Sharps Rifle Question

[Mikee Loxxer]

A very good friend of mine is going to buy a replica Sharps rifle chambered for 45-70. He wants to a get rifle whose receiver is strong enough to withstand modern high pressure load. Are most of these replica Sharps rifles on the market capable of handling these loads? I told him I was pretty sure that they were but would feel more comfortable consulting my fellow Highroaders.

 

[fineredmist]

I shoot repro 1885 High Wall and use bp eqivalient loads and have a great time. C Sharps and Shiloh Rifle Co. manufacture high quality rifles useing quality steel, modern machines and state "FOR BLACK POWDER ONLY". The .45/70 is loaded for 3 types of firearms, originals and their repros are listed in the "Trap Door" or weak action class. If you want a .45/70 cannon then you buy a Rugar #1, it will take heavy loads. BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY.

 

[BruceB]

Kirk Bryan, owner of Shiloh Rifle Company, has publicly stated that his Shiloh 1874 Sharps' rifles will handle any load that a Ruger #1 can tolerate. I doubt that he would make such a statement if it wasn't correct. I certainly would NOT trust any other maker's Sharps' rifles unless they too made a similar statement.

I have a Shiloh in .45-70, and it has happily digested many loads which are far warmer than "blackpowder equivalent" levels. Mind you, it's not very comfortable to shoot with real hell-benders, being of standard sporter configuration and mounting a tang sight which makes it difficult to get a good grip with the trigger hand.

At about 1500fps with 400-grain bullets, it offers a good bit more power than most factory .45-70 loads, and is still pretty comfy on the back end. NICE rifles, the Shilohs!

 

[Pumpkinheaver]

I don't think I would trust very many of the Italian copies with heavy loads.

 

[Onmilo]

I own three Pedersoli .45-70 rifles and the only loads I consider safe to shoot in these rifles are the standard 405 grain jacketed soft point Winchester and Remington loads, the 300 grain jacketed soft point Federal and Winchester loads and any of the factory 400 grain lead bullet "cowboy loads".

If your friend wants to shoot more powerful loads than these I would strongly recommend he consider buying a Ruger Number one.

At around two to three thousand dollars for a Shiloh, plus the wait time involved in receiving one, why anybody would consider shooting high pressure loads that will accelerate wear on the rifle is far beyond my comprehension.

 

[stoky]

Buffalo Bore lists the Pedersoli for their .45-70 loads.

 

[Jim Watson]

As said, Shiloh Sharps are considered safe for "Ruger loads."
Kirk also says you will have a better outcome if you load down some and gain back velocity with the traditional long barrel.

I don't know C. Sharps' policy but their guns are also well made of modern materials.

Pedersolis are proof tested to handle the SAAMI maximum 28,000 CUP load and Dick Trenck, the US rep, says they are good to go with them.

The other Italian brands are also proof tested at that level as required by Italian law but it does not mean they will stand up to regular use of maximum loads. They are kind of a crapshoot in all respects. He might get a decent one, he might get junk.

Actually, the question is, can HE stand heavy loads?
I just got back from a BPCR match and a .45-70 pushing a 525 grain bullet at 1200 fps with real gunpowder has plenty of power... on both ends. Reason I shoot a little .38-55 and a lot of people use various .40 calibers to 500 metres and beyond.

 

[Gewehr98]

You want to approach .458 Win Mag in a .45-70, do it right.

Get a Ruger #1 or Siamese Mauser conversion. I ran a few of my Ruger #1 405gr/2100fps Beartooth loads through my Pedersoli Sharps and it hurt my shoulder a lot more than my Ruger or Siamese Mauser ever did. The current Sharps replicas may very well be strong enough to handle the pressure, but that doesn't mean they're good at transferring that recoil to the shooter. There's a reason Ruger put such a thick recoil pad on the #1S rifle.