What happened to the .45s ?

[SimonKenton]

I know a lot of you guys shoot .45 caliber flinters and many of them are for hunting. About 25 years ago on the long defunct Sports Afield broadcast TV show they ran most of a half hour on flinters and showed many being used in matches. Most at that time were .45 to .54 and the preferred bore for target shooting seemed to be .45 caliber. Why do we not see more guns in that caliber these days? Seems like a fine gun for the close in shooting we get in the very thick undergrowth in the Northeast. Accurate, flat shooting and not wasteful of the FFFg. What gives?

-Ray

 

[tg]

Magnumitus may have infected the ML community?
If I still shot later period rifles post 1780 the .45 would be my choice trail walk or deer hunting, with the .40 a close 2nd

 

I have a couple of .45's and I am getting to know the latest one. I like 'em. I am enjoying the smaller caliber and savings on powder and lead. Plus, it doesn't hurt after 25 rounds off the bench. You are right about the near flat trajectory. WOW!!

 

[SimonKenton]

Sounds like some guys don't know a good thing when they see it. Add to all the above the sweet carrying and handling of a .45 in a "B" weight swamped barrel and you've got an American classic.

Like the .270 and the .300 Savage it doesn't get the respect it deserves. Nor does the .404 Jeff but that's another axe to grind.

-Ray :thumbsup:

 

[Jim-Iowa]

I suspect a lot of things go into it.
I am building a .45 Southern Mountain.
Iowa and I suppose a lot of states set .44 ball as minumum for deer hunting. And as a hunting round the ballistics of a .45 round ball are pretty unimpressive on paper. Paper ballistics are what many go by, but paper does not tell the whole story at reasonable ranges the ball is very effective. There is that and I once read that 70% of all muzzleloaders sold were .50 cal.
Seem more people going to sub .50 cal are choosing .40 cal instead of .45.
Start a revolution and bring the .45 back.

 

I'm building a .45 for my granddaughter to hunt in Iowa, and the project after the .58, which is half done, is a copy of a Samuel Baum in .45. So I'm doing my part to keep em alive.

Bill

If corn oil is made from corn, and vegetable oil is made from vegetables, what is baby oil made from?

 

[nchawkeye]

I guess I'm a trend setter...I bought a Bob Watts .45 caliber flinter in 1977...Used it for about 12 years then converted to a .40...See, I built a .54 in 1988-1990...Not that the .45 didn't do the job, I had a little meeting with a black bear on one of our farms in 1987, decided a .54 might be in the future.

 

[dry ball john]

:thumbsup: My competition rifle is a flint .40 cal. but the next rifle I build is going to be a .45. I really think that as you get older the 13/16 barrel-.45 cal is easyer to carry,hold on target, and a better all round caliber, and weight wise more better on my arms. sooo theres my two cents cheers John

 

[adkmountainken]

my .45 Tim Brown flinter is still my rifle of choice for deer!

 

[Blizzard of '93]

a flintlock thread but I'll weigh in and say I have hunted bear (actually I had an invite to go with a group) using dogs here in N. Carolina mountains with a group that included a couple ol' timers that toted .45 caplocks - they said they 'appreciated the historical perspective'. I toted a ROA. others had smokeless powder guns revolvers and rifles from .22 to .45.

 

[Jim-Iowa]

I'm building a .45 for my granddaughter to hunt in Iowa, and the project after the .58, which is half done, is a copy of a Samuel Baum in .45. So I'm doing my part to keep em alive.

Bill

If corn oil is made from corn, and vegetable oil is made from vegetables, what is baby oil made from?

Bill if I recall correctly you daughter lives around Pleasantville so I assume your grandaughter will be hunting around the Red Rock Reservoir area. In that dense cover a 50 yd shot would be a long one, and the .45 would be a fine choice.
Incidently, my son works for a confinement Hog operation and travels to several locations from Otley-Pleasantville and was telling me last night he saw the biggest buck he had ever seen yesterday in that area.

