I just got a new one ,the twist is 1in22" grove .458 what is your favorite bullet & load for this nice rifle smokless or Blackpowder ? Thanks concho

If your's is the carbine remember its service load was 55 grains of FFg and a 405 gr lead bullet. The 45/70/500 was for the infantry rifles...

I am getting brain dead ! New in box Pedersoli 32 1/2 " BBL shoots smokless or Blk PDR , I think 400 gr bullets as it has a 1in22 twist .

The standard factory loads will work .The 300 I use for deer ,300 @ 1850.

Thanks guys ! I have a pal who has a 300 gr mold , will make some and experiment !

Consider Trailboss as a powder option for reloading. I have seen nothing but good results from it.

i have a H&R infty. rifle repo made in the 70,s i got in a trade deal a few years ago and have never fired it, i was going to sell it but may now reload for it. eastbank.

Go for it eastbank

The 22 twist rate will be a good midway twist. Not as good to stabilize heavy 500+ gr. bullets. I use a 1-18" twist on a couple of mine to stabilize 550 gr. bullets, and it still works well with down to 360 grainers.

I agree Marlinman93 I have several 1in18 twist rifles and I can load 300 gr bullets that shoot great , I never had a 1in22" before so I was hoping for a possible trapdoor shooter with first hand info so I would not have to experiment with different loads for a few weeks !

Concho: You should be able to get that trapdoor to shoot well with the Lyman 457125 520-grain roundnose government bullet and 60 to 65 grains of drop-tubed Goex or Swiss FFg equivalent. Strongly recommend two books: Mike Venturino's "Shooting Buffalo Rifles of the Old West," and Spencer Wolf's "Loading Cartridges for the Original .45-70 Springfield Rifle and Carbine." Pedersoli makes very accurate barrels that are much more uniform than the original trapdoors, one of which I shoot. They will perform, even with that 1:22 twist.

Thanks Bill I have that mold ! and lots of bullets made , I have some lobed and sized so I will load 5 for a test ! I will let you all know how it does ! THANKS FOR THE HELP !

I have thought about buying one of the reproduction rifles. I have a original that has a very worn bore but I want to shoot it very badly.

Try the Lyman 457122HP bullet cast from wheelweight metal and sized .460" with 65 grains of Swiss FFg powder. Use a .45 cal Wonder Wad on top of the powder charge. I use nickel plated brass for BP loads, as it cleans up easier after shooting.....

In my original, I used a 405 gr. cast and, I think, about 36 grains of IMR 3031. I used the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook, and started at the minimum load in the "Trapdoor" section. I always had good luck with 3031.

I finally got to shoot the test rounds ! Not one worth sending a target of the results ! 45/70 ! & 45/90 , from 300 Gr to 490 gr; using Hodgdon 2/F and 215 Mag Primers all weighed loads , Junk all !! Barrels 1in18 & 1in20 twist Had laser cast 400 gr and all the rest wheel weights , Uberti 45/70 Trap door , and Bodine 45/90 Rem/roller ! I will try again with new loads and new bullet weights .

I've posted before that I have an H&R OM Trapdoor and finally been able to buy an 8lb jug of 3031. Have 200 Starline brass, lots of primers and now also have a selection of bullets. Bullets range from Rem. 405jacketed, Hornady 350's and some locally produced 435 LFP/GC bullets. My question is can you use the same loads as shown for jacketed bullets for the lead ones? Somewhat of an odd weight for the lead bullets and can anyone suggest a good range of loads w/ 3031 for these bullets weights. Weather is finally breaking better and anxious to give the rifle a good workout in the near future. I did find that I am going to have to replace that front sight for the somewhat flimsy tang sight w/ the rifle and the front sight do not even come close to being compatable. By the time you lower the rear tang sight to line up w/ the issue front sight, you are looking at the breech area. I can fix that in short order though. Anyway, all help appreciated.
martin

Lead bullets will not work with modern jacketed loads , and you may blow your gun up trying to shoot anything but black powder in a gun designed for black powder ! My Bodine Pedersoli is made to modern standards to shoot smokeless or black ! and I have loaded several bullet types as stated above but all failed to be what I expect from the rifle ! My Trap door is for Black powder only ! another Pedersoli Gun ! It did shoot better with the 300 gr bullets than all the rest I tried .

There are some good smokeless loads in 3031 and trailboss but should only be loaded with soft lead bullets in original Trapdoors. Jacketed bullets in originals ruin the bore. I have no clue what jacketed bullets do in a reproduction rifle.

quote:

My question is can you use the same loads as shown for jacketed bullets for the lead ones?

Yes, you can. For the trapdoor, use loads that develop around 1300 FPS max., and you will have no trouble. With lead bullets, a jacketed-bullet load will develop about 50 FPS more velocity than when used with a jacketed bullet of the same weight......