You have to load through the butt of the stock, one round at a time, working the lever to advance the helical-feed magazine. THIS ONE IS A CHALLENGE! My brother tried hunting with it but gave up because you hear all of the rounds shift when you point up or down!

My load is a pure lead 265gr .44 slug in a shortened .445 Supermag case going 1225fps. I load these on .44mag dies & heavy crimp, then post-size in a .30-40 die to swage the necks down to bullet diameter.

The Evans had a couple of cameos in Tom Selleck's "Crossfire Trail" - Wilford Brimley was using it until it jammed. They do that a lot in real-life, too. It's just a wicked-cool, weird little gun!

Pics of one like mine:
http://www.auctionarms.com/closed/displayitem.cfm?itemnum=9589446.0

More info:
http://www.leverguns.com/articles/blancard/evans.htm

 

Now that is a carbine for a pig, or a herd of pigs.

 

How about the 1886 in .45-90. If it was good enough for bison, it should do a pig real nice.

 

Excellent choice! 28"OBCB w/Lyman 21 sight. 300gr RFNGC w/XMP-5744 going 1650fps (regulated to the sight) has killed so far:

6 deer
2 pigs
1 coyote
1 groundhog (at a ranged 400yds, no less)

Various and sundry vermin unfortunate enough to present themselves have also perished over the years. Classic BigBoy-Lever cool!

 

With all those choices, it is a hard decision, but my order of preference would be, Martini, Sharps, or any of the Rolling Blocks. Probably the carbine, as it is short and easy to handle in close quarters.

 

One vote for the 577-450; I'll use the others as tie-breakers.

I use the Lee 405gr(?) Hollow-Base bullet in HDS & Bertram($) brass in this old dude @1450fps, IIRC.

The reason for this thread (and all these choices!) is I felt that those of you who own one of these but can't, for whatever reason, go pig hunting might enjoy seeing what your "old shooter" can do....

 

OK - it's Sunday evening, range date is Monday.....

Looks like 1868 Trapdoor .50-70 and 1895 .405 will go....

Get your votes in! .44 Evans or Beaumont or ?....

I'll check @6am Eastern Monday - after that it's up to me and whatever I have loaded....

 

Well, the 1868 Trapdoor Springfield .50-70 is SWEET @100yds! What I had loaded were from my brother:

530gr Lee w/40gr AA2495 & WLR at OAL=2.25" is going 1203fps w/SD=4. Just over 2"@100yds with the issue sights.... This dude is going to Ossabaw!

And YES - the boring old VTR is one-ragged-hole @100yds, so she goes, too - along with the Ruger Mountain I did the Scout conversion on.

 

Excellent!I'm sure a good time will be had by all. Can't wait for a report, with pics. You know haw I love pics. I will be heading to the midlands for my hunt this weekend. The guys got a little buck last weekend. I have two stands that should produce this year. I need meat in the freezer. Camping and hunting. My favorite combo.

 

Remington Rolling Block would be what I'll reach for. I do love a good Winchester 1886, 92 or 95. JMB sure knew how to design firearms.

CD

 

Well, no luck or love for the Trapdoor....

The VTR, however, accounted for 2 deer and 3 pigs. Due to requests fröm "the gentler souls" among us, pics NOT showing blood-n-guts were difficult. Why? "Sniper rifles demand head-shots." I held-off of this mantra for the 8-pt, however, as the guys on the island would've been "irritated" if it got the same B-T-E treatment as the fork-horn spike.

ANYWAYS, here's the only two pics "fit for the PC world":

 

BTW - turned out there wasn't too much wasted neck-meat on the 8-point....

Pig 1 = 7yds
Pig 2 = 23yds
Pig 3 = 338yds
Deer 1 = 183yds
Deer 2 = 26yds

 

crazydave,

Enjoyed the pics and sounds like a wonderful weekend.

CD

 

1892 .38-40

 

Way to go, crazydave. I am glad you had a good hunt. Thanks for the pics, the pole and including us. I have never heard our forum as being in any way PC and I know all kill pics will be displayed , unedited.

 

Well, I picked up a vibe on another thread here that went into the whole "hunters-as-ambassadors-to-the-world" spiel, and I didn't want to make anyone cry over meat-in-the-fridge, so....

 

The 86 in 45/90 or the 95 in 405. No sense in taking chances with a single shot with hogs. Many times you'll be far out numbered and the extra magazine capacity comes to good use.

 

Thanks for your input.

I'm planning a pig hunt this week & next week at Ft.Stewart, GA - I'm thinking I'll need to try a few of my "Old-Schoolers" down there.....

NEVER discount a single-shot, btw. A hunter with a single-shot and several targets can place extra rounds in the fingers of his/her support hand to make for a quick 2nd-or-3rd kill in a "group-grope" situation....

Of course a repeater helps speed things up a bit....

 

I agree with the above, but we kill hogs with muzzleloaders fairly often (one WMA we hunt allows only bows and black powder all season long)

 

Leaving Wednesday for another Ossabaw hunt, this time hog-only....

The VTR .308 is going, as well as the .50-70 Trapdoor....

I'm up in the air over my 3rd gun (I like to have three along in case I kill a bunch early & feel like changing tactics). Either the 9.3x74R Chapius double OR the .38-40 Remington 14 1/2....

Probably the Remington - just because I've killed with the double already....

 

Have fun and may your tags be filled........

CD

 

Thanks - yours, too. But above all BE CAREFUL OUT THERE....