Good Afternoon Men, Looking real hard at a little Henry big boy in 45 Colt, will the brass receiver take a little hotroddin? I cant find out if they're made the same as the Henry 44 mag. Wanna shoot 300 sp @ 1300-1400 fps from the 20" brl...Thanks in advance.

Jerry

I have no experience at all with the Henry rifles, so I can't tell you how strong they may be. I would think there would be no difference in manufacturing of the 45 Colt vs the 44 mag, I am sure the receiver is the same. So whatever one could do in the 44 I would think you could do the same in the 45 Colt.

Now I can tell you what you can do in a Win M94 in 45 Colt--Others that know more can tell us how this would compare to the Henry rifle?

In the Win M94 a 300 gr (say Hornady JHP) with a dose of 2400 can run to over 1600 fps with ease in 16 inches of barrel! 1300-1400 fps is on the light side. I have even run the 335 gr Cast Performance over 1600 fps with no ill effects.

But before doing this in the Henry get some expert opinions concerning it. I am sure there are some out here with the Henry rifles.

Michael

The weak link will more likely be the breech end of the barrel, as in 45 COLT the barrel walls will be thinner. When Dick Casull et al were working on the 454, they found that the barrel steel on the M92 Winchesters was too soft. Once the barrels were made from stronger steel, bulged chambers stopped.....

Dang, more power than I thought, would be a fine match to a 6gun I have in 45 Colt. Although I better keep a big hand over that bright receiver for huntin,...Thanks Men.

quote:

Originally posted by jerry mcdonald:
I better keep a big hand over that bright receiver for huntin

Two words: Camoflage tape

nordrseta,....10-4

I emailed them a couple of years ago and asked the question. The president of the company emailed me back and said yes, the rifle can take the big loads.

jelmore4, Thanks for the info, I'm gonna buy one, The gunner said he had 4 more in the safe, when time allows I'll go pick one w/ nice stocks.

FYI. Here was the text of the email from June 2006.

Thank you for your interest in the Henry Big Boy. Yes, the Big Boy can handle pressures way beyond proof loads, so it can easily handle +Ps. However the +Ps must be made to SAAMI spec in overall case dimensions for proper feeding. If you need more help / info, do not hesitate to contact me.

Anthony Imperato, President
Henry Repeating Arms, Co.
110 8th Street
Brooklyn, NY 11215

Nice, informative answer.