General Geoff
Member
So I posted in a thread awhile back that concerned one of the newest purpose-designed long range anti-personnel cartridges, the .338 Lapua Magnum.
Now I'm going to do a bit of a time-warp and ask: What about .45-70 Government?
After doing a bit of research on it, conventional wisdom dictates that the much higher-velocity .338 lapua magnum would have a much better hit chance at extended ranges, due to its flatter trajectory. However, many sources claim that a 500gr bullet out of a full power .45-70 cartridge is lethal out to at least 3500 yards, and is accurate enough to be placed on an animal-sized target out to well past 1000. The upshot of that, however, is that at ranges past a few hundred yards, the gun becomes more of a hand-held artillery piece as far as trajectory is concerned.
So my question is: At a given range (say, 1500 yards), if you know the wind conditions, and humidity, etc.. would it be easier to dial in and hit a man sized target with a .338 Lapua rifle, or a .45-70 rifle? We'll say that the Lapua rifle has a reliable telescopic sight, whereas the .45-70 has tang/vernier sliding sights.
Yeah yeah, you're probably thinking I'm crazy for comparing these two vastly different cartridges. But it sure is a topic of interest, nonetheless.
Now I'm going to do a bit of a time-warp and ask: What about .45-70 Government?
After doing a bit of research on it, conventional wisdom dictates that the much higher-velocity .338 lapua magnum would have a much better hit chance at extended ranges, due to its flatter trajectory. However, many sources claim that a 500gr bullet out of a full power .45-70 cartridge is lethal out to at least 3500 yards, and is accurate enough to be placed on an animal-sized target out to well past 1000. The upshot of that, however, is that at ranges past a few hundred yards, the gun becomes more of a hand-held artillery piece as far as trajectory is concerned.
So my question is: At a given range (say, 1500 yards), if you know the wind conditions, and humidity, etc.. would it be easier to dial in and hit a man sized target with a .338 Lapua rifle, or a .45-70 rifle? We'll say that the Lapua rifle has a reliable telescopic sight, whereas the .45-70 has tang/vernier sliding sights.
Yeah yeah, you're probably thinking I'm crazy for comparing these two vastly different cartridges. But it sure is a topic of interest, nonetheless.