Best .45-70 Government Ammo
Every load we price, sorted by cost per round delivered to your state
We track 9 .45-70 Government loads from 2 dealers. The cheapest delivered to AR, shipping included, is HSM Bear Load .45-70 Government 430gr RNFP Ammo at $2.71 a round.
The .45-70 Government is a big-bore cartridge for black bear, elk, moose and hogs in timber, fired from lever actions like the Marlin 1895 and Henry and from single shots like the Ruger No. 1. The US Army adopted it in 1873 for the Springfield trapdoor rifle. It fires a .458-inch bullet, and loads on this page push 300 to 430-grain bullets at 1,250 to 2,275 fps.
Factory ammo comes in three pressure levels. Low-velocity lead loads like Black Hills 405gr LFP at 1,250 fps sit at the trapdoor end; confirm the maker's rating before firing any load in an antique. Standard lever-gun loads such as Hornady LEVERevolution 325gr FTX or Federal Fusion 300gr run 1,850 to 2,030 fps. Loads marked +P, like Underwood's 325gr at 2,275 fps, and heavy loads like Buffalo Bore's 350gr at 2,145 fps are for strong modern actions only, so read the box. Past about 200 yards the bullets drop steeply; see the trajectory calculator.
All .45-70 Government Loads
Compare ballistics and prices across 9 products
| PRODUCT ↕ | GRAIN ↕ | VELOCITY ↕ | ENERGY ↕ | BC ↕ | USE CASE ↕ | BEST PRICE ↕ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Black Hills .45-70 Government 405gr LFP Ammo
405gr
• 1250 fps
|
405gr | 1250 | 1405 | .29 | — | $3.42/rd |
|
Buffalo Bore .45-70 Government 350gr JFN Ammo
350gr
• 2145 fps
|
350gr | 2145 | 3578 | .25 | — | $4.92/rd |
|
Federal Fusion .45-70 Government 300gr SP Ammo
300gr
• 1850 fps
|
300gr | 1850 | 2280 | .29 | — | $3.16/rd |
|
Federal HammerDown .45-70 Government 300gr Bonded SP Ammo
300gr
• 1850 fps
|
300gr | 1850 | 2280 | .29 | — | $4.07/rd |
|
Fiocchi .45-70 Government 300gr HPFN Ammo
300gr
• 1900 fps
|
300gr | 1900 | 2405 | .213 | — | $2.87/rd |
|
Hornady LEVERevolution .45-70 Government 325gr FTX Ammo
325gr
• 2000 fps
|
325gr | 2000 | 2886 | .23 | — | $3.12/rd |
|
HSM Bear Load .45-70 Government 430gr RNFP Ammo
430gr
• 1801 fps
|
430gr | 1801 | 3098 | .23 | — | $2.71/rd |
|
Underwood .45-70 Government 325gr Xtreme Hunter Ammo
325gr
• 2030 fps
|
325gr | 2030 | 2974 | .23 | — | $4.90/rd |
|
Winchester Super-X .45-70 Government 300gr JHP Ammo
300gr
• 1880 fps
|
300gr | 1880 | 2355 | .283 | — | $3.52/rd |
.45-70 Government Trajectory Calculator
Calculate drop, velocity, and energy at any range
Advantages and Disadvantages
Pros
- Bullets up to 430 grains, heavier than any .450 Bushmaster load, for bear and moose.
- Runs in short, quick-handling lever actions and single shots suited to timber.
- Low-pressure lead loads let you shoot trapdoor-era rifles and replicas.
Cons
- Drops far more past 200 yards than a .30-06 or .308 Win.
- Recoil from 300-grain-plus loads at 1,900 fps or more is heavy in a 7-pound lever gun.
- Three pressure levels mean the wrong box can overload an older or weaker rifle.