speaking of 45/70 loads,

[Grizz]

I'm suddenly and inexplicably interested in collar button rounds. Does it really turn Thumper into a gallery gun?

Any reason not to?

45-70-collar-button-westernbulletcom.jpg

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what's your best collar-button story?
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†

P.S. > I once loaded some 325gr beartoothbullets into starline brass, but still not sure why. maybe for a comparison to the 325 gr 44 mag loads in my hunting revolver. IDK I do remember that there was a definite hesitation between the click and the clang. that was funny. plus it was easy on the gongs...

[Bill in Oregon]

Pretty sure that the collar button was used by Army soldiers with a primed case — but no powder— for winter target practice or some such.

[AJMD429]

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On a somewhat tangential note, I found this interesting when it comes to 45-70 loads...

https://youtu.be/f_iRtFwa1vg

[CowboyTutt]

Well your "Grizzliness" I have no personal experience with said bullets. I would tell you that a bullet that is "nose heavy" can function like a "shuttle cock" designed pellet does. The "nose heavy design" results in it self-correcting for yaw. In a traditional air gun pellet design, they work well provided the velocity is not very high (read above about 900 fps) and this is pretty well demonstrated with a lot of pellet experimentation on YouTube except of course, what comes from the pellet manufacturers who just want to sell you the fastest pellet available regardless of accuracy. A well balanced bullet that is not too heavy fore or aft really does aid stability and accuracy and that's what led to the 408 Chey Tac and 375 Chey Tac and now Gibb's Improved designs. At the end of the day, you don't know how well it shoots until you, well, shoot it, at very long range!
-Tutt

[samsi]

I've shot the collar buttons with 7gr (edit) of Unique and no filler/wad/dacron. I chamber them gently and elevate the muzzle to position the powder before firing. Decent 25 yard accuracy and the report is about like a champagne cork popping. I need to load some up with a wad of some sort to hold the powder for more practical field use, I think they'd be fun bunny busters.

[AJMD429]

I've shot the collar buttons with 5gr of Unique and no filler/wad/dacron. I chamber them gently and elevate the muzzle to position the powder before firing. Decent 25 yard accuracy and the report is about like a champagne cork popping. I need to load some up with a wad of some sort to hold the powder for more practical field use, I think they'd be fun bunny busters.

I'm betting that the bunnies won't think they're very fun....

[308magtip]

I loaded 45-70's for my trapdoor Springfield carbine of the Custer time. Not sure of the powder but unique sounds right.Tride cotton for a filler.It worked ok but would slip forward if the rounds were carried bullet down in a box.Then I tried the filter floss used in fishtank filters.Adout 1/2 gr was enough.After pushing it down aganist the powder it expand to fill the case keeping the powder down on the primer, Looked funny seeing burning strings come out the muzzle.

[Grizz]

there's a lot of good information here. i'm gonna load some up and have some fun with the grand kids... thanks for the input. keep it coming if y'all gots more to send.

[samsi]

Well, I mis-remembered. I just checked and found that I loaded the collar buttons with 7gr of Unique - in any case, that's well below any listed start load I've seen for that bullet.

The lowest velocity published load I've seen was 21gr of IMR4227 for 1245 f/s at 5200 cup.

12gr of either Bullseye or Red Dot were both listed at 1500+ velocity and 10,000 to 12,000 cup.

[marlinman93]

These tiny lightweight bullets drop off quickly, and don't group very well. They're extremely mold to shoot, but I wasn't impressed with accuracy, even at 100 yds.

[Grizz]

These tiny lightweight bullets drop off quickly, and don't group very well. They're extremely mold to shoot, but I wasn't impressed with accuracy, even at 100 yds.

That's true, but think gallery gun. Or squirrel soup. Or turkeys. or tin cans. just something for the kids, or anyone who is recoil shy. or me, for example, just something different and fun and lethal to a point. I don't normally shoot any firearms at 100 yards. This is air-gun fodder.

It's tough to find a hundred yards of clear space with a backstop on public lands any where near here. I have to drive an hour to get to a multi-use recreational zone, and there are still not any 100 yard spots that are safe to shoot. I don't do "gun ranges" if I can possibly avoid it.

but just for fun, I'd take a box of collar buttons and leave the hunting ammo home. I already know exactly what I can expect of that. I might take the H&R single shot and see if that load can make it past the muzzle. as I said, it is an inexplicable interest
†

[Bill in Oregon]

Grizz, here's a good article on the collar buttons.

https://gunsmagazine.com/discover/colla ... gentleman/

[Grizz]

Grizz, here's a good article on the collar buttons.

https://gunsmagazine.com/discover/colla ... gentleman/

that's a good article. very tempting to buy a mold. wish their sample bag wasn't sold out.