 

[MikeChapin]

I think tg has it right on the Magnumitis. Years ago, most of the kits were either .45 or .50. Now you see them either .50 of .54. The CVA Kentucky was a .45 back then. Now I see they went to a .50 before they quit making them. When Traditions came along they started out with a .50 in that model.

The second kit I built was a Dixie Convertable .45. Great deer rifle. I sold it because the pull was short too short for me not because it wasn't lethal on deer.

Whenever I get the bucks up I would like to build a nice later Lancaster in .45. It's right there on the stack with the trade gun and trade rifle.

 

[CoyoteJoe]

The state hunting regulations play a part in the choice of caliber. Here in Colorado one must have .50 caliber or larger for elk. You can hunt deer and antelope with .40 or larger but they also specify a minimum bullet weight which only a .50 caliber can meet with round balls. In other words if you choose a smaller caliber you must shoot some sort of conical bullet to meet the minimum weight requirement. I have a Blue Ridge flint .45 which I use only as a rendezvous gun and for marmot hunting. I like the caliber for an offhand rifle and would have no qualms about hunting with it if it were OK with the DOW, but it ain't.

 

[[email protected]]

After a lot of thinking/reading I decided to build my first flintlock in .45. It is a Lancaster type and with a 13/16 42" barrel it is very easy to handle. Cheaper at the range then my .54 yet will have enough to easily take down deer at the typical New England distances we shoot at (less then 75 yds.) I Can't wait to have it out hunting this fall.
H

 

[redwing]

The deer population for one thing. There are more deer every where, so more deer hunters. For a very long time M/L were just used to shoot paper.

It didn't take long for many hunters to find out that the .50 is a better killer on deer than a .45.
Hunting and target shooting are very different sports. The smaller ball is great on paper but the fact is the .50 and the .54 are better killers.

My question is why do you care what caliber anyone shoots? As long as they follow the rules its a personal call. Its like that old BS about what size knife a hunter should carry. :youcrazy:

 

[Kentuckywindage]

i love my 45! Im using it this year for mule deer. It shoots beautifully with either PRB or a 225 grain powerbelt. I'll be using the powerbelt for my deer. Top rifle is my Deer Creek Northwest .45

My fault, Slight hangfire.

 

[SimonKenton]

Redwing,

I have a .54 caliber TN rifle by Matt Avance myself and an old .54 CVA Big Bore Mtn. Rifle. I do like the .54 and it will take anything on the continent. I just miss seeing all those sleek light .45 flinters. Quick handling and accurate. Also I may have a .50 made up in a "B" weight 44" barrel for better handling. The .50 is another great choice for the Northeast. :v

-Ray

 

[redwing]

Well the same could be said for any firearm. I like seeing nice Pre-64 Mdl.70s in .338. Now days most young hunters carry black plastic rifles in some strange caliber that you can only find in Guns & Ammo Magazine.

I see more and more plastic Walmart black powder rifles. I see fellows at the range stuffing big bullets down the barrels intended for PRBs. They don't know how to shoot PRB too bad.

I look down at my side and I see a fine East Tenn, with a .44" Rice, a nice Chambers Ketland Flint Lock fine wood with a warm glow. She is a long slim southern lady and her .54 Cal. ball will cover about any thing in the Rocky Mtns. So says I to me, what the H*** do I care what the others choose. I have made my choice. :wink:

 

[paulvallandigham]

What surprises me is that guys who declined to fire my .45-70 with target loads now appear on the range loading heavier bullets in these new wonderguns, with heavy powder charges, and think nothing of it.

Go figure that one.

And, have you noticed they don't come down to see what you are shooting, or ask any questions about it?

 

[Walks Alone]

I'm doing my part to keep the 45 alive... have 4 of them - 2 rifles and 2 pistols. The 50's and 54 seldom ever leave the house. Have shot way more 45 balls than 32's and 36's combined too (and I really love my two 36 rifles).