Jump to content
SASS Wire Forum

Who LOVES the BIG calibers of the Old West?


Recommended Posts

This is my C Sharps '74 in 50 3 1/4" caliber (50-140)

 

Though I don;t beleive that any Sharps in the Old West were chambered from the factory with this caliber I had to get it. When I saw Quigley Down Under, not only did I want a rifle like his, I wanted bigger :lol: Hey, It's America :D

 

 

GG ~ :FlagAm:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ought to be big enough for what ails you! :lol:

 

Me, I'm a wimp and can tolerate (barely) the new Shiloh in 44-77 off the bench. ;)New 44-77 Fresh Out of Box

 

 

My 40-70 SBN Shiloh is a pleasure.

 

However, this original RB Sporter in 44-77 weighs but 9 lbs and will really get your attention. Original Sporter

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Several years ago I bought a Rolling Block that was supposed to be 50-90 but turned out to be 50-140. The bullets I ordered were supposed to be 685 grains but are about 720 grains.

 

Horace

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ought to be big enough for what ails you! :lol:

 

Me, I'm a wimp and can tolerate (barely) the new Shiloh in 44-77 off the bench. ;)New 44-77 Fresh Out of Box

 

 

My 40-70 SBN Shiloh is a pleasure.

 

However, this original RB Sporter in 44-77 weighs but 9 lbs and will really get your attention. Original Sporter

 

Nice pard! Beautiful wood on the Shiloh...mine is just semi-fancy wood

 

GG ~ :FlagAm:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ought to be big enough for what ails you! :lol:

 

Me, I'm a wimp and can tolerate (barely) the new Shiloh in 44-77 off the bench. ;)New 44-77 Fresh Out of Box

 

 

My 40-70 SBN Shiloh is a pleasure.

 

However, this original RB Sporter in 44-77 weighs but 9 lbs and will really get your attention. Original Sporter

 

Hey Yellowhouse Sam, That RB Sporter looks eggzackly like mine. Mine was a 40-70 and 32 inch barrel, but someone cut 2 1/2 inches off the rear and re-chambered it to 40-50 SBN. http://www.shoppalstores.com/GRTraders/image//DSC09611.JPG It has a Ballard tang sight on it.

 

Big Jake

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey Yellowhouse Sam, That RB Sporter looks eggzackly like mine. Mine was a 40-70 and 32 inch barrel, but someone cut 2 1/2 inches off the rear and re-chambered it to 40-50 SBN. http://www.shoppalstores.com/GRTraders/image//DSC09611.JPG It has a Ballard tang sight on it.

 

Big Jake

 

Still a neat caliber!

 

Some of the old ammo catalogs show the 50 31/4 loaded with a 550 gr bullet. Some modern shooters are ordering fast twist barrels and shooting 750 gr. In case you're wondering they have very heavy barrels (24 lb on one I know) to calm things down a bit. Kenny Wasserburger has shown 10 inch or better groups shot with his at a 1000 yds.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Nice pard! Beautiful wood on the Shiloh...mine is just semi-fancy wood

 

GG ~ :FlagAm:

 

Yours looks great! Fact is that straight grain is about all you'll see on originals and for a reason....strength in the wrist. I have semi fancy on the 40-70 and its fine and dandy. On the new 44-77 I splurged and got fancy wood, polished blue, checkered shotgun steel buttplate, polished screws, AAA finish, and bone pack CCH. Won't make it shoot any better but thats what I got. My only regret is not getting a chamber reamed for paper patch bullets but a throating reamer will take care of that if needed.

 

My wish list is to have rifles in the three earliest Sharps buffalo cartridges. Have two now and lack the 50-70. I missed out on a used Lone Star RB sporter in that caliber a while back & maybe one will pop up again one day.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don't have any pictures to show but I have a Steven's 44 1/2 (CPA) with 45-70 and 45-110 barrels, a Winchest Higwalls in 45-70,40-82 and 40-60 Maynard, and Shiloh Sharps in 40-65.

 

Got stupid a few years ago and sold original Rolling Blocks in 44-100, 43 Spainish and 40-65 and a 45-70 Trapdoor and #5 Ballard in 45-70.

 

And these pld, good originals are getting harder to find, and a heck of alot more expensive.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don't have any pictures to show but I have a Steven's 44 1/2 (CPA) with 45-70 and 45-110 barrels, a Winchest Higwalls in 45-70,40-82 and 40-60 Maynard, and Shiloh Sharps in 40-65.

 

Got stupid a few years ago and sold original Rolling Blocks in 44-100, 43 Spainish and 40-65 and a 45-70 Trapdoor and #5 Ballard in 45-70.

 

And these pld, good originals are getting harder to find, and a heck of alot more expensive.

 

Yessir and you'll see ten original Sharps for every RB #1 Sporting Rifle chambered in a buffler caliber.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some years ago I had two fine Shiloh Sharps in 50.140 caliber... It took lots of fooling around to get them to shoot decently "way out there", but I finally managed it.

 

Took massive powder charges (100gr+) and a really heavy and long paper-patched bullet (upwards of 750 grains), but then they finally started to perform.

 

As the years passed, I started to get older

and finally got tired of having the hell stomped outa me by these big rifles. It was fun while it lasted.

My newest one was a heavy barreled Sporting rifle with the shotgun buttstock.

 

But even it eventually got to be just too punishing to shoot, and by then we had moved here into Fairbanks AK, where it is hard to find a place to shoot "way across the valley" that don't have a bunch of people either living there or running around on 4-wheelers & getting in "harms way"..

 

So I finally and reluctantly sold the big rifles, and picked up an old original Springfield Trapdoor in 45-70 caliber...What a fine old gun it is to shoot, and it don't kill you to shoot it all afternoon.

 

I have to say, though, you won't do better than any Shiloh Sharps rifle, of any caliber. They are without a doubt the very best to be had, anywhere. If you git one, you'll love it.

 

Bp

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Does anyone know the history of the 50-140 cartridge? I havent been able to find out much.

 

Presumed to be introduced by Winchester in the mid 1880's for the 1885 single shot. Neither it or the 45 in that length were very popular. Andy Pickett did extensive testing on the big .45 as an express round but gave up remarking that the 3 1/4 cases offered nothing that the 2 7/8 case couldn't do. Didn't matter....all the buffalo were long gone anyway.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.