April 21st, 1860 Frontier Shootin'!

[RanchRoper]

It was a fine spring day today with a 49 mph wind (yup not quite 50) and the range all to myself. Water running everywhere. Almost need the hip-waders to get to and from the target board. Here's a shot of the Livingstone mountain range just west of the gun club.

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Just me and my faithful Henry 1860 in 45 Colt. Shooting new ammo today, I found a place in Calgary call "Western Metal" that supplies metal workers with solder and stuff, and also sells ammo, firearms and reloading gear. Ordered ammo last week and it arrived yesterday. Reasonable price, and I bought the 4 boxes of Fiocchi they had too.

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Anyhow, shooting Western Metal 250 gr lead flat nose ammo, very reminiscent of my favorite Winchester ammunition. Took only 1 box of 50 with me and it shot great. Cycled smooth, and any issues with accuracy was the wind and me, not the bullets. 50 yards, 2 targets, open sights, off hand standing for target 1 and then I wimped out and went to one knee for the 2nd target. The wind was not cooperating. Adjusted for windage and got better results.

#1

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#2

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And the rifle of course....

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[CT_Shooter]

Is hunting in your future, RR? Your freezer would never suffer from too much space. You're a remarkable shooter. Thanks for the range report and for setting the bar so very high!

[RanchRoper]

Haha, I'm afraid that would be grounds for divorce in my house. Won't be long until our yard is full of baby Bambi's running all over the place. Appreciate the compliment though!

[JEBar]

remarkable indeed .... what's your best guess as to the number of rounds you've put through our 1860

[RanchRoper]

Only around 1500 or so I would bet so far. It was a long winter.....but it sure is a high quality firearm. And the brass is really starting to age nicely.

Another pic just cuz!

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[PT7]

Your frontier fotos are really beautiful, RR. I especially enjoyed the first one of the Livingstone mountain range. The mountains and vivid blue sky & clouds were stunning!

A lot of the splash targets I buy have sticky patches that can be used to cover up POIs. That allows me to reuse the targets maybe at least a second time. In your case, and if your targets came with those patches, due to your excellent shooting you would already have a huge supply of unused patches. There is simply not enough left of your demolished targets to stick patches on and reuse.

Yes, your Henry 1860 is definitely a "faithful" tool...although it works well only because you aim so well. Excellent shooting once again. Thanks for the frontier visit, the Range Report, and your rifle photos. Always look forward to them.
PT7

P.S. This is a ding-dang-it comment, RR. I always struggle after seeing your highly visibile POIs-in-target. My SGC bullet holes are so very tiny in comparison. The struggle is that I have to battle the "wanting-to-get" another .357 Magnum Big Boy and enjoy shooting a centerfire Henry again!

It was a fine spring day today....Water running everywhere.......Here's a shot of the Livingstone mountain range just west of the gun club.

[RanchRoper]

PT7....if you have never tried a 45 Colt rifle I strongly recommend it. Great big holes in paper with very mild recoil. Put 50 rounds through the rifle and your shoulder will live to tell the tale. Can't speak to the 357 or 44 mag, but the 45C is great fun to shoot.
Thanks for the kind words.

[PT7]

Well, I've shot my son's-in-law Henry .45-70. Would you say that is pretty close action to the .45 Colt rifle? Recoil on the .45-70 was not overly noticeable to me.

The Henry .357 Magnum Big Boys are very nice rifles to shoot; recoil is almost zip. That's why I wrote earlier in my "ding-dang-comment" about the struggle of wanting another .357 whenever I see your ragged targets. Anyway, right now I don't know anyone who owns a .45 Colt rifle, and I don't I know of any ranges where one could be tried out. I'll maybe check when I go again to the indoor range in next-door Kansas. They rent firearms, and will ask if that includes rifles.

Bottom line however is that I won't get a larger caliber Henry in the near future. My deal breaker is the buckhorn sight system. I'm still waiting for a .357 Henry model where they build it with a stock ghost-ring rear sight, just like I have on my .22LR Henry SGC. I may have quite a long wait since Henry builds their rifles as close to what the originals were like. A good tradition.

Almost forgot to mention, I'd really like to try out a ladder sight like you have on your 1860. That has always intrigued me.

In the meantime, I'll just ride the frontier ranges through your photography, and enjoy watching you shred your targets in those prairie winds!

Take care,
PT7

PT7....if you have never tried a 45 Colt rifle I strongly recommend it. Great big holes in paper with very mild recoil. Put 50 rounds through the rifle and your shoulder will live to tell the tale. Can't speak to the 357 or 44 mag, but the 45C is great fun to shoot.
Thanks for the kind words.

[JEBar]

Well, I've shot my son's-in-law Henry .45-70. Would you say that is pretty close action to the .45 Colt rifle? Recoil on the .45-70 was not overly noticeable to me.

as one who has and fires a Henry 357, 44 Mag, and 45-70, I can attest to the fact that the recoil from a 45-70 firing Cowboy Action loads is much stronger than that of a 44 Mag .... fully realizing felt recoil is a matter of personal perception, recoil from a 45-70 firing full power loads is in a much bigger ballpark .... as has been noted, the recoil from a 357 is a prime example of its bark being much stronger than its bite .... a Henry 44 Mag firing 44 Special loads falls into that same category .... firing 44 Mag loads, I'd rate the felt recoil as being on par with a 243

[RanchRoper]

I've only shot my 45 Colt, and a couple of SKS's. The recoil on the SKS was much heavier than my Henry, although I cannot recall what caliber they were.

[North Country Gal]

Great report, as always, RR. Ditto for the pics.

We headed to the range, yesterday, because we are finally getting some spring weather. Got there and a sign said range closed due to our heavy snowstorm of last week. Will need more thawing before it opens.

As for the 45 Colt, having shot it in both handguns and rifles, I think it feels somewhat unique compared to other cartridges. Has a charm and feel all its own when you fire it. Can shoot standard Colt 45 ammo all day long and never notice the recoil. On the other hand, for me, even cowboy 45-70 loads are less comfy to shoot. I certainly wouldn't rate standard 45 Colt loads as being any nastier to shoot than a standard 357. The one very notable exception is "Ruger only" 45 Colt loads. Those are just nuts. I've shot Ruger only 45 Colt 325s in a Blackhawk and it made my standard 44 mag 240s in a similar gun feel tame. Ouch, ouch, ouch.

My only complaint with the 45 Colt and the reason we don't shoot it much, anymore, is that factory ammo, even the cowboy loads, run higher in price than standard 357s. We don't reload, anymore, or we we shoot a lot more 45 Colt.

[BigAl52]

RR how much were they charging for those reman loads? Great pics and shooting as usual. I love the scenery up there Al

[RanchRoper]

Just over a dollar a round for those. New brass. However some of the other stuff I have coming plus the Fiocchi was around $.78/round.

[RanchRoper]

As for the 45 Colt, having shot it in both handguns and rifles, I think it feels somewhat unique compared to other cartridges. Has a charm and feel all its own when you fire it. .

Well put, I think it's the old west charm-old school cool factor. I'd get the same feeling with 44-40, and if that ammo was more readily available here I might have gone with that caliber.