Ruger #1...45/70 or .458 win mag?

[Russt]

I've been wanting a #1 for sometime and finally am able to buy one. Now the only hard part is what caliber? I'm a handloader, almost 10 years, which is why I'm in such a debate over which one. Load up or load down? The purpose of the rifle is no other reason than I want it. If I ever get to go to Alaska, I'll have it, just incase. Rifles I have and reload for range from .22lr to 45/70. I have .223,.308,.30/30,.270,.308,.30-06,.45colt 94 A.E., just because it goes with the blackhawk, and a 45/70 NEF. I've looked on the Ruger website and the list price is the same. I realize sell price is a whole different thing. The Tropical is a couple pounds heavier, not a big deal to me, besides it'll help tame recoil. The MAG brass is almost triple of the 45/70 but 100 rounds or so should last me a life time. So which is more versitale?

 

[browningguy]

I'd do the .458, it is a handfull in a No. 1 but can easily be loaded down to make it a comfortable plinking gun. I shoot a Mauser in .458, downloaded it makes a dandy pig/coyote/deer gun for 100-150 yard shots. And Elephants and Cape Buff have been reduced to an endangered species in the neighborhood.

 

[Jackal]

Go for the caliber you don't have. In this case, the .458. Add a good recoil pad though.

 

[redneck2]

Maybe just me...

IMO, a Ruger #1 in .458 may be the most useless gun ever built. If there's anything I'm going to be hunting with a .458, I'm gonna have more than one shot.

Years ago, I shot a .45-70 #1 that was loaded up to very near .458 level. I'm not a recoil wimp, but this was way beyond a 12 gauge with 3" slugs. Massively brutal would be an understatement.

But, if that's what you want, have at it. YMMV.

 

[ETXhiker]

I love my Marlin .45-70, but in a Ruger #1, I'd get the .458. No, wait...

Get the .458 Lott. You can load to any level between .45-70 and .458, or beyond, into the gonzo, blue and purple shouldered world of high octane DG rifles. And, you can still fire factory .458 Win. if you're just shooting squirrels.

 

[de]

In a Ruger # 1 shooting reloads, let your shoulder be your guide. The 4570 WILL do anything a 458 winmag will do, and do it just as well. Brass is cheaper, ammo is more plentiful, and cheaper, in stores, and on and on. Unless of course this is a testosteone surg. In that case stop off on the way home from the gun store and pick up a case of beer and a pit bulldog.

 

[Geno]

Same projectile...opt for .458 Win

Take the .458 Win and download to 45-70 velocity if you want.

Doc2005

 

[Gewehr98]

This is a Ruger #1S in .45-70:



Note how compact and lightweight the gun is, and also note the thickness of the recoil pad. I load a wide variety of ammo for this rifle, from the same 500gr blackpowder spitzer rounds I create for my 34" Sharps Business Rifle, to some seriously evil 405gr Beartooth gas-checked screamers that trip the chronograph at 2150fps. That's a very diverse spread in both bullet weights and velocities. I also do a 405gr smokeless target load that's downright accurate and comfortable.

Now, let me tell you, the Beartooth loads above would remove your fillings if you had them in your teeth. I don't have any fillings, but I get punch drunk after a maximum of 10 of those rounds, fired offhand. After learning the hard way, I'd have to remind folks that shooting such loads from the bench would be tantamount to a death wish. This is from a 200 pound, 6-foot plus guy who's normally not scared of a little recoil.

I only need one of those hot loads for whatever's higher on the food chain that I feel like thumping. The factory recoil pad as pictured above is very good at what it was intended to do, which is making the footprint of broken capillaries on my shoulder that much bigger. I could only imagine one shooting the same rifle, with the same recoil pad, but chambered for the .458 Win Mag, and then launching factory Federal 500gr controlled-expansion bullets at 2090fps. You'd better hit what you're aiming at with that first shot, because the flinch you develop immediately afterwards may send any subsequent rounds astray of the mark.

If you want all the macho excitement of the gun in .458 Win Mag but don't want all the hassle, just find a polecat or two and stick them in your trousers for a while.

 

[joneb]

I would contact Ruger about loading up the 45-70, and loading down the .458 win. Mag. The barrel twist rates are different, get the one that best suits your needs.

 

[aspade]

I always feel better about loading down than loading up. You never know what might happen in 20 years when someone else - or me if I get forgetful - is cleaning out the back of my safe and comes across loaded rounds which will blow a different gun in that chambering to pieces.

That said, I would go with the 45-70 because it is lighter and trimmer while you are shooting painless loads the other 95% of the time.

 

[steveno]

a Ruger #1H in 458 win is probably at least 2 pounds heavier than a #1S in 45-70 so why download to 45-70 levels of power and carry a heavier rifle? buy the 45-70 and load up to the level of power you can shoot well along with the lighter rifle. the 45-70 has a had a good reputation as a killer long before these hot loads existed

 

[Russt]

Thanks for the replys. 45/70 it is. I ordered it today from a local dealer and should be in in about a week. I really wanted the international but I didn't see one on the Ruger web site. I have a sweet spot for the full length stocks.

I'll never shoot to .458 mag capabilities so why have something I won't use.
My flinch switch kicks in with 53-54 grains of 3031 with a 405 grain bullet in the NEF.