Q: I’ve been a fan of yours for about 35 years when you got my first .22-250 sorted. My questions this time involve handloads for my Chiappa 1874 (Quigley Sharps). The Remington 300gn HP projectiles are giving too much penetration – I can shoot and kill two medium size goats and mortally wound another with a single shot – not to mention what the 405gn flat-nose is capable of. I have purchased some Hornady 250 and 325gn Flex Tip projectiles to try, but can find no loading data for them. I have W-748, AR2206H and AR2208 powder and magnum primers. I’ve been loading the 300gn bullets and a compressed charge of 63gn AR2208 and 54gn behind the 405gn bullet- loads I got out of the ADI handbook. I’ve seated both bullets 40 thou off the lands. Would 62gn of W-748 behind the 250gn Flex Tip be a safe load considering the Sharps actions shortcomings? Can you suggest a safe load for the 325gn Flex Tip using one of the powders I’ve got. All of the load data from the handbook specifies a 24 inch barrel, but the barrel on my .45-70 is 34 inches. Does this affect the ballistics/pressures to any great degree? Accuracy is nothing short of amazing compared to leverguns I’ve used in .45-70 – one ragged hole at 100 metres. I’m greatly impressed with it. I hope the Flex Tips are a little forgiving in the penetration department. What advice? Keep up the good work.
Rick Allen
A: I suppose it didn’t occur to you that your Quigley Sharps is just too much gun for goats? Your .22-250 loaded with the 60gn Hornady spire point or 70gn Speer is capable handling goats and pigs without any problems. I think you’ll still get too much penetration using the Hornady 250 and 325gn Flex Tip bullets. Your long 34 inch barrel should increase the velocity by about 250 fps. You can use AR2208 in the .45-70. Try a compressed charge of 62gn with the 250gn FTX for 2350fps or 48gn of AR2207 for 3270fps for 2370fps in that long barrel. With the 325gn FTX a compressed charge of 53gn of AR2206H should deliver 2150fps, or you can load 51.5gn of AR2219 for about 2200fps. I have a friend who has an Italian .45-70 Sharps replica that is as accurate as yours that he uses with great success on pigs.
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